Monday: 9.5 miles (6:32); 6.3 miles (7:12)
Tuesday: 10.6 miles (6:25); 5.6 miles (7:15)
Wednesday: 14.6 miles with 4 mile road tempo, .60 mile jog, 5x3:00 gradual uphill. Another muggy morning. Ran 20:31 for the four miles and didn't feel as smooth as I would have liked. On the hills, the plan was to run around 10k effort and I eased into them so I wouldn't die because I suck on hills. Covered .57-.58 on the first four and turned on the old man jets for the last one and covered .61 miles; 4.6 miles (7:24)
Thursday: 6.1 miles (7:09); 4 miles (8:20)
Friday: 7.6 miles (6:41); 4.6 miles (7:26)
Saturday: 12.4 miles with 4x2 miles with 2:00 jog. I ran this on the track and since there were benches in both straightaways and I had to run around them, I don't feel guilty calling them two miles, instead of 3200m. The plan was to run 10:10, 10:00, 10:00 and 9:50 with my times ending up: 10:07, 9:56, 9:57, 9:48. The first three were pretty easy and I was able to recover quickly. On the last, it was mostly smooth for the first 2k, with fatigue slowly coming in after that. I could have done a 5th in sub 9:40, but it would have hurt. Decent session; 7 miles (7:14)
Sunday: 22.5 miles (6:25). Really swampy out there. I was worried about this because of yesterday's session and I was running on little sleep (10 hours total for the past two nights, courtesy of a lot of school prep and going to see the UFC in-town last night). But since misery loves company, I ran with Craig Padgett, who moved to Nashville a few months ago. The plan was to run at whatever pace I felt like, so I enjoyed relaxing the first few miles. I dropped him off at 17 miles and headed out for a few more. I was able to start running sub 6:00 pace pretty easily and I felt really smooth until about two miles to go, when it started to get a little bit tough. But the heat was kicking in, and this was my longest run since the Country Music Marathon in April. Great run and it was one of those days where your toes got water-logged from sweat.
Week Total: 115.4 miles. Wow, big week. Lately, I've felt like I need more extension at half-marathon and faster pace, so this was a productive week. Now, I haven't done "real" hill repeats in years and have never done such extensive work the day before a long run, so it doesn't look like my typical training. But starting this past week, I've been getting some workout help and once I have everything finalized, I can officially fire myself and spend my time worrying about running my workouts, rather than planning and running them. And with someone else checking over them, I'm much less likely to quit being a sissy in some of them.
This next weeks begins the official start of the school year. I'm teaching at a new school this year, and while in the past, I was stuck doing my runs during lunch and in the evenings, this year, I can do my main sessions in the morning, as long as I'm done by 6:45am. The main thing now will be making myself go to bed on time. I actually do better during the school year because I start up my diet plan again (which should help me shed my summer pounds) and with a busier schedule, I'm much more productive.
Back at the grind for the next four weeks.
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
Wednesday, August 5, 2015
July 27th-August 2nd Training
Monday: No running. I was going to run in the morning but I had a bad migraine, so I had to scratch it. And since I'm in South Carolina and had plans to visit some friends for lunch and dinner, I didn't get in a run. We did see Trainwreck, which was pretty funny. However, I think Spy is a much funnier and better movie.
Tuesday: No running...again. A stupid thing about my migraines is that if I get one on the right side of my head, I will usually get one on the left side of my head a day or two later. The bad thing about the left side is that it is usually much more intense, which was the case today. And the absolute worst part was that we had to drive back to Tennessee, so Mary drove the entire way back while I was moaning in the back with the occasional cookie tossing on the side of the road. That puppy lasted over 16 hours.
Wednesday: 5.4 miles (7:36); 9.3 miles (6:54)
Thursday: 6.3 miles (7:21); 10.6 miles (6:29)
Friday: 7.1 miles with chumped out workout. Plan was 20x1:00 on/off. My legs had a hard time opening up and after 1.30 miles, I called it a workout; Chumped out again with just 4.2 miles. I was going to try a track workout but my quads were so achy.
Saturday: 10.1 miles (6:33); Skipped second run. Went to bed at 6pm with another stupid migraine. I've barely had any at all the past year, but have had three bad ones in under a week.
Sunday: 20.1 miles with 12 miles moderate Finally stopped being an idiot and started at 6am. The plan was a warm-up, with 12 miles around my just under four mile loop, working from 5:50s to upper 5:20s. Spencer joined me in the beginning and we ran our first loop in 22:14 and then Spencer's pacing assistance was over at five miles. Finished up the next two loops in 21:44 and 21:47 and after just over a minute push, I finished at 5:33 average. I felt pretty weak from the get-go, probably as a result from last night. But the effort was really smooth through the first two loops, with the last three miles getting a little bit tough. Not too bad of a session after a crappy week.
Week Total: 72.8 miles. I'm calling this one a mulligan. Too many headaches and too many whiny moments.
Tuesday: No running...again. A stupid thing about my migraines is that if I get one on the right side of my head, I will usually get one on the left side of my head a day or two later. The bad thing about the left side is that it is usually much more intense, which was the case today. And the absolute worst part was that we had to drive back to Tennessee, so Mary drove the entire way back while I was moaning in the back with the occasional cookie tossing on the side of the road. That puppy lasted over 16 hours.
Wednesday: 5.4 miles (7:36); 9.3 miles (6:54)
Thursday: 6.3 miles (7:21); 10.6 miles (6:29)
Friday: 7.1 miles with chumped out workout. Plan was 20x1:00 on/off. My legs had a hard time opening up and after 1.30 miles, I called it a workout; Chumped out again with just 4.2 miles. I was going to try a track workout but my quads were so achy.
Saturday: 10.1 miles (6:33); Skipped second run. Went to bed at 6pm with another stupid migraine. I've barely had any at all the past year, but have had three bad ones in under a week.
Sunday: 20.1 miles with 12 miles moderate Finally stopped being an idiot and started at 6am. The plan was a warm-up, with 12 miles around my just under four mile loop, working from 5:50s to upper 5:20s. Spencer joined me in the beginning and we ran our first loop in 22:14 and then Spencer's pacing assistance was over at five miles. Finished up the next two loops in 21:44 and 21:47 and after just over a minute push, I finished at 5:33 average. I felt pretty weak from the get-go, probably as a result from last night. But the effort was really smooth through the first two loops, with the last three miles getting a little bit tough. Not too bad of a session after a crappy week.
Week Total: 72.8 miles. I'm calling this one a mulligan. Too many headaches and too many whiny moments.
Born in the USA Four Miler
I grew up in Columbia, SC and try to go back at least once a year since my parents and sister still live there. I haven't been there in over 2.5 years because I didn't want to take Ellis on such a long car ride (Eightish hours for a one year old wouldn't be fun). But since both my wife and I have summers off, we were due for a trip.
I decided to line up the trek with the Born in the USA race, hosted by Strictly Running. I worked for Strictly Running during my college breaks and did my token Sunday long runs with them as well. It was probably my favorite training group ever as they had a good group of guys ranging from solid high schoolers to Masters runners who could put a whooping on your butt.
I love the Nashville running community and there are a lot of cool races and stores, but I'm always impressed with how well and organized Strictly Running's races are. They have timing mats and clocks at the mile markers, you have the results posted on a huge screen and everything is organized very well. So I knew this race would be another solid event.
The course is advertised as flat and fast, which is my type of course, especially with the shorter race distance. And even better, they had a time bonus system set up where if you won and broke 19:30, you got $500 and if you broke 19:00 and won, you got $1000 (in addition to the $100 first place prize). Since Columbia weather is even more miserable than Nashville, I thought sub 19:00 would be too tough, so my goal was to attack 19:30. I was going to use my GPS and try and stay under 4:50 for each mile and then hammer home the last mile.
I looked up the course and it turned out to not be too flat and fast! It was mostly the same course where I ran a 14:55 or so 5k at the Cold Winters Day 5k a few weeks before the 2013 Houston Marathon...and I was trying to haul in that race. There are really no tough hills, you're just either going slightly up or slightly down, with the first half mile of the race being a gradual uphill...not exactly a course for rhythm runners like myself. So sub 19:30 was going to be even tougher, but since money talks, I was going to at least try.
On race morning, it was a warm 75 degrees with a dew point right at 70. It rained beforehand, but luckily it cleared up for the race. On my warm-up, I saw Adam Freudenthal, who is a low 14s/29s guy from the upstate. I wasn't sure how race fit he was, but I was hoping I would have the element of surprise over him since he probably wouldn't know me. I anticipated him leading for a while and then hoped my gas tank and old man strength would take him out in the later part of the race. But we ended up chatting a little bit at the start and both said we were hoping for sub 19:30 and only one of us would be able to get it. So there went the element of surprise.
When the race started, we ran side-by-side and went up the half-mile hill at just under 5:00 pace. Once we turned, you had a little bit of downhill running, so I decided to push the pace and see what happened. I instantly had a small lead, so I decided to keep on pushing in hopes to break him.
I went through the mile in the high 4:48s, which was perfect, considering it was a slowish mile. I kept my foot on the gas and was happy to go through the two mile in 9:32. I was pretty certain I had sub 19:30 and was tempted to go for sub 19:00. I came back with a 4:50 and knew I had to run in the 4:30s if I wanted a much bigger bonus. I tried to go after it but the last mile had too many short climbs, which really stole my mojo and rhythm. I crossed the line in 19:11, which was really motivating. I felt like I could have run sub 19:00 if I had a pack to run with, which is a good sign in the muggy weather. Not a bad place to be three months out from Chicago!
I decided to line up the trek with the Born in the USA race, hosted by Strictly Running. I worked for Strictly Running during my college breaks and did my token Sunday long runs with them as well. It was probably my favorite training group ever as they had a good group of guys ranging from solid high schoolers to Masters runners who could put a whooping on your butt.
I love the Nashville running community and there are a lot of cool races and stores, but I'm always impressed with how well and organized Strictly Running's races are. They have timing mats and clocks at the mile markers, you have the results posted on a huge screen and everything is organized very well. So I knew this race would be another solid event.
The course is advertised as flat and fast, which is my type of course, especially with the shorter race distance. And even better, they had a time bonus system set up where if you won and broke 19:30, you got $500 and if you broke 19:00 and won, you got $1000 (in addition to the $100 first place prize). Since Columbia weather is even more miserable than Nashville, I thought sub 19:00 would be too tough, so my goal was to attack 19:30. I was going to use my GPS and try and stay under 4:50 for each mile and then hammer home the last mile.
I looked up the course and it turned out to not be too flat and fast! It was mostly the same course where I ran a 14:55 or so 5k at the Cold Winters Day 5k a few weeks before the 2013 Houston Marathon...and I was trying to haul in that race. There are really no tough hills, you're just either going slightly up or slightly down, with the first half mile of the race being a gradual uphill...not exactly a course for rhythm runners like myself. So sub 19:30 was going to be even tougher, but since money talks, I was going to at least try.
On race morning, it was a warm 75 degrees with a dew point right at 70. It rained beforehand, but luckily it cleared up for the race. On my warm-up, I saw Adam Freudenthal, who is a low 14s/29s guy from the upstate. I wasn't sure how race fit he was, but I was hoping I would have the element of surprise over him since he probably wouldn't know me. I anticipated him leading for a while and then hoped my gas tank and old man strength would take him out in the later part of the race. But we ended up chatting a little bit at the start and both said we were hoping for sub 19:30 and only one of us would be able to get it. So there went the element of surprise.
When the race started, we ran side-by-side and went up the half-mile hill at just under 5:00 pace. Once we turned, you had a little bit of downhill running, so I decided to push the pace and see what happened. I instantly had a small lead, so I decided to keep on pushing in hopes to break him.
I went through the mile in the high 4:48s, which was perfect, considering it was a slowish mile. I kept my foot on the gas and was happy to go through the two mile in 9:32. I was pretty certain I had sub 19:30 and was tempted to go for sub 19:00. I came back with a 4:50 and knew I had to run in the 4:30s if I wanted a much bigger bonus. I tried to go after it but the last mile had too many short climbs, which really stole my mojo and rhythm. I crossed the line in 19:11, which was really motivating. I felt like I could have run sub 19:00 if I had a pack to run with, which is a good sign in the muggy weather. Not a bad place to be three months out from Chicago!
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
July 20th-26th Training
Monday: 7.3 miles (7:07). Only ran once because I had an early flight from Chicago.
Tuesday: 10.7 miles (6:22); 5.4 miles (6:50)
Wednesday: 11.3 miles with 12x600m with 1:00 jog rest. Goal was to start at 1:45-1:48 and see how I felt. Lately, I've been struggling with worrying about the total number of intervals, rather than breaking it into small pieces, which I used to do in the more glory-filled days. So the goal was to focus on three sets of four. Went out in 1:46, 1:45, 1:45 and it felt really easy so I ran the rest in 1:42-1:44. It felt pretty smooth through 10, then the last two got a little bit tough, so 12 was the perfect number. Had to start at 5am and it was still 75 degrees with a 73 dew point. I'm over summer; 6.9 miles (7:22)
Thursday: 7.3 miles (7:23); 4 miles (8:13); 6.3 miles (6:50)
Friday: 9.4 miles (6:36); 5.5 miles (7:07)
Saturday: 10 miles with four mile tempo in 19:38. Jumped into the Goodlettsville Classic with hopes of running just under 20:00 as a tempo. There were a couple of decent high schoolers in the race, so I hoped they would take me out for the first mile but no one wanted to lead. Ran the first mile in 5:01 with a decent lead and then went: 4:48, 4:54 and 4:55. Felt smooth and controlled and I feel like I could have run close to 19:00 if I hammered from the gun. Good confidence booster after a Chicago bomb; 5.6 miles (7:15)
Sunday: 14.5 miles (6:33). Was going for 20 but the heat got me again. I made the mistake of waiting until 7:30 to start, and after finishing my 9.4 mile loop, it was already really hot and humid. Once I hit 11 miles, I could tell I would do if I tried 20, so I modified the course and struggled the last two miles. I will start doing my long runs by 6am since finishing a little after 8:00 is much better than 9:30.
Week Total: 104.2 miles. Decent week after struggling in Chicago. It shows my fitness is there, I just need to be more patient and have more mental focus for the longer stuff. Since I'll be shifting to longer intervals and more marathon-type stuff soon, I should be able to improve on that. I have a few more weeks until my first race, so I should be able to get in some solid training to wrap up the summer break.
Tuesday: 10.7 miles (6:22); 5.4 miles (6:50)
Wednesday: 11.3 miles with 12x600m with 1:00 jog rest. Goal was to start at 1:45-1:48 and see how I felt. Lately, I've been struggling with worrying about the total number of intervals, rather than breaking it into small pieces, which I used to do in the more glory-filled days. So the goal was to focus on three sets of four. Went out in 1:46, 1:45, 1:45 and it felt really easy so I ran the rest in 1:42-1:44. It felt pretty smooth through 10, then the last two got a little bit tough, so 12 was the perfect number. Had to start at 5am and it was still 75 degrees with a 73 dew point. I'm over summer; 6.9 miles (7:22)
Thursday: 7.3 miles (7:23); 4 miles (8:13); 6.3 miles (6:50)
Friday: 9.4 miles (6:36); 5.5 miles (7:07)
Saturday: 10 miles with four mile tempo in 19:38. Jumped into the Goodlettsville Classic with hopes of running just under 20:00 as a tempo. There were a couple of decent high schoolers in the race, so I hoped they would take me out for the first mile but no one wanted to lead. Ran the first mile in 5:01 with a decent lead and then went: 4:48, 4:54 and 4:55. Felt smooth and controlled and I feel like I could have run close to 19:00 if I hammered from the gun. Good confidence booster after a Chicago bomb; 5.6 miles (7:15)
Sunday: 14.5 miles (6:33). Was going for 20 but the heat got me again. I made the mistake of waiting until 7:30 to start, and after finishing my 9.4 mile loop, it was already really hot and humid. Once I hit 11 miles, I could tell I would do if I tried 20, so I modified the course and struggled the last two miles. I will start doing my long runs by 6am since finishing a little after 8:00 is much better than 9:30.
Week Total: 104.2 miles. Decent week after struggling in Chicago. It shows my fitness is there, I just need to be more patient and have more mental focus for the longer stuff. Since I'll be shifting to longer intervals and more marathon-type stuff soon, I should be able to improve on that. I have a few more weeks until my first race, so I should be able to get in some solid training to wrap up the summer break.
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
July 13th-19th Training
Monday: 8 miles (7:15); 1 mile (9:00 and I don't even know why I'm counting this); 6.3 miles (6:57)
Tuesday: 8.7 miles with 4xhill blasts. Got smoked by a 4:30+ miler on all of them(7:25); 6.3 miles (6:40)
Wednesday: 8.4 miles with axed workout. Plan was 20x1:00 on/off, slowly working into it. I was running easily but was rolling 4:30ish (plan was to average around 4:40 or so). My patellar tendon was hurting from the get-go, especially when I started my recovery jog. I didn't want to make it worse, so I stopped after eight. It probably was hurting so badly from trying to chase down the 17 year old kid on the hills; Skipped second run to be safe.
Thursday: 11 miles with 9.53 miles moderate at 5:38 average. Goal was to average 5:45 or so and keep it on the easy side of moderate. Locked into that pace but unintentionally dipped down the last few miles. Felt good and knee wasn't bad; 3.9 miles (8:43)
Friday: 9.6 miles (6:50); Skipped second run. Visiting my aunt and uncle in Rockford, IL, so I didn't have much time.
Saturday: 6.1 miles with 4xstrides (7:06)
Sunday: 11.8 miles with DNF at RnR Chicago. Wow, terrible day. I'll write a more extensive recap later this week, but my goal in the weather conditions was to break 67. Got in a 4:58 first mile and was in 10th or so. Gradually worked my way up and put on the brakes a bit with 5:08, 5:04, 5:07 splits. Started slowing down with a 10:26 next two miles and then it got butt ugly with a 5:22, 5:39, 5:47. I don't know what was up, my legs just revolted and I couldn't push, even though it felt easy. It was like the last four miles of the Garry Bjorklund half but on steroids. After about seven miles, my knee was getting really achy and I didn't want to jack it up while running close to 6:00 pace. Pulled out a little before 10 miles. Bummer.
Week Total: 81.1 miles. Terrible volume and an even worse race. I felt like I was having all the symptoms of low iron but I got results in today and it's fine. I need some training adjustments, a mental kick in the butt and to get my head back on straight. The work continues next week.
Tuesday: 8.7 miles with 4xhill blasts. Got smoked by a 4:30+ miler on all of them(7:25); 6.3 miles (6:40)
Wednesday: 8.4 miles with axed workout. Plan was 20x1:00 on/off, slowly working into it. I was running easily but was rolling 4:30ish (plan was to average around 4:40 or so). My patellar tendon was hurting from the get-go, especially when I started my recovery jog. I didn't want to make it worse, so I stopped after eight. It probably was hurting so badly from trying to chase down the 17 year old kid on the hills; Skipped second run to be safe.
Thursday: 11 miles with 9.53 miles moderate at 5:38 average. Goal was to average 5:45 or so and keep it on the easy side of moderate. Locked into that pace but unintentionally dipped down the last few miles. Felt good and knee wasn't bad; 3.9 miles (8:43)
Friday: 9.6 miles (6:50); Skipped second run. Visiting my aunt and uncle in Rockford, IL, so I didn't have much time.
Saturday: 6.1 miles with 4xstrides (7:06)
Sunday: 11.8 miles with DNF at RnR Chicago. Wow, terrible day. I'll write a more extensive recap later this week, but my goal in the weather conditions was to break 67. Got in a 4:58 first mile and was in 10th or so. Gradually worked my way up and put on the brakes a bit with 5:08, 5:04, 5:07 splits. Started slowing down with a 10:26 next two miles and then it got butt ugly with a 5:22, 5:39, 5:47. I don't know what was up, my legs just revolted and I couldn't push, even though it felt easy. It was like the last four miles of the Garry Bjorklund half but on steroids. After about seven miles, my knee was getting really achy and I didn't want to jack it up while running close to 6:00 pace. Pulled out a little before 10 miles. Bummer.
Week Total: 81.1 miles. Terrible volume and an even worse race. I felt like I was having all the symptoms of low iron but I got results in today and it's fine. I need some training adjustments, a mental kick in the butt and to get my head back on straight. The work continues next week.
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
July 6th-12th Training
Monday: 11.3 miles (7:18). Last run in South Carolina and met up with my old high school buddy Ben Jackson. I felt bad that I'm living large as a PE teacher and he's only an orthopedic surgeon now. I got lost on the way to meet him and lost again on the way back to the hotel, so it was some extra mileage, that I ended up needing. It was good to catch back up with him though.
Tuesday: 6 miles (7:20); 8.9 miles (6:45).
Wednesday: 6.8 miles with axed workout. I was going to do 10 miles of 1/2 mile on/off at 5:05/5:25 pace. I should have been smarter with the weather and at least started 5s a mile slower than that (upper 70s with a dp. in the lower 70s). My legs felt ok, I just couldn't get going at the right speed. Was running a little slower and it was getting toasty, so I cut it just under two miles into the session. Will try a modified workout tonight; 7.8 miles. I was going to do 6 miles of a mile at 5:00-5:05 and a mile at 5:20-5:25. Quads felt like cinder blocks on the warm-up with Spencer (he was just doing mileage) and on the strides as well. It was also 85 degrees at 9pm. I felt like a chump just running easy, but fast running wasn't happening. I blame spending over an hour taming my backyard jungle with my crappy push mower in the heat of the day.
Thursday: 6.4 miles (7:29); 10.6 miles (6:34)
Friday: 10.5 miles with a five mile progression in 25:37 (balanced splits of 5:13, 5:11, 5:09, 5:05, 4:59). I was going do something different, but last night, Dave Milner told me that Jake Hurysz (3:40, 13:38 guy who just graduated from Colorado) was in town and was looking for some tempo company, so I joined in. We didn't get started with the workout until about 8am and it was already 80/74 then. Tempo was rusty the first mile or so and then things got much more relaxed with a little bit of a push the last mile. Nice session, especially with some good company. But recent college grads make me feel old; 7.6 miles with 3x.30 mile hill (7:36). Met up with Nathan, who is a high schooler down the road from me. He's a pretty decent runner (4:30ish mile) and has some raw talent, so I'm adding him to my somewhat consistent training partner stable, which is now up to two runners. I wanted a little bit of intensity to block up with this morning's workout since the intensity has been so low this week. Nathan thought I was joking when I showed him the hill I was going to use, which joins Joey Elsakr's mocking he gave me a few months ago and even my wife laughed at me and she doesn't even run. But it's real to me! Anyway, Nathan hammered from the start and I couldn't let him whoop me. I ran 85, 84, 84, which is the fastest I've ever run on this hill and I was expecting to open around 90. Also had to show the kid who was the boss on the last one.
Saturday: 6.8 miles (7:44); 8.1 miles (7:16)
Sunday: 19.6 miles (6:44). My plan was to run the first 14 at sub 6:30 pace and then run five miles alternating a 1/4 at sub 5:10 pace and sub 6:00 pace. I could already feel the heat on my back a mile into the run but felt good when I hit home for my pit stop at 9.4. I quickly checked the weather on my phone and it was up to 83-76. I was feeling good, so I kept with the plan and ran my first quarter on target. After I was done, it felt like my skin was on fire and on my second fast quarter, I could tell I would probably spontaneously combust if I kept it up, so I planned to jog it in the rest of the way. After a water stop at 16ish, I really started to wilt in the heat. Quickly was over 7:00 pace for the next mile and dropped an 8:02 next mile. I wasn't thirsty or anything, I was just dead. I tried walking a couple of times but that was more tiring and would take forever to make it back home. Walked the last .40 miles in since I was running 9:00ish pace. Wow, that was dramatic.
Week Total: 110.4 miles. Volume wasn't bad but less intensity than expected with lots of adjustments, excuses and whining about the weather. But hey, the dew point didn't drop under 70 one time this past week and had a good workout on Friday and before this week, was having solid session. This upcoming week will probably be under 100 again as I'm travelling to visit my aunt and uncle for a couple of days in Rockford, IL and then headed to Chicago for two nights to run the RnR Half. It's supposed to be hot and humid, so my main goal will be to go for the sub 67 bonus. Sub 66 may be too tough if the weather is as hot as expected.
Less than three months until the Chicago Marathon. I feel good about where I currently am but there's a couple of things I need to work on before I'm ready for marathon training.
Tuesday: 6 miles (7:20); 8.9 miles (6:45).
Wednesday: 6.8 miles with axed workout. I was going to do 10 miles of 1/2 mile on/off at 5:05/5:25 pace. I should have been smarter with the weather and at least started 5s a mile slower than that (upper 70s with a dp. in the lower 70s). My legs felt ok, I just couldn't get going at the right speed. Was running a little slower and it was getting toasty, so I cut it just under two miles into the session. Will try a modified workout tonight; 7.8 miles. I was going to do 6 miles of a mile at 5:00-5:05 and a mile at 5:20-5:25. Quads felt like cinder blocks on the warm-up with Spencer (he was just doing mileage) and on the strides as well. It was also 85 degrees at 9pm. I felt like a chump just running easy, but fast running wasn't happening. I blame spending over an hour taming my backyard jungle with my crappy push mower in the heat of the day.
Thursday: 6.4 miles (7:29); 10.6 miles (6:34)
Friday: 10.5 miles with a five mile progression in 25:37 (balanced splits of 5:13, 5:11, 5:09, 5:05, 4:59). I was going do something different, but last night, Dave Milner told me that Jake Hurysz (3:40, 13:38 guy who just graduated from Colorado) was in town and was looking for some tempo company, so I joined in. We didn't get started with the workout until about 8am and it was already 80/74 then. Tempo was rusty the first mile or so and then things got much more relaxed with a little bit of a push the last mile. Nice session, especially with some good company. But recent college grads make me feel old; 7.6 miles with 3x.30 mile hill (7:36). Met up with Nathan, who is a high schooler down the road from me. He's a pretty decent runner (4:30ish mile) and has some raw talent, so I'm adding him to my somewhat consistent training partner stable, which is now up to two runners. I wanted a little bit of intensity to block up with this morning's workout since the intensity has been so low this week. Nathan thought I was joking when I showed him the hill I was going to use, which joins Joey Elsakr's mocking he gave me a few months ago and even my wife laughed at me and she doesn't even run. But it's real to me! Anyway, Nathan hammered from the start and I couldn't let him whoop me. I ran 85, 84, 84, which is the fastest I've ever run on this hill and I was expecting to open around 90. Also had to show the kid who was the boss on the last one.
Saturday: 6.8 miles (7:44); 8.1 miles (7:16)
Sunday: 19.6 miles (6:44). My plan was to run the first 14 at sub 6:30 pace and then run five miles alternating a 1/4 at sub 5:10 pace and sub 6:00 pace. I could already feel the heat on my back a mile into the run but felt good when I hit home for my pit stop at 9.4. I quickly checked the weather on my phone and it was up to 83-76. I was feeling good, so I kept with the plan and ran my first quarter on target. After I was done, it felt like my skin was on fire and on my second fast quarter, I could tell I would probably spontaneously combust if I kept it up, so I planned to jog it in the rest of the way. After a water stop at 16ish, I really started to wilt in the heat. Quickly was over 7:00 pace for the next mile and dropped an 8:02 next mile. I wasn't thirsty or anything, I was just dead. I tried walking a couple of times but that was more tiring and would take forever to make it back home. Walked the last .40 miles in since I was running 9:00ish pace. Wow, that was dramatic.
Week Total: 110.4 miles. Volume wasn't bad but less intensity than expected with lots of adjustments, excuses and whining about the weather. But hey, the dew point didn't drop under 70 one time this past week and had a good workout on Friday and before this week, was having solid session. This upcoming week will probably be under 100 again as I'm travelling to visit my aunt and uncle for a couple of days in Rockford, IL and then headed to Chicago for two nights to run the RnR Half. It's supposed to be hot and humid, so my main goal will be to go for the sub 67 bonus. Sub 66 may be too tough if the weather is as hot as expected.
Less than three months until the Chicago Marathon. I feel good about where I currently am but there's a couple of things I need to work on before I'm ready for marathon training.
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
June 29th-July 5th Training
Monday: 1.7 miles (9:29); 6.2 miles (7:30); 6.3 miles (7:11)
Tuesday: 9.9 miles (6:58); Skipped second run because it was Mary's birthday
Wednesday: 12.2 miles with 16x60s on/off. With the dew point right at 70 and with a race on Saturday, my goal was to run 4:50-4:55 on the fast portion and sub 5:55 on the recovery. I ended up averaging in the upper 4:40s and 5:40s and 5:16 for the 32 minutes (6.09 miles). I had trouble finding my rhythm for the first few and doubted how many I could do but once I got to around my 10th interval, I felt better. I was going to run up to 20 but with the upcoming race, I didn't want to run too hard. This was my first time running this workout and it was hard finding the right pace on the GPS since with only a minute per lap, the GPS can jump some. Maybe this would be good to do on the track with a little modification; 6.8 miles (7:12)
Thursday: 7.5 miles (7:26); 4 miles (8:44); Skipped afternoon run because I spent the rest of the day driving to South Carolina
Friday: 8.7 miles (6:54); 3.6 miles with strides (7:09)
Saturday: 12.2 miles with 4 mile race in 19:11. Plan was to run under 19:30 and stay under 4:50 pace on my GPS. It was pretty muggy with a 70 dew point and the course had a lot of gentle, gradual hills with not many flat sections. It rained before the race, but it stopped before my warm-up, which made the roads a little more slick. The first 1/2 mile is a gradual uphill and ran that with Adam Freudenthal at a little under 5:00 pace. Once it was over, I pushed the pace down a hill and started to break away First mile was 4:48, and I came through two miles in 9:32. I was pretty certain I had sub 19:30 in the bag and came through the third mile in a 4:50 split. I debated going for sub 19:00, but there were some hills that were bugging me, so I just kept on with the same effort.and finished with a 4:49 last mile. Really good performance because I struggle on those types of courses and felt like I could have broken 19 if I had some people pulling me along; Skipped second run because I was at my sister's until nightime.
Sunday: 17.6 miles (7:04). Ran to Strictly Running to meet up with some people to run with. Back in the day, I would do my long runs here during the breaks in college. I'd get hammered by the older guys and it was some really good training. After 3.5 miles solo, I ran with some high school and college kids and ended up breaking away with a guy named Russell and Zack Langston, who was a RS freshmen last year at NC State and is a pretty good runner. I ran 14 with them in the 7:15 range and then stopped the run at 17.6 since I hung out at the store for a while afterwards and didn't feel like starting back up again.
Week Total: 96.7 miles. Lower volume but I had a shortened long run and three skipped runs, so it's not that bad. One solid workout and a nice, confidence-boosting race. Things are starting to come around. This next week will have higher volume and plan on a solid workout and long run.
Tuesday: 9.9 miles (6:58); Skipped second run because it was Mary's birthday
Wednesday: 12.2 miles with 16x60s on/off. With the dew point right at 70 and with a race on Saturday, my goal was to run 4:50-4:55 on the fast portion and sub 5:55 on the recovery. I ended up averaging in the upper 4:40s and 5:40s and 5:16 for the 32 minutes (6.09 miles). I had trouble finding my rhythm for the first few and doubted how many I could do but once I got to around my 10th interval, I felt better. I was going to run up to 20 but with the upcoming race, I didn't want to run too hard. This was my first time running this workout and it was hard finding the right pace on the GPS since with only a minute per lap, the GPS can jump some. Maybe this would be good to do on the track with a little modification; 6.8 miles (7:12)
Thursday: 7.5 miles (7:26); 4 miles (8:44); Skipped afternoon run because I spent the rest of the day driving to South Carolina
Friday: 8.7 miles (6:54); 3.6 miles with strides (7:09)
Saturday: 12.2 miles with 4 mile race in 19:11. Plan was to run under 19:30 and stay under 4:50 pace on my GPS. It was pretty muggy with a 70 dew point and the course had a lot of gentle, gradual hills with not many flat sections. It rained before the race, but it stopped before my warm-up, which made the roads a little more slick. The first 1/2 mile is a gradual uphill and ran that with Adam Freudenthal at a little under 5:00 pace. Once it was over, I pushed the pace down a hill and started to break away First mile was 4:48, and I came through two miles in 9:32. I was pretty certain I had sub 19:30 in the bag and came through the third mile in a 4:50 split. I debated going for sub 19:00, but there were some hills that were bugging me, so I just kept on with the same effort.and finished with a 4:49 last mile. Really good performance because I struggle on those types of courses and felt like I could have broken 19 if I had some people pulling me along; Skipped second run because I was at my sister's until nightime.
Sunday: 17.6 miles (7:04). Ran to Strictly Running to meet up with some people to run with. Back in the day, I would do my long runs here during the breaks in college. I'd get hammered by the older guys and it was some really good training. After 3.5 miles solo, I ran with some high school and college kids and ended up breaking away with a guy named Russell and Zack Langston, who was a RS freshmen last year at NC State and is a pretty good runner. I ran 14 with them in the 7:15 range and then stopped the run at 17.6 since I hung out at the store for a while afterwards and didn't feel like starting back up again.
Week Total: 96.7 miles. Lower volume but I had a shortened long run and three skipped runs, so it's not that bad. One solid workout and a nice, confidence-boosting race. Things are starting to come around. This next week will have higher volume and plan on a solid workout and long run.
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