Philly Training: Week #1 in Review

108 miles (new record) 11 runs 18-mile long run 2 workouts Another inadvertent all-time weekly mileage high, two successful workouts, two runs with Emily, plenty of sleep and a 30-minute massage. If the rest of my Philly training goes as smoothly as this week, I'm bound for greatness!...

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Battle Road Long Run/Fartlek

60 mins. easy 60 mins. w/1x 1 min. hard; 2x2 mins.; 3x3; 4x4; 3x3; 2x2; 1x1 all with 1 min. rest 5 mins. easy Total: 18 miles For the third day in a row, I awoke to cool, dreary weather. Emily and I had plans to meet at Battle Road, but the second I stepped outside and saw how hard it was raining I immediately longed to be back under the covers enjoying a rare lazy Sunday morning. Instead, I steeled my resolve and began the 30-minute drive toward Lexington. No sooner had I flipped on my wipers and inched out of the parking lot than I received...

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Solo Progression Run

2 mile w/u Target: 12 mile progression: 3@ 6:30, 3@ 6:15, 3@6:00, 3@ faster Actual: ~3@ 19:10; ~2.5 @15:03; ~2.5@ 14:26; ~3@ 17:30; bonus fast finish to the stoplight at the top of the hill by Salem State @3:38 1.5 mile c/d Total: 15 miles I considered doing this workout yesterday evening since Emily made plans to come up to Salem and run with me for a change of scenery. However, in general I prefer working out (especially marathon workouts) in the morning, so by Tuesday afternoon I was already hoping that she would agree to a more relaxed social...

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(New Record High!) Week in Review

107 miles 11 runs 15-mile long run 1 hour yoga 7 days/nights at home With a significantly less hectic work schedule, no travel and my previously detailed abundance of sleep, it was actually quite easy to hit this week's unexpectedly record-setting mileage total. Winning a few bucks was a much-appreciated bonus, as was capping off the week with some enjoyable miles and even more enjoyable social time along the Charles with Emily and a strong BAA contingent--including a special guest appearance by Teresa, back from her Fulbright fellowship in Mumbai...

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Wicked Half-Marathon Race Recap

1.5-2 mile w/u Target: Victory Actual: 1:20:32; 1st place female; $300 Results 1.5 mile c/d Total: ~16 miles   Let me preface this post by saying how wonderfully exquisite it is to sleep well and soundly the night before a race in your own bed, wake up a mere 90 minutes before go time, drink your own coffee out of your own mug and then casually jog over to the start. Don't get me wrong; I love traveling, and I am blessed beyond measure to have a job that allows--more accurately, necessitates--me to run races all over the country and...

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(Down) Week in Review

70 miles 2 doubles 3 PSLs Well, this down week was a bit of a mixed bag. I did lower my mileage as scheduled, but due to early week travel plus a late week event plus a crazy work week in between plus hosting two new coworkers at our place, well, let's just say it wasn't exactly conducive to recovery. After fighting to drag myself out of bed each morning and override my body's self-preservation instincts, I spent most of my runs shuffling along feeling sluggish and tired. "I need some actual rest during my rest week," I grumbled to Jordan on Friday...

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13.1 Boston Race Results

1 mile w/u Target: 13.1 miles @goal MP (1:17-1:19; 5:55-6:05) and WIN Actual: 1:17:48 (5:55 pace); 2nd place Splits (from memory): 5k @18:15; 10k @36:30; 10 mile @59:00 Total: 14 miles Results I owe my readers a detailed recap but for now I wanted to write down the details before I forget. Suffice it to say I got my doors blown off out there despite running faster than my victorious Chicago Half race last weekend. I'm tired.  &nb...

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Week in Review

100 miles 10 runs 5 days in Chicago 17-mile long run 3 AFDs At the outset, I had every intention of designating this a "down week." On the heels of four weeks in a row at 100+ and with an expo weekend looming, it only made sense to throttle things back. Then Monday had to come along and turn itself into a holiday, and before I knew it I was already 20 miles in and significantly ahead of schedule. Still, I paid the numbers no mind until I did some cursory math before heading to expo setup on Thursday and realized hitting triple digits was still...

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Chicago Half-Marathon Race Recap

1/2 mile w/u Target: 13.1 miles @goal MP (5:55-6:05); ~1:18-1:19 and WIN Actual: 13.2 miles @1:18:21; 5:58 pace; 1st place female Total: 13.5-14 miles Results Chicago Sun-Times Article Going into this race, I ruefully joked that it would be an excellent simulator for racing half of a marathon--the second half, that is. Instead of running 13.1 miles beforehand, I spent virtually every waking hour from Thursday morning until Saturday night immersed...

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Week in Review

105 miles 97 miles in 6 days 11 runs 14-mile "long" run 3 AFDs (oops) No time to update now--things are nuts nuts nuts around here! But congrats to the the lovely Mr. and Mrs. Pat Tarpy!   me with the beautiful bride &nb...

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Second Verse, Same As the First

2 mile w/u Target: 5.5 miles @6:00-5:55 pace; 6 min. jog/rest; 5.5 miles @5:55-5:50 pace Actual: 5.5 miles @32:30ish; 6 min. jog/rest; 2.5 miles @14:40ish 3+ mile c/d Total: 14 miles Two weekends ago, fresh off an extended trip to the left coast and a restless redeye flight, I dragged Jordan down to the Charles to join Jenn, Emily and some BAA dudes for what was intended to be a 12-mile tempo effort. Due to my general state of exhaustion and a gravely necessary bathroom break, that workout ended up morphing into something slightly less intense...

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