After my hard LT run on Saturday late evening, in about 12 hours I was again on the street running my 17 miler. It was not so easy to do it on tired legs, but I managed to finish it at a decent pace. I ran the first portion with Adam, so that was a bit slower (8 min/mile), and I picked up from there. Good training.
Nothing hard is left. The only somewhat challenging training is the VO2 max session this Thursday. It would probably count as a hard session on a typical day, but considering the shape I'm in, it should be fairly easy. I was able to run some 6:1x miles at the end of the LT run without getting too winded, so running single miles at 5:50 pace with ample recovery on already fairly rested legs should not pose a problem.
Taper plan:
10/23, M: Rest
T: 7 GA w/ 8x100 ST
W: 4 R
T: 8 w/ 3x1600 VO2 max. (5:50/mile, 5:48/1600), 50-90% rests (~2 laps)
F: 5 R
S: 6R w/ 8x100 ST
S: 13 MLR
10/30, M: Rest
T: 7 R
W: Dress rehearsal: 7 w/ 2@MP (6:43/mile)
T: 5 R
F: 5 R w/ 6x100 ST
S: 4 R
S: Race
Monday, October 23
Saturday, October 21
OK, so I waited until 8pm with the LT run. So the weather cooled down, but I had to face the other problem: chili and coffee before the run = upset stomach. Somehow I did manage the run without throwing up though, and my splits were quite good: 6:15, 6:18, 6:31 (hilly mile), 6:16, 6:08, 6:13. It's a 6:17 average, and this was definitely not race effort. In fact I sprinted another quarter mile after finishing the sixth mile, because I felt like pushing a bit and I thought it would be cool to run a sub-39 10K in training (which I did).
So it seems like all three components are together. Fitness is fine. Lactate threshold is fine. Endurance is fine. I do have a chance of sub-3.
So it seems like all three components are together. Fitness is fine. Lactate threshold is fine. Endurance is fine. I do have a chance of sub-3.
About a week after my last post, not much happened. I had my last 20-miler on Sunday, and I felt good, so I pushed it a bit. I ran a 7:26/mile average, and the last part was the fastest. After that run I only had pretty easy runs, except for a 12-miler on Wednesday, which, again, went just fine.
Today I was supposed to run a tune-up race, which didn't happen, because we went to the cross country state championship for schools, because Esther ran the 4K there. I will go out for an LT run later (maybe soon). It's 78 degrees and sunny outside. I'm wondering why I don't ever have the chance to do a good lactate threshold workout in nice, cool weather...
Today I was supposed to run a tune-up race, which didn't happen, because we went to the cross country state championship for schools, because Esther ran the 4K there. I will go out for an LT run later (maybe soon). It's 78 degrees and sunny outside. I'm wondering why I don't ever have the chance to do a good lactate threshold workout in nice, cool weather...
Thursday, October 12
I had a very strong 17-mile run on Sunday. Finally it was cool, and I felt good the whole time. I averaged 7:25/mile, and it felt pretty easy.
Monday was rest, then two horrible recovery runs on Tuesday - this happens often: when I have a little rest after some hard work, the next easy runs feel totally hard. I didn't sleep much the next night, and I had a terrible headache all day on Wednesday, so I wasn't looking forward to going to the track at 8pm in the dark for a 6 x 1200 session. Fortunately it went fine. Splits were 4:22, 4:20, 4:22, 4:20, 4:22 (goal was 4:21).
Interestingly, the second rep felt very hard, and I thought I was done, and I decided I would just go out carefully (not too fast) for the third one, and try to speed up the last lap, if necessary. I used this approach for all the remaining reps, and it not only worked: the first two laps always turned out to be fast enough and I never had to overexert myself for the third one.
I'm probably not as strong as I was two years ago at the same time, so that's not a good sign for sub-3, but I have some time left, and maybe I can peak and race better. If it won't be sub-3, it's not a disaster, as long as I safely BQ. I will need about 3:10 for that.
Monday was rest, then two horrible recovery runs on Tuesday - this happens often: when I have a little rest after some hard work, the next easy runs feel totally hard. I didn't sleep much the next night, and I had a terrible headache all day on Wednesday, so I wasn't looking forward to going to the track at 8pm in the dark for a 6 x 1200 session. Fortunately it went fine. Splits were 4:22, 4:20, 4:22, 4:20, 4:22 (goal was 4:21).
Interestingly, the second rep felt very hard, and I thought I was done, and I decided I would just go out carefully (not too fast) for the third one, and try to speed up the last lap, if necessary. I used this approach for all the remaining reps, and it not only worked: the first two laps always turned out to be fast enough and I never had to overexert myself for the third one.
I'm probably not as strong as I was two years ago at the same time, so that's not a good sign for sub-3, but I have some time left, and maybe I can peak and race better. If it won't be sub-3, it's not a disaster, as long as I safely BQ. I will need about 3:10 for that.
Saturday, October 7
I've had two weeks of pretty good training. After the race I had a good long run (18 miles) the following day. Then a rest day on Monday, and Tuesday 6 x 1000 meters VO2 max workout pretty consistently in 3:40. Three more long runs at 15, 12, and 18.6 miles: the last one included a 14 mile marathon paced workout that I nailed pretty well.
Then this week started with another rest day on Monday then 5 x 600 meters on Tuesday that went well, and felt quite easy. It is still too damn hot pretty much every day, but intervals are not affected much. The intervals were consistent 2:09. 14 miles on Wednesday, then two easy days, and an LT run today. It was supposed to be a race but I haven't found a good race in 2 hours driving distance, so I ran a 6-mile LT run instead. It was hot and windy, and I didn't feel great. Seriously, 79 F at 8pm on October 7? Anyway, I still managed to run 6:13, 6:24, 6:29, 6:22, 6:22, 6:13, and I lost ~4 seconds in mile 2 at a road crossing, so it's a 6:20 average. All in all, a successful run. It was hard, but not unreasonably, and some of the time variation was due to terrain and wind direction.
I'm a little worried that this LT run may have felt a bit harder than it should have been. I thought after this run I would have a better indication on what I can run in Bowling Green, but I didn't really get any wiser.
Then this week started with another rest day on Monday then 5 x 600 meters on Tuesday that went well, and felt quite easy. It is still too damn hot pretty much every day, but intervals are not affected much. The intervals were consistent 2:09. 14 miles on Wednesday, then two easy days, and an LT run today. It was supposed to be a race but I haven't found a good race in 2 hours driving distance, so I ran a 6-mile LT run instead. It was hot and windy, and I didn't feel great. Seriously, 79 F at 8pm on October 7? Anyway, I still managed to run 6:13, 6:24, 6:29, 6:22, 6:22, 6:13, and I lost ~4 seconds in mile 2 at a road crossing, so it's a 6:20 average. All in all, a successful run. It was hard, but not unreasonably, and some of the time variation was due to terrain and wind direction.
I'm a little worried that this LT run may have felt a bit harder than it should have been. I thought after this run I would have a better indication on what I can run in Bowling Green, but I didn't really get any wiser.
Thursday, September 28
Hawk Walk 10K Race Report
Goal: 39:21 (6:20 pace). Revised goal: run at least as fast as my perceived lactate threshold, and try to win the race.
This was a very small race near Indianapolis. The reason we chose it, because it was the only 10K available within 2 hours of driving on this day, it had a 5K, so Esther could run with me, and it was for a good charity (fighting addiction). Also, because it is a small race, maybe we would have a chance of placing, and Esther and I thought it would be really cool if we both place in our respective races.
The 10K only had about a dozen runners, so I already thought it would not be a real competition. In either case of being the fastest runner, or not, chances are that I would be running alone.
We also loved the idea that the race started at 10am, so we didn't have to get up super early. The downside, with the record breaking heat waves we are getting here that we realized we would run in 80 degrees. Add the hills to that (220 ft of climbing in 10 km according to Strava), and it was clear to me that running a 6:20 pace would place me well below my lactate threshold. It is certainly possible to run a 10K below the lactate threshold, but it may be unwise, if I'm winning the race. Position over time, any day.
So I decided to go out and run at my perceived lactate threshold: a comfortably hard pace. Unless I have to compete faster.
I got even more scared when I was totally sweaty and hot after just two miles of very slow warmup. I quickly figured out that you can tell by the bib number what race everybody was running. I asked a singlet wearing guy (his name was Armani), who had a 10K bib number, about his pace. He said 7:30, which I found suspect.
A cute little boy started the race by blowing a horn, though we had the ready-set-go commands about two seconds before he could push that button, so there was some confusion about the start time. They also started the race 6 minutes early, which screwed up my warmup recovery, but it was OK. You can expect these things in a small local race.
I went out by feel at about a 6:15-6:30 pace. The first mile was gently rolling hills that ticked up a bit at the end. Armani followed me a short distance behind: I heard him running behind me. Immediately I thought he was BS-ing me with the 7:30 pace. We ran through some patches with no shadows, and we started to climb. Somebody was passing me, and I though it must be Armani, but in fact it was a 5K runner (Alec). After we discussed briefly that we don't actually compete against each other, I let him go.
At the steepest part of the climb, Armani passed me (I did slow on the uphill deliberately to conserve energy). I thought he would probably beat me today, but to my surprise, he didn't pull away, and I was running right behind him.
Mile 1: 6:33
I didn't pay much attention to the splits. The race was being run slower than 10K pace at perceived lactate threshold, and this split was about right for the circumstances. I followed Armani for a short time, and when the climb got gentler, I pulled up next to him, and I said:
"This is definitely not a 7:30 pace."
"What?"
"We're doing like a 6:30-ish pace."
"Yeah, I know."
"You said 7:30 at the start."
"That's my minimum goal. That's in fact my half-marathon pace."
"OK."
I wasn't sure if he was still playing games, but this pace seemed still too fast if in fact his half marathon pace was 7:30/mile. In which case I would probably beat him easily. Of course there is still the possibility of somebody coming behind us beating us both.
I left him, and I kept following Alec. Our distance stabilized at about 50 meters. The climb extended to mile 1.7, where there was a sharp right turn, and then slowly descending, but rolling hills down to the start line, at around mile 3. The 10K did the course twice. I was in the zone, trying to do constant comfortably hard effort. This part of the course was mostly in the woods.
Mile 2: 6:34
Mile 3: 6:26
Alec won the 5K easily, and I ran back to the course for my second loop. I made a mistake by turning down the water here. It was so hot that a 10K managed to dehydrate me a bit. If for no other reason, I could have dumped the water on my head.
I had two goals after the turnaround: to see my standing in the 10K, and to see how Esther was doing, who was finishing the 5K soon. Armani was about 30 seconds behind me. I saw a girl about 30-60 seconds behind Armani, but I thought she was in the 5K. There was a 5K runner, and then Esther. So with the winner, I thought Esther was at 4th place, 2nd place female, when in fact she was in 3rd place, 1st female, because that other girl was in the 10K. I told her "2nd place female", but she didn't hear me (fortunately, as this was wrong information). She was very exhausted.
I started the climb now, in a patch of full sun, which was obviously hotter than the first time around, and I was obviously more tired/overheated/dehydrated.
Mile 4: 6:38
I got to the long climb with nobody in sight. The whole mile was almost pure climbing: I reached the top at mile 4.9.
Mile 5: 7:11
I started to meet 5K walkers and some people who just enjoyed the trails, but were not in the race. I glanced back a few times to make sure that Armani (or anybody) is not in sight, but otherwise just continued comfortable hard. No pain, just strictly at lactate threshold. Rolling hills, net downhill.
Mile 6: 6:33
I had to dodge some more walkers here. I had to leave the path twice due to careless walkers, but this is part of the game in local races. I clinched the easy victory with a time of 41:55.
People congratulated, but Esther wasn't there, because she got light headed, and sat down in the shadow. She finished her race in the 3rd place!
There was a small post race party, where Esther and I enjoyed our minor celebrity status. The best post-race food ever: strawberry sorbet! After about 20 minutes of resting, eating, and conversing, we headed back to the car. I did a 2-mile cool-down in a different part of the trail, and I didn't feel too tired. Clearly this was not a 100% effort from me, but it had the right training effect, and I didn't want to risk victory for time.
The only regret I have is that I would have loved a good indication of my fitness. This was hopeless when we realized what the race-day temperature would be. I may run another 10K in two weeks and/or one in four weeks. We will see what happens then. If this was the best I could do, then a sub-3 hour marathon would be hopeless.
Goal: 39:21 (6:20 pace). Revised goal: run at least as fast as my perceived lactate threshold, and try to win the race.
This was a very small race near Indianapolis. The reason we chose it, because it was the only 10K available within 2 hours of driving on this day, it had a 5K, so Esther could run with me, and it was for a good charity (fighting addiction). Also, because it is a small race, maybe we would have a chance of placing, and Esther and I thought it would be really cool if we both place in our respective races.
The 10K only had about a dozen runners, so I already thought it would not be a real competition. In either case of being the fastest runner, or not, chances are that I would be running alone.
We also loved the idea that the race started at 10am, so we didn't have to get up super early. The downside, with the record breaking heat waves we are getting here that we realized we would run in 80 degrees. Add the hills to that (220 ft of climbing in 10 km according to Strava), and it was clear to me that running a 6:20 pace would place me well below my lactate threshold. It is certainly possible to run a 10K below the lactate threshold, but it may be unwise, if I'm winning the race. Position over time, any day.
So I decided to go out and run at my perceived lactate threshold: a comfortably hard pace. Unless I have to compete faster.
I got even more scared when I was totally sweaty and hot after just two miles of very slow warmup. I quickly figured out that you can tell by the bib number what race everybody was running. I asked a singlet wearing guy (his name was Armani), who had a 10K bib number, about his pace. He said 7:30, which I found suspect.
A cute little boy started the race by blowing a horn, though we had the ready-set-go commands about two seconds before he could push that button, so there was some confusion about the start time. They also started the race 6 minutes early, which screwed up my warmup recovery, but it was OK. You can expect these things in a small local race.
I went out by feel at about a 6:15-6:30 pace. The first mile was gently rolling hills that ticked up a bit at the end. Armani followed me a short distance behind: I heard him running behind me. Immediately I thought he was BS-ing me with the 7:30 pace. We ran through some patches with no shadows, and we started to climb. Somebody was passing me, and I though it must be Armani, but in fact it was a 5K runner (Alec). After we discussed briefly that we don't actually compete against each other, I let him go.
At the steepest part of the climb, Armani passed me (I did slow on the uphill deliberately to conserve energy). I thought he would probably beat me today, but to my surprise, he didn't pull away, and I was running right behind him.
Mile 1: 6:33
I didn't pay much attention to the splits. The race was being run slower than 10K pace at perceived lactate threshold, and this split was about right for the circumstances. I followed Armani for a short time, and when the climb got gentler, I pulled up next to him, and I said:
"This is definitely not a 7:30 pace."
"What?"
"We're doing like a 6:30-ish pace."
"Yeah, I know."
"You said 7:30 at the start."
"That's my minimum goal. That's in fact my half-marathon pace."
"OK."
I wasn't sure if he was still playing games, but this pace seemed still too fast if in fact his half marathon pace was 7:30/mile. In which case I would probably beat him easily. Of course there is still the possibility of somebody coming behind us beating us both.
I left him, and I kept following Alec. Our distance stabilized at about 50 meters. The climb extended to mile 1.7, where there was a sharp right turn, and then slowly descending, but rolling hills down to the start line, at around mile 3. The 10K did the course twice. I was in the zone, trying to do constant comfortably hard effort. This part of the course was mostly in the woods.
Mile 2: 6:34
Mile 3: 6:26
Alec won the 5K easily, and I ran back to the course for my second loop. I made a mistake by turning down the water here. It was so hot that a 10K managed to dehydrate me a bit. If for no other reason, I could have dumped the water on my head.
I had two goals after the turnaround: to see my standing in the 10K, and to see how Esther was doing, who was finishing the 5K soon. Armani was about 30 seconds behind me. I saw a girl about 30-60 seconds behind Armani, but I thought she was in the 5K. There was a 5K runner, and then Esther. So with the winner, I thought Esther was at 4th place, 2nd place female, when in fact she was in 3rd place, 1st female, because that other girl was in the 10K. I told her "2nd place female", but she didn't hear me (fortunately, as this was wrong information). She was very exhausted.
I started the climb now, in a patch of full sun, which was obviously hotter than the first time around, and I was obviously more tired/overheated/dehydrated.
Mile 4: 6:38
I got to the long climb with nobody in sight. The whole mile was almost pure climbing: I reached the top at mile 4.9.
Mile 5: 7:11
I started to meet 5K walkers and some people who just enjoyed the trails, but were not in the race. I glanced back a few times to make sure that Armani (or anybody) is not in sight, but otherwise just continued comfortable hard. No pain, just strictly at lactate threshold. Rolling hills, net downhill.
Mile 6: 6:33
I had to dodge some more walkers here. I had to leave the path twice due to careless walkers, but this is part of the game in local races. I clinched the easy victory with a time of 41:55.
People congratulated, but Esther wasn't there, because she got light headed, and sat down in the shadow. She finished her race in the 3rd place!
There was a small post race party, where Esther and I enjoyed our minor celebrity status. The best post-race food ever: strawberry sorbet! After about 20 minutes of resting, eating, and conversing, we headed back to the car. I did a 2-mile cool-down in a different part of the trail, and I didn't feel too tired. Clearly this was not a 100% effort from me, but it had the right training effect, and I didn't want to risk victory for time.
The only regret I have is that I would have loved a good indication of my fitness. This was hopeless when we realized what the race-day temperature would be. I may run another 10K in two weeks and/or one in four weeks. We will see what happens then. If this was the best I could do, then a sub-3 hour marathon would be hopeless.
Friday, September 22
Training report of the last two weeks:
Everything was smooth for the first part of week 7. It was nice and cool for my 15-miler on Wednesday, and I ran a 7:30 average pace and it felt pretty easy (I went sailboat racing after the run).
Then by Friday the hot weather was back. I attempted to run an LT run outdoors on Thursday, but I got overheated and dehydrated. My splits were 6:10, 6:33, 6:36, 6:34, 6:34, 6:33, 6:42. According to Daniels, my LT pace should be 6:20, and I've done a 6-mile 6:18 LT run just a bit more than a week ago on the firehouse treadmill. So this sucked - again. I didn't call it a failed run though. My heart rate was pretty constant ~168; in fact it jumped to 170 for the last, slowest mile. It shows that my exertion level was probably appropriate. It was just two hot. I sweated through my shoes again.
Nevertheless, the 22-mile run just two days later on Saturday was fine. It was still hot during the day, but I waited until 6:45pm to start my run. It was completely dark for the last hour for this 3-hour long run, but it wasn't super hot. I still got drenched by the end, but I completed the run and finished relatively strong (7:25 last mile). It took quite a bit out of me though.
So I did struggle to recover, and the prevailing hot weather didn't help. I had a 5x600 workout on Tuesday my splits were 2:09, 2:10, 2:10, 2:08, 2:12. I got drenched again by the end, and I still felt the 22-miler in my legs.
I ran 14 miles on Wednesday, which I did by running four 3.5-mile laps shirtless in the neighborhood. I didn't want to carry water, so I just periodically returned to my house. It worked well. I may do this for other medium long runs, until the weather gets cool enough to get away with just the water fountains along the way.
Then two days of recovery runs (the first 6-miler on Wednesday was run in 97 degrees), and I'm racing tomorrow. A 10K tuneup, and Esther runs the 5K. It would be great if it wasn't going to be 76 degrees by the 10 o'clock start. Probably over 80 by the time I finish. It will be hard, but I'll try to go out at 6:20/mile, and see if I can hold it in the rising temperature. It will be a very small race, so chances are, I'll run alone (hopefully in the lead).
Everything was smooth for the first part of week 7. It was nice and cool for my 15-miler on Wednesday, and I ran a 7:30 average pace and it felt pretty easy (I went sailboat racing after the run).
Then by Friday the hot weather was back. I attempted to run an LT run outdoors on Thursday, but I got overheated and dehydrated. My splits were 6:10, 6:33, 6:36, 6:34, 6:34, 6:33, 6:42. According to Daniels, my LT pace should be 6:20, and I've done a 6-mile 6:18 LT run just a bit more than a week ago on the firehouse treadmill. So this sucked - again. I didn't call it a failed run though. My heart rate was pretty constant ~168; in fact it jumped to 170 for the last, slowest mile. It shows that my exertion level was probably appropriate. It was just two hot. I sweated through my shoes again.
Nevertheless, the 22-mile run just two days later on Saturday was fine. It was still hot during the day, but I waited until 6:45pm to start my run. It was completely dark for the last hour for this 3-hour long run, but it wasn't super hot. I still got drenched by the end, but I completed the run and finished relatively strong (7:25 last mile). It took quite a bit out of me though.
So I did struggle to recover, and the prevailing hot weather didn't help. I had a 5x600 workout on Tuesday my splits were 2:09, 2:10, 2:10, 2:08, 2:12. I got drenched again by the end, and I still felt the 22-miler in my legs.
I ran 14 miles on Wednesday, which I did by running four 3.5-mile laps shirtless in the neighborhood. I didn't want to carry water, so I just periodically returned to my house. It worked well. I may do this for other medium long runs, until the weather gets cool enough to get away with just the water fountains along the way.
Then two days of recovery runs (the first 6-miler on Wednesday was run in 97 degrees), and I'm racing tomorrow. A 10K tuneup, and Esther runs the 5K. It would be great if it wasn't going to be 76 degrees by the 10 o'clock start. Probably over 80 by the time I finish. It will be hard, but I'll try to go out at 6:20/mile, and see if I can hold it in the rising temperature. It will be a very small race, so chances are, I'll run alone (hopefully in the lead).
Wednesday, September 13
A pretty smooth week 8. The only workout was a 6 x 800 that I ran on the Iroquois High School track while there was a soccer game in progress (probably high school students, but with three referees and a decent audience). It went pretty great: amazingly even intervals at 2:54, 2:54, 2:54, 2:55, 2:54, 2:55. It wasn't very hard either.
Now a monster week ahead with 70 miles, a 7-mile LT run, and a very long run. Here is the schedule.
M: Rest
T: 6R + 4R
W: 15ML
T: 6R
F: 12 w/ 7T
S: 5R
S: 22L
If I survive this, it should be a relatively smooth sail from here. I'm looking forward to racing in just 10 days!
Now a monster week ahead with 70 miles, a 7-mile LT run, and a very long run. Here is the schedule.
M: Rest
T: 6R + 4R
W: 15ML
T: 6R
F: 12 w/ 7T
S: 5R
S: 22L
If I survive this, it should be a relatively smooth sail from here. I'm looking forward to racing in just 10 days!
Wednesday, September 6
Every cycle must have some low points... I got mine last week, on the 16-mile long run, when 12 was supposed to be at marathon pace (6:43). I was perfectly fine for the first 6 of the 12, and then I started to slow. Mile 7 was 6:54, Mile 8 was 6:51, and mile 9 slipped over 7 minutes. I called it quits and I jogged the rest.
I felt very demoralized, but it's not a huge deal. I'm now two runs into week 8, and I feel good. I will not have many marathon paced runs in the remaining of the training cycle, but I'll have one very long (14 miles), which will tell me my progress.
What went wrong? Who knows. It was warm (80s), but not very hot, I got a bit dehydrated, but not too much. My cardio felt fine; it was my muscles that seem to have given up. Too many miles? Dehydration? The oil change and tire rotation in the hot garage before the run? I will probably never know.
Week 8 (recovery):
M: Rest
T: 9 GA
W: 9 w/ 6 x 800 @ 5K pace
T: 6 R
F: 11 ML
S: 8 GA w/ 10 x 100 ST
S: 15 ML
I felt very demoralized, but it's not a huge deal. I'm now two runs into week 8, and I feel good. I will not have many marathon paced runs in the remaining of the training cycle, but I'll have one very long (14 miles), which will tell me my progress.
What went wrong? Who knows. It was warm (80s), but not very hot, I got a bit dehydrated, but not too much. My cardio felt fine; it was my muscles that seem to have given up. Too many miles? Dehydration? The oil change and tire rotation in the hot garage before the run? I will probably never know.
Week 8 (recovery):
M: Rest
T: 9 GA
W: 9 w/ 6 x 800 @ 5K pace
T: 6 R
F: 11 ML
S: 8 GA w/ 10 x 100 ST
S: 15 ML
Saturday, September 2
Thursday, August 31
Week 10 was largely OK, but somewhat mixed. The 14-miler went pretty well, judging from my Strava record, but I don't even remember it, so it must have been quite good.
I ran the 6-mile LT on the treadmill at the fire station (9.5 mph = 6:19/mile). It was pretty great. I changed to 2-1 breathing at around 3.9, and used for most of the fifth mile; however, I started to develop side stitches at 4.8, and I realized I was breathing too hard. I changed back to 2-2, and it was fine until the end of mile 6. It felt easier than the 5-mile LT last week.
Then the 20-miler was brutally hard. I finished it without a death march, but I faded toward the end quite a bit. Maybe due to the LT run just two days prior, of maybe because I mowed the lawn before the run, sweating for two hours in the sun. In any case, I was already tired after 12 miles, I wanted to stop after 16, I wend below 8 min/mile on the 17th, I just talked to myself into pushing into the 18th, I was fucking dying in the 19th, and my best sprint for the 20th was 7:43.
Maybe I just need a bad run every training cycle...
Week 9:
M: Rest
T: 6 R + 4 R
W: 15 ML
T: 6 R
F: 13 ML
S: 7 GA w/ 6 x 100 ST
S: 16 L w/ 12 MP
I ran the 6-mile LT on the treadmill at the fire station (9.5 mph = 6:19/mile). It was pretty great. I changed to 2-1 breathing at around 3.9, and used for most of the fifth mile; however, I started to develop side stitches at 4.8, and I realized I was breathing too hard. I changed back to 2-2, and it was fine until the end of mile 6. It felt easier than the 5-mile LT last week.
Then the 20-miler was brutally hard. I finished it without a death march, but I faded toward the end quite a bit. Maybe due to the LT run just two days prior, of maybe because I mowed the lawn before the run, sweating for two hours in the sun. In any case, I was already tired after 12 miles, I wanted to stop after 16, I wend below 8 min/mile on the 17th, I just talked to myself into pushing into the 18th, I was fucking dying in the 19th, and my best sprint for the 20th was 7:43.
Maybe I just need a bad run every training cycle...
Week 9:
M: Rest
T: 6 R + 4 R
W: 15 ML
T: 6 R
F: 13 ML
S: 7 GA w/ 6 x 100 ST
S: 16 L w/ 12 MP
Wednesday, August 23
Week 11 went well. The LT run was on the treadmill: 5 miles at 6:18 pace. It was not too easy, and I changed to 1-2 breathing after 3 miles, but it wasn't unreasonably hard. I don't seem to be as fit as I was two years ago at the same point of the training cycle, but I'm mostly OK.
The facts that two years ago I was in better shape, and I barely managed to get under 3 hours on a flat course are not great signs for my 3-hour hopes. I may need to revise the goal.
I had my long run in Floyd Forks Park. 21 miles and it was quite hot, starting the run at 90 F and full sun. Many hills, too. I sill managed a 7:51/mile average (Strava, so water stops excluded). My shoes were totally wet by halfway, and I was quite tired at the end, but I still ran a strong last mile.
Week 10:
M: Rest
T: 6 + 4 R
W: 14 ML
T: 5 R
F: 11 w/ 6T
S: 6 R
S: 20 L
Total: 66 miles.
The facts that two years ago I was in better shape, and I barely managed to get under 3 hours on a flat course are not great signs for my 3-hour hopes. I may need to revise the goal.
I had my long run in Floyd Forks Park. 21 miles and it was quite hot, starting the run at 90 F and full sun. Many hills, too. I sill managed a 7:51/mile average (Strava, so water stops excluded). My shoes were totally wet by halfway, and I was quite tired at the end, but I still ran a strong last mile.
Week 10:
M: Rest
T: 6 + 4 R
W: 14 ML
T: 5 R
F: 11 w/ 6T
S: 6 R
S: 20 L
Total: 66 miles.
Tuesday, August 15
Week 12 finished with success. Happy to report that the 15-miler on Sunday felt kind of easy and the 55-mile week did feel like recovery - though remember that I had a "cheater" 51-mile week before this, which was supposed to be 63 miles.
And now for something completely different:
Week 11:
M: Rest
T: 10 mi w/ 5 @ T pace
W: 14 ML
T: 5 R
F: 11 ML
S: 7 GA w/ 10 x 100 ST
S: 21 L
Total: 68 miles.
And now for something completely different:
Week 11:
M: Rest
T: 10 mi w/ 5 @ T pace
W: 14 ML
T: 5 R
F: 11 ML
S: 7 GA w/ 10 x 100 ST
S: 21 L
Total: 68 miles.
Monday, August 7
Sunday, August 6
A decent week is finished today. On Tuesday, I did my LT run on the treadmill, and it went well. This was 9 miles with 5 at LT pace, which I set to 9.5 mph (6:18/mile). I changed to 2-1 breathing somewhere in mile 3 of the LT portion, and I struggled a bit in mile 5, but I never lost rhythmic breathing, and never went into the pain cave. A good threshold training run.
Then on Friday, I had to skip my medium long run of 12 miles, because I drove all night the night before, and I was too tired. A good decision in light of the circumstances, but it is still not good for training. That also killed my weekly mileage. Instead of 63, I finished with 51 miles. I know that even Pfitzinger says not to sweat a single skipped run, but it feels wrong...
I finished the week with an 18-mile long run, where the last 10 miles were done at marathon pace. Sounds impossible, but I did it with relative ease. It was raining the whole time, so my shoes and socks got soaked, and I had to carry the increased weight on my legs, but it was cool, so I didn't need to drink too much (I consumed a 1/2 liter of fluid), and I didn't overheat. I ended up averaging 6:45/mile for the last 10 miles.
Then on Friday, I had to skip my medium long run of 12 miles, because I drove all night the night before, and I was too tired. A good decision in light of the circumstances, but it is still not good for training. That also killed my weekly mileage. Instead of 63, I finished with 51 miles. I know that even Pfitzinger says not to sweat a single skipped run, but it feels wrong...
I finished the week with an 18-mile long run, where the last 10 miles were done at marathon pace. Sounds impossible, but I did it with relative ease. It was raining the whole time, so my shoes and socks got soaked, and I had to carry the increased weight on my legs, but it was cool, so I didn't need to drink too much (I consumed a 1/2 liter of fluid), and I didn't overheat. I ended up averaging 6:45/mile for the last 10 miles.
Tuesday, August 1
After another real life interference, I skipped a Sunday training and used the opportunity to push myself back to Monday-Sunday schedule. It's ironic that the skipped run is a long run, but it won't show decreased mileage on Strava, because I already "paid" for this in week 1. So here is the new schedule.
Week 13: 07/31
Week 12: 08/07
Week 11: 08/14
Week 10: 08/21
Week 9: 08/28
Week 8: 09/04
Week 7: 09/11
Week 6: 09/18
Week 5: 09/25
Week 4: 10/02
Week 3: 10/09
Week 2: 10/16
Week 1: 10/23
Race week: 10/30
Otherwise things are going well. Last week was 62 miles with no quality other than long runs: 14, 11, and 18 miles. (I didn't remember Pfitz being this light on fast workouts.) They all went really well. The 14-miler was brutal, because it was done in 90 degrees, but weather cooled a bit for the second half of the week, so I managed a good 11 and a good 18. I would have called the 18 "very good", but I had some GI issues and I had stop stop for a bathroom break at mile 8.
The moment of truth is coming today: 9 miles with a 5-mile threshold part. I may need to run it on the treadmill though. Even though it's not super hot, it will be close to 90 in the early afternoon and I have firefighter training in the evening. I haven't decided to go for sure, but I want to, and it that case, I will just take the tempo run to the gym.
Week 13: 07/31
Week 12: 08/07
Week 11: 08/14
Week 10: 08/21
Week 9: 08/28
Week 8: 09/04
Week 7: 09/11
Week 6: 09/18
Week 5: 09/25
Week 4: 10/02
Week 3: 10/09
Week 2: 10/16
Week 1: 10/23
Race week: 10/30
Otherwise things are going well. Last week was 62 miles with no quality other than long runs: 14, 11, and 18 miles. (I didn't remember Pfitz being this light on fast workouts.) They all went really well. The 14-miler was brutal, because it was done in 90 degrees, but weather cooled a bit for the second half of the week, so I managed a good 11 and a good 18. I would have called the 18 "very good", but I had some GI issues and I had stop stop for a bathroom break at mile 8.
The moment of truth is coming today: 9 miles with a 5-mile threshold part. I may need to run it on the treadmill though. Even though it's not super hot, it will be close to 90 in the early afternoon and I have firefighter training in the evening. I haven't decided to go for sure, but I want to, and it that case, I will just take the tempo run to the gym.
Saturday, July 22
Today I had my first real workout of the marathon training plan. I mean that 16 mile run with 8 miles at marathon pace was hard enough, but I think of that more like a difficult a long run.
So this was 9 miles with 4 miles at threshold pace. I had to do it on the treadmill, because it was impossibly hot outside (right now, at 22:18, it is still 90 degrees, feels like 103). It went fine: I ran the fast part at 9.5 mph, which is 6:19 pace. It felt like it was spot on my threshold pace. I did 1-2 breathing all the way, and oxygen never was a problem. My legs were not entirely recovered, but they held up well enough to finish the run.
Unfortunately it looks like it may take a while before I'll be able to test my strength outdoors. But at least the treadmill runs indicate that I'm at or around VDOT 55, which is a good place to be at in July. Of course a million things can go wrong, but for now I'm good.
So this was 9 miles with 4 miles at threshold pace. I had to do it on the treadmill, because it was impossibly hot outside (right now, at 22:18, it is still 90 degrees, feels like 103). It went fine: I ran the fast part at 9.5 mph, which is 6:19 pace. It felt like it was spot on my threshold pace. I did 1-2 breathing all the way, and oxygen never was a problem. My legs were not entirely recovered, but they held up well enough to finish the run.
Unfortunately it looks like it may take a while before I'll be able to test my strength outdoors. But at least the treadmill runs indicate that I'm at or around VDOT 55, which is a good place to be at in July. Of course a million things can go wrong, but for now I'm good.
Week schedule for marathon training for easy reference. To make Tuesday a rest day, I'm following a Tuesday to Monday schedule, so each week starts on a Tuesday. This makes me 1 day late, which will have to be cut out somewhere later. (I wrote somewhere two days, not realizing that the race is actually on a Sunday.)
Week 17: 07/4
Week 16: 07/11
Week 15: 07/18
Week 14: 07/25
Week 13: 08/01
Week 12: 08/08
Week 11: 08/15Week 10: 08/22
Week 9: 08/29
Week 8: 09/05
Week 7: 09/12
Week 6: 09/19Week 5: 09/26
Week 4: 10/03
Week 3: 10/10
Week 2: 10/17
Week 1: 10/24
Race week: 10/31
Week 17: 07/4
Week 16: 07/11
Week 15: 07/18
Week 14: 07/25
Week 13: 08/01
Week 12: 08/08
Week 11: 08/15Week 10: 08/22
Week 9: 08/29
Week 8: 09/05
Week 7: 09/12
Week 6: 09/19Week 5: 09/26
Week 4: 10/03
Week 3: 10/10
Week 2: 10/17
Week 1: 10/24
Race week: 10/31
Thursday, July 20
Every year I must have one of those long runs when I completely run out of gas, unable, or almost unable to finish. Pfitzinger's 18/70 plan has a combination of a 11 miler followed by a 13 miler midweek for the third week of training. Add the fact that we are having a heat wave, and that I only had time to run the 11-miler in the evening and the 13-miler in the morning, it may have been predictable that this would be killer hard.
So I ran the 11 yesterday at 6pm, still over 90 degrees. I ran the 13 this morning starting at 8am: 75 degrees at 8am, and 85 at 9:45, when I finished; super humid all the way. Mile 12 was absolutely brutal; I hardly could convince myself not to stop. I summoned all my fighting spirit for mile 13 to run 7:52.
What kind of training plan is this anyway?! It's shifted by one day for me, but here: 16 miles w/ 8 @ MP, rest, 11 miles, 13 miles. This is my week so far. All my runs are colored dark green on Strava (long run).
So I ran the 11 yesterday at 6pm, still over 90 degrees. I ran the 13 this morning starting at 8am: 75 degrees at 8am, and 85 at 9:45, when I finished; super humid all the way. Mile 12 was absolutely brutal; I hardly could convince myself not to stop. I summoned all my fighting spirit for mile 13 to run 7:52.
What kind of training plan is this anyway?! It's shifted by one day for me, but here: 16 miles w/ 8 @ MP, rest, 11 miles, 13 miles. This is my week so far. All my runs are colored dark green on Strava (long run).
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