Philly Marathon Training, Week 13

Monday, October 13th:

Rest.  Worst migraine in the world.  Hard to think, let alone run.  Hopefully feel better for tomorrow night's planned workout.

Tuesday,  October 14th:

7:45pm, 70 degrees, 84%, 5-10mph.  5x Neighborhood Loop.  Adidas Adios Boost.

11mi (1:19:04): including 3x2mi (6:11/mi avg) w/.5mi recovery jogs (4:25/avg)
Splits: 12:25 24 19

Unseasonably warm temps tonight, so I made sure to hydrate well beforehand and take the warmup/cooldown/recovery jogs very easy.  Nonetheless, I was able to hit the pace fairly well, although I kept seeming to want to pickup the pace during the second mile of each interval.  Still, my form held well the entire workout and I wasn't completely spent at the end so I'll call it a success.

Wednesday, October 15th:

8:00pm, Treadmill - Outside/Rain.  Saucony Cortana 3.

4mi (34:12) (8:33/mi)

A run to forget.  Started inside on the treadmill for two easy miles, but began to overheat because of the temps in the back porch.  So against better judgment, I headed outside for what was supposed to be six more miles in the rain.  After two more slow miles with my entire body soaked, my legs feeling dead, and my pace slowing by the step, I decided to just bag the rest of the run and call it a day.  I haven't had a stinker of a run in quite awhile, so I can't really complain.  Just hope the rest of the week has better surprises in store.

Thursday, October 16th:

6:45pm, 62 degrees, 73%, 5-10mph.  Hialeah-Kilmer-Neighborhood.  Asics Kayano 19.

8mi (1:03:31) (7:56/mi)

Felt like I got my legs back under me.  Ran about 1:30 negative split from the first half to the second half.  Night and day difference from yesterday.

Friday, October 17th:

8:30am, 59 degrees, 84%, 0-10mph.  CHW-CH Blvd Loop for warmup/cooldown.  4+ times CHW Loop for tempo.  Adidas Glide 6 Boost.

14mi (1:37:26), as 2.5mi warmup, 9mi alternating tempo 6:20/avg (alternating miles of 6:07/6:36), 2.5mi
 cooldown
Tempo Splits: 6:05 33 07 35 08 36 08 38 08

Nailed what was probably my most challenging workout thus far of the cycle.  I was targeting alternating splits of 6:10/6:40, so I was a little quick on both ends.  But I felt good.  Definitely had to work a little more the last 3mi but I was still within myself.  However, I am not sure I could have kept that workout up  much longer than maybe 2-3mi more without really laboring.  It's quite a challenge to go back and forth between those two paces, however the good news is those 6:36s felt really easy.  Great workout for practicing lactate clearance.  Felt very strong and smooth on the cooldown.

Saturday, October 18th:

6:40am, 56 degrees, 86%, calm.  Moorestown.  Nike Pegasus 29 USATF.

10mi (1:26:25) (8:39/mi)

Very relaxed easy run.  First 2mi solo, next 4mi with Ed's group, last 4mi with Rich.  Felt marvelous to get out on a beautiful day and enjoy the scenery/pace.

Sunday, October 19th:

6:00am, 47 degrees, 71%, 10-20mph.  Moorestown.  Adidas Glide 6 Boost.

18mi (2:10:20): as 8mi easy (7:57), 4mi (6:55), 3mi (6:39), 3mi (6:25 20 15)

Another magical long workout.  I had Steve and Colleen to keep me company for the first 7mi, so I didn't really have to do much thinking until the faster stuff was getting ready to start.  Breaking down the workout into segments really helped make it go by faster, which is great practice for breaking down the marathon into manageable 5k-5mi chunks.  As usual, I found myself taking the first 1/2mi of each new pace to work into the right zone, but from there it was pretty steady running.  I actually felt my best/strongest/smoothest over the last two miles, when I was running faster than goal MP.  While I obviously respect the marathon distance, I am starting to lose the fear of running 6:25/mi or faster over 26.2mi.  I am getting more and more confident that my body can handle it, even on tired legs.

Weekly Total: 65 miles

The week didn't go exactly as planned, but man, those were three of the most solid workouts I have ever put together, and to string them in one week is just amazing to me.  I am getting more and more confidence as the training gets deeper into the cycle.  I keep waiting for the density of the training to catch up to me, but for now I'll just keep riding the wave and being as smart as possible.