Long Run?

I work up early this morning to do something novel - a long run with people.  Instead of my normal 1/2-day long - this was done at 7am - bright and early.  It was a bear.  I was told 7-8 miles - turned into 11.6.  It was slow, and I really had no problem with it.  I guess the marathon training really does stay with you for a few months.  For the week - very well rounded: 1 strength session; 1 hill workout; 1 swim; 1 long run - and oh, yeah - a 25 minute bike ride from the auto mechanic home.  Pretty much covered all the bases this week. Also, some cleanse benifit - weight is down near an all time low of 153 this morning (post long run) - probably bopping around the 154-155 range.  Lets see if I can keep it there a while.

15 Days and Counting!

I finished my final 'long-ish' run yesterday.  Only 13.3 miles over 1 hour 51 minutes.  Kun, who went the whole way - said we averaged 8:20 pace - which felt pretty incredible.  Larry really stepped it up after about the 50 minutes time.  He's really feast/famine on these runs.  Anyway - a solid 3 runs - keeping some intensity during the taper.  Next week it gets even easier:  5x1000 Monday, 4 mile tempo (6 total) on Wednesday.  Friday - only 8 miles.  Let's get excited people!!

Last Long Run - Finished!

I headed out for 20 today from work.  Early morning - first real cold of the year.  Fortunately I thought ahead and dressed reasonably well (hat, gloves, underarmor shirt).  I started with 4/5ths of the normal 5 mile work loop - then headed basically for home - going toward Bluff Point, through Mumford's Cove and in through Noank and Mystic.  Turned around less than a mile from my house (after 100 minutes of running) - and started back.  It only took 80 minutes back since I did only the last 1/5th of the loop once I popped back toward work.  I have no idea on exact mileage or pacing - but I'm pretty sure I did at or a little over 20, possibly at a sub-9 pace - felt pretty fast and fresh the whole way.  All taper from here!!!

Wednesday I did 6.5.  Didn't quite get as much 'tempo' as I'd liked - but probably about 7:40ish for 4 miles or so.  Larry was dragging a bit - but we got faster as the run went.  Felt great personally - could have went faster.  Tuesday I did the normal 1300 in the pool.

Next week taper starts, but still has some serious runs (13 and 8 + 8x800s on Monday - which is one of the more intense interval sets).  Nevertheless - it feels good to be done with the hardest of the runs.

Week 10 Long Run.

That was an easy long run.  12 miles at an easy pace - 1 hour 47 minutes.  Like the last 12 miler - 5 weeks ago - this one felt very good.  Not great out of the gate - but a pretty solid effort.  For the week - 28.5 total run miles - the most so far and only 3.5 from the 'peak' of 32.  I also did ~4.7 eq.miles in the pool - so about 33 total.  Compared to 2009 - I did 42 miles running that week - but 7 of those was during a Sunday easy run - so I'd done 35 miles total after the Friday long run then - so the plans, in a weird way, are conquerable.  Obviously, the goal has been more x-training and strength training - and that seems to make up the difference.  This was a good, confidence building week, after last week's injury worries.  Saved by the pool!  btw - good luck to the triathletes in Kona this week.  What a great venue for the race.

10 Weeks in and Still Going.

Some good news - I did 10 miles today at a sub 8:00 min/mile pace - and my calf/ankle felt fine the entire time.   Weather was still not perfect - but starting to feel much more fall like.  I did the normal loop around work twice  - both with Larry - and it felt like we were running hard the whole time.  This counts as a 'long tempo'.  Larry mentioned that it was probably 10.2 or more - which would put the pace in the 7:45 range.  It's definately an improvement over recent 'long' runs.  Friday I can 'relax' with a 12 miler - easy pace.

Yesterday I did the pool work at UCAP and Monday I sandbagged the intervals a little - since I'm still worried about the calf muscle.  I did the sneakers mile at about a 7:20 pace and then ran up the bitch - so it wasn't totally without intervals - but I just didn't want to push things.  I'd rather get the 10 and 12 in safely.  The swimming seems to be helping.

Week 9 Long Run.

I did my long run today.  16 miles - brutal.  2 hour 30 minutes.  My main goal was to keep my achillies from having issues, so, in addition to doing 2 swims this week instead of a mid-week run, I decided on a 4 minutes run; 1 minute walk strategy for the long run.  My  reasoning is that, if I'm going to miss a run, I'd rather not miss the long run - however I didn't want to push my luck.  I did the run/walk thing for the first 9 or 10 miles, then I tried running for 10-15 minutes at a time because I did want my legs to get tired (it is, after all, the 'long run').  The last half-hour felt pretty horrible.  The good news is the legs, though tired - did pretty well.  No stabbing pain the the achillies.  And that's probably the longest run I've done in almost 2 years - so that's good.  Hopefully the achillies will respond well to another few days of rest and I can get a good run in on Monday.  Next Wednesday and Friday I need to do runs of 10 and 12 miles - so I can do those at work.

Week 8 Long Run.

So I made it through my long run without getting whopped in the head by a falling satellite.  The day started with the kid drop-off at 8:50 and cool, but very humid conditions (95%!).  I started at a very modest pace down route 215, did the loop in Noank and then headed toward GLP.  I did an extra short loop there, since I was thinking I wasn't going to get 15 total.  I then headed into Mumford cove and over to Bluff Point.  I felt pretty good heading into the trail.  However, about half-way in, my left calf/achilles tendon started having a fairly sharp sensation.  At that point I stopped stretched and walked along the harder part of the trail.  Although it felt a little tender this week, I think the uneven trail aggrivated it.  I maybe walked 5-8 minutes total the rest of the way - usually for 1-2 minutes at a time.  It's always hard to walk, but the words "live to fight another day" always ring out with injuries.  It started to rain steadily for the last hour.  I'm icing the sucker now.

I have to say, the 'middle-long' runs these last 3 weeks have been really hard.  It only gets harder now: 3 of the next 5 weeks I'll be running my 'long-long' runs - starting one week from today with a 16 miler.  Hopefully October will bring stronger legs and cooler weather.  

Another Humid Long Run.

What's with this weather? Great most of the week - humid for the long run. 10 miles today with very humid conditions. The run felt very difficult and my legs were dragging. My legs are pretty sore. I'm going to sit and watch Irene coverage now.

Morning after: legs feel better - nothing like a good night's sleep to rest things up. Nothing going today except maybe some easy yoga - and more Irene prep.

Laughably Horrible Two Weeks

Sometime life just gives you crap. The last 2 weeks have been a horrible start to my Philly Marathon hopes. Following the heel fiasco I got a head cold that sidelined me Friday, kept me up coughing every night and diminished my training tremendously this week. I have managed a few workouts - despite the sickness/allergies/whatever.

• Monday I did a strength/run combo with my wife in a hot/humid/bug-infested field. I actually felt ok - but only managed ~18 minutes of strength and running.
• Tuesday, feeling a little better I took the kidos to the Stockton college track - hoping to get what I thought was a very doable workout in: 4x800s. Easy right? To start, the infield of the track just had an application of fertilizer and workers there warned that the kids probably shouldn't be playing out there. So with bored kids and more hot weather and only managed 2x800 - with warmup, maybe 2.5 miles.
• Wednesday I was back to work in CT, but felt horrible so I didn't do anything.
• Thursday, I attempted a swim - thinking I should probably get something in before next week's Triathlon. I did about 10 minutes of swimming in choppy water. It felt horrible - hopefully it's more the cold than my swim conditioning - but I'll find out next week.
• Finally today - somewhat pissed at my health - I did 7.5 miles. I should mention - the weather the last two days has been fantastic - so at least that's been good.

Next week'll be a little tricky. Assuming I'm feeling better - I'll still be a little constrained by the Triathlon on Wednesday. What I'm thinking is: Monday - run at lunch (intervals) and bike home. Tuesday bike into work (greb at lunch). Wednesday - just the tri swim - and maybe a run after I dry off. Thursday, off at lunch or easy swim and strength train at home. Friday - long run. I'll be jumping for joy if I can get all that in - and feel ok/good doing it (I'll settle for ok at this point).

End of the World Edition

So I had a solid week. 21 miles - broken down to 3 runs. Monday I did 5 miles - but the workout was 4x800s. I really liked this workout - it is kinda over before you know it - but you certainly find yourself working pretty hard for those 4 intervals. Wednesday I did 5 miles pretty quick ~ 38 minutes - but the first one was ~8 min/mile, so the final 4 should've been around 7:30 or slightly under. Not the best tempo pace - but Larry and I were certainly working hard. Today was the dreaded 11 miler. Funny how 11 miles during marathon training is the easiest workout ever - but now, over 18 months later, feels pretty hard again. I did it in 1 hour 37 minutes. I ended up running it this morning after dropping the kids off at school. I did the first 3rd in 35 minutes (beginning 'till the rail road tracks), then I did the Haly farm loop (from rr-tracks back to Bluff point parking) in 31 minutes - and finished the last 3.6 miles in 31 minutes. It was a good workout - it felt long - but certainly build confidence for the Twilight Trail Run. Hopefully the world can hold it together until then!

Week 7 Done!!!

Week 7 is finished. Two tough workouts - two pretty easy workouts. Tuesday was hills: 60;60;60;90;120 and then today (Friday) was the long run - 10 miles over 1 hour 23 minutes - and included 2 tough hills near the end. Weather was very nice all week. The other 2 runs were just 5 mile loops on Monday and Wednesday. I was going to try tempo work Wednesday - but maybe did a 7:20 for the last 2 miles - not much.

Week 6 Running in the Books

I finished off four straight days of running with a 56 minute 7 miler today. It felt pretty difficult - but I think that was a product of (1) 4 days of running and (2) work stress. I did a short/fast 4 miler yesterday - which included 2 miles at a sub 7:30 pace. Not a bad 4 days: hills, intervals, tempo and 'long' back-to-back-to-back-to-back. Next week the intervals are easier, but the tempo is longer and the long run should be back in the 9-10 range.

Royal Wedding Running

So I ended up skipping the hills Tuesday, which made for a difficult stretch of Wednesday/Thursday/Friday running. I ended up just doing 5/4 and 9 miles - for 23 total miles in the week. Not the best week: I missed the hill workout and the long run felt horrible. I woke up pretty tired and slightly hung-over after an NFL draft gathering at a local watering hole - and never really shook the feeling. Compounding matters, the weather was awesome - but warmer than i've been used to. Whatever the cause, it felt like a helluva lot longer than 9 miles. I'll look forward to hitting next week hard and putting this one behind me.

On good news - congrats to the royal couple - may the media leave them alone now. Also, I got into a new pushup routine. 18 and 12 in the morning and then again at night. So I can knockout 60/day pretty easy. I did this Monday and Tuesday before only doing one set on Wednesday. Good for about 150. The key though, I think, is that 2 short sets is so easy - I actually do it!

Week 5.

A great quote from this blog:

"Avg pace was just over 8 min./mi and avg HR was exactly 120. Some may call this lazy. I call it building my musculoskeletal system and creating capillaries."

That explains last Friday's run around old Mystic: 7.5 miles over 1 hour even. Not sure what my heart rate was - and the run wasn't exactly long - but I'll push it back up near 10 this week. I kinda feel like I should be going longer - but I'm not sure there is a real need to go much over 10 this spring.

I did 5 today and will tackle more hills tomorrow.

Feels Like Training Again.

It took awhile - but I'm starting to finally build up a base. Last week I did: 5, 7.4 and 5 mile runs - including a great run out at Bluff Point/Haley Farm. The other runs were pretty slow. Monday I did 5 again and yesterday I did the hill workout: 45;60;45;75;45;60;45 - 'learn to use your times run'.

I have today off, then I'll do an easy 3-4 Thursday and 9-10 on Friday.

Raw Running

Windy and cold made for a miserable run yesterday. I did a figure 8 loop - the first half with Larry, we went reverse around work, then up Thomas road to the bitch. I did a 'pickup' mile on Thomas - although it was only around 7:40, then the bitch. And that was just the start. I then headed back towards work and did the normal reverse loop. It was cold, windy and shaffy. I finished it in 1 hour 4 minutes - probably about 7.8 miles. That counts for my long run. I'll try and do 4 miles at a 7:20-7:30 pace on Friday.

I'm still trying to document training plans - here is the Brooks 'less is more' from RW last Dec. Pro: shorter long runs, Con: running 6xweek. Maybe worth a go next fall.

Winter Maintenance.

A tough week - no doubt. I finally managed a run on Friday. I did a strong (~8:10 min/mile) 5 miles and then did 3.5 easy with a friend for a total of 8.5 miles in 1 hour 18 minutes. Did nothing yesterday and then did over an hour of strength training this morning. Bad week - but still well over 3 hours total - so keeping up ok despite the snow.

More workout chronicling: early summer speed work from Running Times.

Last night I saw Salt. Pretty cool movie - nice to see a non-kid themed movie. Lots of action and suspense. Bonus - you get to watch Jolie.

Mystic Snow.

Repeat after me: "I'll never do a spring marathon." Between sickness and snow - these winters - despite there beauty - are just brutal for training. I actually made it out for 3 runs last week for over 15 miles (including a 7 miler!) - but only logged a sad 3.5 hours total and no swims. I did try last Friday but I couldn't get out of work 'til later and the pool was overrun by high schoolers - even though they were on a snow day. All told, the schools were off 4 of the last 8 days (not counting weekends) and one of those four was a half day.

My hope for this week is one long run and one good swim. Do that, and I'll be happy. In fact if I could do that the next 2 weeks I'll be ecstatic. The goal is to get a run of 1:45 in before the Colchester half. Not much of a race training schedule - but all I can handle this time of year.

More Mileage Please!

This is what I do - data analysis. The unlabeled y-axis is the pace in seconds (360 - 6 minutes; 420 - 7 minutes; 480 - 8 minutes). The two plots are the same data - my race paces versus the distance -however the plot on the right has the distance on a log scale. I think this is more appropriate as my 'best'/pareto races appear in a nice line. The one exception is the marathon - which should be faster - apparently about 7:50s! I better get training!

Last Saturday I did a quick 4.2 miles - with 2 mile pickups in the middle. Monday I did 5 miles - pretty easy around work. Today I did 8 miles - again pretty easy - but I'd like to keep some 8-10 milers going until 'race season' ends.

ITB Issues

So I felt great during the 10x400s last Tuesday - but I had pain on the outer nub of my knee - which I'm chalking up to ITB problem. Shoulda known that bare foot beach race + 10x400s on consecutive days would result in some sort of injury. It was pretty acute on Wednesday and Thursday, felt a little better yesterday and good enough today to do my final long run. I ended up shortening it from 12 to 10 miles while running - so I feel a little bad about not getting in the distance. Worse still is that the run felt horrible - only 8 days before the race. So my new plan is to continue with a taper and try and hit it hard next week.