December Re-Start

The past 2 weeks have been up and down. After hitting 70 miles to kick off December, I hit another 70. Somehow or another I felt that a month out from the marathon was a good time to amp back up. I would come to find out I needed a rest week.

How did I get to the realization of needing to rest? Upon finishing my long run my Achilles seemed tight. So I went through MONDAY expecting to run only to feel dog tired (day off number 1). Then on Wednesday I ate poorly, leading to poor energy (day off number 2). After a short Friday run, I was back at the workout grind for Saturday- 5 sets of 5 minutes in 5:40 pace, with 2 minutes off followed by 2.5 miles at 5:55 per mile.

Bottom line is I need to reboot. As December rolls around, staying on track is tough due to family, and work demands. I just need to stay focused on getting a good start heading into half marathon and 5k training. 

Later this week I plan to sketch out some training modifications- ie ways to hit super goal pace.

It's cold outside...

We ventured indoors today for our workout. By we, I mean myself a few clubmates. We're fortunate to have the Dempsey indoor in town at the University of Washington. 

While not that cold out, the chance to run inside with your shirt off in December is pretty great. The goal of the workout? 5k at 5k race pace.... 5x1k with 0 rest. If nothing else, I wanted to gauge where I was at fitness wise coming off the marathon.

Result: 16:28. Back in March I ran a PR indoors at the Dempsey, going 15:58. So this is a good starting point. With no speed work, I was able to hit 60 second laps (307 or 308m), putting me under 5:20 per mile (5:18). Considering I did a 3.5 mile progression last week and struggled to go under 81 per 400, this is great. I didn't kill myself to do it either. Up next will be a good December block of training leading into a potential January 1/2.

On the road...

Back on the horse. My NYC recap never happened, or might happen, or... Alas I'm back.

The road to 2:29 is being paved each day. Might be a short country road or a long interstate. Goal is to build to it.

This week is 70-75 miles, a step up from 45 the week before. Much is made of the 10% rule. During regular training cycles, it is a handy rule of thumb. When rebuilding from a peak? Less helpful. Your body can tolerate more, otherwise you'd do 25...+2.5! Etc. Tomorrow is tempo. We'll see how that goes. Should be easy, but it's in the cold so who knows.

The Final Countdown

The taper is in full effect. 60 measly miles for the week, but 7 days of running. I've made a concerted effort to maintain routine, not aim for longer days of running (and fewest days). Schedule is important to me. Result has been a good, fresh feel.

My last few workouts have been great. Starting with my most recent...

-5 miles at 5:50-5:55, 1 mile at 5:30 (5:50 average) today

-10x800 in 2:33 average (all 2:32-2:34), with 2 minutes rest

-9&1 (5:52 average)

-2 sets of 4 miles with 3 minutes rest. 22:29, 22:18. (5:37/5:32)

-10 miles in 71:30 (easy), then 3 sets of 2 miles in 5:49-5:50, 2 min rest

-7&1 (5:45 down to 5:17)

-18 miles with the last 13 in 6:10.

One workout left before shutting everything down. It's 4 miles in 5:50, followed by a fast mile. We shuffle off on Thursday and the race is Sunday. I'll blog more on Wednesday, and do a race wrap on Sunday. At some point I'll reflect on the whole cycle. Right now? Check the box and get set for 26.2 miles in the city.

Lost & Found

If you're going to be the king of something, no man's land isn't it.

Week of 8/10

Miles- 96

Race: Railroad Days 10k, 33:50, 7th overall

Tuesday Workout: 6x1k @ 10k goal pace- 319, 318, 318, 318, 317, 315

Saturday workout: 10k race & 3 miles marathon pace (555, 554, 555).

Week of 8/17

Miles: 86

Race: none

Tuesday workout: 3 sets of 4x400 w/ 200 rest (75 average)

Saturday workout: 8 easy (55:00), 2x3 miles in marathon pace (548, 549, 548- 17:26; 5:44, 5:45, 5:44- 17:15)

I missed a week. It was an accident. You'd think I was busy, but not true. I was just plain lazy. I raced on 8/16 and it went ok. In truth, I wanted to run 32:55 or so. But I just didn't have it. I started strong before getting caught in no man's land. I thought I was cruising but I was just losing ground. Then it ended, mercifully. 

I felt really spent at the end of last week. By the end of last week I'd run a 7 week average of 96 miles a week. If you include the 1st 2 weeks of summer where I was still building mileage, my average is 92 miles a week. Coming down to 86 this week felt like a treat. I opted for a mini taper this week and next with the start of school coming, and the drained feeling at the end of last week. 

To cap off the week I nailed the Saturday workout. The 3 mile sets felt like I was cruising. I stopped and felt like I could run another set or two. To be 14 miles in and feeling fresh is precisely how I want to feel.

Things change starting Monday. Summer of run is basically over, as I'm back in my school getting ready for kids. I'm also going to try a run-bus commuting combination to get my mileage in, save some time, and save some money. 

Next up: Labor Day 1/2 Marathon on 8/31. Goal- race well, stick my nose in the thick of it, and launch into a solid 4-5 week block.

If You're Tired, Clap Once

If you're tired, keep going. You're almost there. Almost.

Miles: 106.19

Long run: 18.18 miles

Workout Wednesday: 4x2 miles (5:32-5:36 target) w/ 2 minutes rest. Went 11:09 (5:38, 5:31), 11:08 (5:36, 5:32), 11:03 (5:34, 5:29), 11:08 (5:38, 5:30). 

Saturday Workout: 6-1-2-1, all continuous. (6 & 2 average 5:55), 1st drop mile 5:24; 2nd drop mile in 5:30. Total 10.01 miles in 57:55 (5:47/mile)

Another week in the string is done. This was the most mileage of the year, and most in the cycle. It's a long way to November, so the point is to get the work in without it being overly quick. Job done! The mileage has provided some quality support for my aerobic system, making an hour of hard running feel manageable. Since the marathon is largely an aerobic event, the goal is to work that system and slowly lower the lactate threshold enough to make marathon pace feel very comfortable.

Wednesday was done solo so my wife and I could enjoy our 8th wedding anniversary in the evening. Longish hard-ish reps are not easy when running alone in the morning. But I hit the target, and didn't feel terrible. 2 minutes goes by quicker than you think!

Saturday was great. We had a large group (12) through 7. The continuous work with dropping the pace in the middle does a few things. First it trains the body to run hard when tired. Second it helps you with recovering to settle back to your marathon pace. If you consider water stops and moves by peers, you need to be ready to shift up and down in gears. Thirdly it has some impact on your lactate threshold. By how much, I'm not sure. But the drop mile or two is a tried and true method of our training group. It's not easy, but you get strong.

Coming up: I've got weeks of 95, 103, and 86 planned. I'm excited about losing 10 miles and later 20! Get some fresher legs. Railroad Days 10k is in a week, followed by the Labor Day Half on the Sunday before Labor Day. 

Below is how my miles worked out. I put them in a spreadsheet later. Lots of adding!

Eat run nap rinse repeat

Run, run, run, and run some more.

Miles: 95.8 on singles (no double days!)

Wednesday Workout: 13 miler w/ 6 @ 5:50-6:00 (5:56 avg), and 1 @ 5:14, all continuous.

Saturday Workout: 6 (5:50 avg), 1 (5:35), 1 (5:17)- part of a 13 mile day.

The average number of miles I've run in the last 5 weeks has been 93, which is pretty great. Overall, I've taken to napping a little more and getting to the foam roller. I did get in one core workout consisting of leg lifts, planks (straight, and both sides), side leg raises with the foot turned, and push-ups. I want to do more, but just don't have the willpower to force myself to work on my core after running or in the evening.

The upside is that most of the runs are feeling really good. I'm out in the morning at 6:30 or 7:00 and beat the heat. The first mile or two is a drag, usually 7:30-7:50 min/mi, before it settles into a comfortable 6:40-7:00 min/mi pace. The goal is to make 6:50 feel comfortable so that dropping down to 5:50 for the marathon feels like less of a jump. 

Coming Up: Marathon training has started, and kicks off with a kick in the pants week of 105 miles and two workouts. The original plan was to do 8x1k on Wednesday and a longish race simulation on Saturday. I might keep the race simulation in there for Saturday as my club (Club Northwest) has a series run that includes a half marathon. It would be a good chance to get in 10 at marathon pace and kick the last 5k while getting some fluids support that's more challenging otherwise. But Wednesday I've shifted to a morning run away from teammates for the day, making 3:10 per K a tough ask. Instead it will be 4x2miles at 5:32-5:36 pace and 2 minutes rest. Still hard, but more appropriate for the time of day!