Buttsweat Towel© season has begun

49F.  Cool weather is here which makes all the difference for me.  This 5k was always going to be a tactical race, as I mostly just wanted to win, but I also eked out a PR, beating out a pretty old one (but I was a young 32 when I ran it).

 I decided I'd run conservatively and not make any moves until the end.  Mile 1 was a 5:53, and I was in 2nd.  Crept up to the first place guy and just ran alongside for most of the second mile, resisting the urge to speed up.  Everytime we'd go uphill, he'd slow down - I think I'm figuring out that's a pretty good tell that you have someone beat.  At about 1.75, he started dropping back.  I ran mile 2 in 5:47.  The last mile is tough, with the last half uphill, but fortunately I had a lot in the tank (as was the plan).  My lead grew nicely, and I ran it in 5:50.  Then 55s for the stub, measured at 0.17 (5:32 pace).  Same course as last year, so a good comparison.  Not certified, but any true 5k course is probably going to measure a little long anyway.  Worked out to 5:49/mile on Garmin, which is close to sub-18 effort.

Solid result, maybe not quite where I'd like to be, but it was nice to get some reassurance after last week that nothing is horribly wrong with me.  Hopefully sub-18 at Preston's race in a couple weeks.  I'll take it out harder and go for a good time, versus the tactical race I ran today.

52F.  2 w/u, then 13.5 @ 6:53 AP.  Followed that up with 2 cooldown miles.  Ran with the guy from the race yesterday - he is trying to qualify for Boston at CIM.  I don't think he'll have a problem, as you only need ~7:03/mile.  This was good enough for me to count as MP as well, so I can adjust my schedule next week and do something else.

AM:  65F, 79%.  6 @ 8:19 AP.  Legs felt nice and crushed from this weekend.  Good.

PM:  managed to fit in my TM plod today....4 mi

AM:  67F, 90%.  8 @ 8:04 AP.  The sunlight at the end of my run makes me feel like I'm late for work.  I'd like to get in a MLR tomorrow but it'll be more of a swim if we get as much rain as they're predicting.  My beloved creek trail will be underwater.

PM. 4 TM 

AM:  57F, raining.  14 @ 7:39 AP.  Against my better judgement, I headed to the creek trail.  Usually when we get this much rain, it all goes to Leon Creek.  After clomping through some shin-deep stretches of water, I found a good 1.25-mile stretch on some high ground that only had a few ankle-deep puddles.  I had to turn around when I got to a lower-lying thigh-deep section, which was flowing pretty hard against me, toward the creek.  Amazing how 1-2 inches of rain turns a normally-dry creek into whitewater rapids.  Anyway, just ran back and forth on the higher ground until I got sick of it.

PM:  Spurs game!  

Stomach bug.

PM:  63F.  4 miles in the neighborhood after sunset.  Didn't feel terrible, which is amazing considering the hell I was in yesterday.  These stomach bugs really hit hard, but leave quickly.

54F.  8 @ 7:25 AP.  Slept in a bit, and really felt good today, back to normal.  Even thought about keeping the LT / Big Workout on the schedule for tomorrow, but that's probably a little silly.  I've tried to come back from illness too fast before and it's never pretty.  Maybe 90 min easy tomorrow, recover a day or two, and LT on Tuesday or Wednesday.  I had a useless speed workout planned for next week that can easily be dumped.  If I get nothing but LT and MP between now and Dec 7, I'll be just fine.

48F, 12 @ 7:17 AP.  Last 3 averaged around 6:40, didn't seem to take much additional effort.  Perfect morning for running.

AM:  45F.  6 @ 7:59 AP.  

PM:  4 TM miles with strides.  Workout tomorrow....

PM2 - Ran 2 miles with the dog after dinner.  I thought he'd be too excitable/stupid to run with me but he did ok, only tried to trip me a couple times.  For his reward I let him walk the last quarter mile home and pee on stuff.

AM:  57F, 97%.  9.5 miles total.  Aborted 6 x 1 at the track.  I thought I was running early enough to beat the cold front, and the air was perfectly stagnant during my warmup.  Interestingly I felt the front arrive exactly between the 3rd and 4th rep; in the last mile I couldn't run the northbound 200 in less than 50s, as the wind really kicked up, almost instantaneously.  So my 4 reps were 6:06, 6:06, 6:03, 6:20, then pulled the plug.  I was debating doing so anyway since I felt really flat...and also pretty unmotivated.  This was just fine for a post-illness / pre-5k-PR-attempt.  Wasn't looking to crush it anyway...

PM:  4 mi TM plod

AM:  38F, NNE 14 mph.  6 @ 8:22 AP.  The cold front froze most of the rest of the country, but here it basically just meant I had to dig around and find my gloves...a minor inconvenience I'll happily accept!

PM:  48F.  couldn't find the time to sneak away from work for my TM run today, but I did take the mutt out for 2.5 miles at night.  I brought garmin this time, 8:34 AP.  He still tried to trip me a couple times - always in the first mile, when he still has the energy to literally run circles around me.

AM:  33F, N 15 mph.  7 @ 8:10 AP.  Keeping it easy, as I plan to destroy my legs on Saturday and Sunday.

PM:  4 TM w strides

34F.  6 @ 7:42 AP.  Included 1 x 1 minute @ 5k pace.  5k training complete.

41F.  Ran Preston's (I Just Run) race today.  He did a great job as a race director - a perfect race, in my opinion.  He even had a guy on a bike riding alongside me, telling me where to go; I think he must've told the guy I was directionally challenged.  It was good to see him and David (derhammer) - 3 Texas FRB'ers in 1 place??  Gotta be a record.

After passing a guy around the half-mile point, the race became a time trial effort.  Had David not been coming off of injury, we probably could've pushed each other to sub-18's.  So I blame missing 17:xx entirely on him, I think that's fair.

Splits were 5:46, 5:49, 5:46, 0:40 for the stub.  I started the kick way too late, that's where I missed it.  I probably could've kept going after the finish line for awhile...lesson learned.  Other than that, I ran a great race - paced very well, etc.

All done with 5k's for awhile now though -- got 2 marathons and a 50k coming up, all in a 12-week span.  Sub-18 will have to happen next year......

AM:  46F.  22 @ 7:27 AP.  Today was my fast-finish LR, planned on 22 with the last 6 tempo.  Ran the first 15 with my buddy from the 5k a couple weeks ago, then we separated and I kept going.

The last 6 were 6:30, 6:28, 6:20, 6:25, 6:22, then in the last mile I caught up to a different co-worker's 10-year-old son who was running a race - I'd forgotten the Battle of Leon Creek was today, but was having fun being in their race for free.  Anyway, I hung with the kid until I got to my car, and it made for a nice cooldown.  .6 miles is more than the 0.0 mile cooldown I had planned.  That kid is going to be a great runner - sub-8 pace in a 20k?!  He's about half the size of everyone else!

Felt really good on the tempo portion, things are coming together very well right now.

PM:  43F, N 23-34 mph.  2.5 @ 8:52 AP.  Took the dog out to the dead end and back as the next cold front was blowing in.  The wind was Oklahoma-ish.  The run/plod felt good on the legs, regenerative even.

AM:  31F.  6 @ 8:30 AP.  Comfort plodding for a couple days, then will do a dead-leg CV workout on Wednesday; that's becoming a marathon training staple for me.

PM:  4 mile TM plod

AM:  31F.  7 @ 8:11 AP.  Cold weather gives me a small bladder, can't even get through a few recovery miles.  Am I alone here?

PM:  4 mile TM plod

40F, 10 miles total.  Dead-legged CV workout today.  I was pretty sure my legs would still be pretty impaired from this weekend, and I was right.  That's why I put this workout where I did; it's almost always a safe one - 7 x 800m @ 10k pace, 200m active rec.  The first couple felt awful, but the legs did their job - averaged 2:59/rep on the 800s with ~65 sec recoveries.  Splits were 2:59, 3:00, 2:59, 3:00, 2:58, 2:58, 2:58.  They actually got easier and easier.  Seems like a sign that I'm in decent marathon shape - still getting the job done when the legs are their weariest.

2 more workouts and I'll get 3 easy days before each of them.  I'll start my rest for the next one by not running this afternoon!

PM:  3 @ 8:43 AP with the dog in the neighborhood.

AM:  51F.  6 @ 8:18 AP.

PM:  30 minute TM plod

AM:  63F, 100%, fog.  6.5 @ 8:21 AP.  Soggy sloggy.

PM:  4.5 TM miles with 6 x 1 minute @ 5k pace.  I've been slacking on strides since my legs seem to always be tired and cranky.  Tomorrow will basically be a day off, maybe 3-4 miles in the neighborhood, tops.  Then workout Sunday.

AM:  49F.  6 @ 7:51 AP.  Didn't run at all this weekend...life happens.  Too late in the game to try and make up mileage/workouts so I'll just pick up where I left off and try to have a good thanksgiving workout.  We'll be in Longview so maybe a hilly 4-3-2-1 or an MP wave tempo.  I could use the hills, probably.

PM : 4 ez with the mutt after dinner 

AM:  38F.  10 @ 7:21 AP.  Couple @ MP

39F.  15.5 @ 6:51 AP.  4 mile warm up.  Went with a hilly 4-3-2-1 for the last-chance workout.  Kept it at MP or better and tried to pick up the effort as I went.  Obviously not all miles are created equally - the splits jump around - but there was a good progressive effort throughout.

4 @ 6:33 AP - 6:30, 6:36, 6:34, 6:33

3 @ 6:22 AP - 6:18, 6:23, 6:26

2 @ 6:20 AP - 6:12, 6:28

1 @ 6:07

I had a nice half mile easy between each block, so a pretty good reset, allowing me to attack them harder than MP.  Kept the rest honest though, 7:40s-7:50s.  Good hard effort.

Then a 100m cooldown in the parking lot.

AM:  58F.  6 @ 7:42 AP.  Last day in Longview - Pleasure Palace route.  It was for sale.

PM:  77F.  Back in SA, 2.5 untimed with the mutt after eating half a pizza.

64F, 91%.  7:33 AP.  I ran the last mile at MP and it felt like death.  When you're used to good weather, 60's & humid feels terrible and suffocating.

Ok, let's check the forecast for my race . . . 60s & humid.