M'kay

LM warmup (10 reps), 16 miles in 1:57:10, 7:19/mi, HR 152 with last 3.5 miles Hard in 3:09 (0.5 down), 6:22 (down), 6:17 (down), 6:52 (up), 6:29/mi avg.  1.5 mile walk w/ dogs & log splitting.

Some flurries (32F).  Run up into the state forest, downhill return, final mile back uphill.  Felt pretty good...legs didn't get really tired until the last couple of miles.  A couple months ago a run this long would've been exhausting.

LM warmup (10 reps), 8 miles in 1:00:32, 7:34/mi, HR 145, w/ 10 x 12 Hill Sprints at mile 3.5 hill.  1.5 mile walk w/ dogs, PU/Crunch Ladder (5), and stretching.

Warmer (~40F).  Some slushy and slick spots on the road, so the normal hill sprint location was unusable today.   The stand-in location is a bit less steep and further away from the end of the run, but worked out just fine.  Actually felt pretty strong during the sprints, although I could feel all 16 miles in the rest of the run.

LM warmup (10 reps), 9 miles in 1:05:22, 7:15/mi, HR 157, w/ 2 sets of Strides/Drills and 4 x 5 min Fartleks @ 10K effort, PU/Crunch Ladder (5), & stretching.

Warmer (42F), breezy, and some light rain.  Really didn't feel like getting out there today, so it wasn't until late afternoon when I finally got going.  In a sour mood from a work-related programming issue.  On top of that, was just feeling a bit worn out and tired.  Once I got going into the Fartleks, they went really well though.  Hope the same goes for tomorrow's 12 miler.

Oh, and my left achilles was bugging me most of the day, but seemed fine during the run itself.  One of those phantom pains that start cropping up when increasing mileage, I suppose.

LM warmup (10 reps), 12 miles in 1:25:30, 7:07/mi, HR 154, w/ 6 miles Moderate in 6:48 (flat), 6:45 (flat), 6:20 (down), 6:25 (down), 6:19 (down), 6:20 (down), 6:29.5/mi average.  1 mile walk w/ dogs & stretching.

Rainy (47F).  Unlike some lucky bloggers, I managed to time my run to align perfectly with the rain and winds.  Then, I managed to miss the brief pause in the rain after my run, and hit the next rain shower while walking the dogs.  So I was frozen and fairly numb at the conclusion of festivities.  The run itself was fine, aside from an emergency pit stop at mile 10.75.  Good thing I was prepared for that eventuality.

LM warmup (10 reps), 8 miles in 59:51, 7:28/mi, HR 148, w/ 10 x 12 sec Hill Sprints, 1 mile walk w/ dogs & stretching.

Tired today.  Legs feel like lead tired.  Hill Sprints feel like I'm heaving myself up the hill tired.  Don't want to keep running at 6 miles tired.  Muscles not very flexible during stretching after the run tired.  Hope tomorrow feels better.

LM warmup (10 reps), 8.79 miles in 1:00:43, 6:54/mi, HR 158, w/ 2 mile warmup, 2 x 15 min Tempo Intervals @ HM pace with 1 min rest in 6:23/mi, 6:20/mi average, 2 mile cooldown.  1 mile walk w/ dogs, PU/Crunch ladder (5) & stretching.

Feeling better (more rested) today.  Some sun and warmer temps helped (52F), although it didn't last long.  Still dragging a bit during the warmup, but the intervals went pretty well.  Probably a bit harder than HM effort, but not too much, and I'm hoping that when the marathon rolls around, my HM pace is in the 6:15-6:20/mi range.  Optimism at its finest.

Feeling good that I survived the week.  Close to 17.5 of the ~ 68 miles I'll have after tomorrow were quality work at marathon or better pace, and the easy miles weren't necessarily complete recovery miles, so the workload is getting up there but I'm surviving.

Decided to take an off day.  Been pushing pretty hard lately and was fairly tired this week, so I managed to talk myself into it quite easily.