Fall 2013 Base Training, Week 11

Monday, December 2nd:

8:00pm, 39 degrees, 75%, calm.  Maple Shade Loop (M).  Adidas Adizero Boston 3.

6mi easy - (8:03): including 4x :20 fast strides after (~5:15/mi)

Easy late night run.  Strides after felt fast but very controlled.

Tuesday, December 3rd:

7:50pm, 39 degrees, 75%, calm.  Cherry Hill West Track.  Saucony Cortana 3.

10mi total: 2mi warmup, 12x400m w/400m recovery jogs, 2mi cooldown
Goal Splits: :81
Actual Splits: 80 81 83 80 82 79 81 81 79 80 79 79
Recoveries: 2:01 00 00 02 01 06 02 00 05 03 04 05

First 5k interval workout in a LONG time.  As expected, the splits were a little erratic.  Couldn't really settle in on the :81/lap pace, so after the first 4 intervals I just settled into the feel of running fast with good form.  Started feeling the last 100m or so of the final 4 reps, but I wasn't laboring too badly since the recoveries were generous.  Hopefully when I do my 800s in a couple weeks I will be more consistent hitting :81/lap.  Happy with the effort, though I am sure I will be feeling it tomorrow.

Wednesday, December 4th:

8:30pm, 49 degrees, 75%, calm.  Maple Shade out-and-back.  Nike Pegasus 29 USATF.

7.5mi recovery - (8:13)

I gotta be honest, I was practically falling asleep heading out the door tonight wondering what I was thinking going out for a run.  Turned out to be the best run I have had in awhile.  Not sure if it was the lack of expectation/pressure of getting to run so slow, or if it was just my body's way of thanking me for taking it easy after yesterday.  But it felt great once I got moving.

Thursday, December 5th:

8:00pm, 59 degrees, 90%, 5-10mph.  Hialeah-Kilmer-Neighborhood.  Adidas Supernova Glide 5.

7.5mi easy - (7:54): including 4x :20 fast strides after (~5:00-:30/mi)

Another night where I eased into the pace, slowly progressing from ~8:10/mi down to ~7:40/mi.  The strides also progressively got faster and smoother.  Did some light weights and core work after.

Friday, December 6th:

5:35am, 60 degrees, 90%, 5-15mph.  Moorestown and back.   Adidas Adizero Boston 3.

10mi total - 3mi warmup including 4x:20 strides (~5:40/mi pace), 5mi @ goal marathon pace 6:23 (21 22 24 22 26), 2mi cooldown

Like last night, another unseasonably warm run.  I got a little excited the first mile of the tempo and ran the first 1/2mi at 6:00/mi pace before backing off and finally settling into a steady rhythm around 2.5mi.  Had a tailwind the first 2mi and a headwind the last 3mi of the tempo.  The last mile also included all of Heller's Hill.  Instead of attacking the hill I backed off and kept an even effort, splitting the last mile in 6:30 pace/6:22 pace for the two halves.  Despite yo-yoing the paces at times, I felt very controlled and within myself.  A great first MP effort.

3:55pm, 44 degrees,  90%, 5-10mph.  2x Neighborhood Loop.  New Balance 1260v2.

4mi recovery - (8:15)

What a difference several hours makes.  The temperatures really took a dive from this morning.  My hamstrings got a little tight from the dead lifts I did last night along with the tempo running I did this morning.  Thankfully I had nice brand-new cushioned shoes that I scored on Black Friday to break in this afternoon.

Saturday, December 7th:

8:00am,  37 degrees, 70%, 10mph.  JP's house.  New Balance 1260v2.

8mi recovery - (8:07)

Beautiful morning for a run.  Met JP at his house and then we picked up Colleen just outside of MRC after 2.5mi.  The group dynamic/conversation made the run just fly by today.  We started very easy (8:52 first mile) and then threw in a couple 7:50s in there.  Was very comfortable the whole way.

2:30pm, 38 degrees, 62%, 15mph.  2x Neighborhood Loop.  Nike Pegasus 29 USATF.

4mi easy - (7:45)

Wind was steady this afternoon, but I practiced great mental imagery (imagined myself as a wedge cutting into the wind) and kept my stride very relaxed.  Felt very smooth and strong.

Sunday, December 8th:

8:00am, 28-30 degrees, 60%, 0-10mph.  Haddonfield.  Saucony Cortana 3.

15mi total - 1mi warmup, 12mi moderate (7:02/mi average), 2mi cooldown

Very nice moderate long run with Ashley.  We did the regular Tavistock Loop (Upland, Greenmount, Triple) the first time, and did a longer reverse loop (Ellis, Triple, Soccer Fields, Greenmount, Winding Way, Washington) the second time.  Added the Croft Farm circuit at the beginning and the end for the warmup and cooldown.  Felt very in control the entire run, and really powered up Washington Ave on the reverse loop.  Had lots more running in me.  Great way to cap the week.

Weekly Total: 72 miles

Can't complain about this week at all.  Classic marathon training week for me with 3 quality sessions.  The true test is to see how I will feel tomorrow and all of next week with the amount of running already in my legs.  Very, very pleased with Week 1.