Tuesday, August 29, 2017

18:00

So I had my phlebotomy yesterday and took off.  I decided I was getting on the treadmill and was going to quit playing around the edges.  I warmed up, set it at 10mph and covered 3 miles.  Calculator says 30:45 for 8k.  Now I can't sand bag.  If I give the treadmill 7 seconds per mile the calculator says 31:20.  Eighteen days to Al's. 

Sunday, August 20, 2017

Love that dirty water

It struck me this week that fast runs take a little out of you.  Must take awhile to get used to dialing it up.  One thing was for sure this week I slept 8 - 10 hours a night most of the week.  The fact that I continue to conk out before 8:30pm during the week seems laughable.  No matter, one certainly can't complain about sleeping well.

We put in a small garden this year and the tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers are blowing my tiny mind.  The cucumbers are huge and crisp.  I cut some up with onions today and soaked them in milk and vinegar (with a touch of sweetener and salt) and put them in the fridge.  Delicious.  Maybe I can kick away a tad of the junk calories.  We ate this stuff continually growing up...not sure how I became a slacker.  I put in two tomato plants as the wife is not a fan.  I'm going to have my hands full keeping up with the crop.

So because I'm out Harvey Glancing it as of late the total miles mean little to me.  Hard one day and then two easier days if required.  I ran pretty hard yesterday and was pleasantly surprised I had the jimmy legs this morning.  Glad to report a solid ten was put in, though I was a bit knackered the final 3 miles.  I ran a new route which is a couple more miles on a busier road than I like, but when you go to the biggest dance of the year you dance with the one who brung yah.  Ahhhhh...the 10 miler.  The workhorse distance run for all age and sizes.  Inside you feel like this....get off me...I did stuff today.  Solid as Sears.

8/14 = Off
8/15 = Off
8/16 = 6.0 w/ 3.0 in 19:32 (6:31)
8/17 = 6.0 (9:22) w/ 8 x 20/40s
8/18 = 3.0 (10:26)
8/19 = 7.0 w/ 4.0 in 26:40 (6:40) + 8 x 15/30s
8/20 = 10 (8:56)
Total = 32.0

Sunday, August 13, 2017

Tomato sandwiches

It has often been said, "You can't be all things to all people."  In running, I believe this, but am again coming to the conclusion the sport to me is more about enjoyment.  The enjoyment factor is spread out over many realms.  At the present time it does not appear to make sense to focus on one part of my running.  Well...sometimes it really does matter and then 4 days later it does not.  I continue to want to work hard and race well, but the investment seems to yield so little.  I mean if this were times past, who would scroll down a few hundred names to see I ran a blazing 6:30 per mile for an 8k?  How many people are scanning race results to see how the results of the 55-59 age group?  I don't even care about those results, why would anyone else.

This Saturday at 12:01am I had the opportunity to run with a couple handfuls of people for Angela's 90k event.  Made up of 2 loops of 45k each primarily on the Ice Age trail I could not resist.  Plus burritos at the 45k.  This is 2.5 miles from my house.  I bummed one of Angela's headlamps and off I went to enjoy the night moving through the woods.  As planned I stopped at 45k, had an awesome breakfast and then went home.  It was a very good time with some solid people.

Now I knew going in that this will compromise any real faster training for Al's Run, but who cares?  I'm going to simply do what I do and let things unwind the way they do.  Honestly...still having the ability to run is a blast so I might as well enjoy all it offers.

7/31 = 7.2 (10:15) road
8/1  = Off
8/2  = 6.3 (9:33) road
8/3  = 7.5 (10:08) trail, Men. Park w/ Dewey and Tim
8/4  = 5.5 w/ 5 k in 20:08.6, road
8/5  = 7.5 (9:36) road
8/6  = 8.0 (9:30) road
Total = 42.0

8/7  = 4.5 w/ 2.2 @ 6:18 pace, T-mill
8/8  = 5.5 (10:06) road
8/9  = Off
8/10 = 7.6 (10:25) trail, Men. Park w/ Dewey and Tim
8/11 = Off
8/12 = 28.0, Ice Age trail w/ the gang at 12:01am
8/13 = 5.4 (10:24) road
Total = 51.0

Friday, August 4, 2017

20:08.6

That was my 5k time off the watch today.  I was going to do mile repeats and decided let me see how I feel at the 1 mile split which was 6:33.  I felt in control so I just notched it up a hair and was able to hit my fastest 5k tempo for 2017.  That is an average of 6:29 per mile and I'm happy with that.  I wasn't wiped out or anything so I'll take it.  I am off work today, so I had a couple hours to wake up.

Six weeks to Al's.  The 5k today is really about the same effort as the 10k trial from Saturday.  If you punch the 42:09 in it says I am capable of a 20:12 which is real accurate.  So am I progressing?  Punch in 20:09 and I think it forecasted a 33:09 for the 8k.  That is still 99 seconds to shave off in 6 weeks.  I have to get faster...that's what my brain is telling me.  There is no breakaway speed.  I can't summon the hidden gear any longer.  Bootsy from Parliament has left the building.  The funk is gone.

I could ask 6 people how to best get where I want to be and I'd get similar responses in my opinion.  The best answer may be get to 165 pounds (172 today), run fewer miles, and race myself to a potential mini peak.  Finally if I punch in 31:30 for an 8k it says I should be capable of a 19:08 5k.  Somehow this makes it look even more possible.  Again these are efforts on my own and not under race conditions.  I'd love to think I could bring the mail.  The two things that absolutely killed me there last year was the heat and not having the ability to remotely handle a decent pace more than a couple miles.  I just did not see that former abilities off basic training had just vanished.  Yeah...it's real.