Of Mice and Marathons

Broad Street Run in 59:28. 2.5 up/10 mile race/2 down

WU HR 150?! (nerves? error?), Race HR 173 average, CD HR 143

I had a good race, but not a great one. I raced a bit aggressively for the first 2-3 miles then fell into 6:00 pace purgatory but I ran more or less as hard as I could. Wore my heart rate monitor, which I wouldn't normally do in a race but I was just kind of curious given that it would be a pretty solid indication of LT and I wanted some data for times I might be on the treadmill or when it is warm and I complain about pace being slow.

Megan ran well, negative splitting.

I'll post a bit more later.

Warmed up on La Salle's track, which was fairly uneven (either grooved or pitted I couldn't decide). It's only 6 lanes, so it doesn't meet the NCAA changes that were made sometime in the 80s when they went to 8 (or so a student told me). Walked about 7/10 of a mile to the start line, left Megan, did some stridesm and lined up. I was able to get pretty close to the start line.

First few miles were fast and I was feeling bullet proof. Miles 3-6 were harder than I wanted and the last 4 miles were all tough (even though gently downhill). Hit the entrance to the Navy Yard (quarter to go) and started to dig in a little bit. Started passing some guys. I heard the announcer call my name and say something about the Dodge Motor Company. I could hear a lot of encouragement from the crowd as I was passing people. Coupled with the announcers voice, I gave the crowd a few fist pumps.

The rich chocolatey goodness: 5:43, 5:40, 5:54, 5:58, 6:01, 5:58, 5:57, 6:06, 6:06, 5:51

Trying to view the race and fitness built this winter and spring as positive and as a ground for the foundation for a fast fall marathon (admittedly a bit disappointed with how it has gone). I am doing 3-4 weeks of maintenance then 8 weeks to Beach to Beacon in preparation for fall. The idea is to do some honest "speed work" (sorry, Rob, I'm not sure what else to call it) to lay that foundation.

As this week I have down on my schedule "run whatever feels right." I don't do enough of those.

AM: 8 miles easy. HR 138.

A little soreness throughout the legs, but overall they feel pretty good. No workouts for probably a week.

PM: 4.5 miles. HR 149. First mile seemed to throw the HR up for some reason.

Lower 80s and 25% humidity. Welcome to the east coast desert!

AM: 8.25 miles. HR 156 (mile 2 reading error).

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan. HR 141.

AM/Lunch: 8.75 miles. HR 155.

PM: 5.25 miles slow. HR 141.

AM: 4 miles. HR 140. Stretching and core.

Going to do an informal 3 mile trail race this afternoon. No entry fee, no bibs. I'll spend a bit of time on the trails getting there and back too.

PM: Wissahickon Wanderers Trail Race #1. 3 miler in 21:07 - 9 miles total

WU HR 15, Race HR 175, CD HR 143

Warmed up on the trails for 3 mile to commute to Valley Green. Warmish. About 80 or so. Wasn't sure if I wanted to race or just have fun. I ended up running fairly hard. Flat for ~3/10 of a mile, a decent climb, some single track, some sharp turns, and a kamakazee decent. About 200 meters of Forbidden drive. I stayed behind the lead pack and they slowly got away from me but I camped out behind a guy for a while. Sorry dude.

I hadn't been on this section so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I waited until about 2.5 miles and ran by him before the hill and bombed the descent. Sharp turn on to Forbidden Drive, and I kicked just under 250 meters out, running it in at 4:50 pace. Kicking in trail shoes. Never done that before.

Splits: 6:51, 7:49, 6:22

A better picture of the race (below)

https://www.strava.com/activities/300192997/overview

It was truly a fun race and got a little workout in even though I wasn't supposed to do anything hard until at least this weekend.

3 miles back home on the trails after standing around a little too long, but I met a few people and chatted with them.

AM: 8.25 miles easy. HR 145.

PM: 4.75 miles easy. HR 138.

My watch was busted so I picked up a new one and a new HR monitor. My old one was from my first Garmin I got in 2010. I am pretty sure my heart rate has been fairly inaccurate given how I felt during the afternoon run with the new one and the results I got. I know I'm not an Olympic athlete but I should be able to get me heart rate much lower than 140-145 for 9:30-9:40 pace.

The 620 is pretty amazing. In a lot of ways it has too much stuff, but I like to look at numbers (just not so much when I am running). I got the stupid extra warranty because if anything goes wrong I want it covered. If not, it's the last Garmin I will ever buy. Hopefuly IT IS the last Garmin I ever buy.

PM: 8 miles. HR 143.

More humid but pleasant. I think I will use the old BMX safety gear deodorant trick on my heart rate monitor to keep it from getting too stinky.

Good week. Mostly just really slow stuff, but I'm feeling good. I'll start making sure I get my 16+ mile LR from now until Beach to Beacon. I started out the year well with long runs then let the snow cause me to fall apart. I'll do a faster workout early in the week and a race on Saturday and see how I respond and adjust from there. Not sure if I will be able to handle track workouts and 80-85 but they can't be too much harder than the 80-95 with workouts I've done in the past.