Sunday, May 4, 2014

The Week of 04/28/2014: Going Postal

This was a cold and rainy week here in MN.  I got forced indoors onto the treadmill for the first time in quite some time.  I also missed some mileage during the week, but for what it was worth I got at least one of my speed workouts in plus a hard tempo run.  Later in the week I got back outside and ran at least one run in the rain and sleet.  I also got my long run up to 16 miles this week.

Grandma's is right around the corner, it's no time to let up!


Monday 04/28/2014

Scheduled:  6 Mile Recovery Run
For the second Monday in a row I took a pass.  I did wake up with enough time to get the run in; I lay in bed and listened to the rain and the wind take turns pelting & shaking the windows for quite some time.  By then there was still enough time to get the run in on the treadmill; I lay there longer and continued to listen to the sounds of the storm outside and all the other native sounds that our house makes when everyone is asleep.

I have no idea what my resting pulse was during this time; I really ought to have checked it, as it was a very relaxing morning.

When I got home from work tonight my new Air Pegasus were waiting for me.  I transferred my Superfeet insoles from the Asics over to them and moved my Garmin foot pod over, I plan to try them out in the morning.

Tuesday 04/29/2014

Scheduled:  6 Miles, 6x100m sprints
I kept it inside on the treadmill today, first run ever in the Air Pegasus.  Due to time constraints (Read: I overslept) I had to cut it short to 5 miles in order to start work on time.  The shoes themselves felt good, I would say at this point it is too early to tell but they seemed comparable to the Lunar glides.  Time (and some real outdoor runs) will tell.

After a several day layoff, my left shin acted up almost immediately and took over 2 miles to settle down.  The good news is that everything else responded well.  No plantar fascia stiffness afterward, the only post run soreness at all is a little bit across the top of my left foot.

The weather is still unseasonably crappy (If that's not a proper meteorological term, it should be); when I took my daughter to school today it was freaking SNOWING again.  And I intend to run outside tomorrow come what may.  I guess that I'll have to adopt the post office creed:
"Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds."

Wednesday 04/30/2014

Scheduled:  10 Miles, 5 Mile Tempo @ HMP
34º, Rain/Sleet, 10mph wind with gusts.  It was nowhere near as bad as I expected, though it was still cold of course, and there was simply no way to not get wet on this ride.

I started out with a pretty simple strategy, run the first 5 at marathon pace and a negative split on the back at half marathon pace.  The front half went as planned, but around midway through the second mile of the HMP tempo I could tell that I wasn't going to be able to hold it up the whole way.  In the end I held on through mile 8 and then rant the last two miles at an easy pace.  In all fairness I was going to have to run those last two miles at an easy pace in any case, but at least it was nice to be able to choose to do so and more importantly not experience a blowup.

The run broke down then as follows:
  • 5 miles@MP
  • 3 miles@HMP
  • 2 miles@Recovery
Also today was the first outdoor run for the Air Pegasus.  While I like them, they are definitely not as cushy as the Lunar glides.  I will keep them in the stable for runs of 10 miles and under, and continue using the Lunar glides for my long runs.


Thursday 05/01/2014

Scheduled: 10 Miles, 9x100m sprints
I knew it wasn't going to happen the second that the alarm went off this morning - I wasn't just still tired; I was BEAT.

Not  'At least go use the bathroom first and see how you feel' tired,
Not  'Play cutesy games with the snooze button to eek out an extra 20 minutes' tired, but wooped out, draggedy-ass BEAT.

So I re-set the alarm for as late as I possibly could without being late for work, and I went back to sleep.

Friday 05/02/2014

Scheduled: XT (Swimming)
41º, Mostly Cloudy, Calm.  6 Miles @ Recovery pace.

I skipped XT (Yet again) to get some makeup miles in.  I did not want to push myself as I have a pretty big run planned for tomorrow so today was just run at recovery pace.  It was a lot warmer (& thankfully drier) today.  My mind is wandering toward short-sleeve shirts...

Saturday 05/03/2014

Scheduled: 16 Mile Long Run
56º, Partly Cloudy, Windy.  This was my longest run since the 2012 TCM.  The early miles felt really good; the pace was ridiculously slow, the walk breaks completely unnecessary, and the wind nothing to worry about.  The wind was at my back from miles 4-10, and even at 10 miles when I popped a gu I still felt pretty good.

On the 11th mile I turned a corner and went face first into the wind, and that good feeling began to dissipate.  Running into the wind was more of a chore now; in mile 12 I went up and over a freeway overpass on my otherwise flat course.  In mile 13 my ankles began to stiffen up, and the previously insanely easy pace came at an increased effort (Though I never had any issue maintaining a steady split throughout the run).  By mile 14 my ankles had stiffened up to the point where the walk breaks started to become almost more of a hassle than they were worth; in those later miles it became quite uncomfortable to resume running after a walk break.  This was familiar territory to me, as I had experienced my share of long run discomfort while training for the 2012 TCM.  However, unlike my 2012 long runs where I would experience pain, this experience was merely uncomfortable.

Mile 16 came easily for me as I knew it was the end, and there was a bonus .4 tacked on to get me to my door.  In the end I was able to hold my pace throughout the run and never actually blew up (Though the gears were smoking, I assure you).

Later in the evening my wife and I went out to see a movie, and about an hour and a half in my feet had swollen up to the point where I needed to undo my shoelaces.  After the movie it was an interesting experience coming down the stairs to exit the theater.  In not too much time however I loosened up again and I was more or less fine for the rest of the night.  This also differed from my 2012 experience; momentary discomfort vs. extended pain.

All in all I feel like I am on track for the race in June - Only 7 weeks away!

Sunday 05/04/2014

Scheduled: REST
Aside from a little residual stiffness from yesterday's long run I felt pretty good today - Stiff plantar fascia in both feet first thing in the morning, which went away with some stretching.

I had it in my head to get a makeup run in at some point, but I ended up taking the rest as scheduled and spending time with my family.  Even the mailman takes Sundays off, I guess.

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