Half-Marathon Boot Camp: Workout #2

AM: 3 mile w/u + strides
Target: 10x2 mins. hard w/1 min. jog recovery
Actual: Above
1.5 mile c/d
Total: 9 miles
PM: 4 miles easy
Daily total: 13 miles

I've just about decided to quit even remotely trying to assess, predict or plan for the weather this winter. I had originally been instructed to run some hard 800s on the track today, but that plan was scrapped in a hurry once I realized the wind was gusting at 25-35mph throughout most of the day (and, in fact, had blown upwards of 50mph the previous night). Fortunately--and equally strange--it warmed up into the 50s by the time I was ready to knock out the workout around lunchtime, so while I was likely to get swept away in a funnel cloud and deposited somewhere in the vicinity of Oz, at least I wouldn't acquire frostbite while doing so.

With no workout mule, no Garmin and therefore no tangible speed/distance measurement, there's really nothing quantitative to report about this effort. I managed to navigate the wind well enough to have it at my back or side for the majority, but it was still a nuisance at best.  If Tuesday night's objective was to get comfortable maintaining 10-mile to half-marathon pace, today's was to run fast on tired legs--something I feel confident I accomplished, even with nothing and no one to hold me accountable.

Oh, and by the time I headed out for my double five hours later the temperature had dropped to 20 degrees. Somehow I wasn't surprised.

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Half-Marathon Boot Camp: Workout #1

AM: 5.5 miles easy
PM: 3.5 mile w/u
Target: 4x400m strides; 5k tempo, 5x2 mins. hard
Actual: 84, 84, 80, 83; 1.8k @3:33/k (5:42/mile) pace, bathroom break, 6 min. jog/break; 4k @3:33, 3:35, 3:35, 3:33 (5:45/mile pace avg.)
1.5 mile c/d
Total: 10.5 miles
Daily total: 15 miles

Monday night snow meant slick streets on Tuesday morning which morphed into a mushy, gloppy mess by Tuesday evening. Definitely not ideal workout conditions. Due to reasoning I can no longer recall, we decided to take to the 'ol Marblehead neck for this effort instead of traversing our normal Salem loop. This meant the tempo would be considerably more rolling than would facilitate fast splits, but seeing as my upcoming half-marathon is just as hilly I suppose it's fitting.

In a nutshell, this was hard. Whether it had to do with the late hour, the chilly temps, the slushy and unusually busy roads or some combination of the above, at any rate I felt like I was sprinting pretty much the entire time. The situation was nothing if not worsened by an urgent bathroom detour, which had the potential to derail the entire workout. Fortunately Jordan redirected on the fly and punished me with a relentless pace on the hilliest section of the route. I was wheezing and gasping to an embarrassing extent for much of the final 4k section, but I held strong and somehow managed not to get dropped.

Time for a quick recovery and even quicker turnaround. Bootcamp workout #2 happens Thursday! 

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(Down) Week in Review

45 miles
1 day off
0 doubles
6x10 mins. core
5 days in SLC

There's not much to say about this week. I predicted it would suck, and it did. The fact that I'm proud of myself for getting up every morning at 5:30 and slogging through 45 minutes on the hotel treadmill is in itself indicative of the sad state of affairs. I would've loved to explore some of the reportedly sweet trails near downtown SLC, but the necessity of early morning running plus the constant inversion led to icy, nasty roads and even nastier air quality. I do find it more than a little ironic that despite being in town for a trade show called Outdoor Retailer I spent no more than a grand total of 45 minutes outside the Salt Palace or my hotel the entire week.

I snapped this photo while driving (well, sitting at a stoplight) to the convention center on Saturday morning. That would be smog, not fog, clouding my view. Gross.

On a positive note, my legs should be nothing if not well-rested and recovered leading into next week. (The rest of my body, not so much, thanks to a particularly cruel redeye trip that involved a 3.5-hour flight to JFK, then  3.5-hour wait at JFK at the crack of Sunday morning for a mere 45-minute final leg back to Boston.) I'll need all the spring in my step that I can find since I've asked Jordan to put me on a crash course bootcamp schedule to ensure that my fitness is somewhat respectable for the Mercedes Half in three weeks. Time to get serious. 

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Week in Review

90 miles
4 doubles
16-mile long run
6x10 mins. core
3 runs in NYC
4 AFDs

I'll admit, this week might have been a tad aggressive. Ninety isn't anything new, but this is the first week since pre-Philly that I've attempted (and arguably succeeded) executing two big-girl workouts and a decent long run. But with great company and perfectly acceptable weather the entire weekend, it was hard not to get carried away. The week culminated in a huge, CRC-esque long run in Central Park with an eclectic cast of characters including Jerry's Kids, Jay, some of his UA teammates, the lovely ladies' NYAC contingent of Sarah, Katie and Heidi, plus my long lost buddy and former couch-surfing roommate Dave Nightingale. In a distinctly cowardly fashion, the boys let the ladies lead the first 40 minutes of the run only to instantly drop us with one quick charge up the Harlem Hills. Fine by us. The final hour would've been torturous for my exhausted legs had it not been for the beautiful weather and great conversation, but Sarah and Heidi held me accountable and refused to let me bail too early. Tough love.

As pleased as I am with this week, I'm dreading next week's inevitably lackluster training in equal measure. Tuesday morning I'm taking an early flight to Salt Lake City for Outdoor Retailer, and between the work schedule and the weather my running will likely be nonexistent. I suppose I'm due a down week, but this one promises to take that premise to the extreme. Even if/when my running suffers, I'm still going to try to stick with a new goal--some might call it a resolution--of devoting 10 minutes a day, six days a week to stretching/core/rehab/prehab. Mario Fraioli, an industry acquaintance of mine and editor for Competitor Magazine, tweeted this a few weeks ago as a goal of his for 2013. Ten minutes a day sounds like nothing, but added up over the course of the year it totals 52 hours! With my mileage intentionally lower than during this fall's marathon training, I see no reason why I can't carve out a measly 10 minutes per day for the "little things." I have no idea if this will make me faster, but if it contributes to keeping me healthy and consistent then I'm sold. So far--and granted, we're two weeks in--it's been a piece of cake, but next week will be my first true test.

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Central Park Workout With Sarah

Fri AM: 4 miles
PM: 10 miles w/Jay in Central Park

Sat AM: 3.5 mile w/u
Target: 3 miles @6-6:10; 1 mile @7ish; 2 miles @5:50-6; 1 mile @7ish; 1 mile @5:40-50
Actual: 3 miles @17:35; 2 miles @11:37; 1 mile @5:40ish
2 mile c/d
Total: 13.5-14 miles

For a rare treat, I'm spending an entire weekend in New York doing absolutely nothing work-related. I'm sure Betsy invited me to her baby shower hoping I would just send an elaborate and expensive gift without actually showing up, but (un)lucky for her all it took was the promise of a few good group runs, quality time with my favorite news producer and a $48 fare on Jet Blue (helloooo, Popcorners) to seal the deal: NYC, here I come!

Friday was an absolute blast. I arrived at Jay's just in time to make us late to meet Jerry's Kids (an Oklahoma-to-NYC transplant) for a run in Central Park. Fortunately we bumped into him midway through and shortly thereafter stumbled upon a solid and previously undiscovered bathroom location, making the run a win on all counts. Upon returning to Jay's, we were so cold--yet so thirsty--that we were forced to double-fist wine and coffee (with Bailey's) while waiting for Jordan to arrive and discussing Facebook etiquette nuances, the details of which are unprintable here at Jay's behest. After taking turns reveling in what is "probably the best shower in New York City," the three of us headed out to eat, drink and be merry with friends for the remainder of the evening.

Saturday morning, at the leisurely hour of 9:30, a group assembled at Columbus Circle with varying agendas in mind. The entourage I'd envisioned for Sarah's workout somehow dwindled down to myself, her and Jordan (always the queenmaker, never the...queen?), and despite some mid-week bravado our enthusiasm was greatly diminished due to, well, apathy. And also the ridiculous wind. We'd previously discussed starting the first, relatively slow interval in the park and then meandering down to the West Side Highway for a completely flat second half, but the promise of a 25-mph headwind quickly dissuaded us. Instead we would take on the undulating terrain of the park, hopefully avoiding the brunt of the wind. To give us a nice boost out of the gate, we set out down a generous downhill with the wind at our backs. Hitting six-minute pace should be no problem, we reasoned.

We split 5:40. Whoops.

As Sarah said shortly after her watch beeped, "That was the easiest 5:40 I've run in a while." Sure, but 5:40 wasn't the problem. Everything thereafter was--at least for me. Sarah seemed to have an easy time sticking close to Jordan's heels, but I struggled mightily from there on out. Maybe the previous day's mileage was a little aggressive at this stage in my training, maybe I'm a big baby, or maybe I'm simply just not very fit yet--whatever the reason, I spent the remainder of the workout straining toward the singular objective of not getting dropped, a goal that was met with varying degrees of success. Even omitting the Harlem hills, Central Park is no joke, nor was the wind that still seemed to find us deep within the protection of the Manhattan skyline. By the end of this effort I was frustrated and thoroughly exhausted, but at the same time pleased with my resolve to keep pushing despite getting my doors utterly blown off. I trust the process and am well-acquainted with the work it takes to get back in shape after an extended down period, but that doesn't make it any more pleasant in the moment. Still, it was fun to work out with Sarah and will provide a good excuse to gorge myself on finger sandwiches and chocolate-covered deliciousness at this afternoon's baby festivities.
  

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"Yeah, That Was Just Okay."

AM: 8k easy
PM: 2.5 mile w/u
Target: 8k tempo @5:45-5:50 mile pace (3:35-3:40/k); then 5x200m on/off strides around the Triangle
Actual: 8k @29:19 (3:40, 3:40, 3:41, 3:43, 3:39, 3:37, 3:40); 5x200m on/of
1.5 mile c/d
Daily total: 15+ miles

The title is a direct quote from Coach Jordan, always ready with a Hallmark-worthy sentiment where my running is concerned. But tact aside, his comments are always truthful and accurate, which I respect. Tonight was no different; the workout was just okay. But, as he also accurately states in his own recap (thank goodness he's running (and blogging!) again so I can lazily link to his posts when I don't feel like doing my own), the one impressive/redeeming aspect was that even after feeling inexplicably horrific from the gun, I stayed calm and positive and gradually settled somewhat comfortably into the pace--even agreeing to finish out the final two kilometers when he offered me a rare out.

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Week in Review, or "That Time I Ate a Donut in the Middle of a Long Run"

85 miles
3 doubles
3 runs in Boston
3 runs with Emily

This post could've just as easily been titled "That Time I Ran 386 Laps Around the Harvard Parking Lot with the BAA," or "That Time Emily and I Found Out We Aren't As Out of Shape as We Thought." All three of these monikers are equally accurate, and all three effectively comprise the main takeaways from this week's key runs:

Sunday morning: 15-15.5 miles easy on the Boston Marathon course from Cleveland Circle with the BAA ladies (plus Jordan). About an hour into the run, the group had splintered into a handful of different groups, leaving Jordan and Emily and I standing in front of a Dunkin' Donuts somewhere in Newton. What can I say? Nature took its course, and the next thing I know the three of us were passing around a dense, gooey, double chocolatey frostedy donut while still running. It may have gotten a little messy, but no worse than when I clumsily try to rip open a gel packet during a race (and far tastier). Heartbreak Hill didn't stand a chance thanks to the ensuing sugar rush.

Saturday morning: ~13 mile progression run with a huge BAA crew around...the Harvard parking lot. Or, technically, the "Sheatock loop," so named for (or by, or both) the BAA's fearless leaders Carly and Terry. Given that the river path wasn't remotely frozen I'm still unclear as to why we insisted on spinning like an army of deranged hamsters around a 1200-meter loop, but at any rate the company was worth it.

Wednesday night:   
2 mile w/u
Target: 6x1000 w/1:30 jog @3:35 (5:45/mile pace); 4x500 @faster w/1:30 jog
Actual: 6x1000 @3:33, 3:31, 3:25, 3:26, 3:24, 3:21; 4x500 @1:39, 1:41, 1:38, 1:39
1.5 mile c/d
Total: 8.5 miles

Jordan pulled Emily and I through this workout on the Sheatock loop, and I think it's safe to say all of us were pleasantly surprised at how well it went considering we were basically dodging cars in the dark in the middle of a glorified parking lot. Excluding a baby fartlek last week I haven't worked out in over a month, and as per usual Emily claimed to be "terribly out of shape" after an extended trip home for the holidays. Fortunately we were able to average 5:30-5:40 pace on the 1000's with relative ease; only when I transitioned into the 500's at the end did I feel the telltale ragged breathing and burning legs that signify a dip into uncomfortably difficult territory. During one of our recovery jogs, Emily made me vow to hold her accountable and guilt her into working out for the remainder of the winter. It's always worth it once we're out here, she added. Tonight was a great start.     

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