GAR Training - Week 3

Coming into week 3 of GAR training I made sure to have a rest day somewhere in the week. But at the time of writing this, doesn't feel like I had one at all because there were some tough workout days this week.

Monday – jiu-jitsu (technique only)

Tuesday – Rest day

Wednesday – UFC Gym, jiu-jitsu & circuit training

Thursday – UFC Gym, lifting (total body), about 2 miles on a treadmill
Friday – 6 mile run
Saturday – jiu-jitsu (2hrs of sparring)
Sunday – 3 mile run, 800m swim, jiu-jitsu sparring (1hr)

The tiring days this week were Wednesday and Saturday...and Sunday because I was still tired from Saturday. Rolling for about an hour an a half on Wednesday and then going straight into a Daily Ultimate Training session was brutal. I felt like pushing the fitness that day...yeah, did that for sure. Saturday was just straight BJJ sparring. Must have gone about 7 or 8 rounds, 6 minutes each round. It was exhausting. Sunday's run was kept at a steady pace, the swim just felt refreshing, and sparring wasn't as intense as Saturday but by the time I began rolling I was already feeling worn out.

Looking at the week, you may be wondering why all the jiu-jitsu when I'm training for a run. Well, it's great cardio training especially for explosiveness and quick recovery. But more so, it works the mental side of things. When your opponent has you in a bad spot, all their weight is on you, you're tired, you're being smothered, it's difficult to breath, your limbs have no gas left in them, do you give up the submission or dig in and keep going? It builds a type of “no quit” mentality which I think will be useful on the run around mile 6 when the lungs are starting to burn and the sun is heating up. That's the point when your mind has to tell your body to keep going, and I think it'll translate from rolling to running without a problem.

Friday's run was a test. I wanted to see how well conditioned my legs have become to running over the past few weeks so I upped the mileage. It went fine. Legs felt good, lungs felt good, only during the last mile did the legs start to feel a slight burn. I didn't run with any pace in mind, I just sort of cruised. If I had to guess, it was probably around an 8:30 pace...maybe.

For this coming week, it's time to pick up the pace! I got my Asics watch in the mail and I'm eager to see what my mile splits are...and then to make them faster.