Training log last couple of weeks

Staying Cautiously Optimistic

Not a lot to report other than getting back into the swing of things.  Though this sounds boring, this is actually a good thing: being able to run frequently and have predictably pleasant longer runs on the weekends.  Here are my last 2 weeks of training with brief notes.  I start each week on a Monday.

Week of Feb 11:  total mileage: 32

• Monday:  55 Minute Spinning Class, 20 minutes weights
• Tuesday: 6 mile group Fun Run from PR in Ballston
• Wednesday: Hill repeats, 5.5 miles, 3 x 1 mile hills at half-marathon effort, with warmup and cooldown
• Thursday:  Rest (unplanned)
• Friday: 4 miles easy (usually my rest day but had to make up for Thursday)
• Saturday: 12 miles, approx 5 on roads with group and 7 more on trails solo
• Sunday: Hill repeats, 5 miles total at half-marathon effort, with warmup and cooldown

Week of Feb 18: total mileage: 43

• Monday: 55 Minute Spinning Class, 30 minutes weights
• Tuesday: 6 mile group Fun Run
• Wednesday: Track workout, 6 miles total, 2 x 400M, 200M job, 2 x 1600M, w/ 400M jogs, 1 x 800M, 400M jog, 2 x 400M, w/ 200M jogs.  All at planned 10k race pace of 6:05 minute miles.  The "jogs" were all active recoveries between intervals.  Great workout!!
• Thursday: 8 miles easy group run
• Friday: REST
• Saturday:  16 miles easy, out and back route on C&O Canal Towpath (softer than roads!)
• Sunday: 8 miles easy, excitedly wearing only shorts and a tech t-shirt in warm weather!

16 miles out and back on the C&O Canal (in red). Went pretty perfect!

Things still don't feel perfect in my legs.  I believe that my calves are still getting fatigued from the longer runs and this is causing the rest of my lower legs to feel a bit off.  Each time it gets sore, recovers and then goes away - this should mean its getting stronger too.  As much as I want to go out and basically go crazy, do some back-to-back 20 milers, multiple marathons, and 10+ mile tempos I know I need to throttle back and ease into it.  Seems to be going well so far - once the weather warms up that will be much tougher.

In the last 6 months I have really been changing up my running form and mechanics, from heavy heal striking (and pronating), so a smoother, lighter, mid-foot strike.  I still think this will pay dividends in the long haul, but in the meantime my calves are still used to the old style and it takes time to adapt to anything new.  At least its not the shock to my system that I was experiencing last last summer, the shock that led to a stress fracture that kept me off my feet for 6 weeks.

Reflecting

A friend asked me if I would still have gone back and run Chicago if I had known it would mean incurring an injury that would keep me out 6-8 weeks and take multiple months more to fully recover from.  My answer: Yes.  Running Chicago was the culmination of over 4 months of training with significantly more mileage than I had ever done before.  When I got to the start line I knew today was the day.  One of the flattest looped courses around and perfect 40 degree weather.  I recently received the final results in the mail, so I'll use that was one last chance to relish in my accomplishment.

Nice hardware.  I had my name,
place, and time inscribed
on the back!

Cut out of the official results page.  Apparently it was a
5- way tie!!  Now its time to move on...

Its funny looking back, I wasn't training specifically for a marathon last summer; just trying to get more into ultra-marathons by using trail running, higher mileage and back-to-back long runs on the weekends, while maintaining more marathon specific fitness through tempos and track workouts.  This makes me optimistic that if I can get back into pure marathon training (accompanied by all the other things) in the next year or two I can lower my PR into the low 2:50's.  Thats obviously a long way off.