Part One
Part Two
A few moments later, I indulged myself with a little positive self-talk, and set off to reel in second place. I think I was around mile seventeen when I started, and by mile nineteen, I had him in sight. It didn't seem like I was making progress for a long time, but then suddenly he would be noticeably closer. The gap finally started to look like it was closing at mile twenty. At the marker, my time was 1:56:12, nearly a perfect even split between the conservative first ten miles and the cold, windy second ten. I was moving well, expending more effort, but holding steady while my competition was losing ground.
Somewhere in here, Todd introduced himself. He had been cycling out ahead of me since mile seven or so, part of the crew that was keeping tabs on the top few individuals from each race. He asked me what my name was, so that as he was riding out ahead, he could tell everyone who I was. He told me people had been asking. Sure enough, I started to hear less of "Number FOUR!" and more of my name. If I hadn't been thankful enough for the cheering before, I was practically gushing now. Having hundreds of people urging you on by name is both exhilarating and humbling. If you have the opportunity, I highly recommend trying it out!
From mile 20 to 21, I kept myself calm, repeating in my head, "Don't get after him yet, not yet. The race starts up the road." I've heard from too many people that the race starts at 20 miles. I say, if it does, the race ends at 23. From inside the race, 20 miles is nothing. You're not ready to race, you're warmed up for the prologue.Some of the best advice I've heard is, if you think you're ready to push at 20, just wait until 21, and if you're ready at 21, wait for 22. And if you're ready at 22, well, you get the picture. I tried to keep all of that in mind as well as Mystery Coach's advisory that the race would start at 23 miles.
I was within ten meters of second place when the mile 21 aid station became visible a short distance ahead. As the distance to the aid station halved, and halved again, so did the gap. Within a few meters of the tables, I felt an automatic surge. A switch flipped. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed second place went for a cup of water. I did not. In an instant, the advantage was mine. Patience had paid off, and I was in second place!
In slow motion, I remember passing my last bottle, seeing the black triangles I had marked out the night before. It's mile 21, the race is nearly over. I won't need it, I rationalized. In hindsight, the risk I took was huge, but for some reason I thought creating a gap was more important than fueling up for the last 35 minutes of the race. Obviously, I don't watch enough NASCAR. This would be the biggest lesson of the race.
The next time check came through--still two minutes to the front. That gap was not closing. The race was won. I turned my focus to the race behind me. Just before 23 miles, I began to feel the first familiar signs of that deep fatigue the back-to-back workouts replicated so well. I think Thomas asked me a while back if bonking during a training run could actually be helpful. I would say now, yes, definitely. Knowing that I had broken through several 'walls' thicker than this in training was invaluable. It didn't make it easier, but it did give me confidence. I could hold on.
Mile 23 and 24 were a blur of effort and anxiety. Another time check. Two minutes. Don't care. How about a time check to third place? Since the pass, I had been listening intently to the crowds after I passed them, straining to hear the cheers as the third place runner passed. Each loud group that I passed, I heard only once, and they were cheering for me. Third couldn't be that far behind, could he? I thought about just sneaking a look back. Just a little peek. I stopped myself. I don't look back. Never have, and I wasn't starting today. More than being a sign of weakness to your competition, it is a sign of weakness to yourself. Still, I couldn't believe what I was not hearing. I had to know where I stood.
"I'll check it out, Sundog!"
Thirty-eight seconds was the gap I had built in the ten minutes since the aid station. Not a lot, and I was struggling mightily. I also learned that the difference between looking back yourself and having someone else look back for you is semantic. There is basically no difference. Your mind treats the information the same way--you speed up if the gap is closing, and you relax if it isn't. This frustrated me, because the reason I don't look back is that I believe I should always be putting in my best effort. I shouldn't need a reason. This train of thought took my mind off the increasing pain for about half a mile. An Exercise in Utility--haha.
At 24 miles, the gap closed slightly to thirty-five seconds. A quick check of the watch showed 6:10 pace for the last mile. Two miles was more than enough distance to turn the race around, and he was still fighting. I had to respond. My legs were thick, my stride was thin, and my fuel was gone. I grabbed a cup of gatorade in a last gasp effort to fuel my Final Stand. It was syrupy sweet. Way too strong. Exactly what I needed. I didn't get much more than an ounce, but by mile 25, it seemed to be making a difference. The effort was still maxed, but the fatigue was lifting, and it started to feel like I had willfull control again.
The confidence was compounding over the last mile. The gap was back to thirty-eight seconds, and my first glimmer of accomplishment started to sparkle. As each tenth of a mile clicked off, I got stronger. As I covered the last stretch of road before turning in to the FargoDome parking lot, I knew I had completed my first marathon. The beginning was finally at an end!
Todd stopped at the entry to the parking lot and turned toward me. I said a quick 'thanks!', gave him a wave, and I was on the homestretch. This part was a bit unnerving, as it was deceivingly long, winding around and down into a large service entrance. As I entered the building, I looked up at the clock. I distinctly remember being disappointed upon seeing the clock reading well past 2:33. I quickly put that behind me, and waved to the crowd. I heard my name, very loudly, and saw my wife, and then it was over. I crossed the line in 2:33:46.
A friend of mine asked me, who was the first person I remember after crossing the line? I know I walked through a gauntlet of people handing out medals, but the first person I remember was the guy who cut my chip off my shoe. He congratulated me, and I thanked him. Then, like Todd, he was gone. These ephemeral occurences stick with me very strongly. They are the essence of the experience, the thoughts that live on in your mind because there is no resolution, because you can't ever fill in the blanks or understand why that happened.
I finished the race able to walk well, and was lucid enough to start taking on fluids and get my warmup clothes on quickly. I had a bit of trouble sitting down to get my pants on, but no problems getting back up. I took that as a good sign, and it made me feel better about missing my time goal by such a large margin.
Almost immediately, I resolved to come back to try for the win next year. The people of Fargo were amazing, and as a lifelong resident of North Dakota, I'm particularly excited about the prospect of winning its biggest and best marathon. Hopefully it's more competitive next year, and there will be a fight to the finish in course record time. I can't wait.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Ni!
Friday, May 25, 2007
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Race Report :: Fargo Marathon :: Part 2
Part One
Turning off the bike path and heading north onto South 25th Street was spirit crushing. The wind was blowing hard and it suddenly felt 20 degrees colder. I tried everything to diminish my profile short of running sideways, and nothing seemed to help. My pace dropped to nearly 6:00 per mile, and I was working as hard as I felt I could only ten miles into the race. At the ten mile mark I was at 58:00, already :50 off of 2:30 pace with all of the minimal wind advantage already behind me. I was racing for places now.
The next several miles were a series of twists and turns through residential areas. It did take the edge off the wind, but it was still there, and still incredibly cold. With fewer spectators, wider streets, and small trees, the scene lacked warmth as well. Cliche as it is to write, I felt small and alone against the elements. I focused instead on getting to halfway, and then to mile 15, where I could pick up my next bottle.
Somewhere in this part of the race, I started getting time checks from my buddies Richie and Mahoney. They were riding around the course on bikes from the start, giving me encouragement during the early miles, and passing me tactical information toward the end. I knew they were going to be at the race, but I had no idea they would be following me around the course. Every few miles, they would show up at a corner and yell, "C'mon SUNDOG!". It was really cool, and another thing that I was able to look forward to during the tough stretches. The first check was probably around 14 miles, and it was 2:00 to first and second. So I learned they had been together basically the whole race up to that point. A bit disheartening knowing they were working together and I was isolated, but I had already made peace with the fact I was running my own race, so it didn't get me down.
The next check came through, still at two minutes, so I started to consider pushing the pace down a bit to see what I could do to that gap between now and twenty miles. It was naive, but I thought I was feeling pretty good, and what could five seconds a mile do to hurt me? I gave it a go, and shortly thereafter got another check from my guys.
"Two minutes to first, one minute to second! He's coming back, Sundog!"
Part Three
Later today--the second half of part two of a two part series! I'm not toying with you, I promise! I am a very slow, dithering writer, and I have to get showered and to work! More later--thanks for reading!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Turning off the bike path and heading north onto South 25th Street was spirit crushing. The wind was blowing hard and it suddenly felt 20 degrees colder. I tried everything to diminish my profile short of running sideways, and nothing seemed to help. My pace dropped to nearly 6:00 per mile, and I was working as hard as I felt I could only ten miles into the race. At the ten mile mark I was at 58:00, already :50 off of 2:30 pace with all of the minimal wind advantage already behind me. I was racing for places now.
The next several miles were a series of twists and turns through residential areas. It did take the edge off the wind, but it was still there, and still incredibly cold. With fewer spectators, wider streets, and small trees, the scene lacked warmth as well. Cliche as it is to write, I felt small and alone against the elements. I focused instead on getting to halfway, and then to mile 15, where I could pick up my next bottle.
Somewhere in this part of the race, I started getting time checks from my buddies Richie and Mahoney. They were riding around the course on bikes from the start, giving me encouragement during the early miles, and passing me tactical information toward the end. I knew they were going to be at the race, but I had no idea they would be following me around the course. Every few miles, they would show up at a corner and yell, "C'mon SUNDOG!". It was really cool, and another thing that I was able to look forward to during the tough stretches. The first check was probably around 14 miles, and it was 2:00 to first and second. So I learned they had been together basically the whole race up to that point. A bit disheartening knowing they were working together and I was isolated, but I had already made peace with the fact I was running my own race, so it didn't get me down.
The next check came through, still at two minutes, so I started to consider pushing the pace down a bit to see what I could do to that gap between now and twenty miles. It was naive, but I thought I was feeling pretty good, and what could five seconds a mile do to hurt me? I gave it a go, and shortly thereafter got another check from my guys.
"Two minutes to first, one minute to second! He's coming back, Sundog!"
Part Three
Later today--the second half of part two of a two part series! I'm not toying with you, I promise! I am a very slow, dithering writer, and I have to get showered and to work! More later--thanks for reading!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Race Report :: Fargo Marathon :: Part 1
Race morning was pretty relaxed until about 7:00 a.m. when we headed across the parking lot of the FargoDome and into the throng. This was by far the largest race I've ever been part of, and everyone had the same idea--stay inside, but close to the doors, so you can leave at the last possible moment to get to the start line without freezing to death. The temperature outside was a marathon-friendly 56F, but the wind was decidedly against us, steadily blowing out of the north around 18 miles an hour with gusts to 25. Better than heat, I thought.
Thinking that fifteen minutes was enough time to get my well-practiced five minute warmup done with time to spare, Cindy and I headed out the door. Clearly, this was poorly thought out.
As we made our way to the start, the crowd got more and more dense, until finally it was like being in the middle of a house party. So, there we were, still in full sweats, stuck in the crowd, with something like six minutes to get to the line, strip down, and get warmed up. Nerve wracking!
We eventually found our way around to the start line with time for a few short strides, which was just as well, because I was warmed up well enough from the stress. I got a few short strides in around race pace, and took in about 100 Calories of my drink. Talking with Dick Beardsley calmed me down, strangely enough, at least until the gun fired for the wheelchair racers. Lost in the conversation, I heard somebody say 'gun's up!' and momentarily FREAKED OUT thinking I had just missed the marathon start.
At some point in the conversation, I told Dick it was my first marathon, and upon finding that out, he proceeded to nearly shake my arm out of its socket. What a great experience! He is every bit as engaging and down to earth as the character that comes through in his books.
Okay, come on, let's hear about the race! I made eye contact with Chad Wallin, the eventual winner, just before the gun. He gave me a nod and a brief smile, which told me that he knew more about me than I knew about him. I got the feeling I was the unknown, the dark horse. Kind of a cool feeling, but ultimately irrelevant, as Chad would go on to kick my ass by over two minutes. I went as most dark horses do--into the vapour trail of the winner.
[Course map]
As the gun sounded, I tapped the watch and immediately set to work on my first task--a slow initial five miles. Mile one was a 5:53 with a slight tailwind, though the time at the mile marker was 5:46. I wasn't startled, as I had learned to trust my watch. And sure enough, mile two was a 5:50 on the watch, but a 6:01 on the marker. After that, I settled in to a 5:45 pace for a third, and ultimately final, warmup mile. Three out of five turned out to be pretty good, and I settled in feeling that I had invested a twenty second deficit from race pace very wisely.
I was very relaxed through the first part of the race, and found myself playing to the crowd quite a lot. It gave me a lot of confidence to be able to chat a bit with some of the people assembled along the course. I knew if I could comfortably talk and maintain my pace, I was at the right effort. The people were very enthusiastic and friendly, yelling out "Go FOUR!", or "Nice pace, FOUR!". Once in a while, and this was especially helpful toward the end, I would hear, "I can't believe how fast he's running."
If you're ever spectating the last few miles of a marathon, do the runners a favor and whisper that loudly to a neighbor. It really helps.
Mile seven was the first of three 'elite' aid stations. I had been allowed to place my bottles on the tables, even though I didn't officially qualify for 'elite' status. I grabbed my first bottle, and spent a good three-quarters of a mile getting it down. During that time, I passed Scott Colford, the eventual number four finisher. This was the only part of the course that stood me up like a sail, with the wind at my back.
It only lasted for a little over a mile, but I tried to use it as much as possible. I think I went 5:30-5:35 for that stretch, and I would have gone faster if not for the voice of reason in the back of my head telling me to conserve fuel, even at the cost of giving up the tailwind.
As mile nine passed, the wind picked up, and the bike path gave way to an open six lane road. This was the first of what would be seemingly endless stretches of freezing polar gales blowing me backwards over the last half of the course...
Part Two
Tomorrow--part two of a threetwo part series! I need to get some sleep! Recovery (and family) calls.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Thinking that fifteen minutes was enough time to get my well-practiced five minute warmup done with time to spare, Cindy and I headed out the door. Clearly, this was poorly thought out.
As we made our way to the start, the crowd got more and more dense, until finally it was like being in the middle of a house party. So, there we were, still in full sweats, stuck in the crowd, with something like six minutes to get to the line, strip down, and get warmed up. Nerve wracking!
We eventually found our way around to the start line with time for a few short strides, which was just as well, because I was warmed up well enough from the stress. I got a few short strides in around race pace, and took in about 100 Calories of my drink. Talking with Dick Beardsley calmed me down, strangely enough, at least until the gun fired for the wheelchair racers. Lost in the conversation, I heard somebody say 'gun's up!' and momentarily FREAKED OUT thinking I had just missed the marathon start.
At some point in the conversation, I told Dick it was my first marathon, and upon finding that out, he proceeded to nearly shake my arm out of its socket. What a great experience! He is every bit as engaging and down to earth as the character that comes through in his books.
Okay, come on, let's hear about the race! I made eye contact with Chad Wallin, the eventual winner, just before the gun. He gave me a nod and a brief smile, which told me that he knew more about me than I knew about him. I got the feeling I was the unknown, the dark horse. Kind of a cool feeling, but ultimately irrelevant, as Chad would go on to kick my ass by over two minutes. I went as most dark horses do--into the vapour trail of the winner.
[Course map]
As the gun sounded, I tapped the watch and immediately set to work on my first task--a slow initial five miles. Mile one was a 5:53 with a slight tailwind, though the time at the mile marker was 5:46. I wasn't startled, as I had learned to trust my watch. And sure enough, mile two was a 5:50 on the watch, but a 6:01 on the marker. After that, I settled in to a 5:45 pace for a third, and ultimately final, warmup mile. Three out of five turned out to be pretty good, and I settled in feeling that I had invested a twenty second deficit from race pace very wisely.
I was very relaxed through the first part of the race, and found myself playing to the crowd quite a lot. It gave me a lot of confidence to be able to chat a bit with some of the people assembled along the course. I knew if I could comfortably talk and maintain my pace, I was at the right effort. The people were very enthusiastic and friendly, yelling out "Go FOUR!", or "Nice pace, FOUR!". Once in a while, and this was especially helpful toward the end, I would hear, "I can't believe how fast he's running."
If you're ever spectating the last few miles of a marathon, do the runners a favor and whisper that loudly to a neighbor. It really helps.
Mile seven was the first of three 'elite' aid stations. I had been allowed to place my bottles on the tables, even though I didn't officially qualify for 'elite' status. I grabbed my first bottle, and spent a good three-quarters of a mile getting it down. During that time, I passed Scott Colford, the eventual number four finisher. This was the only part of the course that stood me up like a sail, with the wind at my back.
It only lasted for a little over a mile, but I tried to use it as much as possible. I think I went 5:30-5:35 for that stretch, and I would have gone faster if not for the voice of reason in the back of my head telling me to conserve fuel, even at the cost of giving up the tailwind.
As mile nine passed, the wind picked up, and the bike path gave way to an open six lane road. This was the first of what would be seemingly endless stretches of freezing polar gales blowing me backwards over the last half of the course...
Part Two
Tomorrow--part two of a three
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Monday, May 21, 2007
More to come...
Sorry for the delay in posting up a race report, but be assured there is more to come. The response from family, friends, and the blogs has been amazing, and even a bit overwhelming! I'm want to make sure I respond to all of the e-mails, phone calls, and comments, as well as get a good report recorded for posterity.
I think I have a good report in store with (hopefully (sorry Abadabajev, I can't stop the humility)) a decent amount of drama. So please hang in there for a bit while I put it all together! And thanks for all of your support--I couldn't have done it without you all!
Cheers!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
I think I have a good report in store with (hopefully (sorry Abadabajev, I can't stop the humility)) a decent amount of drama. So please hang in there for a bit while I put it all together! And thanks for all of your support--I couldn't have done it without you all!
Cheers!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Saturday, May 19, 2007
2:33:45 :: 2nd Place! WooT!
Thanks to my co-bloggers, Mike and Abadabajev for posting up some splits. I'll make this short so I can get my recovery in, but I wanted to get a couple of highlights posted.
First, it was very, very windy. Not that I wasn't ready for it, but it would have been nice to have a breeze instead of a gale. There were a couple of long stretches with the wind at my back, so I made hay on those with some 5:35 miles, but there were quite a few more stretches that were very cold and windy, and flat out tough, and mostly during the second half.
That I nearly even split in these conditions is a testament to the value of conserving during the first few miles and the first half. I rocked the second half pretty hard, even with a tough stretch from 22-24. The back-to-back runs were INVALUABLE for dealing with the last 10k. It's a different kind of pain and fatigue, but not terribly different from the training. A big thanks to Mystery Coach for, well, the coaching!
Last thing before the ice bath--this is nuts. I line up for the start. On my left is Dick Beardsley and on my right is Andrew Carlson. I shit you not. I ended up talking to Dick for about two minutes, and we had such a nice conversation going that I was worried we were going to miss the gun! We made a joke about cutting in front of Carlson or some such nonsense, and Dick congratulated me on starting my first marathon. It was very cool, as you could tell he was genuinely excited for me. He's every bit the person that comes through in his books. Great guy. I also spoke with Andrew Carlson a bit after the race. The guy ran a sub-1:05 half, and he was asking ME more questions about how my race went than I had a chance to ask him! Another great guy.
Alright, into the tub. Today was not the day for it, but even if the conditions had been better, I don't know that sub-2:30 would have happened. It's a bigger barrier than I expected, and the sub-2:30 has earned my respect. Another day...
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
First, it was very, very windy. Not that I wasn't ready for it, but it would have been nice to have a breeze instead of a gale. There were a couple of long stretches with the wind at my back, so I made hay on those with some 5:35 miles, but there were quite a few more stretches that were very cold and windy, and flat out tough, and mostly during the second half.
That I nearly even split in these conditions is a testament to the value of conserving during the first few miles and the first half. I rocked the second half pretty hard, even with a tough stretch from 22-24. The back-to-back runs were INVALUABLE for dealing with the last 10k. It's a different kind of pain and fatigue, but not terribly different from the training. A big thanks to Mystery Coach for, well, the coaching!
Last thing before the ice bath--this is nuts. I line up for the start. On my left is Dick Beardsley and on my right is Andrew Carlson. I shit you not. I ended up talking to Dick for about two minutes, and we had such a nice conversation going that I was worried we were going to miss the gun! We made a joke about cutting in front of Carlson or some such nonsense, and Dick congratulated me on starting my first marathon. It was very cool, as you could tell he was genuinely excited for me. He's every bit the person that comes through in his books. Great guy. I also spoke with Andrew Carlson a bit after the race. The guy ran a sub-1:05 half, and he was asking ME more questions about how my race went than I had a chance to ask him! Another great guy.
Alright, into the tub. Today was not the day for it, but even if the conditions had been better, I don't know that sub-2:30 would have happened. It's a bigger barrier than I expected, and the sub-2:30 has earned my respect. Another day...
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Thursday, May 17, 2007
17:52 :: 3 miles
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
15:00 :: ~2 miles
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
1:03:19 :: 10 miles
Taper workout. Practiced my marathon warmup and start. Five minute warmup, first few minutes around 7:00 pace, then ~30 seconds at 6:00 pace, one minute slow jog, ~20 seconds at race pace. Seemed to work really well--legs felt good.
Five miles followed, trying to practice a conservative start. The plan on paper was 5:55, 5:50, 5:47, 5:44, 5:42, and it worked out like so:
5:55(150) | 5:48(150) | 5:45(152) | 5:42(153) | 5:42(155)
Overall, a bit fast, and mile three is deceiving because through 1k, I was just under 5:40 pace. Aside from a couple of 'too fast' spots, the five miles was extremely comfortable and relaxed. If I can really stay calm and focused on my own race, I think investing 30 seconds from race pace up front with a conservative start will pay off at the end of the race.
Following the five, 1.77 miles at 6:15 pace to recover before 3x1000 on 5:00. Mystery Coach suggested a pace of 3:00-3:07, calling it a 'good solid rhythm', which I had a good solid laugh at. I know that I came around pretty quickly from the first 1000s workout from struggling a bit with 3:15s to being comfortable at 3:07s, but to get down to 3:00 without a jet pack seemed like a bit of a stretch.
I decided to go with the flow and to avoid looking at the watch until I was near the finish, not wanting to influence the pace, just trying to catch a comfortable stride at what felt like a 'good, solid' effort.
2:59(167-1:09) | 3:02(163-:59) | 3:04(162-:59)
The first rep really surprised me. Mystery Coach suggested last week that I could take out my college 10000m PR right now, and after the 2:59, I believe him. The speed was effortless. I dialed back just a little for the next two, and again avoided looking at the watch. With each rep, my stride felt smoother and more automatic--just a great feeling.
Four minute jog to cool down, then into the house for a recovery drink and a 50F bath.
All systems are go. I'm feeling absolutely fantastic, and I couldn't get any better feedback right now. While there are always unknowns in the marathon race, one thing I can be sure of is my fitness--it is as high as it has ever been. It will be very interesting to see how much of my fitness I am able to leverage on race day. Excellent workout.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Five miles followed, trying to practice a conservative start. The plan on paper was 5:55, 5:50, 5:47, 5:44, 5:42, and it worked out like so:
5:55(150) | 5:48(150) | 5:45(152) | 5:42(153) | 5:42(155)
Overall, a bit fast, and mile three is deceiving because through 1k, I was just under 5:40 pace. Aside from a couple of 'too fast' spots, the five miles was extremely comfortable and relaxed. If I can really stay calm and focused on my own race, I think investing 30 seconds from race pace up front with a conservative start will pay off at the end of the race.
Following the five, 1.77 miles at 6:15 pace to recover before 3x1000 on 5:00. Mystery Coach suggested a pace of 3:00-3:07, calling it a 'good solid rhythm', which I had a good solid laugh at. I know that I came around pretty quickly from the first 1000s workout from struggling a bit with 3:15s to being comfortable at 3:07s, but to get down to 3:00 without a jet pack seemed like a bit of a stretch.
I decided to go with the flow and to avoid looking at the watch until I was near the finish, not wanting to influence the pace, just trying to catch a comfortable stride at what felt like a 'good, solid' effort.
2:59(167-1:09) | 3:02(163-:59) | 3:04(162-:59)
The first rep really surprised me. Mystery Coach suggested last week that I could take out my college 10000m PR right now, and after the 2:59, I believe him. The speed was effortless. I dialed back just a little for the next two, and again avoided looking at the watch. With each rep, my stride felt smoother and more automatic--just a great feeling.
Four minute jog to cool down, then into the house for a recovery drink and a 50F bath.
All systems are go. I'm feeling absolutely fantastic, and I couldn't get any better feedback right now. While there are always unknowns in the marathon race, one thing I can be sure of is my fitness--it is as high as it has ever been. It will be very interesting to see how much of my fitness I am able to leverage on race day. Excellent workout.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Monday, May 14, 2007
41:47 :: 6 miles
Easy run with 2x400 at around 5:20 pace. First 400 felt really good, second felt unbelieveable, so I stopped doing them. The goal of the up tempo running is to overcome the 'flat' feeling on the second recovery day so that it doesn't affect the workout on the third day. I wasn't flat at all, so it made sense to stop the 400s.
Bundled up with an extra layer today. Made things a bit warmer, but not bad. Noticed last week that my weight following the 20 miler was 138.8, which is going to be very close to my 'dehydrated' weight. Today, well hydrated before the run, I was at 143.6, and after, 141.6. Race weight will be 143-144.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Bundled up with an extra layer today. Made things a bit warmer, but not bad. Noticed last week that my weight following the 20 miler was 138.8, which is going to be very close to my 'dehydrated' weight. Today, well hydrated before the run, I was at 143.6, and after, 141.6. Race weight will be 143-144.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Sunday, May 13, 2007
40:00 :: 5.9 miles
Saturday, May 12, 2007
1:21 :: 12 miles
Friday, May 11, 2007
31:03 :: 5 miles
One mile warmup, then four miles in 6:12, 5:40, 5:38, 6:09. Recovery to 120 in :35, 110 in :46. Just wanted to get out and spin the wheels at MP a couple of times and get some light work in. Standing HR was 44(!) this morning, which is crazy. I couldn't be more ready for this thing. Good run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Thursday, May 10, 2007
43:27 :: 6 miles
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
1:17:41 :: 11 miles
Volume speed workout. 5-10 x 1000m in 3:12 on 5:00. Did an 18:00 or so warmup, then 8x1000 like this:
3:07(160-:46) | 3:10(157-:54) | 3:11(158-:51) | 3:10(159-1:06) | 3:10(163-1:02) | 3:09(163-1:16) | 3:09(161-1:07) | 3:09(161-:59)
Just over 2.7mi to cooldown, part of it with my neighbor, Rick. Workout went well. The first was too fast, then I settled in to the right pace by holding back somewhat. After the fifth one, I decided anything beyond that was a bonus, and that I would just relax and go how I felt. Those three reps ended up a little faster, but felt smoother overall. Got a touch of fatigue at the seventh rep, and decided to do one more, which actually felt really strong. No problems with the hip, although it is tingling and feels a bit tired right now. Cold bath and recovery drink after.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
3:07(160-:46) | 3:10(157-:54) | 3:11(158-:51) | 3:10(159-1:06) | 3:10(163-1:02) | 3:09(163-1:16) | 3:09(161-1:07) | 3:09(161-:59)
Just over 2.7mi to cooldown, part of it with my neighbor, Rick. Workout went well. The first was too fast, then I settled in to the right pace by holding back somewhat. After the fifth one, I decided anything beyond that was a bonus, and that I would just relax and go how I felt. Those three reps ended up a little faster, but felt smoother overall. Got a touch of fatigue at the seventh rep, and decided to do one more, which actually felt really strong. No problems with the hip, although it is tingling and feels a bit tired right now. Cold bath and recovery drink after.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
54:30 :: 8 miles
Easy run. 1000s were on schedule today, but a little tweak in my hip after the run yesterday concerned me enough to put that off until tomorrow. Everything feels completely fine today, but I didn't want to take a chance. The workout is not so much for fitness--more for mechanical efficiency, so there's nothing to lose by putting it off a day. Anyway, on to what I did do. Six outside at around 6:25-6:30 pace, then two on the treadmill really easy. The legs felt kind of heavy and flat today, but at the same time, I caught myself sneaking into the sub 6:20 pace range during the run, and had to force myself to slow down a few times. Odd. Heart rate averaged 134 for the run, probably around 140 for the faster portion, which is still well within 'easy' range. Okay run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Monday, May 07, 2007
4+ miles :: 30:00
Sunday, May 06, 2007
57:24 :: 8 miles
Recovery run. Eight is the new ten. Standing around HR of 57, typical of the day following a back to back set. Temp was nice at 59F(15C), but 30mph(13m/s) winds were tough going out. Kept the heart rate well below 135 for the entire run, with an overall average of 131. Legs felt great--no soreness or anything. Stride felt smooth, even with the slower pace. Tough to believe I did MP runs the last two days. Good day.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Saturday, May 05, 2007
2:01:14 :: 20 miles
Long run with 10 at MP. Weather was ideal, except for a bit of wind--52F(11C), overcast and humid, with a 13mph(6m/s) east wind. It rained off and on during the run, mostly during the last fifteen minutes. If this weather shows up for Fargo, I will be like Crane Technique. I love using that Karate Kid quote: "Crane Technique. If do right, no can defense." Funny stuff. No? Hmmm. Moving on...
Mystery Coach's workout today was another 10/10, with the first ten slightly slower than last time at 6:30 pace, and the second slightly faster than last time at 5:40 pace. Instructions were to relax through the second ten and treat it like miles 5-23 of the marathon, only pushing the last three miles, but even then being careful to 'train, not strain'. Further, I was to limit my heart rate to a max of 164 throughout the second ten, even over the last few miles.
I try very hard to stick to what the Mystery Coach tells me. However, today I misread, and subsequently screwed up the workout. I normally have my wife read and interpret the e-mails to make sure I don't misunderstand, and of course today I didn't do that. I thought I was supposed to run the first seven MP miles in a relaxed fashion, staying below the 164HR, not worrying too much about pace, and then run the last three miles as if I was running the last three miles of the marathon, again, training, not straining. Seven miles relaxed, three miles controlled. Here are the splits:
[First Ten]
6:28(136) | 6:27(141) | 6:29(139) | 6:32(140) | 6:29(141) | 6:29(142) | 6:28(141) | 6:27(145) | 6:25(143) | 6:24(146)
[Second Ten]
5:49(160) | 5:43(161) | 5:45(160) | 5:39(161) | 5:40(162) | 5:38(163) | 5:38(165) | 5:38(166) | 5:34(169) | 5:29(170)
So, the bad thing--I didn't follow the instructions. But, it was an honest, stupid mistake. The good thing--I never got tired, didn't tie up, didn't have any mental issues (except the ongoing ones that have nothing to do with running) and I was well within tolerances for the whole run. The first time I did this run, the bear jumped on my back with three to go, and there was nothing I could do about it. Today, I think I may have outrun the sonofabitch!
Recovery to 130HR in 1:03, to 120HR in 1:40, and to 110 in 4:30. Standing around before the run was 55HR.
During the first ten I consumed a quarter liter of water, and during mile eleven I took in about 200ml of my carbohydrate drink, which is roughly 175 Calories of carbs. Following the run I did my typical recovery drink, then a 15 minute cold bath, and I have been sitting around ever since. The legs felt *great* after the run, and still feel very good right now. No stiffness, soreness, or any problems to speak of. I also should mention that I did today's run in my racing flats, and everything felt good. No blisters, even in wet shoes, and no calf issues of any kind. I am very confident the flats will not give me any problems come race day.
I'd like to think of this run as a confidence builder, but the German half of my mind is thinking that yesterday's eight miles with six a 5:45 pace was a bit easier than day one of the other back-to-back, and today's 6:30 early pace was 10-15 seconds slower than the other workout when I crashed with three to go. I find myself trying to be as realistic as possible in thinking these things out, and while today I think was very good, it may not be directly comparable, and may not be a run to draw any conclusions from. It was just what it was--a solid workout.
Have a good weekend!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Mystery Coach's workout today was another 10/10, with the first ten slightly slower than last time at 6:30 pace, and the second slightly faster than last time at 5:40 pace. Instructions were to relax through the second ten and treat it like miles 5-23 of the marathon, only pushing the last three miles, but even then being careful to 'train, not strain'. Further, I was to limit my heart rate to a max of 164 throughout the second ten, even over the last few miles.
I try very hard to stick to what the Mystery Coach tells me. However, today I misread, and subsequently screwed up the workout. I normally have my wife read and interpret the e-mails to make sure I don't misunderstand, and of course today I didn't do that. I thought I was supposed to run the first seven MP miles in a relaxed fashion, staying below the 164HR, not worrying too much about pace, and then run the last three miles as if I was running the last three miles of the marathon, again, training, not straining. Seven miles relaxed, three miles controlled. Here are the splits:
[First Ten]
6:28(136) | 6:27(141) | 6:29(139) | 6:32(140) | 6:29(141) | 6:29(142) | 6:28(141) | 6:27(145) | 6:25(143) | 6:24(146)
[Second Ten]
5:49(160) | 5:43(161) | 5:45(160) | 5:39(161) | 5:40(162) | 5:38(163) | 5:38(165) | 5:38(166) | 5:34(169) | 5:29(170)
So, the bad thing--I didn't follow the instructions. But, it was an honest, stupid mistake. The good thing--I never got tired, didn't tie up, didn't have any mental issues (except the ongoing ones that have nothing to do with running) and I was well within tolerances for the whole run. The first time I did this run, the bear jumped on my back with three to go, and there was nothing I could do about it. Today, I think I may have outrun the sonofabitch!
Recovery to 130HR in 1:03, to 120HR in 1:40, and to 110 in 4:30. Standing around before the run was 55HR.
During the first ten I consumed a quarter liter of water, and during mile eleven I took in about 200ml of my carbohydrate drink, which is roughly 175 Calories of carbs. Following the run I did my typical recovery drink, then a 15 minute cold bath, and I have been sitting around ever since. The legs felt *great* after the run, and still feel very good right now. No stiffness, soreness, or any problems to speak of. I also should mention that I did today's run in my racing flats, and everything felt good. No blisters, even in wet shoes, and no calf issues of any kind. I am very confident the flats will not give me any problems come race day.
I'd like to think of this run as a confidence builder, but the German half of my mind is thinking that yesterday's eight miles with six a 5:45 pace was a bit easier than day one of the other back-to-back, and today's 6:30 early pace was 10-15 seconds slower than the other workout when I crashed with three to go. I find myself trying to be as realistic as possible in thinking these things out, and while today I think was very good, it may not be directly comparable, and may not be a run to draw any conclusions from. It was just what it was--a solid workout.
Have a good weekend!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Friday, May 04, 2007
47:51 :: 8 miles
MP run. Wind was blowing like mad--20+mph and gusting--and it was raining off and on. Tried a couple of different loops, but couldn't avoid or minimize the wind. Two mile warmup in 13:29, then six miles at 5:45 pace (as I could manage).
5:46(147) | 5:47(153) | 5:43(154) | 5:39(156) | 5:46(158) | 5:41(159)
Recovered to 120HR in :50 and to 110HR in 1:01. Standing around HR prior to run was steady at 47--lowest recorded this cycle.
Couldn't settle into a pace today, probably due to conditions. Also noticed that the pace felt 'fast' from a mechanical perspective. I wasn't comfortable at pace like I was during some other pace workouts or during the half. The HR was better than normal, but the 'ease' just wasn't there. I wore my racing flats today, which gives me a bit different feel than the trainers--that could be something. My guess would be because I haven't done strides or 1000s since the race, my perspective is skewed and 5:45 feels fast again.
Also very possibly could have been an off day. I haven't had one for a while, and two easy runs in a row are a known cause of that feeling. Today's workout should eliminate that feeling (at least for the first half) from tomorrow's run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
5:46(147) | 5:47(153) | 5:43(154) | 5:39(156) | 5:46(158) | 5:41(159)
Recovered to 120HR in :50 and to 110HR in 1:01. Standing around HR prior to run was steady at 47--lowest recorded this cycle.
Couldn't settle into a pace today, probably due to conditions. Also noticed that the pace felt 'fast' from a mechanical perspective. I wasn't comfortable at pace like I was during some other pace workouts or during the half. The HR was better than normal, but the 'ease' just wasn't there. I wore my racing flats today, which gives me a bit different feel than the trainers--that could be something. My guess would be because I haven't done strides or 1000s since the race, my perspective is skewed and 5:45 feels fast again.
Also very possibly could have been an off day. I haven't had one for a while, and two easy runs in a row are a known cause of that feeling. Today's workout should eliminate that feeling (at least for the first half) from tomorrow's run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Thursday, May 03, 2007
1:05:34 :: 10 miles
Easy run. Had a few miles drift into the low 6:20 range, then settled down into the 6:30s. Heart rate averaged 134, so still quite easy effort. Legs felt good, wind was howling, which made part of the run not so fun. Otherwise no complaints.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
1:16:00 :: 10 miles
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
1:11:45 :: 12 miles
Workout was 3-5 x 2 mile reps in 11:05-11:15 with one mile recoveries in 6:15. About 45F, with a nasty 20+ mph gusting NNW wind. Standing around heart rate was 51-52, so recovery looked good after a couple of easy days. I ended up doing a two mile warmup (13:13), three reps, three recoveries, and a one mile cooldown (6:34).
11:06(5:33-157|5:33-160::6:13-152) |
11:07(5:35-158|5:32-162::6:13-153) |
11:07(5:34-159|5:33-164::6:12-154)
Mystery Coach made it very, very, very clear (inside joke) that my fitness is nearly maxed out, and that overdoing workouts now will do nothing but detract from race day. There is little to do now but maintain and taper effectively. After the second rep, I felt that three would be about all I could handle, but the third rep came and went, feeing the best of the three, and I had to make a decision. I'm sure I could have done four feeling just fine, but I thought back to Saturday's long run, and realized that you don't always realize how a workout fully affects you until the next day. On Saturday, I finished feeling like I could have gone another 4-5 miles, but by the next morning, I was tired and needed to run 7:15-7:30 pace to stay comfortable.
So today, even though from a physiological standpoint I was feeling good for another rep, physically my hips and legs were feeling a little bit 'loose' and beginning to get the first tingles of soreness. The last recovery mile passed, and with it the opportunity to start rep four. It was a decision I could live with regardless of the outcome of the upcoming race, so I was happy making it. Good run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
11:06(5:33-157|5:33-160::6:13-152) |
11:07(5:35-158|5:32-162::6:13-153) |
11:07(5:34-159|5:33-164::6:12-154)
Mystery Coach made it very, very, very clear (inside joke) that my fitness is nearly maxed out, and that overdoing workouts now will do nothing but detract from race day. There is little to do now but maintain and taper effectively. After the second rep, I felt that three would be about all I could handle, but the third rep came and went, feeing the best of the three, and I had to make a decision. I'm sure I could have done four feeling just fine, but I thought back to Saturday's long run, and realized that you don't always realize how a workout fully affects you until the next day. On Saturday, I finished feeling like I could have gone another 4-5 miles, but by the next morning, I was tired and needed to run 7:15-7:30 pace to stay comfortable.
So today, even though from a physiological standpoint I was feeling good for another rep, physically my hips and legs were feeling a little bit 'loose' and beginning to get the first tingles of soreness. The last recovery mile passed, and with it the opportunity to start rep four. It was a decision I could live with regardless of the outcome of the upcoming race, so I was happy making it. Good run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Sunday, April 29, 2007
59:13 :: 8 miles
Recovery run. Very easy today, with about half of the run on soft dirt trails, which was a nice change. Really windy today, which slowed things a bit and helped to keep the effort low. 7:15-7:30 pace felt just right, which struck me as a little bit odd considering how easy everything felt yesterday. Heart rate for the run averaged 130, which is very low, even for a recovery run. Standing around heart rate was hovering around 60, so I decided to cut the miles and go really easy on the effort to make sure I'm 100% for Tuesday's workout, as well as the back-to-back on Friday and Saturday. Good run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Marathon Practice
Forgot to mention that yesterday was a marathon drill. Each Saturday until the race (two total), I want to practice my planned routine, including eating, sleeping, warm up etc. in order to establish a bit of a habit and mentally prepare for the race itself.
I woke up at 4am, had a large-ish bowl of rice chex and milk, then rested again until around 5:30. The rest of the morning, until 8am, when I started the run, I made up my drink and filled my bottles. I'm using a custom blended powder mix that will provide me about 700 calories per liter, which I will take in from four different 250ml bottles along the course. During today's run, it took me about a full mile to down each bottle, but I'm hoping to bring that down a bit so I don't have to manage the bottles for so long. I'm using wash bottles, which are really nice for directing and controlling the flow versus a typical sport bottle. I need to cut the tip back a bit more to get a quicker flow, and I should be able to get the 250 down in less than three minutes. I also practiced with cups and figured out a better way to take in water, so that was a nice little 'breakthrough'.
No stomach distress or stitches from the sport drink, which was good news. I think everything went as well as it could have. Next week will be a slightly better test, as I will be running the last ten miles of my long run at marathon pace. That should be an excellent test of the drinks and the mechanics of consuming them on the run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
I woke up at 4am, had a large-ish bowl of rice chex and milk, then rested again until around 5:30. The rest of the morning, until 8am, when I started the run, I made up my drink and filled my bottles. I'm using a custom blended powder mix that will provide me about 700 calories per liter, which I will take in from four different 250ml bottles along the course. During today's run, it took me about a full mile to down each bottle, but I'm hoping to bring that down a bit so I don't have to manage the bottles for so long. I'm using wash bottles, which are really nice for directing and controlling the flow versus a typical sport bottle. I need to cut the tip back a bit more to get a quicker flow, and I should be able to get the 250 down in less than three minutes. I also practiced with cups and figured out a better way to take in water, so that was a nice little 'breakthrough'.
No stomach distress or stitches from the sport drink, which was good news. I think everything went as well as it could have. Next week will be a slightly better test, as I will be running the last ten miles of my long run at marathon pace. That should be an excellent test of the drinks and the mechanics of consuming them on the run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
2:14:29 :: 21 miles
Long run. Really good run. Ran relaxed all the way, picking up some speed toward the end even though I was trying hard to back off. I really felt like I was jogging the last four miles, though they were coming in under 6:20. Legs felt very fresh through 17 miles, then a small amount of fatigue gathered, but didn't amount to much. By the time I decided to end the run, I felt like I could have continued at that pace for a long time. No soreness to speak of, no fatigue...hell, I didn't even want to stop! =)
Overall heart rate averaged about 147, with the first fifteen at 143, and the last six around 152. Recovered to 120 in 1:05, and just about to 110 in 3:00--never quite got there and stopped timing. Standing around heart rate before the run was 57, so a bit elevated from yesterday's run. Temps were warm (60+ the last few miles), the sun was out, and I was overdressed at the end, which may have contributed to the slow recovery.
I discussed with Mystery Coach the value of doing a longer, marathon duration run (2:30) versus the 2:10 that was prescribed for today. I had been reading Buddy Edelen's biography recently, as well as Ryan Hall's blog (which I found yesterday...thanks Fatboy!), and both had mentioned some variation on either covering the marathon distance or duration several weeks before the goal race. I had also been dithering over the missed long run from a few weeks ago, when I was supposed to go 2:15 to 2:30, but ended up bonking and stopping around 2:00. I felt a 2:30 run today would be good mentally, and it couldn't hurt from a 'familiarity' standpoint. One of the reasons that training works, in my opinion, is that the body and the mind become familiar with the efforts that they are put through--they understand what is coming, what is expected, and they deliver the performance. It fits in nicely with the Central Governor model that Tim Noakes has proposed, and it makes sense to me.
Anyway, nothing can quite prepare you for the marathon as well as running a marathon. That is a classic conundrum. So, I decided to go with the Mystery Coach, as I usually do, and cap the run at just a touch over the recommendation, since I was still feeling fine. There is a much more key back to back coming up next week, and it will be important for me to be 100% recovered going into it. Today was a day to do no harm.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Overall heart rate averaged about 147, with the first fifteen at 143, and the last six around 152. Recovered to 120 in 1:05, and just about to 110 in 3:00--never quite got there and stopped timing. Standing around heart rate before the run was 57, so a bit elevated from yesterday's run. Temps were warm (60+ the last few miles), the sun was out, and I was overdressed at the end, which may have contributed to the slow recovery.
I discussed with Mystery Coach the value of doing a longer, marathon duration run (2:30) versus the 2:10 that was prescribed for today. I had been reading Buddy Edelen's biography recently, as well as Ryan Hall's blog (which I found yesterday...thanks Fatboy!), and both had mentioned some variation on either covering the marathon distance or duration several weeks before the goal race. I had also been dithering over the missed long run from a few weeks ago, when I was supposed to go 2:15 to 2:30, but ended up bonking and stopping around 2:00. I felt a 2:30 run today would be good mentally, and it couldn't hurt from a 'familiarity' standpoint. One of the reasons that training works, in my opinion, is that the body and the mind become familiar with the efforts that they are put through--they understand what is coming, what is expected, and they deliver the performance. It fits in nicely with the Central Governor model that Tim Noakes has proposed, and it makes sense to me.
Anyway, nothing can quite prepare you for the marathon as well as running a marathon. That is a classic conundrum. So, I decided to go with the Mystery Coach, as I usually do, and cap the run at just a touch over the recommendation, since I was still feeling fine. There is a much more key back to back coming up next week, and it will be important for me to be 100% recovered going into it. Today was a day to do no harm.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Friday, April 27, 2007
1:06:11 :: 11 miles
Two mile warmup in 13:03, then seven miles at MP, as follows:
5:43(151) | 5:43(154) | 5:41(156) | 5:42(156) | 5:45(156) | 5:37(159) | 5:41(160)
Recovered to 120HR in :56, and to 110HR in 1:09. Two mile cooldown in 12:50.
I'll add some commentary later...have to get to work! Good run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
5:43(151) | 5:43(154) | 5:41(156) | 5:42(156) | 5:45(156) | 5:37(159) | 5:41(160)
Recovered to 120HR in :56, and to 110HR in 1:09. Two mile cooldown in 12:50.
I'll add some commentary later...have to get to work! Good run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Thursday, April 26, 2007
54:48 :: 8 miles
Easy run with a couple of quicker miles (6:05, 5:48) in the middle. Legs feeling good. Heart rate was 50 before starting, and recovered to 120 in :36 after the faster miles. Recovery seems good going into the next two days of workouts (7mi@5:45 / 2:10 long run).
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
1:43:08 :: 15 miles
Easy run. Wanted to go a few more miles today to get out of the 10-12 rut. Sometimes it seems like I'm neglecting the long aerobic efforts that got me where I am, so it's nice to revisit that aspect of the training. Fifteen isn't incredibly long, but it's important to keep the easy work easy at this point, too.
Heart rates in the 132-140 range. A couple of quicker 6:30-ish miles, but mostly 6:50-7:00 pace. Listened to the iPod and just chilled. Nice run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Heart rates in the 132-140 range. A couple of quicker 6:30-ish miles, but mostly 6:50-7:00 pace. Listened to the iPod and just chilled. Nice run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
1:03:32 :: 10 miles
Evaluation run. Standing resting HR was 50 this morning, so I appear to be recovered, and I felt fresh as well. Easy three miles to warm up in 20:39, then four miles at 5:40-5:42 pace, trying to duplicate this workout to check progress. Each of these workouts comes on the third day after a significant workout, the first, a back-to-back MP series, and the second, a half marathon at MP with a fast finish. Here's a comparison:
March 12 - 5:42(157), 5:42(161), 5:40(162), 5:41(163) | 1:06(120), 1:28(110)
April 24 - 5:42(153), 5:41(157), 5:40(159), 5:41(159) | :42(120), 1:03(110)
Everything is better--heart rates are lower at the same paces, recovery is significantly faster, the legs feel strong and light, and the mind doesn't seem to concern itself with the effort. Put simply, this time it felt like a run rather than a workout.
I did notice the stride was a bit klunky this morning, which was expected after two easy days. I'm happy that it's consistent, and that I know I can do some light strides and a couple of moderately paced miles on that second day to get rid of the kinks without tiring myself. Also, during the cool down, I noticed somevery slight soreness in the quads and ITB areas--probably lingering muscle damage from the half. I've been religious about the cold baths after hard workouts, but I'll do another one today, which will hopefully help speed the mechanical aspect of recovery along.
Good day!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
March 12 - 5:42(157), 5:42(161), 5:40(162), 5:41(163) | 1:06(120), 1:28(110)
April 24 - 5:42(153), 5:41(157), 5:40(159), 5:41(159) | :42(120), 1:03(110)
Everything is better--heart rates are lower at the same paces, recovery is significantly faster, the legs feel strong and light, and the mind doesn't seem to concern itself with the effort. Put simply, this time it felt like a run rather than a workout.
I did notice the stride was a bit klunky this morning, which was expected after two easy days. I'm happy that it's consistent, and that I know I can do some light strides and a couple of moderately paced miles on that second day to get rid of the kinks without tiring myself. Also, during the cool down, I noticed somevery slight soreness in the quads and ITB areas--probably lingering muscle damage from the half. I've been religious about the cold baths after hard workouts, but I'll do another one today, which will hopefully help speed the mechanical aspect of recovery along.
Good day!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Monday, April 23, 2007
54:54 :: 8 miles
Easy run. Legs felt good today, not snappy yet, but better than yesterday. Heart rate was still up (about 57 this morning), so I elected to go a bit shorter this morning and maybe put in a four miler after work. Averaged 134 heart rate for the run--the same as yesterday, but the pace was a bit quicker and felt better overall.
Today is the first day of my new job. I'm pumped! On a Monday!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Today is the first day of my new job. I'm pumped! On a Monday!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Sunday, April 22, 2007
1:17:09 :: 11 miles
Recovery run. Legs felt really good through nine, then got a little bit tired. Heart rate averaged 134 for the run. Recovered to 120 in :25, to 110 in :35. No soreness at all, no tweaks either. There's a 'tingle' sensation in my legs that reminds me that yesterday was a hard day, and my standing-around heart rate was 60, but other than that, I feel really good.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Saturday, April 21, 2007
1:14:26 :: 13.1 miles :: 9th place
Sorry for the delayed report--my best laid GPS-and-text-message-enhanced plans fell apart! The plan was carried out, and the race went well. I went through ten miles in 57:21 according to the watch, and probably 57:45 according to the course markers. I wish I had done manual splits, as it would be nice to know the last 5k based on the course markings, and not the GPS. I guess either could be inaccurate, but I'm betting the course was way closer. Anyway, that puts the last 5k at 16:33 by the watch, and 16:41 by the course. That was around what I thought I could do, so I was happy with that finish.
I felt great overall, both through the first ten marathon pace miles and the last 5k. The weather was difficult at times, with the full complement of cold, rain, and wind during the race to keep things interesting. In the first four miles, we had some serious rain and wind, which made me worry a bit about hypothermia. I've never been soaking wet in 40F temps, let alone in 20 mile an hour winds. Not fun. During the third mile, we crossed the 10th Street bridge, which represented the worst of the course. The wind barrelled down the tree-lined Mississippi River canyon, driving the cold rain so hard that it appeared to be bouncing off of the bridge railing back up into my face. I was between groups of runners at the time, working my way up through the early speedsters. At just under five miles, I was in no man's land by around ten seconds. I had to make a decision to use some hills that were coming up to bridge the gap to a group that appeared to be running around my speed. I was able to make up the gap, and by six miles, I was settled in with another runner, John, a 2:27 marathoner. We had a good conversation over the next several miles, which was surprising to me considering the pace we were running. The wind was still a factor through nine miles, but it felt like a light breeze compared to the gale that hit us while crossing the bridge.
At ten miles, I set out on my own to reel in anyone I could, and over the next three miles, I would get one, and get close to another. It took a bit to figure out how fast I could push, but once I did, I felt like I was flying. I had another runner in my sights for the last quarter mile, but he was looking back and adjusting his effort to hold me off. I kept hammering as hard as I could, but I would only get within three seconds or so.
Here are the splits from the GPS:
5:43(157) | 5:46(161) | 5:49(163) | 5:38(163) | 5:35(165) | 5:41(164) | 5:55(163) | 5:45(161) | 5:49(161) | 5:42(160) | 5:32(167) | 5:14(170) | 5:12(172) | :34(175)
Good run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
I felt great overall, both through the first ten marathon pace miles and the last 5k. The weather was difficult at times, with the full complement of cold, rain, and wind during the race to keep things interesting. In the first four miles, we had some serious rain and wind, which made me worry a bit about hypothermia. I've never been soaking wet in 40F temps, let alone in 20 mile an hour winds. Not fun. During the third mile, we crossed the 10th Street bridge, which represented the worst of the course. The wind barrelled down the tree-lined Mississippi River canyon, driving the cold rain so hard that it appeared to be bouncing off of the bridge railing back up into my face. I was between groups of runners at the time, working my way up through the early speedsters. At just under five miles, I was in no man's land by around ten seconds. I had to make a decision to use some hills that were coming up to bridge the gap to a group that appeared to be running around my speed. I was able to make up the gap, and by six miles, I was settled in with another runner, John, a 2:27 marathoner. We had a good conversation over the next several miles, which was surprising to me considering the pace we were running. The wind was still a factor through nine miles, but it felt like a light breeze compared to the gale that hit us while crossing the bridge.
At ten miles, I set out on my own to reel in anyone I could, and over the next three miles, I would get one, and get close to another. It took a bit to figure out how fast I could push, but once I did, I felt like I was flying. I had another runner in my sights for the last quarter mile, but he was looking back and adjusting his effort to hold me off. I kept hammering as hard as I could, but I would only get within three seconds or so.
Here are the splits from the GPS:
5:43(157) | 5:46(161) | 5:49(163) | 5:38(163) | 5:35(165) | 5:41(164) | 5:55(163) | 5:45(161) | 5:49(161) | 5:42(160) | 5:32(167) | 5:14(170) | 5:12(172) | :34(175)
Good run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Thursday, April 19, 2007
40:05 :: 8 miles
Okay, so this totally didn't work, although it should have. My wife was able to post to her blog via the cell modem, but I couldn't. Go figure. Anyway, here is what I tried to post on Thursday, while driving down the highway.
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ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US! I figured out a way to use my GPS tracking phone as a modem for my laptop, so I am more mobile than EVAR! I'm actually driving, er, my wife is driving, down the interstate right now with a 19.2kbps connection to the series of tubes that make up what the kids call the intern-net. It takes a good bit longer to get a webpage loaded, but hey, I can't complain.
Props to NEXTEL/Boost Mobile for opening up their packet cellular networks for dial-up. Those money-grubbing bastards at Verizon, et al., can SUCK IT.
Okay, this is a running blog, not a geek manifesto...
I wanted to get a workout in on the lighter side of moderate effort today, because I know it will leave me feeling flat if I run easy for three straight days before the race. I also wanted to get a few more quicker miles on my racing shoes, just to get the calves adapted a bit more. I ended up doing a 2-2-2-2, that is, 2 miles at 6:45, 6:15, 5:50, 6:15. Everything felt good, and I should be ready to go.
Once again, you can follow the race live, starting at 9:00am Central Time (US) on http://gps.runnorth.com/bigmap.php, and I will post a quick place and time to the blog a short time, maybe as soon as half an hour (we'll see), after finishing. This will be really, really geeky, and really fun.
By the way, if you are a total technology dork like me, you might enjoy checking the website right now and watching our van go flying down the highway. Cheers!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
------------------------------------
ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US! I figured out a way to use my GPS tracking phone as a modem for my laptop, so I am more mobile than EVAR! I'm actually driving, er, my wife is driving, down the interstate right now with a 19.2kbps connection to the series of tubes that make up what the kids call the intern-net. It takes a good bit longer to get a webpage loaded, but hey, I can't complain.
Props to NEXTEL/Boost Mobile for opening up their packet cellular networks for dial-up. Those money-grubbing bastards at Verizon, et al., can SUCK IT.
Okay, this is a running blog, not a geek manifesto...
I wanted to get a workout in on the lighter side of moderate effort today, because I know it will leave me feeling flat if I run easy for three straight days before the race. I also wanted to get a few more quicker miles on my racing shoes, just to get the calves adapted a bit more. I ended up doing a 2-2-2-2, that is, 2 miles at 6:45, 6:15, 5:50, 6:15. Everything felt good, and I should be ready to go.
Once again, you can follow the race live, starting at 9:00am Central Time (US) on http://gps.runnorth.com/bigmap.php, and I will post a quick place and time to the blog a short time, maybe as soon as half an hour (we'll see), after finishing. This will be really, really geeky, and really fun.
By the way, if you are a total technology dork like me, you might enjoy checking the website right now and watching our van go flying down the highway. Cheers!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Earth Day Half Marathon :: Finally racing! Kinda.
The race starts at 9:00am CDT on Saturday. You can find more info here, if you like.
The plan for the race is to run the first 10 miles at marathon pace, and then go as I feel for the last 5k. So it's not really racing so much as it is a workout. While it will be tough to hold back with pride and prize money on the line (especially if it's raining--I run soooo good in rain), I know it serves the goal, which is to run my best at Fargo next month. My goal for this race, then, is to run somewhere in the 56-58 minute range for the first 16k (not sure yet which marathon pace, goal or current), and then scorch the last 5k, hopefully feeling strong, and hopefully still coming in with a good placing.
Updates to the regular blog will likely not happen again until Saturday afternoon, as I am between jobs right now and I just lost my phone yesterday (bummer!). Basically that means I have no mobile data capability, so no pictures or updates to the blog via phone this weekend.
However, I will be able to shoot up a short text message to the blog after the half marathon this weekend with place, time, and maybe a sentence or two of commentary. I will also have my fauxjack on during the half, which will be uploading GPS data to this website, live, on the race course. I still have a fair amount of programming to do to make it more functional and better looking, but it's good enough for government work. It should be in better shape for Fargo.
Thanks for following the blog. I know a few of you, hell, probably all of you have been waiting patiently, for what seems like forever, to see me run a race and actually do something besides train constantly! Well, here we go...
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
The plan for the race is to run the first 10 miles at marathon pace, and then go as I feel for the last 5k. So it's not really racing so much as it is a workout. While it will be tough to hold back with pride and prize money on the line (especially if it's raining--I run soooo good in rain), I know it serves the goal, which is to run my best at Fargo next month. My goal for this race, then, is to run somewhere in the 56-58 minute range for the first 16k (not sure yet which marathon pace, goal or current), and then scorch the last 5k, hopefully feeling strong, and hopefully still coming in with a good placing.
Updates to the regular blog will likely not happen again until Saturday afternoon, as I am between jobs right now and I just lost my phone yesterday (bummer!). Basically that means I have no mobile data capability, so no pictures or updates to the blog via phone this weekend.
However, I will be able to shoot up a short text message to the blog after the half marathon this weekend with place, time, and maybe a sentence or two of commentary. I will also have my fauxjack on during the half, which will be uploading GPS data to this website, live, on the race course. I still have a fair amount of programming to do to make it more functional and better looking, but it's good enough for government work. It should be in better shape for Fargo.
Thanks for following the blog. I know a few of you, hell, probably all of you have been waiting patiently, for what seems like forever, to see me run a race and actually do something besides train constantly! Well, here we go...
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
1:28:00 :: 13 miles
Easy run. Felt great before, during, and after the run today. Heart rate standing around before the run got down to 47, which is crazy. Usually if I'm well recovered, I'll see 52-53. The run felt really good, with the pace right around 6:45 for the most part, slower the first mile and faster the last. Overall heart rate averaged 138, so it wasn't quite a recovery run, but it was awfully close. In any case, I felt recovered from yesterday before I even started, and I feel good now. Good day.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
1:29:40 :: 14 miles
Volume and speed workout. The schedule for today looked like a lot of fun on paper, er, on e-mail--10 minute warmup, 30 minutes at 5:45 pace, 15 minutes at 6:15 pace, 3-4x1000m at 3:07 (5:01 pace), then a cooldown.
Everything went to plan, which is very encouraging. 1.45 mile warmup, then 5.25 miles (5:44-153, 5:44-157, 5:42-158, 5:43-159, 5:43-161, 1:23-162), followed by 2.4 miles (6:11-153, 6:16-152, 2:32-154), and 4x1000m on 5:00 (3:07-168[120-1:16], 3:07-163[120-1:15], 3:06-164[120-1:12], 3:05-164[120-1:19]).
Recovery to 120HR was 1:19 (following the last 1000m rep) and to 110HR in 1:36, then a two mile cooldown on the treadmill. This recovery looks pretty good compared to other workouts. I definitely felt good today. The first two miles of the 5:45 pace segment had me feeling a little tired, but that sorted out and the pace began to feel easier. The 6:15 segment was a bit difficult to hit exactly right, but I was close. That felt a bit odd--not really slow enough to feel like I was getting a rest, but not so fast that I couldn't get some recovery. Then, boom goes the dynamite, it was right into the first 1000 after a steady 55 minute run. Surprisingly, (or not surprisingly if you are the Mystery Coach), I felt great. I hit the mark right on pace. The next one started a touch slower, but ended about the same, and felt about the same, but three and four were like melted butter on a fresh from the oven caramel roll. I haven't experienced that sense of easy speed in my legs for years. The first 300 meters of the last two reps were completely ridiculous! I would put the effort for all four of the reps equal to the effort of the middle four of the 7x1000m I did last week. A fair amount of oxygen debt for the last 500m, but quite relaxed and controlled compared to last time--and nearly ten seconds per rep faster. Quite an adaptation in just a week. The recoveries were similar as well, and it's a good thing I wasn't out there with last week's instructions, because I felt just fine after four, and the recovery to 120 was leaving me with better than 30 seconds to spare.
Great workout today. Really enjoyable with a good mix of pace work and moderate speed.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Everything went to plan, which is very encouraging. 1.45 mile warmup, then 5.25 miles (5:44-153, 5:44-157, 5:42-158, 5:43-159, 5:43-161, 1:23-162), followed by 2.4 miles (6:11-153, 6:16-152, 2:32-154), and 4x1000m on 5:00 (3:07-168[120-1:16], 3:07-163[120-1:15], 3:06-164[120-1:12], 3:05-164[120-1:19]).
Recovery to 120HR was 1:19 (following the last 1000m rep) and to 110HR in 1:36, then a two mile cooldown on the treadmill. This recovery looks pretty good compared to other workouts. I definitely felt good today. The first two miles of the 5:45 pace segment had me feeling a little tired, but that sorted out and the pace began to feel easier. The 6:15 segment was a bit difficult to hit exactly right, but I was close. That felt a bit odd--not really slow enough to feel like I was getting a rest, but not so fast that I couldn't get some recovery. Then, boom goes the dynamite, it was right into the first 1000 after a steady 55 minute run. Surprisingly, (or not surprisingly if you are the Mystery Coach), I felt great. I hit the mark right on pace. The next one started a touch slower, but ended about the same, and felt about the same, but three and four were like melted butter on a fresh from the oven caramel roll. I haven't experienced that sense of easy speed in my legs for years. The first 300 meters of the last two reps were completely ridiculous! I would put the effort for all four of the reps equal to the effort of the middle four of the 7x1000m I did last week. A fair amount of oxygen debt for the last 500m, but quite relaxed and controlled compared to last time--and nearly ten seconds per rep faster. Quite an adaptation in just a week. The recoveries were similar as well, and it's a good thing I wasn't out there with last week's instructions, because I felt just fine after four, and the recovery to 120 was leaving me with better than 30 seconds to spare.
Great workout today. Really enjoyable with a good mix of pace work and moderate speed.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Monday, April 16, 2007
1:22:25 :: 12 miles
Easy run with progression. Did a five mile progression (6:50,6:24,6:18,6:13,5:56) just to do something a bit more up tempo, trying to avoid feeling flat after two days of recovery running. Followed up with seven miles easy on the treadmill just to get on to a soft surface and avoid some pounding on the legs. Just a touch of soreness in the quads still from Saturday's long run. Good run.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Sunday, April 15, 2007
59:30 :: 8.5 miles
Recovery run. Felt surprisingly good today. My heart rate standing around before the run was 57, which is about five bpm off of my 'fresh' heart rate. After yesterday, I took this as a good sign. When I'm really stressed following a hard workout, my standing heart rate can get up to 62-63 bpm, so maybe yesterday didn't beat me up as much as I thought it would. Or maybe the cold bath is the bizzle dizzle.
First mile was comfortable and slow in 7:30, and it felt like the pace would stay there for the run, but by the third mile I was down in the 6:4x range at 135HR. Other than a couple of windy stetches, the pace and HR were consistent, and the legs felt really good until around seven miles. I noticed some soreness at that point, and decided to just stop at an hour. The point of the run was to assist recovery, so I didn't want to beat my legs up any further. Overall heart rate averaged 133, so it was a nice, easy run.
I jumped in to another cold bath after, which should alleviate some of the soreness, and will get some rest today. I might do an easy half hour on the bike later, just to get the blood flowing. Good day!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
First mile was comfortable and slow in 7:30, and it felt like the pace would stay there for the run, but by the third mile I was down in the 6:4x range at 135HR. Other than a couple of windy stetches, the pace and HR were consistent, and the legs felt really good until around seven miles. I noticed some soreness at that point, and decided to just stop at an hour. The point of the run was to assist recovery, so I didn't want to beat my legs up any further. Overall heart rate averaged 133, so it was a nice, easy run.
I jumped in to another cold bath after, which should alleviate some of the soreness, and will get some rest today. I might do an easy half hour on the bike later, just to get the blood flowing. Good day!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Saturday, April 14, 2007
2:01:04 :: 20 miles
Long run with MP miles. The longer I wait to think this run over, the better I think it went. The goal was 10 miles at 6:20 pace, then 8-10 miles at 5:45 pace. I went at this workout with the thought that it would probably put in me in similar discomfort to the late stages of the marathon, and mentally, I needed to be focused when it got tough. I wasn't disappointed.
The weather was fantastic--nearly perfect. Almost no wind, and 29F at the start. The first ten went by a bit fast in 1:02:42, with fairly even splits, but a drifting heart rate. The previous day's workout was doing its thing.
6:14(139) | 6:16(145) | 6:17(145) | 6:18(146) | 6:19(148) | 6:17(151) | 6:18(151) | 6:17(152) | 6:13(153) | 6:13(156)
The MP portion was a challenge from the start, although at mile two I felt very strong for a time. By mile 14, I was beginning to feel the creeping fatigue and telling myself I just had to be strong mentally and muscle memory would take care of the rest. 15 and 16 were a fog of effort, but I managed to keep the pace even though I felt like I was slowing considerably. The pace made a very real deflection at mile 17, and no amount of willpower was going to change it. Ventilation was way up, oxygen debt had started to incur, and I was slowing. I wouldn't have called it a bonk in the sense that I'm used to--the feeling of muscles with no gas and the brain not wanting to continue. This was more like picking up a ten pound bag of sugar and carrying it along for the run. The legs still turned over, the brain was allowing me to go on, the effort was similar, but the pace just slowed.
5:46(163) | 5:45(163) | 5:46(166) | 5:46(165) | 5:47(165) | 5:48(166) | 5:53(165) | 5:57(166) | 5:57(165) | 5:56(167)
Recovery to 120HR in 1:36 and to 110HR in 5:15. I extended myself today, hopefully not too far. I suppose I could have stopped at 18, knowing that Mystery Coach had allowed for that, but I felt like I could continue, and that it was somewhat a point I had to make to myself that when the running gets tough, I need to know that I'm not going to quit. It's a lesson I haven't learned often enough yet, and a lesson that pays dividends in a race like the marathon. After last week's short (failed) long run, I needed to believe that I could stick out a tough situation, and today, I did.
That said, I wonder if I could have been a bit tougher, and dug down to keep the pace under 5:50. The heart rate slowed a beat over the mile when the pace slowed, which makes me wonder if the cause was as much as lapse in focus as it was physical fatigue. Sucking air like I was running 1000 meter reps was very real at the time, so maybe not. I'm putting too fine a point on it, but it's worth mentioning.
Twelve hours later, I am definitely depleted and tired, but no soreness to speak of, probably thanks to the 15 minute cold bath (50F water fully covering the hips and legs, and yes, that too. And yes, it was extremely uncomfortable), and the recovery drink. If anyone out there is not using some kind of recovery routine following their harder efforts, you would do well to start. A recovery drink (4:1 carbs:protein ratio--pick your poison), light massage, and cold water baths work wonders.
Have a good weekend!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
The weather was fantastic--nearly perfect. Almost no wind, and 29F at the start. The first ten went by a bit fast in 1:02:42, with fairly even splits, but a drifting heart rate. The previous day's workout was doing its thing.
6:14(139) | 6:16(145) | 6:17(145) | 6:18(146) | 6:19(148) | 6:17(151) | 6:18(151) | 6:17(152) | 6:13(153) | 6:13(156)
The MP portion was a challenge from the start, although at mile two I felt very strong for a time. By mile 14, I was beginning to feel the creeping fatigue and telling myself I just had to be strong mentally and muscle memory would take care of the rest. 15 and 16 were a fog of effort, but I managed to keep the pace even though I felt like I was slowing considerably. The pace made a very real deflection at mile 17, and no amount of willpower was going to change it. Ventilation was way up, oxygen debt had started to incur, and I was slowing. I wouldn't have called it a bonk in the sense that I'm used to--the feeling of muscles with no gas and the brain not wanting to continue. This was more like picking up a ten pound bag of sugar and carrying it along for the run. The legs still turned over, the brain was allowing me to go on, the effort was similar, but the pace just slowed.
5:46(163) | 5:45(163) | 5:46(166) | 5:46(165) | 5:47(165) | 5:48(166) | 5:53(165) | 5:57(166) | 5:57(165) | 5:56(167)
Recovery to 120HR in 1:36 and to 110HR in 5:15. I extended myself today, hopefully not too far. I suppose I could have stopped at 18, knowing that Mystery Coach had allowed for that, but I felt like I could continue, and that it was somewhat a point I had to make to myself that when the running gets tough, I need to know that I'm not going to quit. It's a lesson I haven't learned often enough yet, and a lesson that pays dividends in a race like the marathon. After last week's short (failed) long run, I needed to believe that I could stick out a tough situation, and today, I did.
That said, I wonder if I could have been a bit tougher, and dug down to keep the pace under 5:50. The heart rate slowed a beat over the mile when the pace slowed, which makes me wonder if the cause was as much as lapse in focus as it was physical fatigue. Sucking air like I was running 1000 meter reps was very real at the time, so maybe not. I'm putting too fine a point on it, but it's worth mentioning.
Twelve hours later, I am definitely depleted and tired, but no soreness to speak of, probably thanks to the 15 minute cold bath (50F water fully covering the hips and legs, and yes, that too. And yes, it was extremely uncomfortable), and the recovery drink. If anyone out there is not using some kind of recovery routine following their harder efforts, you would do well to start. A recovery drink (4:1 carbs:protein ratio--pick your poison), light massage, and cold water baths work wonders.
Have a good weekend!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Friday, April 13, 2007
1:09:51 :: 11 miles
MP-10 workout. Went well, but felt a bit flat. For some reason, getting too much recovery leaves me with the same feeling as not getting enough. If I find myself in this situation again, I may throw some strides or a quicker paced mile onto the end of the second easy day's run to see if that helps to avoid the problem.
Mystery Coach had a fever, and the only prescription was more volume. The order of the day was 7 miles at 5:37-5:42, which should have put the heart rate in the 157-159 range. The fit was near perfect, except for a deflection to 161 for the last mile--not sure what that was about. After a 2.5 mile warmup, here were the splits:
5:34(156) | 5:38(158) | 5:37(159) | 5:40(159) | 5:40(159) | 5:40(159) | 5:40(161)
During the last mile, I fooled around a bit with the pace/HR and found that 5:44 pace put me back at 158-159, but I decided running even effort was more important than even heart rate.
The recovery was good today, hitting 120HR in 51 seconds, and 110HR in 1:25. 1.5 mile cooldown. Overall, a good workout. Ran the seven mile segment in racing flats. They felt good throughout the run, although for some reason today I wasn't getting the 'light, fast' feeling from them. Did the cold water bath for the calves and a recovery drink.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Mystery Coach had a fever, and the only prescription was more volume. The order of the day was 7 miles at 5:37-5:42, which should have put the heart rate in the 157-159 range. The fit was near perfect, except for a deflection to 161 for the last mile--not sure what that was about. After a 2.5 mile warmup, here were the splits:
5:34(156) | 5:38(158) | 5:37(159) | 5:40(159) | 5:40(159) | 5:40(159) | 5:40(161)
During the last mile, I fooled around a bit with the pace/HR and found that 5:44 pace put me back at 158-159, but I decided running even effort was more important than even heart rate.
The recovery was good today, hitting 120HR in 51 seconds, and 110HR in 1:25. 1.5 mile cooldown. Overall, a good workout. Ran the seven mile segment in racing flats. They felt good throughout the run, although for some reason today I wasn't getting the 'light, fast' feeling from them. Did the cold water bath for the calves and a recovery drink.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Thursday, April 12, 2007
54:15 :: 8 miles
Easy run in preparation for Friday and Saturday's back-to-back MP workouts. Pretty much 6:40s at 135HR until the last two or three miles, which got down into the 6:25-6:30 range around 140HR. Legs felt good, but I'm tired from poor sleep on Monday and Tuesday. Last night was better, which should help tomorrow morning feel better.
Tested the live GPS setup this morning. Very comfortable, and I didn't even remember it was there after a few minutes. It uploaded points every minute for a while, but then had a few dropouts for some reason. Lots of work to do with it yet, but the physical aspect of carrying the phone without interfering in any way with running is taken care of. Cool.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Tested the live GPS setup this morning. Very comfortable, and I didn't even remember it was there after a few minutes. It uploaded points every minute for a while, but then had a few dropouts for some reason. Lots of work to do with it yet, but the physical aspect of carrying the phone without interfering in any way with running is taken care of. Cool.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
1:29:58 :: 12 miles
Easy run on the treadmill. Felt *great*. No muscle soreness from yesterday, stride was smooth, no undue fatigue, heart rates in the mid 130s. Really nice run. Ran the whole distance in racing flats. I have 70-80 miles on them now, so they should be broken in nicely. I do need to gradually use them at faster paces before the marathon to get the calves adapted, however. What feels good at seven minute pace is a different story at sub-six.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
1:03:38 :: 9 miles
Interval workout. The plan was 1000m reps in 3:12-3:15 on 5:00, repeating until the heart rate fails to recover to 120 during the rest period. This is one of those workouts that Lydiard got strange looks about--you quit when you're done. Needless to say, that can be intimidating.
Mystery Coach cautioned me not to be disappointed if I only got three reps, so that told me this was going to be a tough one. With that in mind, I thought five would make for a good day. I put in a fifteen minute warmup, feeling just okay, and then started in on the 1000s. The first two were good, right on time, the third was the fastest of the day, the fourth started to burn a bit, five was more of the same with some wicked oxygen debt, and six and seven included all of the above. Those were TOUGH. Eight was just...okay, I'm hoping at this point you're all screaming at your computers for me to STOP!! Let's look at the numbers...rep time(avgHR)|recovery time to 120HR
3:15(161)|:45 - 3:14(160)|:46 - 3:14(162)|:67 - 3:13(163)|:70 - 3:15(164)|:71 - 3:14(164)|:79 - 3:15(162)|:67
For some damn reason, I started to hit my stride on the seventh rep! I still recovered well within the 5:00 after number seven, and by the looks of it, I probably could have gotten nine or ten today. The legs and lungs were really feeling it, though. The only thing getting me through the last couple was guts. Each rep added about 100m of lactic acid burn and oxygen debt. By the seventh one, I was starting to feel the pain around 300m all the way through the finish. Even though my legs were like lead, and my pace felt like a crawl, I kept clicking off the same times.
I started number eight, did about 400m, then thought better of it and shut things down for the day. One and a half miles on the treadmill to cool down. I should have learned something from the hill workout two weeks ago, and the lesson applied today. I don't think I'm boasting to say that my fitness may exceed my strength right now, and there's no shame in stopping at 'good enough'. I'll get another shot at this workout, so no need to do something stupid today trying to max out. I'll take a solid workout over an awesome workout, an injury, and a few goose eggs in the log.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Mystery Coach cautioned me not to be disappointed if I only got three reps, so that told me this was going to be a tough one. With that in mind, I thought five would make for a good day. I put in a fifteen minute warmup, feeling just okay, and then started in on the 1000s. The first two were good, right on time, the third was the fastest of the day, the fourth started to burn a bit, five was more of the same with some wicked oxygen debt, and six and seven included all of the above. Those were TOUGH. Eight was just...okay, I'm hoping at this point you're all screaming at your computers for me to STOP!! Let's look at the numbers...rep time(avgHR)|recovery time to 120HR
3:15(161)|:45 - 3:14(160)|:46 - 3:14(162)|:67 - 3:13(163)|:70 - 3:15(164)|:71 - 3:14(164)|:79 - 3:15(162)|:67
For some damn reason, I started to hit my stride on the seventh rep! I still recovered well within the 5:00 after number seven, and by the looks of it, I probably could have gotten nine or ten today. The legs and lungs were really feeling it, though. The only thing getting me through the last couple was guts. Each rep added about 100m of lactic acid burn and oxygen debt. By the seventh one, I was starting to feel the pain around 300m all the way through the finish. Even though my legs were like lead, and my pace felt like a crawl, I kept clicking off the same times.
I started number eight, did about 400m, then thought better of it and shut things down for the day. One and a half miles on the treadmill to cool down. I should have learned something from the hill workout two weeks ago, and the lesson applied today. I don't think I'm boasting to say that my fitness may exceed my strength right now, and there's no shame in stopping at 'good enough'. I'll get another shot at this workout, so no need to do something stupid today trying to max out. I'll take a solid workout over an awesome workout, an injury, and a few goose eggs in the log.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Monday, April 09, 2007
1:30:32 :: 13 miles
Easy run. Ten miles outside at 6:35-6:45 pace, 135-140HR, then three miles on the treadmill in about 23 minutes. Legs felt good, stride was smooth. Ready for a workout tomorrow.
Quick perosnal note. I haven't been as responsive to e-mails or comments as I would normally--sorry for that. The relationships I've built through this blog have contributed greatly to my improvement, so I like to keep my readers happy! I recently got a new job, which I'll be starting next week, so I have been busy tying up loose ends with my current employer and getting ready to move on. All this change leaves less time for blogging, but things should settle down again in a couple of weeks and get back to normal.
Also, a quick gadget announcement--Luddites, avert your eyes. I'm getting a Garmin Forerunner 305 today, replacing the flaky 301 unit. I'm expecting better, more consistent performance out of the GPS as well as the heart rate monitor. We'll see. Reviews have been excellent over the course of the year it has been available. Finally, I'm experimenting with live GPS via cellphone, and I hope to have it working for the half marathon in a couple of weeks. All of the information is there to provide live pace and distance updates to a Google map, but the programming has to be worked out, which will be a bit of a challenge for me. If I can make it work and make the cellphone a seamless part of my race gear, it could even be online for Fargo. One step at a time, though...
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Quick perosnal note. I haven't been as responsive to e-mails or comments as I would normally--sorry for that. The relationships I've built through this blog have contributed greatly to my improvement, so I like to keep my readers happy! I recently got a new job, which I'll be starting next week, so I have been busy tying up loose ends with my current employer and getting ready to move on. All this change leaves less time for blogging, but things should settle down again in a couple of weeks and get back to normal.
Also, a quick gadget announcement--Luddites, avert your eyes. I'm getting a Garmin Forerunner 305 today, replacing the flaky 301 unit. I'm expecting better, more consistent performance out of the GPS as well as the heart rate monitor. We'll see. Reviews have been excellent over the course of the year it has been available. Finally, I'm experimenting with live GPS via cellphone, and I hope to have it working for the half marathon in a couple of weeks. All of the information is there to provide live pace and distance updates to a Google map, but the programming has to be worked out, which will be a bit of a challenge for me. If I can make it work and make the cellphone a seamless part of my race gear, it could even be online for Fargo. One step at a time, though...
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Sunday, April 08, 2007
1:13:09 :: 10+ miles
Recovery run. Ran about five miles with my wife for the first time since we had kids--it's been several years. That was a lot of fun, however, she is too fast for me! She was doing a long run with MP finish (7:05-7:10) and I was just hanging on for dear life the first fifteen minutes. =) Good times.
Legs felt a bit tired, but the soreness is gone. I got going as fast as 6:40 pace, but I think 7:00 was the sweet spot today. Good run.
Happy Easter!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Legs felt a bit tired, but the soreness is gone. I got going as fast as 6:40 pace, but I think 7:00 was the sweet spot today. Good run.
Happy Easter!
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Saturday, April 07, 2007
2:01:21 :: 19 miles
Long run. Another crappy day, with winds steady at 20 and gusting to 25, and temps in the high teens. At least the sun was shining. Hit the wall just over 17 miles, and stuck it out through 19 to at least get two hours out of it. I knew I was taking a chance eating my Coco Wheats 75 minutes before my run, but I did it anyway because I was starving. This is the third time that I have bonked pretty hard around 17 miles after eating just before a long run. I think I've established a pattern. Kind of neat.
Anyway, the run was supposed to be 2:15 to 2:30 at 140-145 heart rate. I failed miserably to achieve either the time or the heart rate. I stayed between 140-145 for the first three miles, then 145-148 through ten. Anything under 150 was feeling like an uncomfortably slow jog, so after ten I settled into a more comfortable heart rate, which ended up being 152-154. The pace didn't change much even with the increased effort, but it was more comfortable. Hit mostly 6:20-6:25 feeling really good until just over 15 miles, when the fatigue started creeping in. I knew I was in for a bonk at 16 when my hamstrings and shins started to feel the tingle of glycogen depletion, then by 17.5, it was full on. I looked at the watch and saw 1:52 and knew it was going to be a struggle to make two hours, let alone 2:15, so I just made a commitment to getting 19 and made the best of it.
Recovered to 120 in :38, and 110 in 1:03, which was decent. I think this was a good workout, even though it was screwed up a bit. The extra time at MP heart rates isn't a bad thing, and I don't anticipate any additional recovery time from the effort. Not getting the extra 15-30 minutes of training on those upper level fibers was a give up, though. I don't want to repeat this fueling mistake again.
Have a good weekend, everyone.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Anyway, the run was supposed to be 2:15 to 2:30 at 140-145 heart rate. I failed miserably to achieve either the time or the heart rate. I stayed between 140-145 for the first three miles, then 145-148 through ten. Anything under 150 was feeling like an uncomfortably slow jog, so after ten I settled into a more comfortable heart rate, which ended up being 152-154. The pace didn't change much even with the increased effort, but it was more comfortable. Hit mostly 6:20-6:25 feeling really good until just over 15 miles, when the fatigue started creeping in. I knew I was in for a bonk at 16 when my hamstrings and shins started to feel the tingle of glycogen depletion, then by 17.5, it was full on. I looked at the watch and saw 1:52 and knew it was going to be a struggle to make two hours, let alone 2:15, so I just made a commitment to getting 19 and made the best of it.
Recovered to 120 in :38, and 110 in 1:03, which was decent. I think this was a good workout, even though it was screwed up a bit. The extra time at MP heart rates isn't a bad thing, and I don't anticipate any additional recovery time from the effort. Not getting the extra 15-30 minutes of training on those upper level fibers was a give up, though. I don't want to repeat this fueling mistake again.
Have a good weekend, everyone.
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Friday, April 06, 2007
1:24:00 :: 13 miles
Marathon pace run. The run was a mixed bag. Legs felt good, but the stride was clunky. No fatigue in the legs, but the heart rate was jacked. It was just that kind of day.
Weather was, again, terrible. Fifteen degrees with an 18mph north wind. To top it off, my GPS was screwed up and kept recording the miles incorrectly, even though skies were perfectly clear. It's time to get rid of that thing and switch to measured courses and a heart rate monitor with a stopwatch.
My wife identified that we are affected adversely by a cold before we even experience symptoms. Last week, she had a problem with her heart rates escalating by 6-8bpm during a workout at the same efforts she was used to, but when the workout was over, she recovered to her low heart rate (120 for her) in less than a minute--very quickly. Today, I experienced the same thing. Two days ago, I had a tickle in the back of my throat that told me I was getting the cold she just had, so I started taking zinc for it. Even though I have remained symptom free, I have had two workouts (Wednesday and today) where my heart rate was higher than normal for the effort and pace I am used to. Initially, I thought it was the three days of biking, causing me to miss out on two strong aerobic workouts. After today, I believe it is the cold.
The workout was 9 miles at 155 heart rate. Mystery Coach has been advising me (if it wasn't obvious), and since the calf problem cropped up, he has been concerned about overstressing the leg as well as carefully managing recovery. 153-155 HR today got me 5:52 to 5:56 pace, which would be disappointing if there wasn't a good reason. Just like in my wife's example above, I recovered to 120HR in :36, and to 110 in :53, feeling like I had just finished a nicely up-tempo jog. Even though the GPS was screwed, I was able to get some times on the loop, which indicated 5:48 pace at 157HR. I'm comfortable that a 157HR today is equivalent to 153HR on a normal day, which tells me I'm still making progress in spite of the brief delay due to the calf problem. Next week's workouts should give tell me if I am right about that, or just blowing smoke.
Earth Day Half Marathon is April 21--coming up quickly. Then, finally, the Fargo Marathon.
So, end result, the weather, the GPS, and the heart rates were a bit frustrating, but I got 9 miles in at 155HR as planned
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Weather was, again, terrible. Fifteen degrees with an 18mph north wind. To top it off, my GPS was screwed up and kept recording the miles incorrectly, even though skies were perfectly clear. It's time to get rid of that thing and switch to measured courses and a heart rate monitor with a stopwatch.
My wife identified that we are affected adversely by a cold before we even experience symptoms. Last week, she had a problem with her heart rates escalating by 6-8bpm during a workout at the same efforts she was used to, but when the workout was over, she recovered to her low heart rate (120 for her) in less than a minute--very quickly. Today, I experienced the same thing. Two days ago, I had a tickle in the back of my throat that told me I was getting the cold she just had, so I started taking zinc for it. Even though I have remained symptom free, I have had two workouts (Wednesday and today) where my heart rate was higher than normal for the effort and pace I am used to. Initially, I thought it was the three days of biking, causing me to miss out on two strong aerobic workouts. After today, I believe it is the cold.
The workout was 9 miles at 155 heart rate. Mystery Coach has been advising me (if it wasn't obvious), and since the calf problem cropped up, he has been concerned about overstressing the leg as well as carefully managing recovery. 153-155 HR today got me 5:52 to 5:56 pace, which would be disappointing if there wasn't a good reason. Just like in my wife's example above, I recovered to 120HR in :36, and to 110 in :53, feeling like I had just finished a nicely up-tempo jog. Even though the GPS was screwed, I was able to get some times on the loop, which indicated 5:48 pace at 157HR. I'm comfortable that a 157HR today is equivalent to 153HR on a normal day, which tells me I'm still making progress in spite of the brief delay due to the calf problem. Next week's workouts should give tell me if I am right about that, or just blowing smoke.
Earth Day Half Marathon is April 21--coming up quickly. Then, finally, the Fargo Marathon.
So, end result, the weather, the GPS, and the heart rates were a bit frustrating, but I got 9 miles in at 155HR as planned
Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury
Thursday, April 05, 2007
1:17:00 :: 10 miles
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