...Or Now the Rubber Really Meets the Road...
A-Ha! It's only Monday and I'm already blogging! This is a great stride in my blogging timeliness. Right now I have time on my hands. I am typing this blog as I sit atop a packing box and movers are packing the rest of my things for my move back to the States. I am really excited to be back and can't wait for this transition to be complete. I am so excited about the upcoming changes in my life!
So, this week's training schedule was held to the letter. I not only did I do my speed work,which consisted of 6x800 intervals. I completed Friday's pace run, semi-successfully by maintaining an 8:29 minute-mile for 9 miles. This is just as good as I ran two weeks ago for 8 miles, and I am slightly disappointed that I couldn't get a little faster. I must run at least an 8:23 during the marathon to meet the Boston Qualifying time. I know that I'm only 6 seconds shy of this, and I still have quite a bit of time. What this tells me is not to skip anymore speed work!
Saturday's run was a 19-miler and it went relatively well. I ran the whole thing in around 2 hours 56 minutes. I am slightly concerned that I am running too fast on these long runs. I am running comfortably, I'm not out of breath (well, maybe toward the end), and I try not to concentrate on the pace too much. But I must admit that the more miles I tic off of the run, the more excited I get and the faster I want to finish. Hal Higdon, running guru says that long runs should be"45 to 90 seconds per mile or more slower than marathon pace. This is very important, particularly for Advanced runners who do speedwork during the week" I guess I am maintaining around 60 seconds slower, so I am within that window, but I don't want to suffer any burn out. Additionally, I am trying very, very hard to stay injury free.
The completion of this 19-mile run is a turning point in my training, starting this weekend, I will surge up to 20 miles, from here on out, all of my long runs will be 20 miles alternating with 12 miles during the taper week. It's very important for me to stay injury free during this time, because this is where I typically pick up an over-use problem. I'm hoping using the foam roller that the DHO turned me onto will help ward of some of these issues. Additionally, I've been working harder to do more effective post-run stretching.
Another concern I have is my nutrition, I think that it is going to be very difficult for me to maintain good nutrition during this transition back to the States. I'm going to have to be diligent to maintain a healthy diet.
In Summation: Moving back to the States=Fantastic!; 19-mile Run=Good; Speed-work=Effective When Accomplished; Increase in Mileage=A Little Daunting, but Not Impossible.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
The Taper Week...
...Which is code for... I skipped a lot of running last week and it took me forever to finish this Blog.
Last week did not fare well for my training schedule. Monday, I had just returned from the States and skipped my 3-mile run. Honestly, I probably could have done the run and it probably would have significantly helped with my jet lag. But, I babied myself a bit and did not get out there.
The rest of my week was a bit gummed up with my moving preparations so I was forced to make some cuts.
So my return to running for last week was Tuesday's 9-miler. As you can probably imagine I was feeling a little rusty, but managed to get through it with out too much heartache. I also managed to log-in Wednesday's 4-miler and Friday's 9-miler.
Really, this makes my work-week mileage 22 miles, which isn't so bad, but I skipped Thursday's Speedwork session. My intended work-out was meant to be five 800-meter intervals at a 10k pace. Skipping speed work is bad. I probably would have been better off sacrificing one of the 9-mile runs or the 4-miler to keep making gains in speed. However, I really hate that speedwork.
Saturday's 12-mile run was nothing special. Thankfully the weather was tolerable and I just knocked it out and moved on with my day.
Basically, last week's running was a bit blase. My body clock is a bit disturbed and I'm just trying to tic over until I find a rhythm again. Most likely that will be when I'm back in North Carolina permanently! I'm just a short 20 days away as of today (Wednesday) and I really can't wait! I'm so looking forward to the upcoming changes in my life!
Next week's training looks a little like this:
M-3; Tu-9; W-4; Th-5x800; Fri-9; Sa-19
In Summation: Blog Timeliness=Still Leaves a Lot to Be Desired; Jet-Lag=Annoying; Moving=Exciting
Last week did not fare well for my training schedule. Monday, I had just returned from the States and skipped my 3-mile run. Honestly, I probably could have done the run and it probably would have significantly helped with my jet lag. But, I babied myself a bit and did not get out there.
The rest of my week was a bit gummed up with my moving preparations so I was forced to make some cuts.
So my return to running for last week was Tuesday's 9-miler. As you can probably imagine I was feeling a little rusty, but managed to get through it with out too much heartache. I also managed to log-in Wednesday's 4-miler and Friday's 9-miler.
Really, this makes my work-week mileage 22 miles, which isn't so bad, but I skipped Thursday's Speedwork session. My intended work-out was meant to be five 800-meter intervals at a 10k pace. Skipping speed work is bad. I probably would have been better off sacrificing one of the 9-mile runs or the 4-miler to keep making gains in speed. However, I really hate that speedwork.
Saturday's 12-mile run was nothing special. Thankfully the weather was tolerable and I just knocked it out and moved on with my day.
Basically, last week's running was a bit blase. My body clock is a bit disturbed and I'm just trying to tic over until I find a rhythm again. Most likely that will be when I'm back in North Carolina permanently! I'm just a short 20 days away as of today (Wednesday) and I really can't wait! I'm so looking forward to the upcoming changes in my life!
Next week's training looks a little like this:
M-3; Tu-9; W-4; Th-5x800; Fri-9; Sa-19
In Summation: Blog Timeliness=Still Leaves a Lot to Be Desired; Jet-Lag=Annoying; Moving=Exciting
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
When All Else Fails, Start Running....
I just noted that it has been nearly a month since I've last posted. It seems that I've relapsed into a bit of procrastination. The reality is that I've been quite busy. Not only am I preparing to move, but I've only just returned from a trip to the U.S. So, I will try to recap quickly to get us all caught up!
After discovering the tragedy of the 20 Delta, I set my mind to some speed work and have been getting really, really close to maintaining an 8:37 minute-mile, for a considerable distance. So this is good news.
I had a great 10-mile taper run along the Belgian Canal. I enjoyed good company and great food and all this made the run all that much easier.
The next week, I managed to hold an 8:29 minute-mile for a full 8 miles. This was really good news. However my 16-miler into the Black Forest did not bode well. It was absolutely freezing and miserable. I am sick to death of drinking frozen water and it was a bit sleety and grey the whole way. The run itself wasn't actually that bad, but the recovery was rough. Despite the fact that I felt hydrated enough, my recovery was slow and arduous. I had trouble keeping in my recovery foods, and generally just felt gross the entire afternoon.
Last week's 17-miler, however, was fantastic! I finished the whole thing relatively quickly, and recovered well. I think much of this had to do with the weather. It was around 45-50 degrees for the whole run and the sun was shining. It was so refreshing not to be cold, yet sweaty at the same time and also not getting rained on. I think running in North Carolina is going to suit me.
I also have improved my stretching techniques. By improve, I mean I actually stretched my muscles after this run. I also started using this 'foam roller' technique which so far, seems pretty awesome. Thanks to the DHO(Devilishly Handsome One), for introducing me to this!
Another improvement is my new Garmin 405 that I got for my birthday. Again, thanks to the DHO! It is so much nicer than the 305 or 'Big Red' as it is affectionately referred to. Not only does it retrieve satellite reception more quickly, it also has tons of new features. My current fave is the 'auto-pause' function, which prevents me from having to manually stop and start the watch when I have to wait for traffic or stop to tie my shoe.
Yesterday I did my first run after coming back from the States and admittedly it was a bit difficult. I wasn't very motivated to hash out the 9 miles especially when I had to complete them after work and ended up finishing in the dark. This is always kind of a drag. I didn't actually run very quickly and just felt a bit sluggish throughout. I'm sure my body clock is disrupted and is causing most of this. Also, after the run, I felt a slight tweak in the sole of my right foot. It feels a little bit like Plantar's Fasciatis that I suffered from when I trained for Athens in 2005. Let's keep our fingers crossed that this isn't a lasting ailment.
I am happy to be headed back to be closer to my loved ones, this move is a significant change in job and lifestyle.But things are moving in the forward direction, I find myself getting more excited! I am happy that things are beginning to push forward and am looking forward to leaving Germany in the rear-view mirror and beginning a new chapter of life.
Well, I think this is long enough for now, and I do plan to return to once a week (or more) postings.
In summation: Long Over-due Blogs= A Bit Monotonous; Running in Cold, Damp Weather=Arduous; Slow Recovering; Tedious; Releasing Angst Over Impending Move=Fabulous
This Weeks Training: M-3 miles (skipped); Tu-9-miles; W-3 miles; Th-Speedwork; Fr-9 miles; Sa-12
After discovering the tragedy of the 20 Delta, I set my mind to some speed work and have been getting really, really close to maintaining an 8:37 minute-mile, for a considerable distance. So this is good news.
I had a great 10-mile taper run along the Belgian Canal. I enjoyed good company and great food and all this made the run all that much easier.
The next week, I managed to hold an 8:29 minute-mile for a full 8 miles. This was really good news. However my 16-miler into the Black Forest did not bode well. It was absolutely freezing and miserable. I am sick to death of drinking frozen water and it was a bit sleety and grey the whole way. The run itself wasn't actually that bad, but the recovery was rough. Despite the fact that I felt hydrated enough, my recovery was slow and arduous. I had trouble keeping in my recovery foods, and generally just felt gross the entire afternoon.
Last week's 17-miler, however, was fantastic! I finished the whole thing relatively quickly, and recovered well. I think much of this had to do with the weather. It was around 45-50 degrees for the whole run and the sun was shining. It was so refreshing not to be cold, yet sweaty at the same time and also not getting rained on. I think running in North Carolina is going to suit me.
I also have improved my stretching techniques. By improve, I mean I actually stretched my muscles after this run. I also started using this 'foam roller' technique which so far, seems pretty awesome. Thanks to the DHO(Devilishly Handsome One), for introducing me to this!
Another improvement is my new Garmin 405 that I got for my birthday. Again, thanks to the DHO! It is so much nicer than the 305 or 'Big Red' as it is affectionately referred to. Not only does it retrieve satellite reception more quickly, it also has tons of new features. My current fave is the 'auto-pause' function, which prevents me from having to manually stop and start the watch when I have to wait for traffic or stop to tie my shoe.
Yesterday I did my first run after coming back from the States and admittedly it was a bit difficult. I wasn't very motivated to hash out the 9 miles especially when I had to complete them after work and ended up finishing in the dark. This is always kind of a drag. I didn't actually run very quickly and just felt a bit sluggish throughout. I'm sure my body clock is disrupted and is causing most of this. Also, after the run, I felt a slight tweak in the sole of my right foot. It feels a little bit like Plantar's Fasciatis that I suffered from when I trained for Athens in 2005. Let's keep our fingers crossed that this isn't a lasting ailment.
I am happy to be headed back to be closer to my loved ones, this move is a significant change in job and lifestyle.But things are moving in the forward direction, I find myself getting more excited! I am happy that things are beginning to push forward and am looking forward to leaving Germany in the rear-view mirror and beginning a new chapter of life.
Well, I think this is long enough for now, and I do plan to return to once a week (or more) postings.
In summation: Long Over-due Blogs= A Bit Monotonous; Running in Cold, Damp Weather=Arduous; Slow Recovering; Tedious; Releasing Angst Over Impending Move=Fabulous
This Weeks Training: M-3 miles (skipped); Tu-9-miles; W-3 miles; Th-Speedwork; Fr-9 miles; Sa-12
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