Marathon Training Log: Week 14

Weekly summary: 85.1 miles (!)
 

Weekly Summary
Monday, Apr 03, 2017 thru Sunday, Apr 09, 2017

Day	Miles	Pace	Description	Link
Mon	6.0	8:24	AM recovery miles	strava
Mon	4.0	8:18	Double recovery	strava
Tue	15.0	7:57	MLR on the humid bus	strava
Wed	5.0	7:57	Track warmup	strava
Wed	4.2	6:48	5 x 1000 w 400 jog	strava
Wed	1.6	8:31	Track cool down	strava
Thu	6.1	8:05	AM recovery miles	strava
Thu	4.0	8:16	Double recovery	strava
Fri	12.0	7:41	MLR	strava
Sat	7.0	8:09	Easy miles	strava
Sun	20.1	7:12	SLR w 14 @ MP (6:50 avg)	strava
	85.0	7:47

Mon 4/3/17
Workout: AM: 6 recovery PM: 4 recovery
Notes: Morning weigh-in: 171.2 / AM easy recovery miles. No soreness after race yesterday. Easy, relaxed miles. PM: 4 recovery miles. Hamstrings feel a bit tight. Moving around tomorrows intervals to Wednesday and doing the MLR tomorrow instead

Tue 4/4/17
Workout: 15 mile medium long run
Notes: hello again humidity. lost 5 pounds water weight. Really took awhile to get going this morning. Combination of humidity and tired legs. Was able to have a nice run though - first 5 8:56, 8:30, 8:25, 8:20, 8:13, then started to settle in and feel comfortable 7:58, 7:56, 7:57, 7:42, 7:37, 7:34, 7:34, 7:42, 7:31, 7:24

Wed 4/5/17
Workout: 5 x 1000 w 400 jog (10.8 total)
Notes: Warm, but less humid today. Really struggled with this workout. Few causes: coming off the race on Sunday, plus moving the track workout to AFTER the MLR instead of before per the training schedule. Also, think I got a bit dehydrated, which snuck up on me. Workout was suppose to be 6 x 1k @ 5k pace w/ 50%-90% recovery time. Went through 1st interval in 3:45, where my target was 3:41. Knew I didn't have much today, so tried to salvage some quality and audibled into cruise intervals @ 6:10 - 6:15 pace. Next 3 days should be fairly easy as I have Sunday 20 mile LR w/ 14 @ MP that may be the most critical workout of this cycle. Need to be as fresh as possible for it, despite this being my peak mileage week.

Thu 4/6/17
Workout: AM: 6 recovery PM: 4 recovery
Notes: Warm. Rare weekday night out last night, but actually felt really fresh. Suppose that's one benefit to reducing the intensity of intervals the day before. Easy AM recovery miles before the rain comes. Had to keep myself from pushing the pace which is not usually the case on recovery days. Double recovery on tap today. PM recovery miles nice and easy.

Fri 4/7/17
Workout: 12 mile medium long run
Notes: Cold. Windy. Legs felt fresh and eased into MP + 10% pace. Splits (8:36, 8:10, 8:05, 7:46, 7:39, 7:32, 7:28, 7:26, 7:27, 7:13, 7:32, 7:20). 58 miles through Friday - new weekday mileage PR!

Sat 4/8/17
Workout: 7 miles recovery
Notes: Cool. Breezy. Easy recovery miles. Feel ready for tomorrow!

Sun 4/9/17
Workout: 20 mile long run with 14 at marathon pace
Notes: Cool to warm by end of run. No wind. Key workout of this cycle. Great success! Had this one circled from the get-go. Was a bit intimidating on paper a few months ago, but wasn't that big a mountain once I had successfully completed the long runs with 10 and 12 miles at MP. Run went 4 mile warm up, 14 at marathon pace, 2 cool down. Wanted the first few MP miles to mimic the start of the marathon, in that they would both be 10 - 15 seconds slower than my 6:50 goal marathon pace. Splits: 7:05, 7:00, 6:47, 6:46, 6:50, 6:50, 6:55, 6:43, 6:46, 6:46, 6:47, 6:53, 6:52, 6:50. Overall, 20.1 miles in 2:25 or 7:13 average pace. This was a depletion run in that I took no nutrition or hydration with me. I did take a quick water fountain stop after 10.5 miles. I grew slightly fatigued about 8 or 9 miles in, but was never really uncomfortable. Gotta feel really good about this effort. With a solid taper and fresh legs, a sub 3 is there for the taking.

Marathon Training Log: Week 13

Week 13: 62.7 miles
Week 1 - 13 average: 66.9 miles / 869.3 total

Weekly Summary
Monday, Mar 27, 2017 thru Sunday, Apr 02, 2017

Day	Miles	Pace	Description	Link
Mon	5.8	8:10	AM recovery miles	strava
Mon	4.0	7:52	PM recovery miles	strava
Tue	9.1	7:41	5up, 5 x 600 w 200 jog, 1.5down	strava
Wed	7.0	8:12	Recovery miles	strava
Thu	14.0	7:56	MLR	strava
Fri	5.8	8:18	Cold, rainy, raw recovery miles	strava
Sat	4.0	8:10	Cherry blossom shakeout	strava
Sun	2.7	10:03	Morning Run	strava
Sun	10.1	6:17	Cherry Blossom 10 miler - PR!	strava
	62.5	7:51

Three weeks left before the taper. Relatively low mileage this week with a race on Sunday followed by two weeks of 80 - 85 mpw. One thing I am really struggling with is exactly how to approach the Eugene marathon. I know I'm really close to sub 3 shape. Breaking 3 in my second marathon would be a huge personal accomplishment. But the whole strategy all along was to qualify for Boston. I would rather secure a BQ than attempt to go sub 3 and risk blowing up in the process. I still have time to flesh out these thoughts, but that's where my mind is. This is where having a coach would have been a big help.

Mon 3/27/17
Workout: AM: 5.8 recovery miles PM: 4.0 recovery miles
Notes: Monday morning weigh-in: 173.4? haha not sure what's going on with a 3 pound gain from last week. Chalking it up to variance / AM easy recovery miles, felt really loose after yesterday's 20. long run recovery aided by lots of walking immediately following. PM: more recovery miles. bit faster than I would have liked.

Tue 3/28/17
Workout: 2nd wedding anniversary! 9 miles total with 5 x 600 w/ 200 jog
Notes: warm. 5 mile warm up, 5x600 w 200 jog (2:11, 2:09, 2:08, 2:07, 2:04), 1.5 cool down. Starting to enjoy these 600m race week intervals. The higher volume Pfitz plan has these as 800s. Something to think about next cycle.

Wed 3/29/17
Workout: 7.0 recovery miles
Notes: Normally a MLR here, had to swap today for Thursday due to a work obligation. Fortunate that there haven't been more the past few months.

Thu 3/30/17
Workout: 14 mile medium long run
Notes: cool. Relaxed medium long run with race this weekend (7:57 avg)

Fri 3/31/17
Workout: 5.8 recovery miles
Notes: cold, rainy, raw recovery miles. Felt very sluggish and tight

Sat 4/1/17
Workout: 4.0 mile shakeout
Notes: Nice and easy shakeout. Really looking forward to being able to open up on a flat course at Cherry Blossom tomorrow. Hoping for sub 64.

Sun 4/2/17
Workout: 2.7 mile warm up + Cherry Blossom 10 miler
Notes: 1:03:21! Huge PR. Really really happy with my effort today. Going to write up race recap, but splits were: 6:35, 6:22, 6:21, 6:12, 6:12, 6:12, 6:11, 6:15, 6:17, 6:20. Didn't think I could put that many sub 6:20 miles together. Definitely surprised myself. Perfect race conditions out there!

Marathon Training Log: Week 12

Week 12 Summary: 72.4 miles

Weekly Summary
Monday, Mar 20, 2017 thru Sunday, Mar 26, 2017

Day	Miles	Pace	Description	Link
Mon	5.7	8:08	Recovery miles	strava
Tue	9.0	7:24	Steady miles	strava
Wed	13.1	7:15	MLR w/ 20 min tempo	strava
Thu	5.8	8:22	AM Recovery miles	strava
Thu	4.0	8:10	PM recovery miles	strava
Fri	3.0	8:04	Warmup	strava
Fri	4.3	6:22	FMT - 6 x 800 w 400 jog	strava
Fri	1.7	8:17	Cool down	strava
Sat	5.8	8:16	Easy post hike miles	strava
Sun	20.0	7:40	SLR w 4 @ MP	strava
	72.4	7:42

Mon 3/20/17
Workout: AM: rest PM: 5.7 recovery miles
Notes: morning weigh-in: 170.6 / Evening recovery miles. Felt pretty decent after the half yesterday.

Tue 3/21/17
Workout: 9 aerobic miles
Notes: Steady miles. Still feeling good post-race.

Wed 3/22/17
Workout: 13 mile medium long run
Notes: Chilly. WINDY. Cut back week last week has seemed to do wonders, despite racing the half on Sunday. Really feeling strong. Just went by feel this run and ended up doing a 20 minute tempo in the middle with a pretty solid run overall (8:32, 8:03, 7:47, 7:33, 7:34, 7:15, 6:50, 6:31, 6:29, 6:28, 7:04, 7:21, 7:05). All said, 13.1 total (always gotta add in that 0.1 to make it a half) in 1:35:15.

Thu 3/23/17
Workout: AM: 5.8 recovery miles PM: 4.0 recovery miles
Notes: Mid-week double. Easy recovery miles

Fri 3/24/17
Workout: 6 x 800 w 400 jog, 9 miles total
Notes: still cold. Spring weather finally for good tmrw? 800s on tap today. 3 mi warm up. 6 x 800 w 400 jog (3:00, 2:58, 2:57, 2:56, 2:56, 2:49) jogs about 1:55 each, so sub 8 min pace. First 800s this year - suppose to be at 5k pace; wanted to get 1-2 sec faster each rep. Headwind on home straightaway wasn't fun. Felt pretty strong, opened up a bit last one.

Sat 3/25/17
Workout: Hike AM, Midday 5.8 recovery miles
Notes: Morning hike with wife and dog to Billy Goat Sec B & C followed by easy recovery miles

Sun 3/26/17
Workout: 20 mile long run w/ 4 @ MP
Notes: Originally wasn't going to incorporate a fast finish or any MP miles and just use this run for time on feet and another 20, but felt good and loose after the first 12 miles, so decided to do 4 @ MP from mile 13 - 16. Last 4 easy.

Marathon Training Log: Week 11

Week 11: 54.4 miles

Weekly Summary
Monday, Mar 13, 2017 thru Sunday, Mar 19, 2017

Day	Miles	Pace	Description	Link
Mon	5.8	8:24	AM Recovery miles	strava
Mon	6.2	7:09	PM - Snowy track sesh 5 x 600 @5k w 200 jog	strava
Tue	5.9	8:15	Easy miles	strava
Wed	11.0	7:59	MLR	strava
Thu	6.7	7:55	Easy miles to close out 31 day runstreak. NYC half this wknd!	strava
Sat	4.7	10:17	Central Park shakeout w/ Des flyby	strava
Sun	0.8	8:49	Morning Run	strava
Sun	13.3	6:31	NYC Half Marathon - PR!	strava
	54.4	7:48

This week was a planned cutback week in both mileage and intensity, incorporating a mini taper leading up to the NYC Half on Sunday.

Mon 3/13/17
AM Workout: 5.8 recovery miles
PM Workout: 5 x 600 w 200 jog
Notes: morning weigh-in: 172.4 / Easy recovery miles AM. PM: 2 mi up, 5 x 600 @ 5k w 200 jog (2:08 - 2:10), 1.5 down. Decided to move up the track workout a day due to snow storm scheduled to reach DC tomorrow. Started snowing once I got up to the track, and was rather windy, but good to get it in. First track session of the year.

Tue 3/14/17
Workout: 5.8 recovery miles
Notes: Cold. Windy. Had to wait until 5pm due to STELLA. Easy miles, but now is 4th run in a little over 48 hours. Not a fan of this weather.

Wed 3/15/17
Workout: 11 MLR
Notes: Brutaly cold. Windy. Awful. Had a bad run to boot. Felt sluggish, couldn't get much going. TWO bathroom stops. Don't exactly feel ready for this half on Sunday. Today marks day 30 of the current run streak. One more tomorrow then finally a rest day on Friday. Feeling like I may have over extended myself? Hope not and this cut back week on mileage and intensity will help. Need to bear down these last 4.5 weeks!

Thu 3/16/17
Workout: 6.7 recovery miles
Notes: Easy recovery miles

Fri 3/17/17
Workout: Rest day
Notes: Travel day to NYC. Planned rest and recovery day. End of 31 day runstreak.

Sat 3/18/17
Workout: 4 mile shakeout
Notes: Birthday run! Birthday run in central park! With wife! And a Des flyby! And snow! Perfect.

Sun 3/19/17
Workout: NYC Half marathon
Notes: 1:26:38 - PB! Will write up a race recap.

Marathon Training Log: Week 10

Week 10: 76.5 miles

Weekly Summary
Monday, Mar 06, 2017 thru Sunday, Mar 12, 2017

Day	Miles	Pace	Description	Link
Mon	5.8	8:36	Recovery miles	strava
Tue	9.0	7:39	Going steady	strava
Wed	15.1	7:32	"Medium" long run	strava
Thu	7.0	8:20	Recovery miles	strava
Fri	13.1	7:15	4up, 7 tempo (6:32 avg), 2down	strava
Sat	8.4	8:16	Recovery miles + strides	strava
Sun	18.0	7:42	SLR	strava
	76.4	7:47

Mon 3/6/17
Workout: AM: 5.8 recovery miles, PM: rest
Notes: morning weigh-in: 172.2 / Easy recovery miles AM. PM: felt tired, and in need of rest, so opted for no double. Gotta listen to the body!

Tue 3/7/17
Workout: 9 miles steady
Notes: Mild. 2 up, 7 aerobic ~7:30 pace. Still feel fatigued. Tired. Steady state tougher to get to today.

Wed 3/8/17
Workout: 15 mile medium long run
Notes: Warm. Breezy. 4 mile warmup, then 11 averaging 7:21 pace. Still felt fatigued, but tried to keep the pace comfortable and not work for it. Big tempo run on Friday, so didn't want to force a fast finish today.

Thu 3/9/17
Workout: 7 recovery miles
Notes: Warm. Easy recovery miles

Fri 3/10/17
Workout: 13 miles with 7 tempo
Notes: Cool. Breezy. Woof. 7 mile tempo today. 4 warm up, 7 (6:39, 6:36, 6:33, 6:25, 6:33, 6:36, 6:26) for a 6:32 avg, 2 cool. Tempo was tough. Tailwind, headwind, tailwind, headwind. Flat route. I feel pretty good about the effort - though I was a bit dissapointed I couldn't negative split the entire workout. Puts me in position to hit 1:25 in New York, which has been  a goal all along.

Sat 3/11/17
Workout: 8 recovery miles + 6 strides
Notes: Cold. Easy recovery miles

Sun 3/12/17
Workout: 18 mile long run
Notes: Cold. Comfortable long run (7:43 avg pace). Tried to keep it as relaxed as possible with the NYC half next weekend. Planning a cut back week next with less overall intensity. Also, wanted to set up the possibility of getting a PM workout in on Monday with the incoming winter weather.

Marathon Training Log: Week 9

Week 9: 80.5 miles


Weekly Summary
Monday, Feb 27, 2017 thru Sunday, Mar 05, 2017

Day	Miles	Pace	Description	Link
Mon	5.8	8:18	Recovery miles	strava
Mon	4.1	8:29	Monday Daily Double	strava
Tue	9.1	7:30	9 steady	strava
Wed	15.1	7:27	MLR w 5 @ MP	strava
Thu	8.0	8:24	Headwind, tailwind, crosswind, all the wind	strava
Fri	13.1	7:32	Medium long run finishing faster	strava
Sat	7.4	7:57	Easy miles + strides	strava
Sun	18.0	7:11	SLR w 12 @ MP (6:48 avg) "comfortably uncomfortable"	strava
	80.6	7:40

Mon 2/27/17
Workout: AM: 5.8 recovery miles, PM: 4.1 recovery miles
Notes: morning weigh-in: 173.6 / Easy recovery miles AM. Easy recovery miles PM. Planning to continue doubles and #nodaysoff as long as my body doesn't indicate otherwise.

Tue 2/28/17
Workout: 9 miles steady
Notes: Warm-ish. 2 warmup, 7 aerobic/steady (7:26, 7:23, 7:22, 7:20, 7:23, 7:28, 7:20). Felt mostly comfortable. Big mileage week ahead; planning to hit 80, which will probably be my peak mileage this cycle give or take a mile or two.

Wed 3/1/17
Workout: 15 mile medium long run
Notes: March! In like a lion. Or is that April? At least all these miles will allow me to have SEVERAL shamrock shakes this month. 4 mi warmup, 4 mi aerobic (7:34, 7:35, 7:18, 7:10), 5 @ ~MP (6:51, 6:37, 6:50, 6:52, 6:48), 2 warm down. Legs definitely fatigued. Feeling pretty drained.

Thu 3/2/17
Workout: 8 recovery miles
Notes: XTREME wind. Easy recovery miles.

Fri 3/3/17
Workout: 13 mile medium long run fast finish
Notes: Cold. Less wind though. Progressive medium long run, trying to keep it loose and comfortable (8:41, 8:16, 8:01, 7:43, 7:34, 7:32, 7:22, 7:22, 7:14, 7:06, 6:49, 6:51, 7:28).

Sat 3/4/17
Workout: 7 recovery miles + 6 strides
Notes: Cold. Windy. Sad. Easy recovery miles plus 6 strides

Sun 3/5/17
Workout: 18 mile long run w/ 12 @ MP
Notes: 4 mile warmup then 12 at marathon pace (6:58, 6:58, 6:47, 6:45, 6:49, 6:47, 6:48, 6:47, 6:45, 6:53, 6:48, 6:38). Marathon pace miles were "comfortably uncomfortable." This was a big confidence booster that I may be ready for a sub 3 hour marathon at Eugene. Probably one of the 3 most singular important workouts of the cycle. Really pumped to have executed strongly.

Marathon Training Log: Week 8

Week 8 summary: 75.2 miles

Weekly Summary
Monday, Feb 20, 2017 thru Sunday, Feb 26, 2017

Day	Miles	Pace	Description	Link
Mon	5.8	8:30	Recovery miles	strava
Mon	4.0	8:14	Double the recovery, double the fun	strava
Tue	9.0	7:33	9 steady	strava
Wed	14.0	7:16	MLR w/ 8 @ MP	strava
Thu	7.0	8:40	Recovery miles	strava
Fri	11.0	7:42	MLR	strava
Sat	7.1	8:17	Club Challenge shakeout	strava
Sun	2.6	9:10	Morning Run	strava
Sun	0.5	9:14	Morning Run	strava
Sun	10.0	6:39	RRCA Club Challenge	strava
Sun	4.0	9:01	Recovery miles	strava
	75.0	7:51

Mon 2/20/17
Workout: 5.8 miles AM; 4.0 miles PM
Notes: morning weight-in: 173.2 / Easy recovery miles AM. Easy recovery miles PM. First double since college

Tue 2/21/17
Workout: 9 miles aerobic
Notes: Cooler. 2 warmup, 7 aerobic/steady (7:27, 7:24, 7:25, 7:23, 7:24, 7:32, 7:26). Wanted to be between 7:30 and 7:40, but ended up going a bit faster. Eyeing tomorrow's MLR for some MP work, so didn't want to over extend myself. Felt like I was working, but controlled.

Wed 2/22/17
Workout: 14 mile medium long run with 8 at marathon pace
Notes: Cool. Light winds. Knew I wanted to get in 6 - 8 miles at marathon pace since this would be the only workout before a 10 mile race on Sunday. Felt pretty good warming up and was able to get going pretty quickly so opted to go with 8. 3 mile warmup (8:40, 8:06, 7:46) then 1 bridge mile (usually first half at warmup effort, then last half building towards the next miles pace), then 8 at (near) MP (6:52, 6:55, 6:46, 6:49, 6:43, 6:48, 6:48, 6:55), then 2 cool down. MP ended up being a bit faster (6:49 avg), but I felt controlled and moderately comfortable; except for the pit stop after the 7th MP due to GI issues (sorry, TMI). Overall, great workout.

Thu 2/23/17
Workout: 7 miles recovery
Notes: Warm. Humid! IN FEBRUARY. Easy recovery miles. 8:40 avg. Felt great.

Fri 2/24/17
Workout: 11 mile medium long run
Notes: Warm. Humid. Comfortable MP + 10% after 3 warmup miles

Sat 2/25/17
Workout: 7 miles recovery
Notes: Warm. Easy recovery miles. Race tomorrow

Sun 2/26/17
Workout: 10 mile road race + 7 mile warmup/cool down
Notes: Cold. Windy. Miserable outside. 1:06:43 for 10 miles on a tough course (I'm not really training for hills since Eugene is flat, maybe that's a mistake?). Attacked hills for the first 6+ miles, but they got to me eventually. I think I'm currently in 1:04 10 mile shape, so I'm not going to dwell on this one too long.