Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow

Got a 2-hr massage yesterday. Hit the spot.

Ran an easy 6 miles this afternoon on the canal trail. No watch.

AM - Big Workout. Turned out to be a beautiful morning, as the change in weather appears to be holding off at least for a few more hours. I warmed up for about 3 miles, including a potty stop at Mack Park. Did some brisk pace stuff and a few strides to try to prime the engine.

The workout was 10x1000m at CV pace, 60s recovery jog between reps. CV is slower than 10K pace, but faster than half marathon pace. The workout went quite well. I had a bit of a slower start (as usual), but got in a groove for the majority of it. Just tried to let the workout come to me and not force things, and waited until the final rep to open things up a bit, and that felt great.

Interval splits were 3:12, 3:12, 3:11, 3:07, 3:07, 3:07, 3:06, 3:07, 3:05, 2:59.

Cooled down for 5 miles afterward. 15.5 miles total, averaged 6:21/mile.

noon - Planet Walk from work. 5 miles, no watch. Got rained on, but then it quit, so it was actually fairly nice out. Fly to Denver this afternoon for work.

Ran in Westminster, CO this morning. We have a client here, so I make this trip once or twice a year. Usually I just plod my race through some random run, but this year I asked Nan for a little bit of direction, and she referred me to the Big Dry Creek Trail, which I was able to find just a couple miles from my hotel. Did an out and back on the trail, and ran about a mile past City Park. Very nice trail for running, and it was nice to avoid traffic, and also get some dirt. The creek, by the way, is neither big nor dry. Saw a coyote and about 300 prairie dogs. Averaged 7:00/mile for 12.5. Beautiful morning for running.

AM - canal trail, 7 miles, 7:22/mile average.

PM - ran home from work. It was a little stormy, but I had a sweet tailwind the whole way. 8.25 miles, 6:50/mile average.

AM - Birch Creek Canyon. 8 miles, averaged 7:20/mile.

PM - ran home from work. 8.25 miles, averaged 7:30/mile.

AM - out-and-back on the county roads north of Smithfield. 9.5 miles, averaged 7:15/mile. Did a few strides in the middle.

PM - canal trail, 6 miles, 7:30/mile average

Big Workout / Long Run / Race Simulation. Caps off a Big Week. Et cetera.

Drove down to Forrester Acres and parked. Warmed up for a couple miles, then changed into my racing flats. I've been doing most workouts in the Saucony Kinvara's, but wanted to do this workout in my Type A's, to get a better feel for them. Plus, the Type A is a much faster shoe. The Kinvara's are great for workouts, but they are rather "squishy", like running on a gym mat, as someone else put it. The Type A's are a true flat, and I was curious to find the difference.

I set out a squeeze water bottle with Emergen-C mixed with water, and 2 Hammergels attached via rubber band. One Hammergel was caffeinated, the other "tropical". I intend to use all of these things (water bottled, emergen-c, h-gel) at Indy, so want to make sure they will work okay, not upset my stomach, etc. I set up the mini aid station on my car.

The workout was 3x5-miles at MP, with 1-mile recovery jog between intervals. The last interval could be a little faster than MP if I felt okay. I had sketched out a perfect 5-mile loop on the county roads from Forrester Acres. At the end of each interval, I would hit my "aid station", take a full gel, and a fair amount of liquid.

The route itself is kinda-sorta flat, but not really. Long gradual downhill toward the Bear River for the first 2 miles, then flat for about half a mile, then uphill for 2 miles, then flat for the last half miles. The long gradual climb is kind of a grinder when you're tired, although not really noticeable if you're just jogging. It's about as flat as you get around here, and the closest I could get to the Indy course.

I dialed in 5:20/mile as "MP". Yes, I will need to run faster than that at Indy, but given that I'm at 4600' altitude and at the tail end of a 107-mile week, I thought 5:20 would be pretty ambitious.

The workout itself went really great. I love how the Type A's felt (other than on the 1.5-mile gravel stretch...uggh! hate gravel!). There is a reason they are a racer and the Kinvara's are trainers.

Interval splits were: 

• 26:38 (5:15, 5:20, 5:22, 5:24, 5:17)
• 26:35 (5:17, 5:20, 5:19, 5:22, 5:17)
• 26:14 (5:08, 5:13, 5:19, 5:19, 5:15)

The first two set felt pretty easy and controlled (relatively speaking). Breathing was really good all the way to the end. Mile splits generally followed the topography, although the gravel tended to slow down Mile 2. The last set I let it out a bit on the first couple miles, and probably paid for it on the last 3 miles, but I survived, and was happy to keep all 5 splits under 5:20. It was hard though, but I guess since I substituted this workout for a race, hard is good.

All my accessories (drinks, bottles, gu) worked out pretty well.

Changed shoes after the last set, and cooled down for 2 miles. 21 miles total for the day, averaged 5:52/mile for the entire run. 107 miles total for this week, my most ever. The next 2 weeks are just maintenance (mid-90s), then a two-week taper, so I've seen the worst of things at this point.