"There are no compromises." -Once a runner

15 mile trail run on the pachaug trail in arcadia.  It was pretty wet and a bit snowy in places but I managed.  aprox 2:45 min.  (11 min pace lol I forgot how slow trail running is).  I turned around when my gps said 7.5 miles but I accidentally turned it off for a while so I don't know exact time. I didn't take food or water on this run but that is about as long as I would want to be out there without it even in cool temps. 

AM: 4.25

PM: 10.5 including 4x5x400m w/ 100m reovery between reps and 400m between sets.

Times:

81, 81, 84, 83, 84

80, 82, 82, 83, 79

77, 80, 80, 79, 79

77, 76, 76, 76, 71!

Good workout.  Worked into it slowly and at the end really only thought I had a 75 left in me but ran 71 with a lot of traffic on the track (like 5 groups of guys jogging who refused to stay out of lane 1--it was on the indoor track and this was a problem almost the whole time.  Averaged 79.5 not shabby considering the 83s and 84s in there.  Thats 5 miles of 5:18 pace just broken up a lot lol.

AM: 4.25 - hurting.  aerobically fine but my hams are shot and the rest of my legs dont want to compensate.

 PM: 6.5 still hurting.  This was the first time this season that I was able to really feel a workout or race though so it is probably good.  I want to peak before my boards on april 25th because I will basically be forced to not run consistently for 2 months after that (Ob/Gyn rotation is first for me and it involves 12 hour days, some night and weekend call, and a difficult exam at the end for which I will have to use my 'leisure time' to study.

 today and tomorrow are all about recovering from the 3 hard days before.  Thursday I hope I am feeling good enough for a tempo and saturday I will do only 5 easy in preparation for the half marathon on sunday.

AM: 4.25

PM: 6.5 Still feeling my hamstrings are weak especially my left one.  Hopefully I will be feeling good enough tomorrow for a workout.

AM: 4.25 Feeling much better.  Still a little weak in the left ham.  Will do the tempo today.  Enjoying writing sentences with implied noun or even noun and verb.

 PM: 8m including 8k in 29:46 on the track in a hell of a wind.  It was harder this week than 2 weeks ago but I think it was all due to the wind.  Still, not shabby at all being sub 6 pace.  Splits were 6:11, 6:05, 5:56, 5:47, 5:46.  I doubt that I will be sub 6 pace for threshold on the road when the 5 milers start down in warren, RI.  The road is not the track but we will see.  I will not race the clock unless it is very close.  I do like the sound of 29:XX 5 mile tempos.  Of course I could also make the pace more even which might make it easier. 

AM: 4.25 Felt pretty good.  A little aerobically tired but nothing abnormal for a week with this many miles.

PM: 6.5 Lentils caught up to me at the wrong time and made this run rather unpleasant lol.  But once I got rid of 'em I felt good again.  I can hit 80 with only 1 run tomorrow as a slight taper for the half marathon lol.

I have decided, against my better judgement, to shoot for sub 1:20 on sunday.  And even more so against my better judgement, to make this goal public lol.  That is 6:06 pace for the half marathon.  It is folly, and I know it.  But who cares about 1:21 or 1:22?  If I blow up and run a 1:26 who cares?  But a 1:19:59 would be glorious.  My plan is to go out just a bit easy--6:10-16 pace and then pick it up to about 6:04 pace (the mid miles of this course are slightly downhill usually with a slight tailwind) and try to hold that through 10.  Miles 10-12 of this course are slightly tough usually into the wind and a slight hill.  I will try to maintain or just not lose too much and then go for broke in the last mile.  The key will be relaxing.

 The reasons that I think I might have a chance at sub 1:20 are as follows:

1. 5:55 paced 5 miler in training was easy, very negative split, would have been more like 5:50 pace even split

2. 5:59 paced 5 miler in extreme wind.  Wasn't easy but I wasn't tapered and it was very negatively split as well.  It would have been more like 5:55 pace had I ran it evenly.

3.  Based on these times in training, I feel like doubling the distance at these paces in a race situation would be reasonable--not a certainty, but not crazy either.

4.  A 60:00 10 miler is of equal or greater performance to sub 1:20 half--meaning that anyone capable of a sub 60 10 miler should be capable of a sub 1:20 half. 

Here are the reasons that I am being stupid

1.  The road is NOT the track.

2.  3min 44sec PR?  PR by 17sec/mile? In 5 months? Unlikely.

3. I have only done 1 run over 10 miles since before christmas.

4. I have already run too much this week.  A proper taper is out of my reach at this point.  If I do 4 miles tomorrow and carbo loading is my best bet.

 Like I said before--it is not likely that I make it, but why not try?  6:06 pace seems pretty easy on the track for me right now, but will it on the road, at mile 8? 10? and 12?!?

5.75, cause I couldn't stand being so close and not hitting 80 for the week.  Felt good.  Looks like good weather for the race tomorrow.  I looked up the course elevation profile and it isn't just flat.  And there is that wind in the last few miles.  So there are my pre-excuses (besides not being in the shape I need to be to hit the time I am shooting for lol).  Here goes nothin'.