Last week ended with the Mile by Impact Zone, and I had a decent showing. It wasn’t my fastest mile ever, but my legs felt pretty good and I finished strong.
It was a good end to the week, and I think things are looking up. I’ve a 10k coming up at the beginning of next week, and then the Fitzgerald’s Lager Run 5k a couple weeks after that.
Until now, I haven’t quite been able to hit my paces in training. My legs felt a little weighed down still – not quite fully recovered from the marathon. I’ve been able to get my mileage up and move well on my easy days, but real workout efforts have eluded me.
Last week, I did a deep dive on Conner Mantz’s training for Boston, and that also had me rethinking a couple of things. First, I want to push the pace a little bit in my morning runs – but keep things fully reigned in during my evening doubles. Second, I plan to incorporate some more doubles – but keep them shorter.
Hopefully, that’ll change this week. That mile went pretty well, and I’m hoping I can hit one or two good (light) workouts this week before my 10k next Monday.
The Plan for the Week
The mile doesn’t require a lot of recovery, but I’ll take Sunday’s long run easy and play it by ear. I’m also looking to keep my workouts on the lighter side, given the fact that I have a race next Monday. But I do want to get my mileage back to normal, and I plan to hit 70 miles this week for the first time since before my marathon.
Here’s the daily breakdown:
- Sunday: 14 mile, easy long run
- Monday: 6 miles trails AM, 4 miles treadmill PM
- Tuesday: 6 miles trails AM, 4 miles treadmill PM
- Wednesday: 8 miles, light R workout
- Thursday: 6 miles trail AM, 4 miles treadmill PM
- Friday: 7 miles, light T workout, 4 miles treadmill PM
- Saturday: 7 miles trails
And here’s how things went.
Sunday: A Slow, Plodding Long Run
I woke up Sunday morning, and I felt pretty good. I expected my legs to be a little dull from the previous day’s race, but until I actually hit the road I felt fine.
After the previous day’s heat and humidity, this morning’s weather wasn’t too bad. It was in the 60’s, so a titch warm. And it was sunny. But the humidity was gone, and overall it was much more comfortable.
When I finally hit the road – and I slept in a little bit – my legs did feel heavy. They moved fine, but there was no pop. But that’s ok – recovery day. Just focus on getting in the mileage.
I ran up the hill, down the hill, and into Millburn. I learned from last week’s mistake – taking things too quick – and I was conscientious to keep the pace easy. As a result, I felt fine, albeit tired, as the run progressed.
Onward through Maplewood, past the golf course and the driving range, and through the park. A baseball game was just about to get started. Back down to Millburn and the park – where little kids were playing something like soccer and a group of older people was doing tai chi.
I tried to water fountain – again – and it was still off. This time, I even tried turning on the shutoff valve on the outside of the building, but that didn’t work. It must be turned off from the inside.
I had just enough water to make it to this point. I took my second gel, finished my water, and headed for home. I got back to the Reservoir, stopped to use the bathroom, and took a nice long drink of water from the water fountain.
When I started, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do 14 miles or 16. At this point, I felt better than I had the previous two weeks … but I was still pretty spent. Better to call it a day and pad the mileage somewhere else. So I jogged the final mile home, showered, and took a nice nap.
Monday: Morning Trails and Evening Double
Monday, I woke up and went for an easy six miles on the trails. My legs felt pretty good, all things considered. But I took the first couple miles easy.
After the turn around point, I started for home and I picked up the pace. My heart rate was still in the aerobic zone, but I pushed just a little bit. Finished the last three miles in 9:24, 9:20, and 9:12. Compare that to last Monday’s trail run, where I finished up in 9:51, 9:45, and 9:25.
After work, I hopped on the treadmill and did an easy four miles. Kept the pace easy. It took a few minutes to loosen up, but after a five minute warm up everything felt great.
I made some more progress on Andor, Season 2. I’m really liking this season – and I’m looking forward to finishing it and giving Rogue One another watch.
Tuesday: More Doubles
Tuesday was a repeat of Monday. And it went just about the same – except my legs felt a little bit better on the morning trail run.
The weather was beautiful. It was a brisk morning in the 50’s. Hard to believe it was so hot this weekend.
After the first three miles, I pushed the pace on the way back. Finished up in 9:08, 9:12, and 9:11. Not particularly hard, but faster than my legs otherwise would have carried me.
It was taco night, so I put the meat in the crock pot. Then I went downstairs to do my jog on the treadmill. Another uneventful four miles.
Afterwards, I put the rice on, hopped in the shower, and then bam! Dinner time. Gotta multi task and make the most of your time.
Wednesday: Still Not Quite Fast Enough
Wednesday morning, I went back to the Reservoir for another light speed workout. I did the same thing as the last couple of weeks – alternating short (~160m) and long (~320m) intervals with a goal of around mile pace.
It was a little drizzly out, but it was much cooler than last week. So no humidity to worry about. Started with a lap for a warm up, then did some strides and some leg swings. My right hamstring is getting a little tight again. I think I really need to prioritize some stretching and mobility work more.
I launched into the first set, and everything felt pretty good. With the race over the weekend, I wasn’t sure how I would feel – but there didn’t seem to be much residual fatigue. But like the last couple of weeks, I just couldn’t quite get up to speed quickly.
I jogged it out after the first set and then repeated the process. The short intervals were a bit slow, but on the longer ones I was able to do a better job of getting up to speed. I tried to really push the pace in the last one, but it didn’t really work.
After my cooldown, I checked the stats in Garmin Connect. Overall, my pace was 6:00/mi. Had some reps in the high 5:00’s, but a few above 6:00/mi. All told, it was a little slow.
Perhaps excusable with the race on Saturday. But I’m still waiting for these speed workouts to get faster. Maybe I just need to hit the track with my team to run with somebody and push myself harder.
I had initially planned on doing an easy double Wednesday after work. But I commuted down to the office, and I was tired when I got home. Just decided to push that off until later in the week.
Thursday: More Easy Doubles
I woke up Thursday, and it was raining lightly. I figured (hoped) that being on the trails would save me.
I went out for an easy six miles in the morning. Initially, I had eight miles written on my plan. But between the rain – which started to pick up – and the need to add another double in, I decided to cut things short.
And it’s probably a good thing. By the time I was done, my nipples were starting to chafe from the wet shirt. Memo to self: that shirt is no good for rain.
Other than that, and the fact that there were puddles all over the trails and my feet were soaked, it was a good run. After the turnaround, I picked up the pace again – and this time, I finished in 9:05, 9:04, and 8:49.
Legs are feeling much better. Even with the workout the day before, I felt great and light on my feet.
In the evening, I did another easy double. I prepped dinner – roast chicken and roasted vegetables – beforehand, and I put it in the oven to cook. Timed it all perfectly, and dinner was done as soon as I got out of the shower.
Friday: Finally, a Good Workout!
Friday morning, I planned on doing a short, easy threshold workout – 4×5 minutes, with 2 minutes jogging rest.
It was cool and rainy again. Jogged the warm up and felt ok. By the end of the first rep, I was breathing a little hard. But I think it just took me a few minutes to warm up.
The next two reps were perfect. Didn’t look at my watch, but I felt like I was going at a good clip. Towards the end of the final rep, I felt my guts bubble a bit – and I was happy I was about to stop, so I could go to the bathroom.
Finished that lap, took a quick pitstop, and then jogged a mile home.
Checked the stats later, and the first rep was indeed slow (6:39/mi). But the next three were great – 6:23, 6:30, and 6:24/mi. My T pace should be right about 6:20-6:30/mi, so that’s perfect.
Maybe there’s hope for this 10k on Monday – and I can push myself a bit in the workouts that follow.
In the evening, I hopped on the treadmill for one final double of the week. Started slow, eased in, and finished up my four miles without issue. Only a couple more episodes of Andor left.
Saturday: On the Trails Again
After several days of rain, this morning was finally clear. But the trails were still pretty wet and muddy.
I had seven miles on my schedule to wrap up the week. It was a long week at work – and this is a long weekend – so I slept in a bit. Hit the road around 9AM.
Felt great. Took the first couple miles easy to warm up. Picked up the pace on the way back. The trails weren’t crowded – but saw a few familiar faces and waved while I was out there.
The last three miles were 8:44, 9:05, and 8:42. By far the fastest I’ve finished up a trail run in a long time.
I’m liking this plan of pushing the pace on my main runs in the morning – and then taking it easy in the evening doubles. When I get deep into marathon training, I want to get my average pace for the mornings under 8:00 – and a little faster for my long runs.
Reflections and Looking Ahead
All in all, it was a successful week.
I got my mileage back up to 70 miles, and I felt really good throughout. My legs were a little tired early on, given Saturday’s race. And my long run was tough. But the rest of the week felt great.
I even pushed the pace on my morning runs, and I’ve felt fine every day.
In terms of workouts, my Wednesday workout wasn’t great. I couldn’t get up to speed. But my Friday workout was about the best that I’ve had since my marathon. My threshold paces were back down to normal – between 6:20-6:30/mi.
I’m going to take it easy tomorrow and forgo my usual long run. I’ve got a 10k race – the Ridgewood run – coming up on Monday morning. I wasn’t sure what to target for that.
But after Friday’s workout, I think aiming for 39:30-40:00 makes sense. I’ll start a little conservative (6:25-6:30/mi) and then see if I can speed up after 2-3 miles.