Cross Training and an evening run along the lake

Good morning, marathon fans!  Wednesdays are my cross-training days, and yesterday I survived an 80-minute session with Greg the personal trainer.  What I like best about working with a trainer is that it forces me to get out of my comfort zone and try new exercises.  

After such a great session in the morning, I decided to double-up in the evening and head out to try for the 7 miles we had on the calendar for Wednesday.  That was a great idea, until I actually started running and realized just how tired my muscles were from all those weights earlier in the day.

While Evan took off with a burst of speed to go for the whole the 7 miles, I worked in some of Jeff Galloway's famous walk breaks.  It was just a little too late, and I was a little too tired to get up to the 7-mile mark, but I was happy to stay in the 4-5 mile range.  And it was a lovely evening to be out & about at the lake.

The great thing about running along the lake in Chicago is that there is only really that one trail, so Evan ran to our 3.5 mile marker and turned around, while I cruised back and forth along the 2 mile marker, and we finished together.  I was proud to meet his pace on the way back, and even sprint the last block, once my muscles were feeling warmed up.

What do you do to cross-train?