Monday, July 4th:
Happy 4th of July!
5:20 am, 69 degrees, 95%, calm. Valley Run-Kilmer-Cherry Hill Blvd Loop. New Balance 890.
8m easy - 7:51 average. No fireworks today, but after a very sluggish first two miles (8:47 15!), I intentionally picked up the pace and averaged 7:38 the last 6 miles. It's crazy - no matter how sluggish and crappy I feel at a given point during an easy run, at some point I literally feel the switch going off and the momentum building as if I am gathering steam and strength with every step. I hope this trend continues, because it's a pretty awesome feeling to go from feeling that tired/lousy to that strong/rejuvenated. Good sign for the marathon.
1:00 pm, 85 degrees, 55%, 0-10 mph. Merchantville Loop (short version). Nike Lunarfly.
4m easy progression - 7:36 average. Almost the same pattern from this morning, in an abbreviated version. Opened with a relatively slow first mile (8:05) but just kept gaining steam each mile thereafter (7:38 27 12). Despite the heat, I felt very light on my feet and relaxed, focusing on form and breathing. I actually feel very strong going into my day off tomorrow, but I am keeping the bigger picture in mind and taking my breaks as they come. This is my first scheduled 60+ mile week of running since I resumed running 3 1/2 years ago, and being that I am supposed to AVERAGE 60 miles a week from now until Sept. 18th, I better rest when I can.
Tuesday, July 5th:
Off
Wednesday, July 6th:
4:40 am, 72 degrees, 90%, calm. Cherry Hill West Track. Nike Run Avant.
2m warmup, 8x800m (2:53) w/200m slow recovery jogs, 2m cooldown
Actual splits: (2:54 51 52 52 52 53 52 46)
Ridiculous humidity made this workout harder than it should have felt. The warmup and cooldown paces were pedestrian and the first rep felt difficult, but I settled down around the third rep and fell into a decent rhythm. I didn't check my splits for the last rep and just ran it on feel, focusing on form/turnover and trying to push the pace - not all out, but faster. All in all, a good workout considering the conditions.
Thursday, July 7th:
4:45 am, 73 degrees, 95%, 5mph. Maple Shade Loop (Long version). New Balance 890.
7m easy - 8:01 average. Another ridiculously humid morning. Didn't even bother trying to push the pace today, just let the run come. Did focus on shorter strides and quicker turnover today, as my left hamstring was a little tight at the beginning of the run, but thanks to the humidity was overly supple at the end. It's going to be a long summer at this rate.
2:15 pm, 91 degrees, 40%, 0-5mph. Neighborhood. Saucony C2.
3m easy - 7:40 average. Hot. Very Hot. But easy.
Friday, July 8th:
5:45 am, 72 degrees, 85%, calm. Moorestown. Adidas Marathon 10.
7m easy - 7:51 average. Easy conversational run with Rich. Ran two loops on the crushed gravel path again. Forgot how good it feels on the feet/legs. I have decided if I ever inherit/acquire many acres of land, I will install a crushed gravel path around the perimeter of the property and an obnoxiously large pool in the center. I would call my place Runner's Paradise!
1:00 pm, 83 degrees, 70%, 5-10 mph, overcast/drizzle. Neighborhood. Saucony C2.
3m easy - 7:49 average. Felt much more humid than this morning, but really, how tough can 3 mile easy pace runs be, even in crappy conditions? I remember when I started running again years ago that I could barely finish without stopping for 2 miles. Now 3 mile easy pace runs on double days are just a blip on the radar of the overall weekly mileage. That's a pleasant thought, which makes me think I have accomplished more today than I really have.
Saturday, July 9th:
6:30 am, 70-73 degrees, 90-75%, 0-10 mph. Moorestown. Adidas Marathon 10.
2.25m warm up 8:08 avg, 2x2mT w/2:00 jog (5:55 51, 52 50), 9.8m 7:20 avg
Overall - 16.5m, 7:08 average
Humidity started out high but was noticeably falling during the run which was nice. It was also nice to have Tom Elliott do the tempo segment of the run with me, and he gamely shared the effort. Felt strong on the easy pace segment after the tempo, at which point Rich, Colleen, and Ralph joined the run. Conversational pace (had a good debate with Tom about marathon training/racing!), but we did drop the last 3 miles to about 7:08-15 pace which felt smooth. Covered 1.5m more than I had planned, but couldn't pass up the company of others. I'll gladly deduct the extra mileage from the total of tomorrow's scheduled recovery run.
Sunday, July 10th:
5:30 am, 67 degrees, 65%, 0-10mph. Merchantville Loop. Nike Pegasus 27+ (Red).
5.5m rejuvenation pace - 8:10 average. Oh the irony...best temperature day so far this training cycle and it comes on an easy recovery day. Oh well. Made the run feel super comfortable - felt rather spry after yesterday's long workout effort.
Weekly Total: 63 miles
Another solid week. Terrible humidity almost every day, but I still put in lots of quality running and nailed both workouts. Felt very strong on my recovery days, which is always a positive sign. This also marks the first week since high school that I have topped 60m+! Many more to come this cycle, but still a great benchmark to celebrate. 7 more weeks to the half-marathon, 14 more weeks to the marathon.
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