Sunday, December 25, 2016

December 19 - December 25 Training

Monday: 6 miles (9:10), 3 miles (9:13).  Finally getting close to getting rid of this cold.  I'm at about 90%, some small amount of congestion.  Ran 6 miles on the treadmill from 6.3 to 6.8 mph and then after about 20 minutes, ran 3 miles.  Joined the Brixx group for a glass of wine, there were some who braved the cold outside.
Tuesday: 11 miles (8:49).  Another treadmill day.  3 Mile Warmup, 3 x (1.5 miles @ 7.6 mph (7:53) + 1/2 mile @ 6.3 mph (9:31), 2 Mile Cooldown.  Tempo intervals felt pretty good.
Wednesday: 10 miles (8:49).  Mild temps out there this afternoon.
Thursday: 3 miles (8:58), 4 miles (8:14), 3 miles (9:05).  3 Mile warmup, 8 x (2:00 on/off), 3 Mile Cooldown.  Averaged 6:53 on the fast 2:00 intervals.  A month ago I ran the same workout with 6 repeats and they averaged 7:09.  So a good improvement in 31 days.
Friday: 7 miles (9:18).  Very easy run to rest up for the Saturday long run. Went over 3000 miles for 2016.
Saturday: 16 miles (8:45).  A good quality long run progression on Saturday in the mid 50's mist and light rain.  4@9:10, 4@8:55, 4@8:40, 4@8:25.
Sunday: 7.21 miles (9:28).  Could feel a little soreness from yesterday's long run and the higher mileage this week, so kept it very easy.

Total Miles: 70.2 miles.  First 70+ mile week since July. So that is good to start getting the volume up with 4 months until London.

Monday, December 19, 2016

December 12 - December 18 Training

Monday: 2 miles (10:13), 2 miles (10:29).  Stayed in bed most of the day nursing a cold.  But it's going to take more than a cold to stop the run streak, now on day 697.  Probably shouldn't have gone to Brixx feeling miserable, but I did anyway for a second two mile run.
Tuesday: 2 miles (9:31), 3 miles (9:05), 2 miles (9:47).  2 Mile Warmup on the HHS Track followed by 12 x 200m on/off with a 2 Mile Cooldown.  The goal on the fast 200m's was to be under 50 seconds.  I averaged just under 46.5 seconds per 200m and had an average pace of 6:11.  This is the first time I have done 200m intervals.  They are fun because they are short!
Wednesday: 5 miles (9:15).  Still nursing a cold, so ran indoors on the treadmill.
Thursday: 5 miles (9:15).  Very cold outside!  It would have bee nice to be feeling better and get outside when my run streak reached 700 days today, but indoors with Dayquil.


Friday: 6 miles (9:28).  It was nice to get outside.
Saturday: 3 miles (9:31).  Busy day with a 2 hour flight delay to Minneapolis. Just ran 3 miles on the JW Marriott Treadmill after some Mall of America shopping.
Sunday: 2 miles (9:31).  Quick treadmill run before my brother came up to head to the Vikings game.  It was -24 outside!

Total Miles: 32 miles.  A low volume week due to having a cold the entire week plus a travel weekend to Minnesota.  Not quite back at 100% strength on Monday morning, but I should rebound with a 65-70 mile week if all goes as planned.


Monday, December 12, 2016

December 5 - December 11 Training

Monday: 5.21 miles (8:51), 5.86 miles (9:12).  First run a bit faster at DCP before heading to the second run at Brixx.
Tuesday: 2 miles (8:58), 5 miles (8:20), 3.11 miles (9:24).  After a 2 mile warmup at DCP, I headed to the HHS Track for 4 x (1mile @ temp + 400m jog).  The mile splits were 7:47, 7:44, 7:42, 7:40, so that felt pretty good.  Ran a 5K cooldown at the Streets of Indian Lake.  4th straight day of 10+ miles.
Wednesday: 7 miles.  Forgot the GPS again, so I ran the same 7 mile route that I ran on Wednesday and Friday of last week.  I am finding the easy runs are more enjoyable without the GPS since you don't feel pressure to run a certain pace.  Probably 10 minute miles, but that's OK!
Thursday: 2 miles (9:24), 6 miles (7:56), 1 mile (9:54).  Started with a 2 mile warmup at Drakes Creek Park and then went to the HHS Track and ran 12 x (400m on/off).  My goal was to keep the overall average pace around 8:00 and I was able to do that.  1 Mile Cooldown.  My training plan called for an easy 8 mile with some strides, but since I decided to cancel the Rocket City Marathon on Saturday, I went for a solid tempo run since I don't need to ease off for the marathon.  Sorry coach, that's what happens when I get OVER motivated.
Friday: 4 miles (9:38), 6 miles (9:21).  With it being 32 degrees out, I decided to split today's running into two runs. Ran 4 miles at lunch and took it very easy after the tempo run on the track yesterday.  Felt a little more loosened up on the second run, which was slightly faster and 4 degrees warmer at 36.  It didn't feel too bad outside today because there was very little wind.
Saturday: 2 miles (9:49), 6 miles (8:37).  Just wanted some easy miles with a little turnover.  Started at Drakes Creek Park and I was just feeling old, cold, and achy.  So I stopped after 2 miles and headed to the HHS Track to see if it would feel better over there.  So when I got on the track, I targeted 8:40 miles, which is 1:05 per 200m and 2:10 per loop, so it should be real easy to keep track of.  It went well and I managed 6 miles in the 8:35-8:39 range.
Sunday: 5 miles (9:15).  The plan for today was 18 miles, however, woke up with a cold and had no energy.  Did all I could do to get in 5 miles while watching the Vikings on the treadmill.

Total Miles:  60 miles.  I wanted the 70 mile week, but woke up with the cold on Sunday morning, which is now worse on Monday morning.


Sunday, December 4, 2016

November 29 - December 5 Training

Monday: 3 miles (9:38), 4.11 miles (9:15).  Both runs were in the rain.  Looks like I was the only one who ran at Brixx and I finished just before the hard rains hit.
Tuesday: 8 miles (9:04).  The plan called for 8 miles along rolling hills @ sub 9:15.  I ran in Fountain Brooke.  These aren't major hills, but they are constant up and down with no easy stretch and I always find it tough to just get near 9:30 pace.  So this was a good run at 9:04.
Wednesday: 7 miles (9:34).  Just very easy running today.
Thursday: 2 miles (9:22), 4 miles (9:10), 2 miles (9:36).  2 mile warmup at Drakes Creek Park followed by 8 x (400m@sub 7:20 pace + 400m jog) at the HHS track, followed by a 2 mile cool down.  I ended up averaging right at a 7:00 pace on the fast intervals with the first 4 around 7:05 and the last 4 around 6:55 pace.  First track workout since last March.  Felt good to get out there.  The resurfaced HHS track is excellent!
Friday: 7 miles (9:43).  I forgot my GPS and didn't want to drive back home with limited daylight.  So I ran the exact same route as I did on Wednesday. Probably closer to a 10 minute pace since I was able to just run easy with no trying to force a certain pace.
Saturday: 16 miles (9:07).  The plan called for an easy 15 miles progressing towards 9:15.  I felt a little stiff at the start getting out with miles of 9:49, 9:33, however, I was down to the 9:15 pace the 5th mile.  I kept pretty steady for the next 4 miles hovering around 9:15, then all of a sudden I was down to 9:06, 9:03 and the body just wanted to keep getting faster, finishing with miles of 8:54, 8:50, 8:43, 8:34, 8:09.  A good negative split by around 4 1/2 minutes.
Sunday: 12 miles (9:29).  The training plan only called for up to 6 miles, but I needed 7 to get a 60 mile week.  But I was feeling pretty good and didn't stop until I had 12 miles in and made it a solid 65 mile week.

Total Miles: 65.1 miles.  Biggest week since September but I expect most weeks to be at or above this total for the next 4 months and I work to prepare for London.


Sunday, November 27, 2016

November 21 - November 28 Training

Monday: 5.83 miles (8:50), 3.41 miles (9:08). 2 mile warmup followed by 6 x (2:00@7:20 + 2:00@easy), Cooldown.  Second run easy miles at Brixx.  The fast intervals felt good in the afternoon.
Tuesday: 4 miles (9:31).
Wednesday: 2 miles (9:31). Terrible sinus headache, so just ran 2 miles on the hotel treadmill after flying to Detroit.
Thursday: 6.24 miles (8:21), 1 mile (11:09).  Detroit Turkey Trot 10K.  I didn't get a warmup in, so ran the first 3 miles at 8:44, 9:03, 8:51.  Then I went for the big negative split with the next 3 miles at 7:58, 7:56, 7:58 with the last .24 miles at a pace of 6:27.
Friday: 3 miles (9:31).  With over 7 miles of walking in downtown Detroit, just ran a few miles on the treadmill.
Saturday: 6 miles (8:09).  Back home in DCP.  After a 2 mile warmup, I ran miles at 7:47, 7:49, 7:37, 7:41.  Felt good to open up the pace.  That is the pace I want for the London Marathon in April.
Sunday: 12 miles (8:26).  2 x (2@easy + 2@sub 8:00) + 2 x (1@easy + 1@sub 8:00).  A nice solid run at Shelby Bottoms.

Total Miles: 43.5.  Traveling always seems to interfere with my training as I don't get in the miles when away from home.  But this week had 13 sub 8:00 miles.  I think that's the most sub 8:00 miles in one week since September 2015 when I was in prime training mode for Berlin.

Monday, November 21, 2016

November 14 - November 20 Training

Monday: 6 miles (9:42).  They extended the road in Fountain Brooke to phase 2, so now it is a 2.1 mile loop if I run all the streets in Fountain Brooke.  This is a nice rolling hill route, very tough on easy runs.
Tuesday: 8 miles (9:30). Easy miles with 20s pickup per mile in Fountain Brooke.  Today I received the Normatec Leg Compression Recovery System.  Below in the picture is Lebron James using it. Using this after workouts and long runs should speed recovery.  It will be interesting to see how this affects my recovery over the next 4-5 months training for London.



Wednesday: 9 miles (8:53).  Treadmill workout, 2@6.3 mph, 2@7.1 mph, 2@6.5 mph, 2@7.5 mph, 1@6.3 mph.  Felt pretty good for only being 4 days after a marathon.
Thursday: 3 miles (9:49), 4 miles (9:31).
Friday: 5 miles (9:31).
Saturday: 10 miles (9:09).  Ran 10 miles right at the 4 hour marathon pace.  Rodney joined me for half of the run on his 400th day of his run streak!  50 degrees out felt pretty good.
Sunday: 5 miles (9:22).

Total Miles: 50.0.  A decent week with 50 miles when you consider I am coming off back to back weeks with a marathon.  My coach will be gradually increasing the speed workouts in the upcoming weeks as I work towards a goal of 3:25 in London on April 23.  That means I need to be sub 7:50 for an entire marathon, compared with a 7:53 pace with my 3:26:48 BQ.  That won't be easy, but with hard work it can be obtained.  Just watch!

Sunday, November 13, 2016

November 7 - November 13 Training

Monday: 2 miles (11:30).  2 miles of post marathon recovery on the treadmill before flying back to Nashville.
Tuesday: 3 miles (10:31).  Taking it easy.
Wednesday: 3 miles (10:00).  Still going pretty slow.
Thursday: 5 miles (9:21).  Legs finally felt a little better today.
Friday: 3 miles (10:37).  Practicing my Tunnel Hill Pace.  Hoping to go 26.2 out of the 50 miles tomorrow in Vienna, IL.
Saturday: 26.6 miles (11:49).  Ran the southern route of the Tunnel Hill 50 miler.  That is all I had planned to do since I ran NYC Marathon 6 days earlier.  Felt the same right leg adductor soreness after about 10 miles that I felt last Sunday.
Sunday: 3 miles (9:57).  Legs felt pretty good considering I ran a marathon yesterday.

Total Miles: 45.6 miles.  I should have an easy couple weeks coming up where I start to build my mileage base and then prepare for a long training cycle to get back the sub 8:00 speed that will be necessary for London on April.

Tuesday, November 8, 2016

October 31 - November 6 Training

Monday: 3 miles (9:51).  I even though some pickups in there and still felt so sluggish I could barely keep it under a 10:00 pace.  Makes me wonder how I can run a marathon in 6 days.
Tuesday: 8 miles (8:54). Workout:  1@warmup, 2@9:00, 1/4@slow, 2@8:40, 1/4@slow, 2@8:20, cooldown.  I felt sluggish again at the beginning and felt like I had to work some to hit the 2 miles @ 9:00.  But the further I got into the run, the better I felt and had to pull back some on the 2@8:20 to keep from overshooting the pace.  All easy running until Sunday now.
Wednesday: 5 miles (9:53).  Sluggish taper run.
Thursday: 4 miles (9:22).  Nice and easy, didn't feel too bad out there today.
Friday: 3 miles (9:31). Treadmill run in New York City.  After walking 2 miles back to the hotel from the expo, I really didn't want to walk another 20 minutes to run outdoors at Central Park, so opted for the treadmill.
Saturday: 2 miles (10:00).   A quick 2 miler on the hotel treadmill.
Sunday: 26.42 miles (11:05).  New York City Marathon.  Going into this race, I was targeting to run 4:15-4:30.  I really have not had any outdoor training runs in the past 4 1/2 months.  The only outdoor runs in that time frame over the half marathon distance were marathons (Grandmas and Nashville Greenway).  Nothing exposes a lack of training like the marathon.  I felt really good the first 10 miles, right on target for 4:15-4:20 and then my right leg started hurting.  So after 11 miles, I started working in a 30 second walk break every 1/2 mile.  But by mile 20, it hurt just to walk.  I walked most of mile 23, but realized it actually hurt a little bit less to run a 12-13 minute pace than it did to walk.  So it was walk/run until the finish, which was officially 4:57.  Ouch!  I've gained a new respect for those marathoners who consistently go out and run 5+ hour marathons.  That takes a lot of courage and determination to be out there that long.  Going in to 2016, all of my marathons were under 4 hours.  At Disney World in January, I lost that record when I slipped to a 4:03 marathon.  That actually took the pressure off of thinking I had to run every marathon under 4 hours.  An the Nashville Greenway Marathon came in at around 4:25 5 weeks ago before slipping to 4:57 at New York. But I needed to finish since this was my 3rd of the 6 majors.  My goal is to run the 6 majors and collect the special medal you get for running all of the Majors.  I've completed Boston, Berlin, and New York City.  In April of 2017 I will run London, followed by Chicago in the fall of 2017.  That will leave Tokyo as the final major marathon, which I am tentatively planning for February of 2019.

Total Miles: 51.4.

Monday, October 31, 2016

Training October 24 - October 30

Monday: 10 miles (8:31), 3.1 miles (9:20).  Started at Drakes Creek Park with a 2 mile warmup, and then 3 x (1@9:00 + 1@8:00, and then 2 mile cooldown.  I was feeling pretty good after a light weekend.  Averaged 8:42 on the 9:00 targeted pace and 7:54 on the 8:00 targeted.  I ran medium on the cooldown (8:30,8:19) because I was going straight to Brixx after the workout and would run an easy 3.1 at Brixx to make it a half marathon Monday.
Tuesday: 7 miles (9:25).  Super easy running.
Wednesday: 6 miles (9:26).  Allergies continue to make my eyes sore and itchy.  Seeing the Eye Doctor on Friday.
Thursday: 7 miles (9:26).  Looks like my runs are consistent, last 3 runs 9:25, 9:26, 9:26.
Friday: 8 miles (8:41).  2 Mile Warmup, 15:00@7:55, 3:00@slow, 10:00@7:35, 3:00@slow, 5:00@7:15, Cooldown.  This would have been easier with normal temperatures, but it was in the upper 70's.
Saturday: 4 miles (9:50).
Sunday: 9 miles (9:59).  Mid 80's run starting at Kohl's trailhead and running to Wave Country and back.  This was supposed to be a 16 miler, but it was just too hot for an afternoon long run.

Total Miles: 54.1 miles.  I should have gone over 60 miles this week, but failed on the Sunday long run. Heading to New York City on Friday morning to run the NYC Marathon on Sunday.  My only two outdoor runs beyond 14 miles in the past 5 months are the two marathons I ran (Grandmas and the Nashville Greenway), so I can't expect too much this weekend.  I think I will just go out at 9:00-9:30 and see how I feel.  It should be nice and cool, but since I am not in shape to go after a great marathon, it is time to just enjoy running the streets of New York.

Monday, October 24, 2016

October 17 - October 24 Training

Going to be a warm start to the week.  Really frustrating to get this warm weather continuing this far into October.



Monday: 5 miles (9:59).  Quads were sore today.  I don't recall having sore quads in the past from a treadmill run.
Tuesday: 7 miles (9:34).  Easy miles with pickups in another hot afternoon.
Wednesday: 8 miles (9:08).  Wow, 91 degrees this afternoon and still 86 when I reached Station Camp at 4:40 PM.  2 mile warmup, then 10 x (2:00 on/2:00 off).  Ran the fast intervals at just under a 7:45 pace.  It felt like more work than it should and made me wonder how in the heck did I ever run a marathon at a 7:53 pace?  Will I ever get back to that speed?  If it doesn't happen in London this spring, it never will.
Thursday: 8 miles (9:08).  Easy treadmill run with the rain and hail out there today.  Ran a progression from 6.3 mph (9:31) to 6.7 mph (8:57).
Friday: 13.1 miles (9:21).  With another weekend trip, I put some extra miles in today by running 3 Baby Station Camp Loops.
Saturday: 4 miles (9:52).  7:30 AM flight to Philadelphia, followed by some sightseeing and a nice lunch with wine in downtown Philly.  I did manage a short run in the Navy Yard.  Low 50's and very windy out.
Sunday: 4 miles (9:16).  Just a short run again today before heading to the Vikings - Eagles game at Lincoln Financial Field.  Felt very old, cold, and achy to start with the first mile being 10:13.  So I pushed the last 3 miles all under sub 9.  Might take some time to get used to running in the cooler weather after such a warm fall in Hendersonville.

Total Miles: 49.1 miles.  Not the volume you would want two weeks before the New York City Marathon.  But I am just going to run NYC to have fun and it will be over 4 hours.  But I am going to enjoy the streets of New York.

Monday, October 17, 2016

October 10 - October 16 Training

Monday: 5 miles (8:45).  Went straight to Brixx to run after getting back from Minneapolis.
Tuesday: 10 miles (8:54). 2@Warmup, 3@ sub 8:30, 1@easy, 2 x (1@sub 8:00 + 1/2 easy), 1@Cooldown.  Felt pretty good out there despite it still being 79 at the start, well above normal temperatures still lingering.  Woke up with some very sore and puffy eyes that only went away during my run and then came right back when I was done running.  I believe it may have been caused by gnats getting into my eyes during Monday's run as there were tons of gnats you could see splattered all over my shirt.  Felt some near my eye on Tuesday.  Total discomfort.
Wednesday: 7 miles (8:54).  Six straight days of sub 9:00 runs for the first time since November 2014.  The splits were in a 7 second range, so is the old Alan Watts even split runner back?  I really feel like I ran better when I ran even splits and made sure I gave a good effort each mile rather than getting lazy and slower.  Once the temps get under 60, I am ready to rock it!
Thursday: 8.08 miles (8:29). 2 mile warmup, 4 miles of 0:45 @ sub 7:15 + 2:15 @ 9:00, 2 mile cool down.  Temps were in the upper 60's and it felt really nice out and the gnats were gone today.  Averaged 7:03 on the fast 0:45 and 8:45 on the off 2:15. So it was a really good run.  I suppose the last cool down mile with a 66 elevation gain at 8:29 wasn't really a cool down.  Felt great.
Friday: 6 miles (8:55).  Went over the 10,000 mile mark today since starting in March of 2013!
Saturday: 4 miles (9:33), 3 miles (9:54).  Felt a bit sore, probably from running sub 9 on 8 straight days, so I slowed it down today.  Last time I had that many sub 9 days in a row back in 2014 I was soon on the injured list, so don't want to do that.
Sunday: 17 miles (9:17).  Treadmill long run watching football after a night downtown in Nashville.  Probably should have got up early and ran but sleeping in was feeling good at the Renaissance Hotel.

Total Miles: 60.1 miles.  Not a bad week, but I just haven't been getting in the runs to get the 70 mile weeks.  Over 2500 miles for the year.



Tuesday, October 11, 2016

October 3 - October 9 Training

Monday: 3 miles (10:50).  Very sore quads from yesterday's Greenway Marathon.
Tuesday: 3 miles (10:22).  Still pretty sore!
Wednesday: 6 miles (9:53).  Starting to recover.
Thursday: 5 miles (9:34).  12 x 1:00 on/off.  Felt slow and sluggish on the warmup, but felt pretty good on the fast intervals, the last 6 averaging 6:39 pace.
Friday: 7 miles (8:50). The car showed outside temperature of 90 degrees at 4 PM.  That is crazy for this time of year.
Saturday: 5 miles (8:46). Flew to Minneapolis in the morning and ran along the Mississippi River in the afternoon with a temperature of 51!
Sunday: 5 miles (8:53).  Ran after the Minnesota Vikings game.  I was pretty exhausted from cheering on the Vikings.  Wanted to run longer, but was too worn out.  Beautiful running weather with temperatures in the upper 50's.

Total Miles: 34 miles.  A low volume week after the Greenway Marathon and traveling to Minneapolis.  Time to pick it up this week.

Monday, October 3, 2016

September 26 - October 2 Training

Monday: 8 miles (8:38).  Finally some nice fall weather and I found myself running much faster and it felt great.
Tuesday: 10 miles (9:14).  2 Mile Warmup, 6 x (1/2 mile @ sub 8:00 + 1/2 mile easy), 2 Mile Cooldown.  Averaged 7:54 on the fast intervals, which were pretty consistent.  It was about 75 degrees out, which was nice.  I could feel that yesterday's run was affecting me a little as I ran too fast on Monday when I was thrilled it was so cool outside.
Wednesday: 4 miles (9:22).
Thursday: 10 miles (9:08).
Friday: 3 miles (9:21).
Saturday: 5 miles (9:51).  Went super easy as I had decided earlier this week that I would run the Greenway Marathon on Sunday rather than do a 20 mile long run today.
Sunday: 26.42 miles (9:56).  I ran the Nashville Greenway Marathon in 4:22 GPS time.  The goal was to run the first 20 miles and then run/walk to the finish line.  It was low 60's at the start, but the clouds went away after about 15 miles and it was sunny and warm the rest of the way.  I was feeling pretty good in Shelby Bottoms until it got pretty warm.  Considering I had not run outside beyond a half marathon since Grandmas Marathon in June, I felt pretty good to get this marathon in.



Total Miles:  66.4 miles.  The marathon sure helped get the mileage up for the week.

Monday, September 26, 2016

September 19 - September 25 Training

Monday: 6 miles (9:00), 3 miles (9:07).
Tuesday: 2 miles (9:22), 4 miles (8:22), 1 mile (9:36).  The goal was to be sub 8:15 on the 4 mile tempo run, but my current conditioning had trouble getting to that pace in the mid 80's temperatures.
Wednesday: 5 miles (9:32).  Struggling in the warm temperatures.
Thursday: 6 miles (9:14).  Ran indoors on the treadmill and it felt great.  I just need the cooler weather for outside.
Friday: 8 miles (9:04).  Another treadmill run to escape the unseasonably warm temperatures.
Saturday: 3 miles (9:22).  Flew to Charlotte today for a one night stay to go to the Minnesota Vikings game on Sunday against the Charlotte Panthers.  Had all I could do to sneak 3 miles in to keep the run streak alive.
Sunday: 3 miles (9:22).  I wanted to work in a long run, but sometimes you just have to enjoy your weekend and I just managed a quick 3 on the treadmill before getting ready to go to Bank of America stadium in Charlotte.  We did make it on TV:



Total Miles: 41 miles.  Not the mileage you should be running with only 6 weeks to the New York City Marathon.  With the cooler weather coming this week, it is time to deliver on some good miles.