Tempo Wednesdays

I did one of the harder tempo runs today at lunch.  6 miles at a 7:30 (HM) pace.  It's not as lung searing as the shorter versions - but felt pretty hard anyway.  I added a mile warmup/cooldown for 8 miles total in an hour and 2 minutes.  That's 2 pretty hard workouts in 3 days.  Been hitting the yoga hard - but the faster workouts are really tighetening me up at a bad time.

Mesmerizing!

PencilHead from qwaqa on Vimeo.

Week 12 Update.

So I managed to bike in Tuesday, and then did a sloppy long 'tempo' Wednesday - the area got 2 inches of rain, I think I ran during a good inch of that.  Truth be told it wasn't that bad.  Larry dragged me out and pushed me the whole way.  I laid of the gas because I think I have a low-grade cold.   We did the first 5 in 43 minutes and the second 5 in 42 minutes - Larry could have easily done 40 for the second 5.  I wished I could have went faster - but didn't want to weaken my immune system too much.  Today I did the normal 1300 in the pool.  I'm pretty convinced the pool is great therapy.  Helps the muscles, helps the head cold.  I felt great - although it's a sneaky workout for burning calories - because now I feel like going to sleep.  Tomorrow - 13 or 14 miles - and week 12'll be a wrap ('cept for the strength workout).  Hopefully I'll feel better next week - but I'm pleased to have (mostly) gotten through this week without having to miss any days.

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.

Go Devils!

Yesterday I did my first night run in a while: 6.5 miles down to GLP and back.  I took it easy for 1.4 miles, then ran harder (maybe 7:40s) for a little over 4 miles.  Then 1 mile easy to finish.  My achilles tendon is still sore - but didn't really start feeling sore until the end of the 4 mile tempo part.  Certainly better than last Friday - but still a major source of concern.  Other than that the run felt great.  The tempo pickup felt fast and the muggy air was offset by pretty cool temperatures.  I'm going to try and do the 12x400s today - hopefully that won't kill.

Week 8 Going On.

Today I did yet another sweltery run - 5 miles total in 40 minutes - including a 'tempo' part of 3+ miles in about 22 minutes.  It felt hard, but at least I had company.  Monday I did the off-track/around work intervals of: 1 mile; 800; 1 mile and 1:45 uphill hard.  Sandwiched in between that was 18 miles of biking yesterday.  I'm finding it hard to get in all the x-training I'd like to get in.  Maybe that's because I need to be limiting it to 2 workouts - but I have biking, swimming and strength training to squeeze into that.  Mileage this week so far is 11 running and ~4.5 xtraining.  I'll be doing another 2+ xtraining and 15 running for a week of 26 running miles and 32-33 'equivalence miles'.  To put that into perspective - I did 38 miles 2 years ago - all running during week 8.  So that's a little weird - but the idea is to avoid injury - so we'll see.  I will say that all the workouts feel acutely hard.  So hopefully it'll workout.

High Tide Workout.

Yesterday, in a time crunch, I skipped the UCAP pool thinking it'd be quicker to run down to the beach for a quick swim.  12 minutes down, 17 in the water, 13 back up.  The thing is, the water was weird.  I didn't notice it right away, but it was very brown for ocean water.  High tide effect?  Toxic sludge?  Feeling the need to get the workout done - I stayed in and swam - but a weird feeling to be sure.  What happened to my beautiful swims this year?  Anyway, as the topper I biked home ~9 miles after work.  Felt good - but sweltery.  So the day ended up being a good cross-training day.

Tempo run Wednesday.  5 miles total (40 minutes).  Did the middle 3 miles ~7:20 pace.  Again, very hot and humid and hard.  A good workout - although I'm lacking on the 'long' tempo runs.  The training plan is going pretty well, but I am starting to feel like my mileage is way down.  I may do a 1/2 next weekend to 'test my fitness'.  I haven't run a race since May (???) - so a tune-up would probably be a good plan.  Hopefully I can get to a consistent bike/swim/weights every week (2 of 3 probably more realistic).  Although I feel the mileage is lacking - I do feel more fit than ever.  So that's good.

Tempo Runs Slowly Coming Around

I did my second tempo run of the marathon training plan. Of all the workouts that have been disrupted by heal-scrape/sick/travel/hurricane - the tempo has suffered the most. Last week I barely made it 2.75 miles. Today - I think I managed 3.5 over 26 minutes. I'm really dragging Larry on these - but he's managed to do alright. Today, I did the Jupiter loop while he rested, and then did the last 1/2 mile without him - before looping back to jog in the last mile. That actually worked out well - gave me a nice cool-down and a good 5.5 total miles. I'm at 11 miles - with another long run planned for Friday (12, ugghhh).

On the home front - we continue to be without power. Although unsettling psychologically, it hasn't been bad at all from a practical standpoint. And the stars at night have been spectacular. It's hard to imagine that for millions of years - humans have looked up at night to such a brilliant display. Modern times - not so much...

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 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.

Time Slip Running.

I've been caught up in work-related stuff and family visits - which has lead to some inconsistent running. I did manage 18 miles over 3 runs the first week of March, but only did 8.5 last week: a 3.5 mile treadmill run at a hotel (why are these always hard?) and a 5 miler around the normal loop in the rain last Friday. I was too tired yesterday after the daylight savings time change - but headed out today for a fast 5: 37:36 - about a 7:31 pace for five miles. Great weather today - probably my best run in awhile. Hopefully I can get out tomorrow and Friday as well.

Getting Ready

Two more races this year. I wanted a few good runs this week so that I can take next week a little easy. I did 7.5 miles on Monday - my longest run since the half. Wednesday was an easy 5. Yesterday I did 5.5 - with 3+ miles at tempo pace - which I'm pretty sure was under 7 min/miles. The first mile was 6:45 and the last mile (Sneakers) was 6:45. Inbetween I went slower - but not much slower. It felt good to run fast.

Lull

I hit a lull. A wonderful, beautiful fall weekend - and I was just wiped out. Too much training? Too much other life? I ended up not running until yesterday, following last Friday's 7 mile tempo/interval run. The Friday run was good - I did 7 miles including 1x1;1x2;1x1 mile intervals - all at about a 6:40 pace. Felt fast. Saturday nothing. Sunday 1 hour strength. Monday nothing. Tuesday 5 miles easy. Today??

Still Sluggish

Monday I did 5 with the boys from work. Felt awful. Yesterday I did a short 4.2 - first mile easy, 2 mile pickup, one mile cool down. I did the 2 mile pickup practicing race pace - about 7:30-7:40 range. The good news is that I was able to hold it without much pacing help. Can I keep it up for 13.1? That's the question.

Week 6 half plan

Monday I did a 20 minutes tempo/threshold run. I think I managed about 7 minute miles for the tempo part - the whole run was 5.5 miles. Today I was suppose to do 5 miles at race pace. My training partner was dragging ass though - so I think we were short of the goal pace of 7:30 pace. I did the last mile at 7:30 pace, but maybe slower. 15 miles Friday.

Monster Week

Wow. That was one hell of a week! I last updated Tuesday (a swim/bike combo day). Wednesday was tough. I started with the bike into work - not a big deal. Then I did a brutal 2x10 minute tempo workout. The workout was fine - but the heat was rough - total mileage 5.6 miles. Thursday was the easiest of the week: 3 miles running (only 1.5 each way) sandwiching a 1000 meter open water swim. The swim felt good - although my breathing felt a little labored - probably good I got one in this week. I'll try to do another next week. Today I did 8.2 miles around Groton with Greg. Weather was picture perfect but my legs were dragging - I think I'm ready for a rest. I'll probably rest both days this weekend and do a BRICK on Monday.

Tempo and Swim

Week 6 of my abbreviated 1/2 plan is more or less done. I did a 5 mile 'tempo-type' of run Wednesday with Larry. We did 5 miles in 38:40 - about a 7:44 pace - but like last week, faster along the back side than the front. I felt pretty strong the whole way - a good run. Last night I did my wife's "Firm" dvd again - a little easier on the legs the second time around. Today I hit the pool - it felt good but it is starting to feel harder to go pool on these nicer Spring days. The workout was pretty simple today: 100 fast; 2x100 steady - 3x. The first 2 'fast' 100s I did in 1:50 - the last one I made it a point to go out slower and low-and-behold I rip-off a 1:48. Pacing seems to make a big difference with those 100s.

All in all a strong week. A good long/tempo on Sunday; pool work on Monday and Friday and a hard 5 in between. I'm still not certain about the early May half - but it hasn't sold out yet - so I'll keep putting off the decision until I get back from 'zona.

Long/Tempo Run and Swim

Yesterday I went out before Noah's Flood hit Connecticut - for a 2x3 mile tempo run. I really like this workout, but it does take a lot out of me. I did the first 2 miles at a 9:00 min/mile pace, then ran hard for 22 minutes. I think I covered well over 3 miles - probably a 7:20 pace. Then I took it easy for 10 minutes before running hard again for 22 minutes. I finished it off with an easy 2 miles back home - 1 hour 29 minutes total - over 11 miles.

Today I did another 1400 in the pool. The main workout was pretty easy: 1x250 build; 1x200 build; 1x100 build; 400 easy. I liked the 400 easy. Tonight I may do that workout dvd that kicked my butt last week - hopefully I can hold up through it.

Tough 8-Miler

I went out today for a very tough 8-miler with Larry from work. Larry's been running like a crazy man. My plan was to take it pretty slow - but we probably did 7:40-7:50 min/miles. I didn't have my watch - so I'll just have to trust my 'effort-based' pacing. We've had crazy weather - very windy every night - but the run today wasn't too bad - and we even had a nice misting rain on/off. Overall - a pretty good run.

Thank you Peter Graves.

Four Mile Tempo Run

Today I took Dave B on a four mile (4.15) tempo run. We headed down to the river road at an easy pace then did 4.15 miles - encompassing the Avery loop, the Jupiter loop and the Sneakers Mile. Dave B held up great considering he hasn't been out much. I think we did about 7:15-7:20 miles which is pretty good. The remaining tempo runs are either longer (6 and 8 milers - but slower) or intervals (usually mile ints). In fact, I'll be starting the intervals next week: 3x1600s - I'll probably try them "off track" at lunch next week. In all - it felt good to get a good, non-sick, reasonably fast run.

First Tempo Run of 2010

Not a good one. It looked like it was raining pretty hard - so I went to the UCAP pool/gym to use the treadmill. Turns out, pool/gym is a lethal combo when they put the treadmills on the second floor wings on either side of the pool - felt like near 100% humidity. Anyway, the workout was 9 minute warmup; 3 mile tempo; cooldown. The 3 mile tempo was broken up: 7:30 mile; 7:20 mile; 7:40 1/2 mile; 7:10 half mile. The tempo part took about 22:15 - or a 7:25 min/mile pace. Ideally this would've been lower - but it was just too damn hot in there. Another disturbing fact - the heart rate monitor said my heart rate was 175 - max for 40 year olds is 180! I think that's a bit high. I should've run outside...