Of Mice and Marathons

Wingood Road - 5 miles with Megan, no watch. Kept the pace very easy. Did some road strides and some barefoot strides on my parents' lawn (it's like running on a fairway)

Drove to Maine yesterday. Rented a Prius. Great gas mileage but 0 power. I wouldn't buy one. Staying at my uncle's cottage tonight. Pre-race Thai dinner as usual. Might need to give myself a hair cut. It's getting helmet-y.

To the pool!

AM: Beach to Beacon. Pretty good race. I thought a PR (35:42) might be possible but I haven't done much longer LT stuff lately. This is pretty indicative of current fitness. Technically a PR because it's on a certified course. I'll write a bite more when I get time.

7 weeks to Philly RNR and I can run this pace or faster on a good day. This marks 16 weeks to Philly Marathon and I don't think I've gone into a marathon buildup with this base and fitness.

27 minutes up

6.2 race

30 minutes barefoot on the grass cooling down

REPORT

A few months ago I made the crazy goal to break 35 minutes, but I just didn't get there and I realize that goal was lofty without lots of mile repeats cutting down to or below 5:40 pace. As the time got closer, I figured a PR chance would be good.

I saw lots of elites of different levels of fame. Fernando Cabada, Desi, Meb, Gemma Steal, Shalane, Kevin Castille. Saw Mike Popejoy who I knew from Purdue. He didn't get the day he wanted but ran 30:58. I have a great picture of us talking after the race shirtless. I bet I have him by 50+ lbs!

I warmed up from the starting line and CAUGHT a pack of African runners. Now, when Camille Herron says "Kenyan Jog," these gents take easy running very seriously (and if you're reading so should you). I watched them run for a while following them. I'd estimate we were running no faster than 9 minute pace. They had on warm ups and one had a sock hat! It was cool but he must have found it cold.

My race was pretty good. Lost sub-36 in the last mile on the hills, which are not bad but they make a difference in the final mile. The winding short uphills of the long finishing stretch make getting a fast last mile coupled with the hills hard. Decent kick (the 400s at mile pace are working a bit). Maybe should have hit the first mile harder to carry momentum. I'd grade my effort at about an 8, but in photos I have some serious race face in the final stretch so maybe I was right where I should have been.

The rich, chocolatey goodness: 5:45, 5:53, 5:53, 5:47, 5:45, 6:11, 1:04 (~5:05-5:10 pace)

This is 1:40 faster than my 10k in June but that course was hilly (better weather though). I'm going to switch to lots more LT stuff to get in shape to target 75-76 minutes in 7 weeks. I didn't get my chance last fall because I was an idiot and injured myself. Today's race would be 1:16:30 and I made huge improvements from B2B to RnR Philly last year (about 12 seconds faster per mile for the half than the 10k).

PM: Off

Wingood Road - 6.25 miles easy with Megan, no watch

9.5 miles, no watch

Narrowly avoided a German Shepard attack. I got partially into the woods and grabbed some bush cover and put a ditch in between us. I had thought as I was approaching I should have grab a defense weapon. It started jumping up and down and I yelled for help. The owner came and the dog quickly left. 

10 miles, no watch. Did some strides.

No sign of Diesel. Tired in the last two miles. Strides felt labored and slow. A little race fatigue, dehydration, drinking, too much eating. Mom made me two eggs on an English muffin with cheese. Good little recovery breakfast.

AM: 12 miles, averaged 7:16 w/ 6-mile aerobic tempo @ 6:29 pace + quarter mile controlled: 6:40, 6:30, 6:33, 6:27, 6:26, 6:21 followed by a quarter mile in 1:24 (5:27 pace).

Short but good workout. 6:36-6:40 felt very easy. 6:20ish and the breathing got up there, around end of strong 8 mile builder effort. Still in the range though. Lots of time to get these closer to 6:05-6:15.

PM: 4 miles with Megan

Atypical diet today but loads of protein and probably pretty solid. Thus is why I'm blogging it.

post-run: 2 eggs, cheese, on toast

lunch: salmon cake with egg on top

post-run: granola bar

dinner: fish chowder with some seafood dip for appetizer

9 miles, no watch. 7.5 miles on the road + 15 minutes of barefoot on the grass

Unplanned day off. In Keene, NH for my friend's wedding. Packed up from my parents' and drove 4 hours and just didn't get super motivated to squeeze in my run. I think I'm doing a vo2 max minutes workout in the morning before the wedding. Need to continue to tune that system. Need to polish up my speech too. Back to business on Monday.

Cheshire Trail in Keene, NH - 10 miles, averaged 7:40 w/ 5 x 3 minutes hard and two minutes easy but not plodding

30 minutes up

25 minutes of fartlek

~22 minutes down

Not quite true vo2 max but a good effort in the 5k zone. 5:35 pace for the hard and 8:00-8:30 off. These were on trails. A bit off cross style mud and dirt. Not what I thought the trail would be but I made it work.

Treadmill - 5 miles in 35:24. I think they switched treadmills and the slow one is to the far right, or two weeks of down mileage has me feeling frisky. My vacation weight would suggest otherwise.

AM: 5 miles, averaged 7:42. Dropped the rental car off in Glenside and ran home.

PM: Treadmill - 6 miles in just under 45 minutes next to Megan. Did a few strides.

Just opened my Running Times and there on page 14 is our FRB Founding Father, Mr. Pachev!

AM: Treadmill - 8.87 in 60 minutes @ 1% incline (I'm marking the very specific distance for reference)

5 minutes @ 7.5

5 minutes @ 8.0

10 minutes @ 8.5

20 minutes @ 9.0

20 minutes @ 9.5

PM: Treadmill - 4.13 miles. Did a short set of weights. 

AM: Flourtown - 6.25 miles, averaged 8:17.

Felt like crap. Extremely sluggish. Humidity and dew point were up and there's apparently 500+ feet of gain in this route, which is about 4-5 times my usual gain in Lafayette. Hopefully both reasons are why I felt so slow. I was reconning another tempo loop but I missed the name of the road. I think it's going to work though judging by the topography and maps I have. 3-4 miles out depending on direction and it's a bit over a mile around. On a rough day the climb back home won't be fun though.

PM: Avenue loop - 6.5 miles, averaged 7:51

This loop was busier than I expected. Might have to add it as an non-rush hour run. Lots of traffic and interruptions.  Lots of broken glass and trash, but I'm pretty used to that.

AM: Neighborhood and Chresheim Valley Park - 5.5 miles, averaged 9:05. Did a few strides.

Did some trail running, but a .75 mile loop on single track isn't my idea of trail running. Still, another area crossed of the list. Need to check out some of the ones in Wissahickon Park where I run the flats.

I felt quite sluggish again today. Not sure why. Strides took a while to warm up.

PM: Chestnut Hill Neighborhood + Springside Academy track - 5 miles, averaged 8:11 w/ 8 x 200 strides

AM: 12 miles, averaged 7:35 w/ 3 x 10 minutes (3:00 recovery jogs)

Warmed up 30 minutes to Forbidden Drive and went straight into the workout

I forgot to turn off my auto lap so the workout looks like a game of miles and kilometers

6:17/3:42 (6:17, 5:55)

6:03/3:56 (6:03, 6:15)

6:15/3:43 (6:15, 5:58)

Overall averaged ~6:10

25 minute cool down

Not really pleased with this one, but I'll keep working on getting a good workout. For a long time I rarely missed. This is about 10 seconds slower than estimated LT. Still feeling a bit sluggish but better today.

PM: Neighborhood - 4.5 miles, averaged 8:08. I told grumpy Jason he could no longer run with me. Nice shakeout. Helped that the weather is cool and dry, but still warm enough to be comfortable.

Neighborhood loop - 5.25 miles with Megan, averaged 9:53

Really enjoyed this one. Megan asked if she could come. I wish she always came with me. I actually enjoy running when she does. Took a slightly different route into Wissahickon Valley Park. It's a really nice area.

Incidentally the average listing price for house in Chestnut Hill is $800,000. We don't belong here :-)

Forbidden Dr. to Schuykill River Trail via Wiss Bike Trail - 16.5 miles, averaged 7:45

Did 5 miles of AT tempo on the way back after 10.5 miles or so. ~6:28 average according to markers and ~6:38 according to the Garmin with the tree cover tax. Slowest long run in quite some time. I was still several seconds over 8 minute guy before the tempo down Forbidden Drive. Just no energy. Mild cold coming on the last two days, and I HOPE that is the problem.I ended up walking a bit.

They apparently close Martin Luther King Drive from Falls Bridge to traffic on the weekends. It was lovely. I ran part of the Philly RnR course (Falls Bridge is ~mile 9 and you get a nice little downhill going into the final 5k) before turning around.

AM: Neighborhood loop - 6 miles, averaged 8:29. Feeling much better. Dehydration no doubt.

PM: Wissahickon Valley Park Trails + Neighborhood - 7.25 miles averaged 8:39. Really enjoyed running along the river but from well above it.

AM: Wissahickon Valley Trail (upper trail to Valley Green) - 6 miles, averaged 9:20

PM: Neighborhood - 6 miles, averaged 8:13. Did some strides and then 8x hill blasts. Met Megan at the fitness center and did a little over 20 minutes of weights.

AM: Forbidden Drive - 9 miles, averaged 7:23.

Plan was to do 5-6 x 1 mile with about a quarter mile recovery, but of course I blew it. Need to scope out another place to do repeats until the leaves fall because the trees mess with the pace too much and it throws me.

5:50, 6:05, 6:04, 6:21, 6:43 (for .54)

Too fast to start but I was right at 5:57-6:00 until I got to a clearing and hit 5:49/5:50. The 4th rep had a slight hill but not that much of one. The 5th rep had a short hill and I pulled it because it was just stupid to grind it out.

Did the mature thing, which was to start swearing loudly. Went and sat in the creek to cool off and walked about 2.5 miles home.

PM: Treadmill - 6.5 miles in a bit over 50 minutes

AM: Wissahickon Trails (lower Rex to the big rock) - 6.25 miles, averaged 9:10

PM: Treadmill - 6 miles in 46:24 (I think). Did some weights.

AM/Lunch: 7 miles total. Springside Track - 3 x 1600m ~5k-10k pace w/ 2 minutes walking rest

Warmed up 2.75 because it was quite humid. Did some strides and stretches because my legs have been tight (bad Jason hasn't been stretching and rolling).

5:33.6, 5:42.1, 5:45.6 (5:42 mile pace)

Short cool down of 1.25 miles

Not bad, but not great. Splits are way off consistent, but the effort was honest I think. I'll mark this as a success because it was supposed to be tomorrow, but I wouldn't have time for a shakeout run. I think these are my fastest miles in trainers (I didn't plan to do the workout until I passed the track). The first two are my fastest post-Boston miles. I need to run more mile repeats under 5:50 pace if I am to get faster. I need to run faster than I ever have even a few miles a a time (That's to my future self to read).

PM: Another short workout. Treadmill - 6.5 miles in 46:45 w/ 3-mile tempo @ ~6:10

Wyndmoor + Holy Sepulchre Cemetery - 7 miles, averaged 8:04

Lunch: Flourtown - 8 miles, averaged 8:32

PM: Treadmill - 4.5 miles in 35:08. Jogged down the road and did some strides on Mermaid Ln. Had the "trampoline effect" going on when I went from belt to pavement.

AM: Chestnut Hill College loop - 7.5 miles, averaged 8:36

PM: Treadmill - 4.5 miles in 33:54

AM: Springside Track - 10.5 miles total w/ 4 x 1600 (400 recovery jogs), 2:30 rest, 2 x 400 hard w/ 90 seconds rest

Sunny, around 70 or so with 85-90 humidity. The foutains are working at the track now though. Warmed up ~28 minutes, mostly on the track

6:17, 6:11, 6:07, 6:07 (converted to mile pace); 75.6, 78

I purposely started very conservatively and let the pace drop as I got warmed up. I should have done the full set of 6 but I have been very gun shy with workouts lately and have lost a lot of confidence. I was feeling pretty good. Not great, but more relaxed than I have been. Wore my Timex to keep from surging. First 200 of the first 400 was fast and my legs were done, then the second 400 was too slow, but I like how I have mixed harder short intervals at the end of longer ones this season. All in all, not bad.

PM: Treadmill - 5 miles in 38:30. Did a set of weights.

AM: Chestnut Hill College hill loop - 8.25 miles, averaged 8:09

I've done a few adjustments to this loop since early July and I think I like this one the best. It's just over 700 feet of gain. Felt good today.

PM: Sprinngside Track - 4 miles, averaged 7:49. Did 6 x 200 strides in ~38 seconds. Cut down from 41 seconds (~3k pace) to 34 seconds.

Legs felt tired but good today but the normal tired where if you ask them to move, they move (but you really don't feel like asking them to move).

AM/Lunch: Wissahickon Trails - 9.25 miles, averaged 8:20

Explored a different section today and found some nice single track that went through a field with head-high grass and wildflowers. Very enjoyable. Even took a good digger on that part. The trails all seem to come back down to Forbidden Drive too soon. It would be nice to have about 15-20 miles of single track rather than 1-3 miles at a time, but I can't complain too much.

PM: Springside Track - 4 miles, averaged 7:42. Did 6 x 200 hard strides, averaged 36.3 (about mile pace)

Springside Track - 12 miles total. 30 minute warmup with 800 meters @ MP, 8 x 1000 w/ 200 meter jogs, 22 minute cool down

Splits (recovery): 3:42.9 (1:08.9), 3:45.7 (1:11), 3:40.3 (1:14.8), 3:40.6 (1:13.3), 3:38.6 (1:17.2), 3:42.3 (1:17.6), 3:45.1* (1:18.2), 3:37.5, averaged 3:41.6 (74-75 second recovery jogs)

*a second or two long because I missed the split button and had to double fire.

Pace was off goal of 3:35-3:38, but that was a bit ambitious I think. Effort was good today. These were at my half marathon pace from last year at Philly RnR (~5:56 pace), so we will see what this year brings. Ultimately, this workout was a success and I don't feel like I can say that about many after Boston. I could have knocked out two more, but I got plenty of work in for the morning and the rests were short (as they should be with Ks). Weather started in the upper 50s, so there's something to that as well.

I haven't been running long, but I think tracks were places where people went to run fast safely and with accurate measurements. I've seen Cross Fitters doing their weird chain things near the track, jump roping too close to lane 1, older folks barely running in lane 1, people walking in lane 1, people running the opposite direction in lane 1, people WALKING BACKWARDS in lane 1. Glad to see people out exercising and enjoying time with their families, but they are driving me crazy!

PM: Treadmill next to Megan - 5 miles in 39:12. Did some weights (core stuff mostly)

Valley Green loop w/ Megan - 5 miles, averaged 10:05

Lunch - Treadmill - 8 miles in just under 60 minutes

Supposed to be a long run day but it was way too warm outside. Tried to do an hour honest plus an hour AT tempo (with the 60 minute shutoff), but the machine kept stopping for no reason and I was yelling and swearing like an idiot and my face and hands were burning from cutting jalapenos last night. Might do a workout on the treadmill this afternoon and try to get a decent long run in sometime mid-week. As usual, I've been lazy about them.

PM: Treadmill - 8 miles in 53:XX w/ 30 minute LT tempo @ 10 MPH

Needed this one. I generally do this one a handful of weeks before a half and it is served me well. I decided mid-tempo to name it the "Philly Buster."