Weekly recap: 3/9 - 3/15

Taper Week #1. This was a nice week of training with a significant drop in total volume. This was the lowest weekly volume going back to November. With only four runs and three days off - I had a number of moments where I didn't know what to do with myself. I was full of energy and wanted to get on with the race. The taper anxiety was beginning.

The key workout this week was my track session on Wednesday. I was supposed to run on the HHS track but the varsity soccer game forced me into the parking lot. I ran around the front of the high school which created a .3 mile loop. Not ideal, but given it was flat and had no traffic, it was the best option. The wind was bad and I honestly lacked the focus while executing the three 1 mile repeats. I ran 6:20, 6:15, and 6:16 which was about 10 to 15 seconds below my goal going into the workout. While I didn't kill the workout, I told myself that this was OK given the proximity to race day.

Sunday was my last 'medium distance' run. I did the 12 miler with Karolina running out on the W&OD. The run went well and I felt solid wearing my race shorts and compression calve guards. I did have one quick scare around mile 8 when I felt a sudden sharp pain in my right foot. I don't know what it was, but for a moment I thought I cracked something in my metatarsal. The pain went away after a few seconds and it left me wondering if I'd just given myself a stress fracture. Ahh the irony... a stress fracture on my last real run one week before the marathon. The pain was gone and when I got home but my paranoia persisted. As of today there is nothing there but I keep convincing myself that my foot feels 'off'. The taper-gremlins are messing with my head...

Below is a recap of my second-to-last week of this marathon jounry. As always, thanks for reading.

Monday	03/09/09	Off	0:00:00	0.0
Tuesday	03/10/09	7 Miles w/ 8x100m Strides. Ran around old north Reston and the W&OD. Started to feel good after 3 miles. Strides became more snappy and I felt more controlled.	0:59:30	7.4
Wednesday	03/11/09	8 Miles w/ 3x1600m @ 5k pace w/ 2 min recovery. Did this at the HHS parking lot b/c the track was taken. Not ideal location, very windy and I lacked my usual pop. Would have liked to have been 15 seconds faster on each interval. 1. 6:21 2. 6:15 3. 6:16	1:10:01	8.8
Thursday	03/12/09	Off	0:00:00	0.0
Friday	03/13/09	5 Miles w/ 6x100m Strides. Did this on the treadmill. Felt great and wanted to do more. Wore my flats to get used to them again.	0:40:48	5.0
Saturday	03/14/09	Off	0:00:00	0.0
Sunday	03/15/09	Medium Distance Run on W&OD. Ran the first three miles with Karolina for WU. Felt great and picked things up to 7:50 pace. Felt good but had some new foot pain after the uphill in Sterling. Kept the average HR at 141 but felt a little beat at the end.	1:37:24	12.1
Week 20 Totals			4:27:43	33.3

Weekly recap: 3/2 - 3/8

This was a recovery week but I have to say I don't feel recovered yet. Things went well overall and I had a three critical workouts which went well.

My track session on Wednesday was very good. Despite running across snow and ice (there was a little ice on the HHS track), I was able to hit my targets for 5x600. I stayed near 5:45 pace and dropped down to 5:39 for the last effort. Legs felt good and my speed/turnover were dialed in. The jog to and from the track in snow and ice was terrible and I was lucky I didn't slip or fall. In hind sight, I should have drove to the track and done the entire run there rather than risk injury this close to my goal race.

The next key workout came on Friday night. I executed a 7 mile tempo run with two miles of warm up and one mile of warm down. The tempo miles started at 7:00 pace and dropped down to 6:50 over the last five miles. This was my first hard run in 'warm weather' and I did feel some additional fatigue. Warm weather efforts have always been challenging for me but I need to get some warm weather acclimation done before Shamrock. There is no telling what the weather will be on race day. It could be rainy and 40 or sunny and 70. I pushed through a few tough patches during the tempo run and finished with strong confidence that I have some speed.

Sunday's long run went well but it seemed 'harder' than normal. Karolina, Reid, Mary Beth and I went to the C&O Canal for this run and I tried to execute a typical pre-race routine. It was a warmer out (70s) and I tried to hydrate as much as possible before running. After a two mile warm up and quick potty stop I settled into 7:45 pace and felt great over the next 10 miles. I paid special attention to nutrition and hydration, using my fuel belt at regular intervals. The last four mile I picked things up a little into the 7:30 range and started to feel the effort. I'm not sure if it was fatigue or dehydration, but my HR was creeping up to the mid 150s when it was normally in the mid-high 140s. I finished well but felt more dead after the run than expected. It was a good effort and it was great to be out running on a beautful warm day with friends.

I ended this week of training feeling a bit dead. The long run on Sunday left me more pooped than normal but overall I still feel great. Next week I have one hard workout remaining and then it's all recovery and strides. So far so good, now the focus starts to shift to my mental game.

Thanks for reading.

Monday	03/02/09	Off	0:00:00	0.0
Tuesday	03/03/09	Recovery Run on the treadmill. Kept things steady at low 8 min pace with some 7:55 mixed in. Felt solid but a little tight in right hamstring.	0:49:50	6.2
Wednesday	03/04/09	8 Miles w/ 5x600m (.37 mile) @ 5k pace w/ 90 sec recovery on HHS track. Very icy conditions so WU/WD were slow. Intervals felt good. 1. 2:06 (5:43 pace) 2. 2:08 (5:47 pace) 3. 2:06 (5:43 pace) 4. 2:07 (5:44 pace) 5. 2:05 (5:39 pace)	1:12:37	8.6
Thursday	03/05/09	Off	0:00:00	0.0
Friday	03/06/09	Tempo run on W&OD. WU first two miles then settled into 7:00 pace. Ran the last miles at 6:50 pace. Felt solid but a hard effort.	1:13:47	10.0
Saturday	03/07/09	4 Miles recovery run around Reston. Felt tight after the tempo run so I took it easy. Hot weather and wasn't used to the heat!	0:35:35	4.3
Sunday	03/08/09	Long Run on the C&O. WU first two miles then settled into 7:45 pace. Felt really good going. Dropped things down to 7:30s for the last 6 miles but started to tire and feel the heat. A solid run but tired at the end.	2:07:52	16.1
Week 19 Totals			5:59:41	45.3

Weekly recap: 2/23 - 3/1

This was a whirlwind week on a number of fronts. I was coming off the high of a solid half marathon last week when I suddenly became very ill. At some point last weekend, I contracted a nasty infection in my lower intestine. The result was a 4 AM rush to the emergency room following a night of excruciating pain. I was convinced my appendix was about to explode. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. The ER staff were amazing and after some strong pain killers, a CT scan, and 8 hours of care, I was released and sent home. I started a cycle of antibiotics and started to feel myself come around after a few days. Through it all, Karolina was an absolute angel taking care of me. Without her, I don't know how I could have got through it. Also, a big shout out to all my friends who dropped me some well-wishes on Facebook. It was great to see everyone's notes when i got back online.

Training took a back seat the first couple days. I jogged on the treadmill on Tuesday and felt surprisingly good. I had no idea how it would go but I was able to run and didn't have any abdominal pain. If I can run I must be OK right?

Wednesday I ventured to the track to knock out a set of 1200s. I was very careful with this workout. My left hammy was tender after the half marathon and I had no idea how my body might react to a hard effort. The workout went well, thanks in part to the support of fellow triathlete Reid Kiser. Reid met me at the Herndon track and did his workout in parallel to mine. It was so nice to have someone else out there with me...along with the varsity girls lacrosse team... I hit my times on three of the four 1200s. My hammy was hurting on the 3rd repeat so I backed off. I'm within four weeks of the peak race so no need for unncessary risk.

I felt terrible on my Friday night run which cam after a very long day at the office. I was clearly 'off' and it showed across the board. The good news was I rebounded on Sunday with a very good 20 mile long run. Nutrition and pacing were dialed-in and I felt solid the whole way. Karolina even remarked that I looked like I 'ran just 10k' when I got home. The last couple hilly miles hurt, but overall this was a good confidence booster. I was also happy to say goodbye to my last 20 miler before Shamrock.

Details included below. As always, thanks for reading!

Monday	02/23/09	Off	0:00:00	0.0
Tuesday	02/24/09	6 Mile Recovery run on treadmill. Coming off stomach issue so took this very easy and paid special attention to my HR. Felt OK.	0:51:41	6.0
Wednesday	02/25/09	10 Mi w/ 4x1200m (.75 mi) @ 5k pace w/ 2 min recovery. Did this on the HHS track with Reid. Felt some tightness in my left hamstring from the race: 1. 4:33 (6:04 pace) 2. 4:37 (6:10 pace) 3. 4:45 (6:20 pace) - Hamstring tightened up 4. 4:34 (6:05 pace)	1:22:05	10.0
Thursday	02/26/09	Off	0:00:00	0.0
Friday	02/27/09	Easy Run on W&OD. Started late and felt very tired going out. Had to work twice as hard to run normal pace. Backed off and cruised home. Hurting.	1:24:47	10.2
Saturday	02/28/09	Recovery Run on the treadmill. Kept it very easy and steady.	0:34:14	4.0
Sunday	03/01/09	Long Run on W&OD. Started easy with Karolina and slowly got down to 7:5x pace. Felt very good and kept HR down until final few miles. A solid run all around.	2:42:24	20.2
Week 18 Totals			6:55:11	50.5

Weekly recap: 2/16 - 2/22

This was a very solid week of training that ended with a strong performance at the Anheuser Busch Colonial Half-Marathon. I'll recap the race in a later post with a detailed report and some pace/HR data. For now, here are the stats from last week.

Monday	02/16/09	Off	0:00:00	0.0
Tuesday	02/17/09	8 Miles w/ 5x600m (.37 mile) @ 5k pace w/ 90 sec recovery. Did this on the HHS track at night and felt great. Stride was comfortable with quick turnover: 1. 2:08 (5:47 pace) 2. 2:06 (5:43 pace) 3. 2:07 (5:43 pace) 4. 2:05 (5:38 pace) 5. 2:04 (5:37 pace)	1:05:27	8.0
Wednesday	02/18/09	Easy Medium Distance Run on W&OD. Very windy. Kept things easy and relaxed given soreness from intervals the day before. Solid run. HR 141.	1:32:17	11.5
Thursday	02/19/09	Off	0:00:00	0.0
Friday	02/20/09	Easy Medium Distance Run on W&OD. Held back and kept HR in mid 130s. Felt OK but very cold and windy.	1:23:41	10.3
Saturday	02/21/09	4 Mi w/ 4x100m Strides on Treadmill. Felt good and ready to run fast.	0:32:54	4.0
Sunday	02/22/09	1.1 Mi warm up w/ strides. Race - Anheuser-Busch Colonial Half Marathon -- 1:28:53, HR 164, 6:46 pace	1:35:00	14.2
Week 17 Totals			6:09:19	48.0

Weekly recap: 2/9 - 2/15

This was a very good week of training. I hit all my workouts and felt solid from Wednesday through Sunday. The interval session on Wednesday went well despite running in the dark on Herndon High's track. The highlight was the long run on Sunday where I held my goal pace for 18 miles. This was a big confidence booster as I go into the final 2-3 weeks of hard training and then taper.

Next week I'm racing the Colonial Half Marathon on Sunday. It should be a great test of fitness on a challenging course.

Monday	02/09/09		Off	0:00:00	0.0
Tuesday	02/10/09		Easy Run on the W&OD. Didn't feel so hot during this run. Stride felt off and my stomach felt funny. Did a couple strides on the second half and felt a little better. Ran a little slower than normal given my HR.	1:10:02	8.6
Wednesday	02/11/09		9 Miles w/ 5x1000m (.65) @ 5k pace w/ 2 min recovery. Did this on the Herndon High Track. Felt really good despite no lights and high winds. 1. 4:01 (6:11 pace) 2. 3:58 (6:06 pace) 3. 4:01 (6:11 pace) 4. 4:04 (6:16 pace) 5. 4:05 (6:17 pace)	1:16:23	9.6
Thursday	02/12/09		Off	0:00:00	0.0
Friday	02/13/09		Easy Medium Distance Run on W&OD. Felt really good. Stride was dialed in and effortless. Ran 7:50s with HR in low 140s.	1:36:45	12.1
Saturday	02/14/09		Recovery Run on treadmill. Kept things easy at 8:15 pace. First run in Lunar Racers and felt good.	0:41:45	5.0
Sunday	02/15/09		18 Miles @ marathon pace. Huge run. Tried to recreate the race plan with a relaxed first mile and then settling into pace. Had some issues with Fuel Belt but overall a great run. Only blemish -- GI stop at mile 15. Avereged 7:11 and 155 BPM.	2:09:58	18.1
Week 16 Totals				6:54:53	53.4

Weekly recap: 2/2 - 2/8

Total Runs: 4
Total Mileage: 48.8
Total Time: 6:32:01

This was a solid of week of training with a little vacation mixed in. The week started out well with a solid speed session that was a little too fast. It must have been the cold wind that made me want to get it over with as soon as possible. While it was fun to knock out 600s at sub 6 min pace, the overall benefit did not exceed the risk of injury. I need to be careful going forward not to push my speed/track sessions too hard.

I bumped up my long run (17 miles) from Sunday to Friday to accommodate our weekend Ski trip to Cannan Valley. The run went well and I was able to hold sub 8s after a couple warm up miles. The ski trip was a blast, but my legs felt it on Saturday and Sunday. Rather than risk anything, I bagged my recovery run on Saturday and took things easy on Sunday. Overall it was a great week of running and skiing.

Monday	02/02/09		Off	0:00:00	0.0
Tuesday	02/03/09		8 Miles w/ 5x600m (.33 mile) @ 5k pace w/ 90 sec recovery. Did this on the W&OD at night in the bitter cold with a nasty headwind during the odd intervals: 1. 1:55 (5:49 pace) 2. 1:51 (5:38 pace) 3. 1:57 (5:55 pace) 4. 1:53 (5:45 pace) 5. 1:58 (5:59 pace)	1:02:22	7.8
Wednesday	02/04/09		Easy Medium Distance Run on the W&OD. Very cold and windy. Didn't feel great until the final 5 miles. Ran the last 2 miles hard. Solid run but felt beat at the end.	1:29:49	11.4
Thursday	02/05/09		Off	0:00:00	0.0
Friday	02/06/09		Long Run on W&OD. Moved up from Sunday due to the ski trip. Felt solid. Warmed up the first few mile then ran 7:50s for the next 13. HR was in the high 140s low 150s.	2:20:56	17.6
Saturday	02/07/09		4 Mi w/ 6x100m Strides - Missed this workout. Was too tired to run after 6 hours of skiing.	0:00:00	0.0
Sunday	02/08/09		Medium Distance Run. Did this after the ski trip. Legs were tired so I kept things easy and ran in the low 8s with HR in low 140s.	1:38:54	12.0
Week 15 Totals				6:32:01	48.8

Weekly recap: 1/26 - 2/1

Total Runs: 5
Total Mileage: 56.2
Total Time: 7:45:53

This was a challenging week. I hit my peak mileage for the marathon build and ended the Endurance/Lactate Threshold cycle. The only wrinkle came from the one thing I couldn't control, the weather. Tuesday and Wednesday brought snow and ice which pushed my training back on the treadmill. While not the end of the world, I would have preferred to do my Tuesday lactate threshold workout on the road. The ice did not melt until Sunday which made Friday's 12 miler a challenge. Given the black ice on the W&OD, I could never maintain a consistent pace or stride. While I still hit my goal mileage and nailed my workouts, I feel that the quality was lacking.

Sunday was my second 20 mile run in three weeks. The weather was looking great and I left around 11 AM after my usual pre-run breakfast. Despite a GI stop at mile 4, I felt solid and settled into 7:55/8:05 pace. After about two hours, I slowly started to overheat. The temperature had risen almost 10 degrees since I started and my tights, baselayer, and long sleeve were way more than I needed. I slowed down the last couple miles and stopped for water to rehydrate. I made it home fine and quickly downed my recovery drink and 32 oz. of Gatorade Endurance. It was a solid long run but I wish I'd dressed better for the conditions. Another lesson learned at the end of solid week of training.

Monday	01/26/09		Off
Tuesday	01/27/09		6 Miles w/ 6x100m Strides. Did this on the treadmill due to weather. Felt ok the whole way cruising at 8:00 pace with strides at 6:15 pace.	0:52:28	6.2
Wednesday	01/28/09		12 Miles w/ 7 Miles @ half marathon pace. Did this on the treadmill due to weather. Ran threshold at 6:50 pace with HR at 165-171. Started to bonk and had some GI issues towards the end requiring two quick stops. Overall, I was wasted after this workout.	1:36:18	12.0
Thursday	01/29/09		Off
Friday	01/30/09		Easy Medium Distance Run. Did this on the W&OD in trail shoes. Very icey and difficult to get into a consistent pace. Hard run.	1:42:57	12.0
Saturday	01/31/09		Recovery Run on the treadmill. Kept things steady and easy at 8:20 pace. Felt OK.	0:49:43	6.0
Sunday	02/01/09		Long Run on W&OD. Overdressed and the temp went up into the 50s. Felt great going out, had a quick GI stop at mile 4, and held 8:00s/7:50s until last couple miles.	2:44:27	20.0
Week 14 Totals				7:45:53	56.2

Weekly recap: 1/19 - 1/25

Total Runs: 5
Days Off: 2
Treadmill Miles: 5.0
Total Mileage: 44.8
Total Time: 6:06:44

This was an enjoyable recovery week. There was only one workout with some intervals on Wednesday which I knocked out using the Garmin 305. The other highlight was my return to the pool. I got in two practices with the Reston Masters. Although I hoped out during the main IM sets, I still managed to get in 3000+ meters a session. I'll try to keep swimming going forward for recovery. Longish run on Sunday was nice but I felt a bit dead at the end. I should have taken in some calories when running for almost two hours. Next week is going to be huge.

Monday	01/19/09		Off
Tuesday	01/20/09		Easy Run on the W&OD. Felt good going out but held back and didn't push. Kept HR in high 130s, low 140s and ran steady. Had some GI cramping at mile 6 but hung on to get home.	1:09:34	8.6
Wednesday	01/21/09		8 Miles w/ 5x600m (.33 mile) @ 5k pace w/ 90 sec recovery. Did this on the W&OD at night in the bitter cold. Felt OK and logged solid efforts: 1. 2:05 (6:20 pace) 2. 1:59 (6:01 pace) 3. 2:01 (6:09 pace) 4. 1:58 (5:59 pace) 5. 2:00 (6:04 pace)	1:03:42	7.8
Thursday	01/22/09		Recovery Run on the treadmill. Kept things steady and easy at 8:20 pace. Felt good.	0:43:00	5.1
Friday	01/23/09		Off
Saturday	01/24/09		8 Mile Run with Karolina on the W&OD in the snow showers. Skipped the strides. Nice relaxing run.	1:12:12	8.4
Sunday	01/25/09		Long Run on the W&OD. Felt good going out but had some GI issues around 4 miles. Once corrected things continued well. Felt a little beat from not eating at the end but overall a good run.	1:58:16	14.8
Week 13 Totals				6:06:44	44.8

Weekly recap: 1/12 - 1/18

Weekly recap: 1/12 - 1/18
Total Runs: 5
Days Off: 2
Treadmill Miles: 6.0
Total Mileage: 48.8
Total Time: 6:20:36

This was a very solid week of training. The week started off well with solid recovery from last week's 20 miler. The mid-distance run on Wednesday was very tough due to bone chilling weather on the W&OD. The key workout was Sunday's 15 mile marathon-pace time trial (noted earlier). Next week is recovery as I transition to more speed work.

Monday	01/12/09		Off
Tuesday	01/13/09		Easy Run on the W&OD. Felt fresh going out and ran steady at 8:00 pace. Legs were too fatigued from Sunday and my HR stayed in the low 140s.	0:52:43	6.6
Wednesday	01/14/09		Easy Medium Distance Run. Ran out on the W&OD to Rt. 28 and back. Brutal cold and windy. Last half was really tough and HR crept up a bit at the end. Overall averaged right on 8:00 pace. A solid effort that left me tired.	1:52:24	14.0
Thursday	01/15/09		Recovery Run on treadmill. Kept things easy at 8:30 pace and felt relaxed the whole way.	0:51:06	6.0
Friday	01/16/09		Off
Saturday	01/17/09		7 Mi w/ 6x100m Strides on the W&OD. Very cold out but felt OK. Started easy and settled into 8:00 pace. Strides felt good but the cold limited my speed.	0:56:57	7.1
Sunday	01/18/09		15 Mi w/ 12 Mi @ marathon pace. Breakthrough run. Felt great from the start and settled into 7:05 pace. Stayed consistent with average HR of 155	1:47:26	15.1
Week 12 Totals				6:20:36	48.8

Weekly recap: 1/5 - 1/11

Total Runs: 4
Days Off: 3
Treadmill Miles: 6.0
Total Mileage: 49.4
Total Time: 6:44:37

This was a challenging week on a number of fronts. Not only did I have a challenging run schedule, I also was out of town for work in King of Prussia, PA. Ultimately this resulted in juggling some workouts and led to an injury scare.

The week started off well with some recovery and a 6 mile treadmill run at the hotel gym. From there, my workouts were switched around to accommodate work and I ended up doing a 12 mile and 11 mile threshold run back-to-back once I got home (skipping the scheduled day off). During the threshold run I tweaked my left calve. I was able to run home but there was a noticeable knot in my calve. To avoid any risk of making things worse, I bagged my 5 mile recovery run on Saturday and rest for Sunday. Instead, I did some active stretching and maintained some compression on my lower leg.

My long run on Sunday was scheduled for 20 miles. I decided to go out easy and assess how my leg felt at 2, 4, and 6 miles. If there was any pain or discomfort, I'd quit. If not, I'd press on to get in 20. I started running with Karolina on the W&OD trail and felt surprisingly good. The time off and stretching must have helped because I felt no pain. I started easy with Karolina and then settled into low 8 min mile pace. The weather was cold and windy but overall I felt comfortable until about 9 miles when I had to make a potty stop at Smith's Switch Station. Once done I made my way back to Reston and maintained a steady pace with my HR comfortably in low Zone 3. I picked things up a bit and ran the last four miles in the high 7s. Overall it was an excellent long run. I didn't run as fast as last week (7:40s vs 8:09s) but I felt more relaxed and fresh afterwards. Most importantly, my leg felt OK giving me some confidence that I avoided a potential injury.

This week is going to be challenging with more high mileage running and some long marathon-pace efforts. Hopefully the weather will cooperate and allow for some good conditions for fast training.

Thanks for reading.

Weekly Recaps and Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone! I hope everyone rang in the new year with some Champaign and set a few resolutions/goals for 2009.

I apologize for the lack of updates. I decided to take some time off from my computer during the holidays. Below is a recap from the past few weeks.

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Weekly recap: 12/29 - 1/4
Total Runs: 5
Days Off: 2
Treadmill Miles: 10.0
Total Mileage: 51.9
Total Time: 6:53:22

This was the first week over 50 miles. The focus has started to shift from base to muscle endurance so the overall pace of the workouts increased to 80% to 90% of goal marathon pace. The key threshold workout on Tuesday included 5 miles at threshold. It was a hard session but I ran well at 6:50 pace. Looking back it was more of a mental-toughness session than anything.

I did my recovery runs on the Pink Trail in Reston and made a decision to do all future recovery runs on the treadmill. The reason is to minimize impact and also control the environment. As much as I like running out on the Reston paths, I find that the frequent hills, twists, and turns don't allow for a relaxed recovery run. In an effort to limit the risk of injury, I'm moving to the deck for all future recovery runs.

The breakthrough this week came during my long run on Sunday. Karolina and I ran on the C&O Canal trail and I tried to closely mimic my race day nutrition. I wore a Fuel Belt and took off running north from Locke 9 towards MD Great Falls. I felt fantastic on the long, straight, and flat gravel trail. I settled into 7:35 pace and stayed consistent and relaxed for the next 14 miles. Nutrition was perfect with a steady stream of Endurolytes, Heed and Hammer Gel. I made it back to Locke 9 and started to feel the efforts of the run. I slowed down a little over the last three miles and finished a little short of my 18 mile goal. In the end I ran 17.2 miles at 7:40 pace with an average HR of 154. I was within 30 seconds of my goal marathon pace and felt pumped after the solid effort.

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Weekly recap: 12/22 - 12/28
Total Runs: 4
Days Off: 3
Treadmill Miles: 0.0
Total Mileage: 34.7
Total Time: 4:45:18

Recovery week! This was well timed with the Christmas holiday. I took things very easy and did all the runs outdoors. I did miss one workout (4 mile recovery run) on Saturday which dropped the weekly mileage a bit. Overall it was an excellent 'down' week and my legs felt rested and injury free.

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Weekly recap: 12/15 - 12/21
Total Runs: 5
Days Off: 2
Treadmill Miles: 19.0
Total Mileage: 46.0
Total Time: 6:25:52

This was my last 'base' training week. It went well overall with the highlight being the threshold workout on Friday. It was a 9 mile run with 4 miles at threshold. I ran the four miles at 6:50 pace and kept my HR in the low 160s. In hind sight I might have been able to run it faster but the overall effort was solid. The 17 mile long run on Sunday didn't go too well. I ate too soon before running and overdressed for the conditions. It resulted in overheating and a much slower effort overall. Overall a solid base training week.

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I'll get back to regular weekly posts and recaps going forward. Thanks for reading.

Weekly recap: 12/8 - 12/14

Total Runs: 5
Days Off: 2
Treadmill Miles: 4.0
Total Mileage: 43.9
Total Time: 6:08:00
Other: Two RMST swim practices

This was a another good week of training. My mid-week long run didn't go well due to a lack of calories and warmer temperatures. I noted that I will need to carry fluids and calories for any run over 10 miles. My 8 mile 'stride run' went really well and my 15.8 mile long run was also a success (thanks to Mikey running with me for 12 miles). I didn't feel overly broken down or exhausted which is a very important as I continue to increase my mileage.

Weekly recap: 12/1 - 12/7

Total Runs: 6
Days Off: 1
Treadmill Miles: 16.0
Total Mileage: 42.7
Other: Two RMST swim practices, one trainer ride, one 10k running race

This was a very good week of training. It was my first week over 40 miles and it included a 10k race. I was also able to get in over two hours of swimming and one indoor bike ride. My long run was broken up by the 10k race on Sunday. Rather than a straight 13 miler I ran a 1.5 mile warm up, 6.2 mile race, and then a 6.1 mile cool down run back home for a total of 13.8.

Weekly recap: 11/24 - 11/30

Total Runs: 5
Days Off: 2
Treadmill Miles: 16.2
Total Mileage: 33.6
Other: A long bike ride on Friday

This was a solid week of training overall. The long holiday weekend provided a 5k race and some extra time for running and biking. The Thanksgiving Turkey Trot 5k went well with a 19:23 PR. I I also got in a 2:45 bike on Friday with Karolina. Saturday's long run hurt a bit towards the end but overall training went well and was without issue.

Weekly recap: 11/17 - 11/23

Total Runs: 3
Days Off: 4
Treadmill Miles: 17.1
Total Mileage: 17.1
Other: none

This was a recovery week for me with some vacation built in. I did some light running on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday before driving down to Chincoteague Island for the Captain Steves Rockfish Tournament. The fishing didn't produce much but I did make the webpage for this awesome photo.


Thanks for reading.

Weekly recap: 11/10 - 11/16

Total Runs: 5
Days Off: 2
Treadmill Miles: 22.0
Total Mileage: 32
Other: none

This was a very busy week on the work front. I found myself running late on the treadmill and a little light on sleep. The weekend was also busy with a late night dinner at Mon Amie Gabi (fantastic place) on Saturday, long run Sunday morning, a surprise party midday, and then the Redskins-Cowboys game on Sunday night. If only the game had gone better...

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Weekly recap: 11/3 - 11/9

Total Runs: 5
Days Off: 2
Treadmill Miles: 13.1
Total Mileage: 29.6
Other: two bike workouts including a FTP test

It was a solid week of training overall. Nothing too special. The Functional Threshold Power test on Tuesday took something out of my legs but I was fully recovered by Friday. The key workout for the weekend was Sunday's 10 mile run.