Training Time

Ran on the treadmill after work.  I ran for 30 minutes and picked up the pace throughout.  Last mile was under 6:45.

With two inches of fresh snow on the ground, traction was not optimal.  As such, I just took it easy and put in the miles.

Man, this was an adventure.  I was working offsite today, so I thought I would stop by a different Y to change and then run outside.  Anyways, I got there after it was dark so I didn't feel comfortable running outside.  Not a big deal, I thought since I could try out the indoor track.  Yeah, it wasn't as nice as I initially thought.  The turns were a little too tight and by the time I had done ten laps my inside foot was hurting from the turns.  With a race in two days, I didn't like that so I stopped that and looked for a treadmill instead.  Ended up doing three miles on a hill course.  I really struggled with it.  Looking back I am sure that is due to my lack of fluid intake during the day.  I need to get better at monitoring that.

Four easy miles outside this morning.  Felt good going slow.  I have my first race of the year tomorrow.  With no taper and no experience at the distance it should be interesting.  Hopefully I will be able to average a 7:30 pace.

I woke up at 5am so that I would have some time to fuel up before the 8am start.  I ate a half a bagel with peanut butter plus a banana.  I hopped in my car at 6:20 and arrived at the race a little after 7:00.  This left me with an hour to pick up my race bib and "warm up."  It was a cold morning with temperatures around 15 but the wind made it feel ten times colder.  I am pretty sure the windchill was below zero when the race started.  With the cold temps and no off days beforehand, I wanted to just run a relaxed first half and then push it towards the end if all was going well.

The race was well organized but the weather definitely made things a bit more challenging.  There were over a thousand runners between the 5K and 15K so space to stay warm and stretch was difficult to come by.

It was a combined start with the two races splitting at roughly the second mile.  We got underway on time and the first mile felt easy so I was quite surprised to pass the marker at seven minutes flat.  I haven't run a mile that fast in anything longer than a 5K for several years.  That thought gave me a boost of confidence and tells me that the training is beginning to pay off.  With the 5K runners mixed in, I didn't have a good read on my overall position. After mile two the races split and the majority of the people around me were running the 5K.  I had a few people in front of me, so I just focused on them.  I managed to pick off five or six of them over the next six miles and didn't have anyone pass me which really felt great.  I tried to push the pace the last three miles since the wind was at my back and was able to finish strong.

Overall it was a great race.  I ended up fourth in my age group and average 7:09 per mile.  If I keep doing what I am doing, I should be able to break my half-marathon and marathon PR's later this spring.

Five easy miles on the treadmill over lunch.  Total time 42 minutes.

Ran at the Y over lunch again.  Five miles in just over 37 minutes.  Felt good except my left foot is giving me grief.  It is sore on the ball of the foot.  I may need to take a day off to rest it.  

Seven miles on the treadmill in sixty minutes this evening.  I always think about my form too much when I am on the treadmill.  This usually results in me doing some weird things with my feet or two.  Like tonight, I kept curling my left toes when I landed.  Needless to say this hurt but once I started it doing it, I needed to really concentrate to not do it.  

It was nice and sunny today so it felt really nice to get outside.  It was still chilly running into the wind but you definitely got a sense of spring when you ran with the wind.  I even took my gloves off for part of the run.  Goal today was to put in seven quality miles at marathon pace.  I am still getting a feel for what that pace really should be.  I was hoping to end up between 7:10 and 7:20 for an overall average pace.  My splits were:

7:12

7:09

7:16

7:07

7:22 - Ran into some icy spots

7:23 - Ran into some cross traffic

7:00 - finished strong

 Finished the run up with a quarter mile cool down.

This was my longest run in several years, so I was dreading it a little bit.  The biggest challenge was finding places to stop for water and refueling.  Overall it went pretty well.  I finished in under two hours so I was happy with the results.

I did some hill repeats this evening.  I started with a two mile warm-up and then did six mad dashes up a hill that was roughly 250 meters long and jogged back down.  Finished things off with a two mile cool down.  Overall it went pretty well.  Definitely could tell that it had been a while since I did some speed work.

Meant to do seven but had other commitments.  Nice and easy run outside after work.  The mild weather this week has been a nice change.

Treadmill over lunch.  I should have brought stuff to run outside it was perfect, 35 and sunny.  Maybe tomorrow will be similar weather wise then I can try again.

I remembered to grab the right clothes today.  I was able to get in some good miles over lunch.  The sun was shining brightly, the wind was calm and the temp was a balmy 35 degrees.

This was a really great run.  I didn't have high expectations at the start but I felt really comfortable with the pace after the first mile so I just went with it.  Surprisingly, my splits kept getting lower through the first four miles.  I finished up the run in 48:48 for a 6:56 average pace.  This was my first time running a sub seven minute pace for that long of a distance.  Hopefully I will be able to keep improving.  If I can, I should be able to set some strong PRs as the year goes on.

Around mile three I realized that I didn't give myself enough time to recover from eating.  I struggled mightily for a couple miles and even walked for a short stretch.  Fortunately, things improved reasonably quickly and I was able to finish the run.  

Headed to the Y over lunch today for a hill repeat workout on the treadmill.  Ended up doing a two mile warm up and cool down with eight quarter mile hill repeats in the middle.  Felt pretty good.  I probably could have gone at a quicker pace but I didn't want to die before the end.

Five easy miles on the treadmill this morning at the Y.

I headed over to the Y for an evening run.  Went at a very slow and relaxed pace.

My first outside run of the week.  It was really cold but I was not going to do another run on the treadmill this week.  Overall, the run went pretty well.

I just didn't feel it today.  The plan was to do six miles at marathon pace and I was really hoping to come close to the splits I put together last weekend.  Unfortunately, the legs were heavy and I was never able to really get comfortable.  My splits were all over the place but I got the run completed in a still respectable 44:34 for a 7:20 per mile average.

The weather definitely made this an interesting run.  The temps were in the mid-30s so very comfortable, but it was also windy and snowy.  I had to use my fingers as wipers on my glasses several times.  In a way, the weather kept my mind occupied somewhat so I wasn't focused on the long distance still left to cover.  Overall, the run went great.  I ran with a water bottle for the first time and it took the first couple of miles to get used to that. I also tired to simulate my race day fueling strategy.  I drank water every 2-3 miles and took a Gu gel every five miles.  My body responded well and no side effects were noted.  I finished the run with a strong 7:37 mile.  Overall running time was 2:07:16 for a 8:24 average pace.