Step by step, mile by mile

So I was a little presumptuous on my declaration that I was on the upswing from my post before I took my hiatus since stuff did go a bit more downhill after, but a 15 mile day probably means I really am on the upswing. Ran the last half mile of my hilly PM 10 mile run in 2:32, it was all flat and it didn't feel too hard considering I felt tired from the start. Probably gonna start tripling again next week and start workouts the week after. So I won't be in the monster shape I hoped to be after finals, but I think I'll be in a very good place for a few months of training before some good spring racing, body permitting. Crazy how this mileage seems so low now that I have some 30 mile days under my belt. See y'all in a month!

putting a couple extra entries in to show that not every athlete in alabama is taking Ls. 5 in the morning, 5 after work. very sore quads from yesterday, 15 miles was my most since  the break so running 22 the day after meant today was a reminder i am human. last lap decided to run a little faster to loosen up the legs, PRed for Hilton with a 3:52 for the .76 mile loop. took it extra easy today(saturday), and after work and a good hour of running tomorrow the soreness should be gone and i can get sore all over again.

2 miles of 100m on 100m off in just under 6-flat pace

w some 400m fartlek

800m in trainers in 2:19 with the last 200m in 30.2, then 5x150m averaging about 21.0

4x400m hills in 75, 78, 76, 56. guess which one was downhill

400, 300, 200 in 68, 48, 29 and some tempo stuff in trainers

AM - 3 mile shakeout

PM - 30 mile long run, 7:39 pace. Even without context I think this takes the cake as my most impressive running feat. The context just makes it ridiculous. I ran some form of a workout all 5 of the previous days, and I haven't ran longer than 15 miles since September, 18 since July, and 24 ever. Also didn't take a break during and had no caloric input. Somehow did not hit that whole marathon wall thing I hear so much about. Split a 1:38:25 half marathon and 3:19:31 marathon during it. although I didn't hit the wall during the run as soon as I finished it hit me like a damn freight train and I can't even describe the delerium and pain I'm in. Once it's gone I'm sure I'll feel pride instead

127 miles this week btw

7 after work. Legs didn't feel like I'd ran 30 miles 24 hours earlier.

AM - 5

AM2 - 10 w/ 4 miles of 100m on 100m off in 22:44

PM - 15, 7:29 pace

AM - 5

AM2 - 10 w/ 1200m + 4x800m on the pavement. Ran 3:58 and averaged 2:35. Nothing hard

PM - 15, 7:15 pace

AM - 5. Skipped sprints bc school

PM - 15, 7:08 pace. 3:05 last half mile

AM - 5. Slept in, I guess 4 hours of sleep isn't enough, which sucks because I need 20 hours a day to do everything I need

PM - 15, 6:50 pace. 2:43 last half mile.

AM - 5

AM2 - 15 @ 6:33 pace w/ the last half mile in 2:51. Wish I would have eased up a bit the first 3-4 miles; once I hit mile 14 I was cooked. Still ran my two fastest splits the last two miles, but could have been faster. I don't really care. The more pain the more gain, right?

PM - 6 after classes

PM2 - 4 after work

First quadruple today. Wasn't something I planned but after I ran that 15 I REALLY didn't want to run 10 after work. I could have, but working 25 hours this weekend I'd like at least an hour to relax. Now that I have a taste for 4 runs a day, I think I could do it again. With classes and work I couldn't get enough running in to justify it, but during winter break on my days off from work I can def see myself being able to run absurd mileage, body permitting.

Oh, and 170 miles this week(Sat-Fri). You know, just in case anyone thought I fell off :)

SOTD - Bloodshed - Denzel Curry

3 after work. Next 4 weeks are gonna either be very depressing or very exciting

5 before work, 10 after

AM - 15 easy before class. Def easier than any 15 last week, felt longer because of no music though. 2:47 last half mile.

PM - 5. felt really good the last couple of miles so probably too fast. good problems

PM2 - 10 solid miles. 2:46 last half 

AM - 5

AM2 - 20. I’ve done so many 15 mile runs over the past few months they genuinely start to feel short, not the case for 20 miles. it’s a lot easier mentally to see you’re 10 miles in and say “5 miles left” than “10 miles left”. still good stuff, 2:59 last half

PM - 5. felt like crap. 4 hours wasn’t enough time to bounce back from 20.

PM2 - 15. felt a lot better than I did at 4PM

in case you didn’t notice i am tapering for tokyo2020 rn

AM - 4. felt good all things considered. wanted to get 10 and probably could have but it rained all night so intramurals were basically just a giant puddle, and as muddy water soaked my shoes complacency flooded my mind

PM - 11. felt a million times better than 4 hours earlier.

PM2 - 15. a week and a half ago i ran a 30-mile long run and said it was my most impressive running feat. i think the past 3 days top that, but i think the most impressive part was i ran 41 miles on a turf football field in the last 24 hours and didn’t get hurt. that’s a lot of turns. i work a 13 hour hospital shift tomorrow and i hope my good karma comes to me in the form of being able to recover during it

10 after work. ran on the turf field again and ankles were more pissed than a potty at a beer party. next time i’ll just take the puddles and grass route instead. 13 hours on my feet wasn’t kind on the legs but kind enough to let me finish the run. last shift that long until christmas though so hopefully they bounce back like they normally do. 

AM - 5. felt exhausted mentally when i woke up but pretty good by the end of the run.

PM - 15 with the last half mile in 2:27. pretty sure this was my fastest intramural run ever

PM2 - 5 after work. Basically finished the 15, ate, showered, worked my hardest shift yet by a landslide, and ran again, so legs complained a little bit but nothing compared to running on the constantly turning turf route, and even then that was doable. Don't work again until after finals so if the legs feel good again tomorrow it's gonna be a good sign.

AM - 5. very very easy

AM2 - 20. even though the effort wasn’t too much more than earlier today the pace was just a few seconds short of being a full 2 minutes per mile faster, fastest pace this week i believe. just felt good. finished at 10:30 so i should be able to actually get a bit of recovery in before the next run.

PM - 5 easy. felt much better than i did on this run on tuesday. got in a solid nap in between runs.

PM - 15 easy. legs felt way good but it was very windy and while i can handle headwind, i’m a couple weeks from my anniversary of my last haircut and my hair is very curly and bouncy anyway so the tailwind turned it into a golden curtain covering my face where i literally couldn’t see. ended up having to just use a hand to hold it back whenever the wind was to my back because i think headbands are wack and i’d rather die than have a man-bun

i don’t know what i expected to feel finishing a 200 mile week, but i didn’t feel anything. i guess it’s good; this isn’t the end-all of training and lauding myself would just get me complacent. definitely could have ran more considering i had half a week of classes, a lab final and worked 30 hours on top of everything i ran. another thing - my legs are absolutely shredded compared to 7 days ago. webs of veins up my legs, biceps, i even have veins on my chest now. i’ve always had crazy wrist veins but now it looks like a paper cut could kill me. and to end the post on a happier note how i felt today put my mind to ease that this mileage jump wasn’t suicidal and could actually be doable. if you think otherwise keep it to yourself unless you’re also a member of the 200-mile week club ;)