March
Distance: 231.8 miles
Pace: 7:53
Run Days/Rest Days: 27/4
YTD: 739.6 @ 8:24
March wasn't quite the distance I was looking for but it was a great month. I ran a new 10k PR and an unofficial 5k PR! It would have been a streak month (i.e. no rest days) if not for the dental procedure I had done on Monday. It put me out of commission for four days. Hence the low totals this week. So far I have 20 miles. Hoping to get out for another 5 tomorrow to give me 25 for the week.
M-Th: Rest days per Dr. orders
F: 7.25 miles @ 8:13
Sa: 13 miles @ 7:45
Su: 5 miles @ ?
Not sure how fast tomorrow's run will be. Probably a little slower, 8:30-9:00. My quads are a little sore after today's run. Hopefully next week is better than this week in terms of running. In terms of work it will be crazy. I'm use to teaching in the morning. Next quarter, which starts Monday, I will be teaching two night courses. MW I'm teaching until 10 and TTH until 7:50. That will take some getting use to. Also, I have 70+ new names to learn. Such is the life of a teacher.
31 March 2012
27 March 2012
Steep Taper
Looks like this first week of my taper will be very, very steep. I had an unscheduled (minor) procedure done on Monday. So I am not allowed to run until Friday. Now I'm planning this for a taper: 25-30 miles this week, 40 next week and 20-25 race week (not including the race).
25 March 2012
Peak Week
Monday- 8.08 miles @ 7:03
Tuesday- 8 miles @ 7:18 (including a 5k TT @18:29)
Wednesday- 14 miles @ 7:22 (last 8 @ 6:49)
Thursday- 5 miles @ 7:58
Friday- 11.85 miles @ 7:39 (trail run)
Saturday- 21 miles @ 8:00
Sunday- 3.22 @ 10:50 (recovery run)
Total: 71.2 miles @ 7:46
I am very happy with this week! I hit the mileage I wanted to peak at and got in two sets of back-to-back hard workouts.
The first back-to-back was Tuesday/Wednesday. Tuesday was planned to be 8 miles with 5 at goal marathon pace. Unfortunately, I had an unplanned visit to the dentist that morning so I missed the start of the run (it was with a small group from my club). So, I decided to just haul until I caught them. Well, after I ran a 5k PR and was still about a half a mile back I decided to shut it down and cruise the rest of the run. They had already started the fast portion of the run (6:49's) so I knew I would have no chance at catching them. Slightly off track, I really need to find a 5k race to set an official PR. First I hit the PR as a split in a 10k, then I run faster than that in a training run. I guess my fitness is much better than it ever has been. Wednesday I ran on the treadmill. Mostly because I wanted to get in a lot of downhill miles. The marathon I am targeting in 3 weeks (still not 100% sure if we can afford it financially) has a long downhill section from ~15 miles in to the 20 mile mark. Here are the stats for that run:
2 miles @ 8:34 @ 1% 2 miles @ 8:00 @ 1% 1 mile @ 7:30 @ 2% 1 mile @ 7:30 @ 3% 8 miles @ 6:49 @ -3%
The second back-to-back was Friday/Saturday. Friday's run doesn't look to difficult but it was hard. It was a fairly hilly trail run with two runners much faster than I could ever hope to be. One is a former Division II runner who has a 1500m time under 4:00 and the other is a current DI runner. It was a walk in the park for them and a hard run for me. Saturday we had planned on 22 miles but decided that 21 was long enough. We (a friend training for Boston and myself) averaged ~8:15 for the first 15 miles and then picked up the pace to 7:3x. My last mile was a 6:37. Definitely a boost of confidence that I can pull that time out for the last mile of a 21 mile run with the week I had leading up to it.
Until next time...
Tuesday- 8 miles @ 7:18 (including a 5k TT @18:29)
Wednesday- 14 miles @ 7:22 (last 8 @ 6:49)
Thursday- 5 miles @ 7:58
Friday- 11.85 miles @ 7:39 (trail run)
Saturday- 21 miles @ 8:00
Sunday- 3.22 @ 10:50 (recovery run)
Total: 71.2 miles @ 7:46
I am very happy with this week! I hit the mileage I wanted to peak at and got in two sets of back-to-back hard workouts.
The first back-to-back was Tuesday/Wednesday. Tuesday was planned to be 8 miles with 5 at goal marathon pace. Unfortunately, I had an unplanned visit to the dentist that morning so I missed the start of the run (it was with a small group from my club). So, I decided to just haul until I caught them. Well, after I ran a 5k PR and was still about a half a mile back I decided to shut it down and cruise the rest of the run. They had already started the fast portion of the run (6:49's) so I knew I would have no chance at catching them. Slightly off track, I really need to find a 5k race to set an official PR. First I hit the PR as a split in a 10k, then I run faster than that in a training run. I guess my fitness is much better than it ever has been. Wednesday I ran on the treadmill. Mostly because I wanted to get in a lot of downhill miles. The marathon I am targeting in 3 weeks (still not 100% sure if we can afford it financially) has a long downhill section from ~15 miles in to the 20 mile mark. Here are the stats for that run:
2 miles @ 8:34 @ 1% 2 miles @ 8:00 @ 1% 1 mile @ 7:30 @ 2% 1 mile @ 7:30 @ 3% 8 miles @ 6:49 @ -3%
The second back-to-back was Friday/Saturday. Friday's run doesn't look to difficult but it was hard. It was a fairly hilly trail run with two runners much faster than I could ever hope to be. One is a former Division II runner who has a 1500m time under 4:00 and the other is a current DI runner. It was a walk in the park for them and a hard run for me. Saturday we had planned on 22 miles but decided that 21 was long enough. We (a friend training for Boston and myself) averaged ~8:15 for the first 15 miles and then picked up the pace to 7:3x. My last mile was a 6:37. Definitely a boost of confidence that I can pull that time out for the last mile of a 21 mile run with the week I had leading up to it.
Until next time...
18 March 2012
Stats
Not too shabby for the week after a PR.
Mileage: 62.8
Run days/Rest days: 7/0
Pace: 7:58
Breakdown:
Monday- 10 miles @ 7:22 (last 3@6:49)
Tuesday- 10.75 miles @ 7:59 (including 900+ ft elev gain)
Wednesday- 5 miles @ 8:40
Thursday- 10 miles @ 7:08 (last 7/1 @6:49/6:27)
Friday- 5 miles @ 8:59
Saturday- 20 miles @ 7:59
Sunday- 2.1 @ 10:29 (recovery)
I had planned on running a 5 mile recovery run today. When I woke up today, the back of my right knee ached like I hyper extended it in my sleep or something. Instead of injuring myself, I took it a little easier than a normal recovery run and cut the distance down. The plan for this week has a similar breakdown but should get me to about 70 miles.
16 March 2012
Race Pics
Official Results are in: 37:37.0 :)
Here are a few pics from the race
Here are a few pics from the race
Near the 2.5k mark
2.5K mark again, but on the return trip so...7.5k mark
Finish line
11 March 2012
Weekly Stats
Miles: 44.4
Pace: 7:46
Runs: 7
Took my runs mostly easy this week to keep my legs fresh for the race. Definitely backed off on mileage for the same reason. My only quality run, besides the race, was an MP run on Thursday: 9 miles total with 5@6:50 pace. Next week I will definitely be back up in the 60-70 mile range.
Pace: 7:46
Runs: 7
Took my runs mostly easy this week to keep my legs fresh for the race. Definitely backed off on mileage for the same reason. My only quality run, besides the race, was an MP run on Thursday: 9 miles total with 5@6:50 pace. Next week I will definitely be back up in the 60-70 mile range.
Foothills Dash 10K Race Report
Still waiting for official results/pics but this will have to do for now.
Time: 37:37
Place: 2nd Overall, 1st Age Group
I really didn't know what to expect going into this race. Well, thats not completely true. I knew I was in shape to PR. I had been putting in a lot of miles (50mpw for the 11 weeks before the race) and my previous PR was a split from a half marathon. The only real speed work I did to get ready for this race was three sessions of 4x1 mile. The first session average was 6:07, then 6:04 and finally 5:57.
The night before the race, my wife and I went to my sisters for dinner. Pasta and wine is a great combination for a pre-race dinner. The next morning I had a waffle for breakfast and some coffee. Then it was out the door to head to the race. It was fairly local, one town over. The field was a decent size, maybe 200 for the 5k and 10k. The field was not that fast though. There was one returning runner in the 10k (last years/this years winner) and a few other 5k guys who ran about our pace.
My wife was nice enough to go pick up my mom who wanted to see the race. Other than them, two of the women from my running club came to cheer for me. It was nice to have my own little cheering section.
After doing a very short jog and some hip exercises I took off my prerace/postrace clothes and headed to the starting line. I lined up in front for two reasons: 1. I was planning on running fast and did not want to get held up in traffic 2. This race was not chip timed. They did it old school with a stop watch and bib tags. I did a few strides to get my muscles warmed up to what race pace would feel like. The weather was close to perfect. Cloudy, mid 40's, slightly windy/rainy. Other than the wind and rain, couldn't have asked for better weather.
At the sound of the gun, myself and four other guys took off. We ran together, plus a few seconds, until the 5k runners turned around (both races were out and back courses). This is when I knew how I was doing place wise. Three guys turned around, only one kept going. So I was in 2nd place! I kept him in my sights as best I could. There is a small uphill at in the third mile that slowed me down a little, but I was able to use that to pick up some speed on the return trip. At the halfway point, he was about 30 seconds ahead of me. I knew that if I tried to catch him I might blow up, so I decided that 2nd place was more than good enough and focused on my time. My split at the halfway was 18:48. For those keeping score, that is a 10 second PR...set during a longer race...guess I need to find a 5k and set a real PR.
The second half of the race got a little more crowded. At first it was nice, just passing 10k runners who were still heading out. A lot of them cheered for the front runners which gave me a huge boost. One of them even told me "you're 45 back, you can catch him". At this point in the race, I fel0t like I could taste my breakfast coming back up. I thought, 'yeah, I can sprint to catch him and then throw up on the side of the course while he finishes'. Once we got to the 5k turn around, things got interesting. I had to weave between strollers and walkers and slower runners. Kind of annoying but it was not too bad. I never had to alter my stride so I was ok with it.
Coming towards the finish, my running club friends were banging their cowbell and hollerin', definitely gave me a little boost. As I got closer I saw the clock say 37:17. No way! I couldn't believe that was my time. I pushed a little bit and crossed the finish line. Very shortly after, I stopped my watch @ 37:37. That's 1:53 faster than my unofficial PR (the split from a half marathon) and 2:26 faster than my official PR.
Splits:
5:53
6:05
6:07
18:48 (5k)
5:55
6:05
6:07
1:23 (0.24 miles)
A few photos from my wife's camera.
Time: 37:37
Place: 2nd Overall, 1st Age Group
I really didn't know what to expect going into this race. Well, thats not completely true. I knew I was in shape to PR. I had been putting in a lot of miles (50mpw for the 11 weeks before the race) and my previous PR was a split from a half marathon. The only real speed work I did to get ready for this race was three sessions of 4x1 mile. The first session average was 6:07, then 6:04 and finally 5:57.
The night before the race, my wife and I went to my sisters for dinner. Pasta and wine is a great combination for a pre-race dinner. The next morning I had a waffle for breakfast and some coffee. Then it was out the door to head to the race. It was fairly local, one town over. The field was a decent size, maybe 200 for the 5k and 10k. The field was not that fast though. There was one returning runner in the 10k (last years/this years winner) and a few other 5k guys who ran about our pace.
My wife was nice enough to go pick up my mom who wanted to see the race. Other than them, two of the women from my running club came to cheer for me. It was nice to have my own little cheering section.
After doing a very short jog and some hip exercises I took off my prerace/postrace clothes and headed to the starting line. I lined up in front for two reasons: 1. I was planning on running fast and did not want to get held up in traffic 2. This race was not chip timed. They did it old school with a stop watch and bib tags. I did a few strides to get my muscles warmed up to what race pace would feel like. The weather was close to perfect. Cloudy, mid 40's, slightly windy/rainy. Other than the wind and rain, couldn't have asked for better weather.
At the sound of the gun, myself and four other guys took off. We ran together, plus a few seconds, until the 5k runners turned around (both races were out and back courses). This is when I knew how I was doing place wise. Three guys turned around, only one kept going. So I was in 2nd place! I kept him in my sights as best I could. There is a small uphill at in the third mile that slowed me down a little, but I was able to use that to pick up some speed on the return trip. At the halfway point, he was about 30 seconds ahead of me. I knew that if I tried to catch him I might blow up, so I decided that 2nd place was more than good enough and focused on my time. My split at the halfway was 18:48. For those keeping score, that is a 10 second PR...set during a longer race...guess I need to find a 5k and set a real PR.
The second half of the race got a little more crowded. At first it was nice, just passing 10k runners who were still heading out. A lot of them cheered for the front runners which gave me a huge boost. One of them even told me "you're 45 back, you can catch him". At this point in the race, I fel0t like I could taste my breakfast coming back up. I thought, 'yeah, I can sprint to catch him and then throw up on the side of the course while he finishes'. Once we got to the 5k turn around, things got interesting. I had to weave between strollers and walkers and slower runners. Kind of annoying but it was not too bad. I never had to alter my stride so I was ok with it.
Coming towards the finish, my running club friends were banging their cowbell and hollerin', definitely gave me a little boost. As I got closer I saw the clock say 37:17. No way! I couldn't believe that was my time. I pushed a little bit and crossed the finish line. Very shortly after, I stopped my watch @ 37:37. That's 1:53 faster than my unofficial PR (the split from a half marathon) and 2:26 faster than my official PR.
Splits:
5:53
6:05
6:07
18:48 (5k)
5:55
6:05
6:07
1:23 (0.24 miles)
A few photos from my wife's camera.
Coming in at the finish behind a 5k runner.
With my mom before the race.
Doing some strides before the start.
10 March 2012
Quick Version
Full race report later today or tomorrow.
Time: 37:37 (unofficial)
Place: 2nd Overall, 1st Age Group
Time: 37:37 (unofficial)
Place: 2nd Overall, 1st Age Group
05 March 2012
Race Week
That's right folks, its race week. On Saturday I will be running in my second 10K race. My first 10K went fairly well. On the one hand, I won it out right. On the other, my time was 41:03. I've ran faster than that during the first 10K of a half marathon! Needless to say, I am setting out to crush my PR.
~Weekly Stats~
Distance: 65.2 miles
Runs/Rest Days: 7/0
Average Pace: 8:04
I only had two quality workouts last week. An 8 mile progression run on Tuesday and mile repeats on Friday. The progression run went better than expected. After an easy warm up mile, the plan was to hit these splits: 8:00, 7:40, 7:20, 7:00, 6:40, 6:20, 6:00. My actual splits were: 8:02, 7:40, 7:20, 6:59, 6:41, 6:18, 5:52. On Friday, I had planned on running 5x1 mile @6:0x with 90 seconds recovery. I was a little crunched for time so I decided to run 4x1 mile. My recovery was @ 10:00 pace. Splits were 5:57, 5:57, 5:57, 5:55.
This week I am mainly focusing on easy miles, that way my legs are fresh for Saturday. I may run some MP miles on Thursday to shake of some cobwebs. Other than that, nothing faster than 7:30-8:00. Hopefully my post on Sunday will have a shiny new PR as the title :)
~Weekly Stats~
Distance: 65.2 miles
Runs/Rest Days: 7/0
Average Pace: 8:04
I only had two quality workouts last week. An 8 mile progression run on Tuesday and mile repeats on Friday. The progression run went better than expected. After an easy warm up mile, the plan was to hit these splits: 8:00, 7:40, 7:20, 7:00, 6:40, 6:20, 6:00. My actual splits were: 8:02, 7:40, 7:20, 6:59, 6:41, 6:18, 5:52. On Friday, I had planned on running 5x1 mile @6:0x with 90 seconds recovery. I was a little crunched for time so I decided to run 4x1 mile. My recovery was @ 10:00 pace. Splits were 5:57, 5:57, 5:57, 5:55.
This week I am mainly focusing on easy miles, that way my legs are fresh for Saturday. I may run some MP miles on Thursday to shake of some cobwebs. Other than that, nothing faster than 7:30-8:00. Hopefully my post on Sunday will have a shiny new PR as the title :)
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