12/20/15 to 12/26/15: Christmas Week Running

I was a little bit concerned about an IT band issue to start the week, but after making use of that awful foam roller I keep in the corner - that seemed to do the trick.  Perhaps that could be a New Year's resolution heading into 2016?  We'll see.

With a pretty busy week I figured I wouldn't be able to get in a second workout, so on Tuesday I did a bit of a workout on my morning commute in addition to a great session at the Harvard indoor track.  The morning workout was pretty simple and easy: 2m warm up, 1 mile hard, 1 mile moderate.  I ended up averaging about 6:55 for the 7+, so I was happy enough with that.  Nothing special.  The workout at Harvard was a vanilla 10x400, but I was really pleased with how it went.  I didn't feel especially great, but each rep was under 1:12.  I'll take that.

With poker cards ending earlier than usual, Elizabeth and I were somewhat unexpectedly back home Christmas night.  So on Saturday I made the decision at 9:50am to run the Fresh Pond race at 10am...my legs actually felt pretty good running in the low 5:40s, but my lungs were really funky - like I couldn't get a full breath.  I decided to stick with the one lapper and stay fresh for the long run on the 27th.

Here tis:

20-Dec		Long Run		2:18:00		18.14		Battle Road, 18+ at around 7:30.  Right knee still a little tight/IT band.
21-Dec		Easy/Moderate		1:01:41		16.46		AM: 8+ commute at 7:30. PM: 8+ at 7:45.  Had to stop at about 3.25 because I felt totally out of it.  Started to sweat profusely.  Sat on a bench, had a little Gu and eased back into the run.  Stopped at 8 instead of the planned 10+.  Felt fine by the end, but not fun getting so zoned out.
22-Dec		Easy/Speed		0:48:55		21.14		AM: 7+ at 6:55.  2m warm up, then 1m moderate 1m hard until the end of the run. PM: Commute to Harvard then 400x10.  A good long warm up, and a two lap recovery after the first two, then standard 1 lap/2min after that.
23-Dec		Easy/Easy		2:21:46		18.29		AM: 8+ at 7:45. PM:10+ at 7:45.
24-Dec		Christmas Eve		0:52:02		6.48		Easy mileage.
25-Dec		Christmas		0:44:15		5.02		Easy mileage, found a fun trail in Plympton too.  Good news for future family visits.
26-Dec		Easy/Easy		0:26:01		4.06		Fresh Pond in 14:03. Not bad, but I was having some weird breathing issues.  Each breath felt like a 1/2 breath.  Strange.

Splits:

1:10.67

1:11.56

1:10.34

1:11.02

1:09.88

1:11.05

1:11.92

1:10.91

1:11.44

1:10.39

Total: 89.59

12/13/15 to 12/19/15: Feeling Like a Slug

I'm pretty darn tired, and busy so I'm just going to get straight to the stuff:

13-Dec		Long Run/Easy		2:48:09		21.29		AM: Battle Road, 18+ at 7:45. PM: Easy over to Marathon Sports to pick up the Pub Series (free) NB shoes. 3+.
14-Dec		Moderate/Moderate		2:08:11		17.11		AM: 7+ at 7:25 PM: 10+ at 7:30.
15-Dec		Easy/Easy		1:48:53		14.35		AM: 8+ at 7:40. PM: 6+ at 7:40.
16-Dec		Easy/HARVARD Track		2:19:41		17.64		AM: 7+ commute at 8min. PM: Run to Harvard Indoor.  1200/200x4.  Felt flat and sucky.  As usual.
17-Dec		Easy/Easy		1:56:01		14.35		AM: 8+ at 7:45. PM: 6+ commute home.  Went very slow because my right knee/IT is bothering me.
18-Dec		Easy/Easy		1:23:00		10.13		AM: 5m easy. PM: 5m easy.
19-Dec		BU Mini Meet		1:06:00		8+		1600 Meter Relay.  After looking at the video, I think I ran 4:53.1, roughly.  Though, it could be slower than that by a second or two.  Either way, I'm not happy with my performance.  However, our team did well, so there was some silver lining to the day.

Splits:

1200-3:45.45

200-34.56

200-34.43

200-34.13

200-33.34

Total: 102.87

12/6/15 to 12/12/15: Good Week of Running & Assault on Mt Hood Race Report

This was a pretty intense week of running, capped off with a very poor performance at the Assault on Mt Hood cross country race in Melrose.  To start off, Sunday's long run went well, with Elizabeth joining for a good chunk of mileage once again (and getting in some good prep for next the 2016 installment of the NERunner Pub Series).  Then on Tuesday my improvised mile workout went very well.  I was on tired legs to start the workout, and ran a controlled 5:01 mile on a crowded track.  The remaining reps were vanilla, but I ended up feeling good about the workout.  A 5:01 as a controlled effort...2 years ago I ran roughly that time in an all out effort on the springy BU track.  Will I be running 4:50 in a controlled effort in two more years?

Speaking with Terry during the cool down, I mentioned that this year's mile training has been mostly improvised and after looking through my past few months of training I hadn't realized quite how true that statement was.  Last year I planned out three months of training with weekly mile workouts, and this year each time I've shown up to the Harvard track with no plan in place.  I'm not sure how I feel about that, but I have been focusing more on mileage than workouts, so I suppose it makes sense.  The lack of a pre-planned workout has also helped keep away from the mindset of "this is the workout on the calendar therefore I must do it," which is always a dangerous game to play.

Thursday's workout at BU went well, but it was certainly challenging.  The 400s were a grind, but the good news is that the 800s at 5k pace felt totally in control.  And I capped the workout off with a crisp 200 where Danny smoked me...a good sign for the mile relay on Saturday (for him!).


Finally, the Assault on Mt Hood XC race went...poorly.  Elizabeth and I showed up later than I would have preferred, but I was still able to get in a reasonable 2 mile warm up with strides and drills.  Unfortunately, I felt like I had no energy in my legs during the strides.  That has happened in races before, but this time around it seemed to carry more weight.  At the start Terry, Kevin, and I found a good spot on the line with a straight route to the bottle neck.  With a quick sprint at the gun, I felt I was in good position, and I didn't have to battle any elbows or suffer a slow down from anyone in front of me.  As we entered a section of single track, I was moving well enough with space ahead and behind.

The course quickly narrowed once more during the assent towards Slayton tower, which in post-race recaps with my fellow competitors, Elizabeth somehow had no memory of the tower.  Kevin's theory is that she was so focused on the rocky footing that she didn't notice the tower...now that's focus!

I was hurting already at this point, and the subsequent steep downhill was very uncomfortable.  The descent started out so sharp that I felt like I was going to slip on the pavement even with the good footing.  In years past I had no hesitation bombing the downhills, but this year I was cautious and I likely paid for it.  I hit the first mile in about 5:45/5:50 and I was ok with that considering the hills up to that point.  Unfortunately, there would be more hills throughout the course and my complete lack of hill training was bright light of pain for the rest of the day.

After ascending "nutcracker hill" I was crawling, and soon passed by Kevin.  Wallowing in agonizing oxygen debt, I never recovered.  I kept Kevin within shouting distance until the final hill where I lost about 10 seconds in a span of 10 meters.  All in all, I was ill prepared for this race.

Oh well, they can't all be PRs.  Here is the stuff.

6-Dec		Long Run		2:19:49		18.08		Battle Road.  Good run.
7-Dec		Easy/Moderate		2:11:37		17.19		AM: 7+ commute at 7:45 PM: 10+ at 7:30.  I saw a raccoon along the charles, and I stopped to try and take a picture but it waddled away, then got in the charles and started to swim across the river.
8-Dec		Easy/Speed		2:36:34		19.63		AM: 7+ at 7:40. PM: ~7 to Harvard.  Then, Mile/200x2/400x4.  Mile at 3k pace, everything else at mile pace.
9-Dec		Easy/Easy		1:41:57		13.2		AM: 7+ at 8. PM: 6+at 7:40.
10-Dec		Easy/BU Track		2:42:00		25.63		AM: 7+ at 7:50. PM: Commute home and to BU.  (800/400x2/200)x3 at 5k/mile/faster paces.  Really taxing workout and was close to bonking on the unexpected run home.
11-Dec		Easy/Easy		1:19:54		10		AM: 5+ commute at 7:45 PM: 4+ commute home in whatever, then a Christmas Celtic Sojourn.  Good stuff!
12-Dec		Mt.Hood		0:46:45		6.34		Assault on Mt. Hood.  Felt a little sluggish on the warm up, and it carried through for the entire race.  Lack of hill work really showed, and Kevin blew past me midway through.

Tuesday Splits:

Mile-5:01.9

Rest-2:35.42

200-34.45

Rest-2:44.73

200-34.53

Rest-3:05.84

400-1:12.61

Rest-2:30.29

1:12.69

Rest-2:34.42

1:13.13

Rest- 2:16.61

1:13.87

Thursday Splits:

800-2:38.67

400-1:11.83

400-1:12.52

200-34.85

800-2:37.27

400-1:13.19

400-1:13.74

200-34.36

800-2:36.28

400-1:12.73

400-1:10.63

200-31.52

Total: 110.07

11/29/15 to 12/5/15: It's December Already?!

All the way back on Sunday September 13th at Battle Road with Kevin, I inadvertently started to run...more.  At that time, my current seven mile morning commute was a not-quite-established routine, and I was still a doe-eyed newly wed.  I had been hoping to formulate a training plan leading up to one of the BU mini meets, but all of the sudden three months have gone by.  How'd that happen?

Last year the mile training was very deliberate and executed fairly well.  This fall has been a bit different, but I think I'm rounding into form.  We shall see.

The stuff:

29-Nov		Long Run		2:20:28		18.23		Battle Road. Took 2 ibuprofen for the swelling in the left foot.  Fine to run on, but didn't want to alter my gate.  Felt pretty good.
30-Nov		Easy/Moderate		1:20:06		10.59		AM: 5+ at 7:37. PM: 5+ at 7:31.
1-Dec		Easy/Speed		2:15:22		16.81		AM: 7+ at 7:50. PM: 800x2/600/400/200x2 with 4min rest after the eights, 2min after the six, and 1min after the two and four.  All at mile pace(ish).
2-Dec		Easy/Easy		1:46:50		13.2		AM: 7+ at 7:55. PM: 6+ at 8ish.
3-Dec		Easy/BU Track		2:01:40		17.13		AM: 7+ at 7:45. PM: 10+ at 6:35-6:40.  Windy and with a back pack.  Pub Series afterward.
4-Dec		Easy/Easy		1:59:28		15.07		AM: 7+ at 7:40 PM: 8+ at whatever.
5-Dec		Easy		1:23:00		10+		AM: 10+.  Not sure the exact distance as Garmin was a little whacky and I went on an 'exploring' run throughout some nearby neighborhoods.

Tuesday Splits:

800-2:27.51

Rest-4:24.33

800-2:29.82

Rest-4:15.52

600-1:51.78

Rest-2:28.64

400-1:12.24

Rest-56.25

200-33.01

Rest-1:08.32

200-32.38

Not quite on pace for those, but I'm happy with the workout.  Those 800s are slow for what I'm hoping to run, but I think a major benefit is just getting to that place where the mind starts to get a little fuzzy.  Getting used to that feeling, and being able to stay focused & hold form should prove beneficial once I finally lace up.

Total: 101.03

11/22/15 to 11/28/15: Mild Injury + Pilgrim 5k Race Report

Thanksgiving week is usually a little too hectic to get in my normal mileage, and this week was no different.  Luckily or unluckily, it coincided with a mild injury.  During the Sunday long run I happened to tie the shoelaces on my left shoe just a tiny bit too tight.  I noticed my foot was hurting me somewhere after mile 12 and retied the laces, but by then the damage was done.  I had some swelling and bruising, but nothing that I would classify as major.  I was able to complete a decent track workout on Tuesday and race a Turkey Trot on Thursday, but by Saturday I decided to give the foot complete day of rest...not something I like to do, but with some swelling and achiness caution was warranted.

The Thanksgiving Day Pilgrim 5k went ok.  My warm up was very 'meh', and my foot was fairly bothersome.  But, once on the line the adrenaline took care of the mild discomfort.  Three runners were lined up next to me that I kept my eye on, one in particular being Shaun Dever from GBTC who won last year.  I saw him at the Harvard track on Tuesday and he's been running very well, so I viewed him as the favorite for the win.  We all went out hard and ran ~1:16 or so for that first quarter mile.  The four of us were all right there, but Dever continued the pace for maybe another 20 seconds and built a small lead over us.

I didn't want a big gap to start so I accelerated slightly, and from that point on I gradually tried to close the gap.  As we reached the turnaround I made an effort to accelerate once more so he wouldn't see me as he made his way back.  This helped for a short distance, and his lead remained accordion like for about a half mile more before the road began to narrow with runners still heading outbound.

We were single file and still not finding much running room, and this turned out to be bad news for me.  I had closed a good portion of the gap and was feeling good about eight meters back, but someone with headphones on was all the way to the left of the road and staring blankly at his feet on a collision course with Dever who yelled, "look up...LOOK UP!!!" The runner got out of the way at the last second, but provided Dever with a nice dose of adrenaline and that gap opened up in a matter of ten angry strides.

In the end, I closed the gap again, but ran out of real estate and easily beaten.  I don't know why I do this race though - it's never been measured as a true 5k (this year it was ~3.25), and in the results they had Dever nine seconds ahead of me, when in it was actually ~four seconds...Throw in the fact that it is pretty expensive...2016 Turkey Trot is going to be elsewhere, I think.

Down Week Data:

22-Nov		Long Run		2:19:53		18.12		AM: Battle Road with the crew.  Left foot pretty sore afterward.
23-Nov		Easy/Moderate		2:09:26		17.39		AM: 7+ at about 7:35. PM: 10+ at about 7:20 with ~9m at about 6:55
24-Nov		Easy/Intervals		2:09:18		16.43		AM: 7+ at whatever. PM: Commute to Harvard, then 800/600/400/200 with 4min/2min/1min rest.   Not bad.  Foot ok.
25-Nov		Easy/Easy		0:56:02		7.05		AM: 7+ at whatever. PM: Off. Drive to South Shore.
26-Nov		Pilgrim 5k		0:47:58		6.68		AM: Turkey Trot, 17:40 on a course that was closer to 3.25.  2nd place.  Meh.
27-Nov		Easy/Easy		0:35:39		4.07		AM: ADATTFG. PM: An achy 4+ with Eli and Raleigh. Dumbfoot.
28-Nov		Tempo		0:00:00		0		Off.  Left foot is still sore and swollen, and didn't see any reason to force a run today.

Splits:

800-2:29.51

Rest-3:38.82

600-1:52.50

Rest-2:01.86

400-1:12.71

Rest-1:00.08

200-32.63

Total: 69.74

11/15/15 to 11/21/15: Big Week + Kingston Turkey Trot Race Report

This was a great week of training, capped off with a solid 5k win.  The long run was on the quicker side, and felt fantastic.  The workout on Tuesday night was right on the money with the pacing and rest.  And Thursday night's session at the Harvard indoor track was a great mix of lung burning speed, and not overdoing it two days prior to the race.

For Thursday, I showed up at Harvard feeling lethargic and unmotivated, and contemplated just doing the drills and a few extra strides.  I then came up with this workout: 800/600/400/200 with rest of 4/2/1.  Since I was tired, I wasn't overly concerned with nailing the splits.  But, I thought it was important to continue touching on mile paced work and the 800 and 600 in particular are what I was really focused on getting done.  In the end, I felt pretty damn comfortable the entire workout, which came as a pleasant surprise.

On Saturday, Elizabeth and I were on the south shore for the Kingston Turkey Trot.  My father, brother, and nephew Jake were all racing as well.  We stayed the night in Plympton on Friday, and so I was there early to get in a nice warm up and scope out the competition.   The guy who has won the previous two years was recently at the Run for All Ages and ran a 16:19 5k.  That seems a little bit out of my reach at the moment, but I was getting myself ready to test my fitness.

On the starting line, I didn't see any familiar faces, and I simply prepared to run hard out of the gate to avoid the crunch of little kids sprinting.  The course starts with a quarter mile straightaway before taking a turn, and I kept with a couple high school aged kids and another guy right to that turn.  I knew we went fast, but the workouts Terry has come up with mix in mile/5k paced work - so I felt within myself.

One of the kids who took it out fast had a very sudden deceleration after that first quarter and I had to make a quick side step to avoid pushing him in the back.  After a hard left followed by a quick quick right, I found myself running alone.  The first mile was quick and I was feeling pretty good.  Unfortunately, the course wasn't marked especially well so on three occasions I had to slow up to make sure I was taking the appropriate turn.  This, along with a couple sharp hills caused a pretty crappy 2nd mile.  I soon realized that I had a comfortable lead and just kept moving at a good clip to the finish line while trying to hold good form.  It was a great day for running, and very nice to get the win.

The rest of my family had great results as well, and it made that victory even better knowing they were there to run as well.  But a really great highlight is my nephew's post-run conversation with a friend of his who came in third. My nephew, knowing I won asked his friend "nice race, so who beat you?" and his friend answered, "I dunno, some fast old guy."  I'm a fast old guy...

Splits:
1 - 5:17
2 - 5:47 (OOF!)
3 - 5:27
.18 - 45
Final Time: 17:16

http://www.coolrunning.com/results/15/ma/Nov21_Kingst_set1.shtml
Photos: https://danmchugh.smugmug.com/2015-Turkey-Trot/

The Deets:

15-Nov		Long Run		2:15:23		18.08		Battle Road, 18+ at 7:25.
16-Nov		Easy/Moderate		2:15:24		17.88		AM: 7+ at 7:30. PM: 10+ at 7:37.
17-Nov		Easy/Intervals		3:08:49		23.49		AM: 7+ at 7:30. PM: Commute to home then Harvard, then (1000, 400, 200, 200) x 3 (5400) 1000@5K, 400@Mile, 200@<Mile pace
18-Nov		Easy/Easy		1:42:38		12.71		AM: 6+ at 8:00. PM: 6+ along with a mix of strides and short hill repeats.  ~8min avg.
19-Nov		Easy/Speed		2:10:30		16.43		AM: 7+ at 7:45. PM: Commute straight to Harvard, 800/600/400/200 with 4min/2min/1min rest.  The paces weren't perfect, but all close to 4:50, so that's not bad.
20-Nov		Easy/Easy		1:20:20		10.03		AM: 5+ at 8min. PM: 4+ commute home at 8min.
21-Nov		Kingston Turkey Trot		0:55:13		7.53		AM: Kingston Turkey Trot 5k.  1st place in 17:16.  Course was a little long, and I didn't have anyone behind me - so I'm happy with the time.

Tuesday Splits:

1000-3:23.28

400-1:13.06

200-35.09

200-34.68

1000-3:20.50

400-1:12.44

200-35.01

200-34.18

1000-3:18.91

400-1:12.93

200-34.28

200-31.77

Thursday Splits:

800-2:28.32

Rest-4:11.06

600-1:52.55

Rest-2:00.40

400-1:14.18

Rest-51.60

200-33.56

Total: 106.15