My first run of the week was on Tuesday. The weather was perfect and instead of sticking with the short dirt trail run I had planned, I was inspired to lace up and head out for a 10 miler. Longest of the year so far. Despite running a hard race on Sunday, my legs felt strong in the beginning. I hit a little bit of a wall at mile 6, but my second wind soon followed. Mile pace for the run was 8 min 15 sec. While running longer distances now, I have noticed that my form becomes very compact. Each stride is short and quick. It must make me look like a hobbling old man. My knees were immediately sore, shins not so much. I was shot for the rest of the evening after dunking my weary legs in ice.
In retrospect, I should have listened to my body and cut the run short. Motivation to run 26.2 miles is at a maximum... even overflowing at times. My legs ability to withstand impacts involved with that distance and the amount of time necessary for me to carefully increase mileage is marginal. This lethal combination causes a rift between me and my shins. Running was out of the question for the next 2 days due to an all-day work trip and my journey to Monterey. It's not like I could have ran anyway with the throbbing pain shooting up through my lower legs with each step.
Friday I made a pitiful attempt to run along Carmel Beach. After about a 100 yards, the morning ended up as a half mile soul search along the Pacific. Result: take the weekend off and ease back into the next week. I also seem to have noticed a relationship between my shin pain and race efforts. During the last few months of training, I have only been sidelined after running mile-repeats and races. Forcing myself to run at a slower pace while concentrating on technique may allow me to log more miles.
-Feb 16: 1 hr yoga during lunch break. 10 mile run on Marysville levees after work (8:15 min/mile).
-Feb 19: Beach run cut short by throbbing shins.
Week 13 - Love In The Air
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Despite running an 8 miler last Friday, I wanted to get my longer run out of the way on Monday so I could recover for the upcoming 10k. The "Together With Love 10k" in Pacific Grove was supposed to just be another training event on my way to The BSIM. Achieving a PR is a huge motivational boost, though, and I wanted to give myself a decent chance to run sub-7's.
Marysville is literally a huge bowl. The rim of this bowl is a 35' tall levee system. I ran from my apartment up the levee and around the entire perimeter (7.75 miles) on Monday. My first intention was to just put in the miles. As I began, I decided it would be smart to run one song hard and slow it down for the next song, etc... That lasted for about 10 minutes. I gradually ramped up my speed to where it was just bearable. All systems were functioning great. The congestion in my sinuses has gone down considerably. Relating to dogs more so than most humans, I was happy to pet 4 or 5 of them running on the trail too. I ended up running 7 min 15 sec pace. Maybe I should count the minute spent stretching while waiting for a train to pass at mile 4... maybe not. Also of note, I have been wearing my helium2-fuelbelt for almost all runs these days. A little bit of water goes a long way and the pocket is just the right size for my zen (mp3) player. Very snug and comfortable fit.
I attended yoga class on Tuesday and Thurs. Each session is an hour long and almost too relaxing. Much of the soreness in my legs from Monday's and Wednesdays runs managed to melt away. I have done more challenging yoga routines at home, but usually can't make myself stick to it for more than half an hour. There were a few cohorts from work who were surprised to see me there, even my boss' boss' boss was in attendance. It would probably be smart to keep going just for the schmooze factor.
With 3 days of rest leading up to the Valentines Day 10k, I hit the ground running. Mile 1 split was 6:50. Mile 2 was 13:45. From then on I slowly faded and finished with a time of 44:10. I didn't achieve my goal, but did crush my previous PR by nearly a minute. Next Race: The Bidwell Classic - Half Marathon.
-Feb 8: 3/4 mile on treadmill wearing VFF's, 2000 meters rowing, pullups. 8 mile levee loop after work (7:15 min/mile).
-Feb 9: 1 hr Yoga.
-Feb 10: Lunch meeting therefore no gym. 4 mile run after work (7:45 min/mile). Legs pretty sore from running hard on Monday.
-Feb 11: 1 hr Yoga.
-Feb 14: Together With Love 10k in Pacific Grove. Chip Time 00:44:10 (7:07 min/mile).
Marysville is literally a huge bowl. The rim of this bowl is a 35' tall levee system. I ran from my apartment up the levee and around the entire perimeter (7.75 miles) on Monday. My first intention was to just put in the miles. As I began, I decided it would be smart to run one song hard and slow it down for the next song, etc... That lasted for about 10 minutes. I gradually ramped up my speed to where it was just bearable. All systems were functioning great. The congestion in my sinuses has gone down considerably. Relating to dogs more so than most humans, I was happy to pet 4 or 5 of them running on the trail too. I ended up running 7 min 15 sec pace. Maybe I should count the minute spent stretching while waiting for a train to pass at mile 4... maybe not. Also of note, I have been wearing my helium2-fuelbelt for almost all runs these days. A little bit of water goes a long way and the pocket is just the right size for my zen (mp3) player. Very snug and comfortable fit.
I attended yoga class on Tuesday and Thurs. Each session is an hour long and almost too relaxing. Much of the soreness in my legs from Monday's and Wednesdays runs managed to melt away. I have done more challenging yoga routines at home, but usually can't make myself stick to it for more than half an hour. There were a few cohorts from work who were surprised to see me there, even my boss' boss' boss was in attendance. It would probably be smart to keep going just for the schmooze factor.
With 3 days of rest leading up to the Valentines Day 10k, I hit the ground running. Mile 1 split was 6:50. Mile 2 was 13:45. From then on I slowly faded and finished with a time of 44:10. I didn't achieve my goal, but did crush my previous PR by nearly a minute. Next Race: The Bidwell Classic - Half Marathon.
-Feb 8: 3/4 mile on treadmill wearing VFF's, 2000 meters rowing, pullups. 8 mile levee loop after work (7:15 min/mile).
-Feb 9: 1 hr Yoga.
-Feb 10: Lunch meeting therefore no gym. 4 mile run after work (7:45 min/mile). Legs pretty sore from running hard on Monday.
-Feb 11: 1 hr Yoga.
-Feb 14: Together With Love 10k in Pacific Grove. Chip Time 00:44:10 (7:07 min/mile).
Week 12 - Back In The Saddle
Monday, February 1, 2010
Monday proved to be a real test. I had to start putting in the miles again after taking 2 weeks off from running. In addition, some jerk contaminated me with some type of flu/cold over the last weekend. During my lunch break, I put in a fast paced half mile in the gym wearing my VFF's. My legs felt great again. Played things safe and cut the run off early. Did a few more piddly things before leaving. After work I went for a brisk 4 miler through River Front Park. No pain in my shins. The pain didn't begin till about the 2nd mile and it was felt in my lungs. Mucus buildup from my illness was making me feel pretty sluggish and sloppy. I even walked around mile 3 for a minute before finding a comfortable gear to shift into for the last bit.
After the run I stretched my legs and back religiously... Focusing on holding each one for at least 10 seconds. Next came the ice bath. I had forgotten how damn painful this process can be for the first few minutes. Maybe the benefits of ice treatment are more mental toughness than anything. Regardless, I bumped up the machismo while the little guy was surely doing a shrivel job in my shorts. The last 13 minutes were easy as my attention was directed to "Where Men Win Glory". Excellent book btw. Not just about Tillman, includes a good background on events in Afghanistan over the last 30 yr or so.
I put in another 5 miler on Wednesday. This time I finally took Jose's advice and listened to some tunes along the way. I had been avoiding this because my thoughts become more active during runs and music might interfere. To my excitement, I was still able to think about random stuff. The doubts that slowly creep in towards the 2nd half of a run, and the countdown that plays in my head (2 more miles to go... 1.5 miles left..) were dulled to a whisper. The opening to 'Till I Collapse provided me with a much welcome surge of adrenaline. Everything around me became part of my own movie montage: the soundtrack playing in my ears, trains rumbling by next to the levee, 3 juvenile delinquent girls whistling and hooting at me, and even the graffiti along each bridge. Despite being stuffed up and recuperating from whatever ailed me last week, I still finished in 37 minutes. Afterward it was stretching and ice again. The nards seemed to have toughened up and didn't hate me near as much this time.
On Friday, I drove Sabina to work and immediately headed for the coastal trail in Monterey for my longest training run so far. I won't lie. Running in the morning isn't my forte. The weather was clear and rain was forthcoming, so I sucked it up. Every bit of the 8 miles was a struggle. I was coughing up phlegm, my nose was completely clogged, and nothing in my headphones seemed to provide a motivational boost. Also, I forgot to wear my toe socks and came away with a couple blisters. My pace for the run was slow: 8 min 14 sec/mile. In the end, I was pleased to have pushed through and ran 18 miles while recovering from illness this week. With 2 rest days coming before the next run, I should be back in quality form in no time. Next Sunday I run in the "Together With Love" 10k in Pacific Grove. My very ambitious goal is to run less than 7 min/mile.
-Feb 1: 0.5 fast miles on treadmill wearing VFF's, 5 minutes elliptical, 1000 meters rowing. 4 mile run following workday.
-Feb 3: 0.5 mile controlled warm-up on treadmill, dumbbell flies & bench, pullups, upright rows. 5 mile run following workday.
-Feb 5: 7.7 mile run from fisherman's wharf to Asilomar beach and back.
After the run I stretched my legs and back religiously... Focusing on holding each one for at least 10 seconds. Next came the ice bath. I had forgotten how damn painful this process can be for the first few minutes. Maybe the benefits of ice treatment are more mental toughness than anything. Regardless, I bumped up the machismo while the little guy was surely doing a shrivel job in my shorts. The last 13 minutes were easy as my attention was directed to "Where Men Win Glory". Excellent book btw. Not just about Tillman, includes a good background on events in Afghanistan over the last 30 yr or so.
I put in another 5 miler on Wednesday. This time I finally took Jose's advice and listened to some tunes along the way. I had been avoiding this because my thoughts become more active during runs and music might interfere. To my excitement, I was still able to think about random stuff. The doubts that slowly creep in towards the 2nd half of a run, and the countdown that plays in my head (2 more miles to go... 1.5 miles left..) were dulled to a whisper. The opening to 'Till I Collapse provided me with a much welcome surge of adrenaline. Everything around me became part of my own movie montage: the soundtrack playing in my ears, trains rumbling by next to the levee, 3 juvenile delinquent girls whistling and hooting at me, and even the graffiti along each bridge. Despite being stuffed up and recuperating from whatever ailed me last week, I still finished in 37 minutes. Afterward it was stretching and ice again. The nards seemed to have toughened up and didn't hate me near as much this time.
On Friday, I drove Sabina to work and immediately headed for the coastal trail in Monterey for my longest training run so far. I won't lie. Running in the morning isn't my forte. The weather was clear and rain was forthcoming, so I sucked it up. Every bit of the 8 miles was a struggle. I was coughing up phlegm, my nose was completely clogged, and nothing in my headphones seemed to provide a motivational boost. Also, I forgot to wear my toe socks and came away with a couple blisters. My pace for the run was slow: 8 min 14 sec/mile. In the end, I was pleased to have pushed through and ran 18 miles while recovering from illness this week. With 2 rest days coming before the next run, I should be back in quality form in no time. Next Sunday I run in the "Together With Love" 10k in Pacific Grove. My very ambitious goal is to run less than 7 min/mile.
-Feb 1: 0.5 fast miles on treadmill wearing VFF's, 5 minutes elliptical, 1000 meters rowing. 4 mile run following workday.
-Feb 3: 0.5 mile controlled warm-up on treadmill, dumbbell flies & bench, pullups, upright rows. 5 mile run following workday.
-Feb 5: 7.7 mile run from fisherman's wharf to Asilomar beach and back.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)