6/4/18 to 6/24/18: Racing into Shape

I'll do a separate post for the Ocean to Bay 5 Miler and BHZ 5k for the race reports, but the training for the past three weeks has been trending in the right direction.  The knee and hip had been an issue, but they are currently not a concern.  Good health seems to be coming at the right time too.  I'm tentatively targeting the Friday Night Lights 10k as my next serious race.  Though I'll probably hop in another race between now and then, I'd love to get in a good month's worth of training.  We'll see how it goes, since summer tends to throw a lot of obstacles in the way.

Anyways:

4-Jun		Easy		1:12:00		9.06		AM: 9+ at 7:45ish after a slow first mile with Raleigh.  Left hip a little bit achey, and right knee sensative - no compression on it today though.
		Moderate		0:52:00		7.21		PM: Quickish at around 7:15/mile.
5-Jun		Easy		1:10:00		9.02		AM: 9+ at 7:50/mile.
		Easy		0:48:00		6.3		PM: 6+ at 7:40/mile.  Skipped track initially due to everything running late, but I was actually really tired and my left hip seems to have tendonitis, so probably for the best…still bummed though.
6-Jun		Easy		0:41:00		5.06		AM: 5m left at 6am.  That's too damn early.
		MLR Moderate				12.13		PM: 12+ w/10m at probably 6:45/mile then final 2m with Raleigh.  Felt a little wonky here and there, but for the most part I was ok once I got going - hence the impromtu MLR.
7-Jun		MLR Easy		1:19:23		10.1		AM: 10+ commute at 7:50/mile.  No ibuprofen and felt ok considering yesterday was a decent effort.  Right knee improving and left hip joint takes awhile to warm up.
		Easy & Ultimate		0:56:45		7.07		PM: Skipped the Adrian Martinez Classic, which was a bummer, but I'm just not where I would like to be.  Ran home, played ultimate, drove to Truro.  Still a long night.
8-Jun		Easyish		1:00:28		8.01		AM: 8m at 7:33/mile.  Not bad!
		Easy		0:36:24		4.62		PM: 4m lunch run at 7:53/mile.
9-Jun		MLR		1:17:00		10.07		AM: 10m at 7:39/mile.  Ran to pick up the beach and transfer station stickers then added on.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Surf and turf with the family!  Goooood food!
10-Jun		Ocean to Bay		0:28:42		5		AM: 1st place! Three-peat!  Slowest time yet though…
		Etc		1:00:00		6.47		PM: Warm up + cool down + shakeoutish…
11-Jun		MLR		1:19:39		10.44		AM:  Got to bed early, so was able to get out early for a nice MLR.  10+ at 7:38/mile.  Right knee feels close to 100%.  Left hip/leg is ok after a warm up and trending in the right direction.
		Easy		0:56:50		7.14		PM: 7+ at 7:57/mile.
12-Jun		Easy		1:09:02		8.58		AM: Run Raleigh then commute.  8+ at 8min per.
		Commute & Track		1:40:09		13.06		PM: Ran home, then to track w/Raleigh.  (1200/600)x3/400.  Never felt like I loosened up, but very happy to be back on the track.  Very windy too, so that was beneficial in keeping me mentally focused on just relaxing.  Oddly, calves still feel kind of crampish at the end of workouts.
13-Jun		Easy		1:09:20		8.41		AM: 8+ super slow.  Really tired and legs were mush.  Averaged 8:14/mile.
		Easy		0:50:42		6.24		PM:  Gah, really tired.  Regular commute at around 8per.
14-Jun		Easy		1:03:52		8.03		AM: Still a little tired, but not as bad.  8+ at 7:50ish after a slow first couple of miles the legs warmed up for lower 7s.
		Commute & Ultimate * Cool Down		1:23:00		10.81		PM: Total mileage looks tame, but this was an exhausting evening.  Ran home, to ultimate, played, ran to TJs, and didn't eat until about 10pm.  Right knee is about 95% and left leg is improving, but probably 70%.
15-Jun		Easy		1:03:15		8		AM: 8m commute at 7:54/mile.
		Easy		0:51:00		6.22		PM: 6+ and some w/Eli and Raleigh.
16-Jun		Easy		0:38:39		5.47		AM: 5m total, with Fresh Pond 1 lapper (winner winner!).  Averaged ~5:45 for the 2.5m.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Off.
17-Jun		Battle Road		2:00:04		16.28		AM: Battle Road w/Kevin.  Skipped the Grand Prix.  Averaged 7:23/mile and felt pretty good.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Off.
18-Jun		Easy		1:06:51		8.42		AM: 8m commute at just under 8per.
		Easy		0:48:53		6.3		PM: 6+ at 7:46/mile.
19-Jun		Easy		1:06:32		8.42		AM: 8m commute at 7:54/mile.
		Harvard Track		1:44:50		13.3		PM: (1000/200)x4/400x2.  All splits were a bit slow, but I got through it which was important for today.
20-Jun		Easy		0:44:51		5.42		AM: Early meeting so a shorter commute.  Also slower to keep the legs from getting too cooked.
		Easy		0:52:41		6.43		PM: 6+ slow again.
21-Jun		Short Speed		1:02:36		8.28		AM: 8+ at 7:34/mile.  Went to the track and did 5 x 400 at around 1:15 per quarter.
		Easy		1:05:29		8.68		PM: 8+ at 7:33/mile.  Legs felt pretty good.
22-Jun		Recovery		0:57:39		6.36		AM: 6+ fairly slow with Raleigh in tow.  Good recovery though.
		Easy		0:59:31		8.02		PM: 8+ at 7:25/mile.  Feels like I have a normal stride!
23-Jun		Easy		0:50:38		6.5		AM: 6+ very easy at 7:47/mile.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Off.
24-Jun		BHZ 5k PS		0:16:37		3.18		AM: BHZ 5k.  7th overall with a good battle with ChrisK.  I eased back with 350 or so to go, in an attempt to go on his shoulder, and then couldn't get the legs back.  My kick sucked, but this was a great effort and a great move in the right direction.
		Warm up, Cool down, Shakeout		1:27:00		11.05		This includes 5m warm up, 1+ c/d, and 4+ evening shakeout.

6/12 Splits:

1200-4:11.16

600-1:58.2

1200-4:08.9

600-1:59.3

1200-4:08.7

600-1:59.9

400-1:13.3

6/19 Splits:

1000-3:28.1

200-37.1

1000-3:27.7

200-36.1

1000-3:28.2

200-36.9

1000-3:27.1

200-36.5

400-1:16.7

400-1:13.7

6/21 Splits:

400-1:14.1

400-1:15.1

400-1:12.9

400-1:13.1

400-1:12.2

Totals: 100.12, 108.68, 100.36

Race Reports: Liam McGuire ~5m, Reggae Ramble, and Corrib 5k

Liam McGuire's Almost 5-Miler

Just over two weeks after Boston, Elizabeth and I went to Falmouth for the 2nd race in the New England Runner Pub Series.  Liam's is an interesting course in that it is purposefully just under 5 miles, and I would say it's a fair course with some small rollers, but nothing too bad.  I was not nearly recovered for this race, so I had to take a couple ibuprofen to deal with some aches and pains.  That took care of those issues, but my legs still had no pop and my pre-race strides felt pathetic.

All that being considered, I was pretty happy to bust out a 5:21 for the first mile.  I was doing my best to keep things under control, and this felt very easy - so that was encouraging.  Entering the second mile, Pickleseimer caught up to me and we ran together for a little bit and were even able to chat and have a quick laugh for the NERunner camera crew.  Pickle would soon pull away though, and I was left a little bit in no man's land.

Throughout the middle miles I kept the effort right, and closed the gap on two runner's ahead of me.  Brendan Meehan runs for GBTC, and I caught up to him along the coast - he too was recovering from Boston.  And I then kept an eye on Pickleseimer and another runner who he was battling with.  After we turned back inland, Pickleseimer had overtaken the youngin' and was well ahead.  I made a quick surge to close that gap and remained there for about 20 seconds before making a hard move.  I wondered briefly if I could catch up to Pickle, but my mental math told me there simply wasn't enough real estate.

I finished in 27:12, averaging 5:32/mile - good for 6th place and I was actually happy with that considering how beat up I've been.

Splits:
5:21
5:27
5:41
5:30
5:12 (5:26/mile pace)

Results
Strava

Great CSU contingent for this race as usual, and the post-run hangout was fantastic.


Reggae Ramble

I've always been interested in these Thursday night races along the Charles.  I'll be commuting home and see the race getting setup, and on some evenings I'll get home a little late and see the post race party going on.  On this night, I got home from my commute and made a last minute decision to just go ahead and sign up.

By the time I lined up to race, I already had 16+ miles in my legs from the morning & evening commutes.  I also remained banged up having to cut any recent track workouts short.  So...I wasn't super confident, but I needed to get out and run hard for my mental health.

I went out very relaxed, and the leader and Mike Quintal went out quick for the first half mile and built up a 7-10s lead.  I settled in, and at that point the gap stayed roughly the same.  I tried to pick up the pace for the final mile, hoping the leader went out too hard, but he looked comfortable.  If I caught him, I'm sure he would've had plenty in the tank.  I was pleased with the effort though, and can't complain about the time or the place.

Splits:
5:18
5:26
5:21
32s

Results
Strava

Very fun post race event on the Charles, and the band was fantastic!

Corrib Pub 5k

Well, this one was kind of a stinker.  On one hand, I shouldn't complain because I've been treading water while battling injuries...on the other...it's worse than last year and that's very frustrating since it was such a nice day compared to last year's sufferfest of heat & humidity.

I've really been struggling with feeling good as of late, so once again I took it out conservatively.  Last year my opening mile was 5:10, compared to 5:21 this year.  I was quickly in a bit of no man's land, with plenty of people ahead of me.  Mile two is a bit uphill, and though I haven't been feeling fast I have been feeling like I have plenty of stamina.  So I worked the hills on the course pretty good, and that's where I made up most of the ground on the runners that went out quicker for the first mile.

Mile two is a good climb and that was run in 5:33.  During the third mile, I was doing my best to close the gap on Pickleseimer, who seems to be just out of reach as of late - and I just didn't have it.  My effort remained where I think it needs to be, and I ran 5:21 for the third mile.  The final part of the course is very downhill, which wasn't a good thing for me on this day, since that puts a pounding on my right knee.  Since I wasn't catching anyone nor being caught, I tried to stay smooth with a high turnover.  I finished in 7th place in a time of 17:01 (long course).

Splits:
5:21
5:33
5:21
46s

Results
Strava

Elizabeth ran 20:44, and had an excellent race.  On a slightly flatter and certified course, and I think she can break 20min.  All she needs is to decide to do some training!

5/14/18 to 6/3/18: Treading Water

The past three weeks have felt a lot like treading water.  As one injury subsides, another one creeps up to a level of concern that causes me to back off or skip workouts altogether.  Yesterday at the Corrib 5k this was a bit of a discussion between myself, Jon, and Kevin.  I'm sure most of my complaining about feeling fairly crappy and running super slow look like I'm forcing things too much....and there is certainly truth to that.  I think the consensus is that taking some time off would do me well.  I don't disagree with that, but I also don't think I'm quite to that point.  The problem is usually it's the athlete who can't see when they are at that point.

Jon made a comment about when to be concerned, and essentially when a run simply isn't enjoyable you're probably over doing it (I'm paraphrasing just a bit, I'm sure).  Looking through my log, I see a lot of "meh" and "SLOW!"...because it isn't especially fun to tread water.  That being said, I feel like I'm allowing myself to stay at a level where a bad race isn't that bad.  The downside is that is probably true on the other side of the spectrum where a good race won't be that good.

I'm ~21 weeks away from the Dublin Marathon.  So, I'm not quite at the point where I need to hurry up and get healthy. 

The Stuff:

14-May		MLR		1:15:56		10.06		AM: MLR at 7:33/mile.
		Easy		0:58:48		8.18		PM: 8 total, but 5m at a reasonable cruising speed.  Still a little whacky though.
15-May		Easy		1:08:01		8.34		AM: 8+ at 8:09/mile.  BAH!
		Easy		0:47:10		6.32		PM: 6+ at 7:28/mile.  Still bah.
16-May		Easy & Meeting		0:40:38		5.02		AM: 5m at 7:46/mile.  Early meeting means shorter run.
		Easy		0:49:30		6.37		PM: 6+ at 7:49/mile.  Very Meh.
17-May		Easy		1:04:18		8.03		AM: 8m at 8per.  Easy, but back and whole core just felt way out of whack.
		Reggae Ramble 5k		1:20:00		12.22		PM:  Commute home then back to the river for the last minute decision to run the Reggae Ramble 5k.  2nd Place in 16:38.  I'll take it.  Back and knee are still bothering me, but didn't cause problems for the race.
18-May		Easy		1:06:33		8.4		AM: 8+ at 7:55/mile.
		Easy		1:05:00		9.35		PM: Commute & Raleigh & Lamplighter.  Pace whatever.
19-May		Trails		1:05:58		8.68		AM: Trails of Truro!
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Off.
20-May		Short Long Run		1:52:00		14.44		AM: Long run on the trails, some of it with Eli.  Garmin was weird, so this is a rough number and pace was probably 7:40ish.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Drive home.
21-May		Easy		1:06:13		8.01		AM: Commute SLOW!!!
		Easy		1:15:18		9.08		PM: 9+ commute at 7:30ish w/final miles around Fresh Pond with Eli & Raleigh.
22-May		Easy		1:01:42		7.31		AM: 7+ commute at SLOW!!!
		Easy + Trackish		1:32:25		11.62		PM: Commute home and improvised track with all my aches and pains.  Not worth looking at the splits.
23-May		Easy		1:08:39		8.12		AM: Commute SLOW!!!
		Moderate		0:53:20		7.3		PM: 7+ at 7:18/mile.  5m at a moderate clip of just under 7min miles.
24-May		Easy		1:06:14		8.44		AM: 8+ commute at 7:53/mile.
		Easy		0:55:00		7.36		PM: Commute home at 7:32/mile.
25-May		Easy		1:20:00		10.35		AM: Trails plus a bit with Eli and Raleigh.  Pace whatever.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Off.
26-May		Tempo		0:51:30		7.47		AM: 7+ at a moderate clip.  Averaged 6:54/mile.  I'll take what I can get.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Off.  Really doing quite a bit of yard work though.
27-May		Long Run		2:00:00		16.17		AM: 16+ trail run with a bunch of it with Dan Chebot, his wife McKenzie, and their friend Scott.  Good to have company, and I hope in the coming weekends Eli can join.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Off ish.  Definitely doing yard work that is not easy.
28-May		MLR		1:24:00		11.13		AM: 11+ to try and get in some miles.  Pace about 7:35/mile.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Off.
29-May		Easy		0:37:00		5.02		AM: 5m to work after a 3+ hour drive.  Yeesh.
		Easy		0:50:00		6.36		PM: 6+ at 7:55/mile.  My right knee remains an issue, but the weird stuff going on in my left hip is a new concern.
30-May		Easy		0:54:00		7.24		AM: 7+ commute.  Not sure why I started late and couldn't get my standard 8m in, but such is life.
		MLR Moderate		1:30:00		12.06		PM: Impromptu MLR w/some Raleigh miles.  Averaged around 7min per, skewed by the final 2m with the dog.  No ibu and right knee was a little touch and go.  Left side definitely feels out of whack, but I was happy with this.
31-May		MLR Easy		1:20:00		10.15		AM: Another MLR to squeeze in some miles.  Right knee feels like it's improving, but the hip/IT or whatever it is on my left side is hit and miss.
		Easy & Ultimate		1:05:00		8.36		PM: Commute home and over to ultimate.  Too bad ultimate miles don't count, but the good news is I felt pretty good there.
1-Jun		Easy		1:14:00		9.14		AM: 9+ easy at 8min per.  Not that easy though as my legs feel a little beat up.  Left side feels a bit quieter though.  Super humid.
		Raleigh Lunch Run!		0:18:00		2.12		Noon: Raleigh lunch run, BRO.
		Easy		1:01:00		7.38		PM: Commute home plus a little bit with Raleigh.  Slow going, but that's fine.
2-Jun		Easy		1:02:00		8.02		AM: 8m at 7:44/mile.  Very warm and super humid, but I felt pretty good.
		Off		0:00:00		0		PM: Went to Trillium Beer Garden…should've done the shakeout, but oh well.
3-Jun		AM Shakeout		0:18:00		2.1		AM:  Early shakeout with Raleigh.
		Corrib Pub 5k PS		1:00:00		8.61		Noon:  Corrib Pub 5k.  17 flat for a slightly long course.  7th place and slower than last year.  Not very good.
		Shakeout		0:31:00		4.06		PM: 4m shakeout at 7:38/mile.

No splits to speak of.

Totals: 105.41, 101.23, 101.75