8/11 to 8/17 - Another 50+

Another solid week. Starting out with a long run at Battle Road helps ensure I am getting sufficient aerobic work, and I have not had the opportunity to do that nearly as much as I would like to this summer. Finishing the week up with the Ultimate tournament helps as well.

I may have mentioned this before...Ultimate games look a little strange in the running log, but I consider them a form of cross training that is quantifiable. Most games the Garmin will show ~2.5 miles...and I can't NOT include that...

Anyways, onto the data:

Sunday		11-Aug		Long Run		0:07:41		15.03		Battle Road trail w/CSU. Left side felt tight towards the end, but considering the previous night's margaritas, I was very happy with the run.
Monday		12-Aug		Recovery		0:08:04		4.03		Sports Massage in the afternoon, then ran home from work - pretty warm out. Right shin has some tenderness in the past few days.
Tuesday		13-Aug		Intervals				11.19		800/1000/1200/1000/4x300 - my legs took a while to feel loose, but this workout went well. The 300's, specifically, were great - I could feel my stride really open up.
Wednesday		14-Aug		Recovery		0:08:06		4.03		Recovery
Thursday		15-Aug		Fresh Pond				7.56		Easy lunch run, then additional mileage after playing race director for the Fresh Pond race.
Friday		16-Aug		Easy		0:08:00		4.03		Easy jog to work to pick up the Jeep.
Saturday		17-Aug		BUDA				10.00		Garmin died during the last game, but the mileage for the day was ~10 minimum. Four games total.

Thursday Splits:

800-2:52.04

1000-3:35.54

1200-4:24.40

1000-3:37.05

300-53.46

300-52.58

300-52.52

300-49.92

Some additional thoughts: Man, 1200's are hard after a summer of mostly mile-focused speedwork! But they really loosened me up, because my legs were feeling great on the 300's. I can't keep contact with the lead group of CSUers for the longer stuff at 5k pace, but when we do 400's or less I always feel great. I don't think there is any quick way to improve that though - continued running over the course of yearz will eventually get me to that point.

Also - after the games on Saturday, I was getting some crazy muscle cramps - calf/hipflexor/hamstring/groin...This would've been a wise week to ease off on the mileage. I felt more sore after those games than I did after the Big Sur Marathon.

Total Mileage: ~55.87

8/4 to 8/10 - Back Over 50

This was a solid week considering I had a lot of other things going on - it's not always easy to find time, but where there is a will there is a way. Let's keep it simple - here is the data:

Sunday		4-Aug		Long Island		0:07:28		6.30		Started off easy (~8:30/mile) for the first ~2 miles then picked it up comfortably for the remainder of the run. Legs felt fresh after two days off.
Monday		5-Aug		Double		0:07:35		14.08		8.03m during lunch at 7:33/mile and 6.05 in the PM at 7:42/mile. Solid efforts.
Tuesday		6-Aug		Killer Bee's				10.73		4m to and from the game, and kept the Garmin on for the game. Good workout, I was pooped.
Wednesday		7-Aug		Intervals				10.25		(1000/800/400/400)x2 - legs are feeling really tired, but I was able to push through. Had to take a shitbreak before the final two 400's though…thanks bertucci's!
Thursday		8-Aug		Killer Bee's				2.46		Not much time or energy so I skipped the run to and from. Just the mileage from ultimate.
Friday		9-Aug		Recovery		0:07:46		4.05		A little bit quick for a recovery run.
Saturday		10-Aug		Fresh Pond				5.07		Fresh Pond in 14:21 - good for only 7th, but a solid effort.

Thursday Splits:

1000-3:40.28

800-2:53.49

400-1:15.47

400-1:14.95

1000-3:39.19

800-2:56.10

400-1:14.92

400-1:15.48

Not quite where I want to be with the times, but Monday and Tuesday were not easy - so I would expect tired legs. Running solo for these intervals is also challenging - I think both tired legs + solo is good for me though. It takes focus to maintain a hard effort solo, and there is such a thing as practicing focus too much.

Total Miles: 52.94

Carver 5-Miler Race Report

Me, Corven and Eli enjoyed some food at Jose's the night before the Carver 5-miler, but we didn't overdo it, and were able to wake up with plenty of time for the drive down. Corven was feeling sick, but there is nothing like the atmosphere before a Grand Prix race to get you feeling pumped up and ready to roll. The forecast was for cooler weather, but it was hot as the dickens in the sun...

I didn't have a great warm up, but was able to hit the john, which is half the battle.

Splits:
Mile 1 - 5:58.82
Mile 2 - 6:08.56
Mile 3 - 6:17.03
Mile 4 - 6:20.25
Mile 5 - 5:56.81
Garmin .05- 12.00
Total: 30:57

It's tough to gauge the middle miles of this race. I felt very comfortable with the first mile, and I don't think it was too fast. But...I obviously slowed considerably for miles 3 & 4. I don't think I really lost focus, as has been the case for past races - I was still passing a lot of people - and my effort wasn't poor. I heard quite a bit from other runners that the sun really sapped their energy, so I think that was likely the case here. For the final mile+ the course gets back in the shade, and that final mile was very strong. I ended up passing a lot of runners who I thought were way too far ahead, but as others continued to wilt, I was feeling really strong.

With about ~35 meters to go, there was one final runner who was ~10m ahead of me that I tried to catch. He looked over his shoulder, and started to cruise in - and just as he turned back towards the line I was up on my toes for the final sprint. He turned again, just a second later and noticed me closing and did the same thing. I crossed the line just as I was getting on his heels, but it made for an exciting finish.

I especially like the photo to the right - some good expressions can be seen on the onlookers.

Overall this was a very good race for me. The weather was deceptively warm, but I was able to run well and PR by ~41 seconds, and finish up the day hanging by the pool in Plympton.

7/28 to 8/3

This was an ok week - ultimate games are a good workout, but I'm not sure how to look at them in the context of training. I suppose it's a mix between pure speed and cross training. Then a fun weekend on the Long Island where I decided to rest vs junk miles. So, whatever, here's the stuff:

Sunday		28-Jul		Long Run		0:08:03		14.11		A mix of Fresh Pond and the Charles - went out at noon, and the mix of heat and sun may have had an impact as I never got into a rythym. Still ticked off the miles though.
Monday		29-Jul		Double				6.17		2m easy w/Raleigh in the afternoon, then 4m easy in the evening. I had a really bad side stitch for the evening run, otherwise I would've done a few more miles.
Tuesday		30-Jul		Killer Bee's				4.97		Quick couple of miles when I got home + KB.
Wednesday		31-Jul		Intervals				10.53		600/800/1000/(600/400)x3 - First three at 5k pace, the rest at mile pace. These past few weeks have left me with some tired legs. That's good though - I'm makin some gainz!
Thursday		1-Aug		Killer Bee's				4.86		Light 2m warm up + the game.
Friday		2-Aug		Long Island				0.00		Lots of travel, then camping on the beach. Rest.
Saturday		3-Aug		Long Island				0.00		Another busy day. Rest.

Thursday Splits:

600-2:12.87

800-2:56.25

1000-3:41.00

600-1:53.58

400-1:15.58

600-1:55.74

400-1:15.15

600-1:58.52

400-1:14.59

Total: 40.64