today 5 easy at lunch
I started running again semi-seriously in the summer of 2012 when night life, alcohol, and fast food began to lose the allure that it once held in my college and graduate school days. This year I noticed even more that it’s just not worth it to party and carry on like I used to. I’d rather feel better and work on continually improving myself through running in my free time and thus improving my career and life as a whole. I feel I’ve been successful in this pursuit in 2014.
This year has been one of recovery and breakthrough. I partially tore my Achilles tendon in July 2013 and was out of running for 5 months, two of which my right leg was in a boot. Last December I could only run 30sec-1 min at a time since my Achilles was in the process of healing. I put in a lot of time strengthening and really getting myself to the pool with the help of my teammate, roommate, and friend, Jill.
My calf slowly gained strength and I lost the phantom pains and limp in my stride through the 20-40 mile weeks in February-March. By April I was getting close to 60 easy a week and supplementing with pool running and core work. I then started (slow) tempo runs and by late April I was back with the team for workouts. In May I was running every day and hitting 70 for a good stretch. I could tell I was getting stronger as the days of consistency wore on. Having not run a race in 10 months at that point I ran the Capital Hill Classic in an abysmal 35:38. Apparently I had forgotten how to race but I knew I was back.
In June I decided to race again and had a good 33:41 with a negative split at Lawyers Have Heart 10K. This was the first race of 2014 where I really felt I was getting somewhere. I focused on some faster work (having run 16:06 on July 4) in an attempt to hit a sub 16:00 5K which I felt I could do. I backed it down and did a little peak in July, running Rockville 8k (terrible cramping issues), then the mile (4:39) and 3K (9:30) on Wednesday before hitting it hard that Saturday at the Crystal City Twilighter, where I finally broke 16:00 in 15:58. I was very happy about this and set my sights on the Navy Air force half marathon in September.
My build-up for the half had me excited. I was running consistently and was very strong at the longer tempos. Thinking I could hit 1:12, I was sidelined with a severe calf strain from too much speed work on my still weak right calf. I took off 10 days with no running and some minor pool efforts. I couldn’t sell my bib, so after two 50 mile weeks back I ran the half for fun and started very slow and still managed a 1:15. After September I focused on workouts and 5/10 K training.
October’s St. Rita’s 5K (16:05) had me pretty frustrated since I had upped my mileage and was dedicating more of my life to running. I decided then to add faster strides, a barefoot jog, race specific workouts, and my hill sprints. I had some really great workouts in late October/November before resting up a bit and truly hitting it big at Veteran’s Day 10K, dropping 38 seconds from my PR and passing some fast local runners. After that, I was no longer afraid of guys in blue shirts. I turned my sights to the 5K and PRed (15:56) at the Run for Shelter, and after a taper for a few days, cranked out a 15:42. I was happy with this and kept training to run well at USATF club cross country nationals, which was a blast.
So what in my training led me to set significant PRs in the fall? There are many factors but the top 5 in my view are
1. Consistency- doubling, running every day, etc.
2. Supplemental work- pool running, drills and strides, hill sprints, longer core sessions
3. Taking care of myself- eating my greens, getting enough sleep, drinking a lot less, and stretching more
4. Time- running to and from work on my easy days and thus had more time to get recovery in.
5. Actually listening to my coach- slowing down my easy days, backing off in practice when he said to, taking days off/skipping workouts when needed, and actually starting my races controlled (patience).
6. periodization- waiting until 4-6 weeks before November races to do very specific 5K/10K work
There you have it. No secrets, no magic pill, just consistent aerobic development with an eye toward staying healthy, running fast when necessary, and taking it really slow to recover.
Coming out of the fall with 32:23 and 15:42 PRs changed my mind set on my distance running hobby. I now feel I can really go for some (relatively) fast times and see what I can do before I get too old, have a kid, a mortgage, and a super busy management position. My plans for 2015 include some big mileage and huge half (Shamrock), 10 mile (Cherry Blossom), and full marathon (Glass City) PRs. I have a great group of guys to train with during the long days of winter. Now more than ever I am motivated to maintain my discipline, grow as a person, and have some great times with my running friends.
Run fast, worry less
Matt
2014 races
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