Moving on

Since completely botching NYC, I've been in limbo with my running. I'm now finally ready to get moving again.

Ultimately I want to do another marathon and piggy back off of New York. I feel like I completely short changed myself after months of solid training. But, I need to get my calf sorted out first.

Ever since coming back from last year's stress fracture, I've been hindered on and off by shin splints that have lead to other material tightness/knots. Call it residual growing pains, rolling up too fast, whatever... it's frustrating that I've been running consistently for 6 years now and I still get shin splints after taking any down time... and the tightness stubbornly refuses to go away once it's started.

I've officially clocked 2,420 miles this year, and I'm willing to say that probably 50% of those miles were run under some sort of lingering shin or calf pain! Without these issues, I would've easily run 200-300 more miles... at least... and that's before considering that I was barely running at the beginning of the year due to the SFX.

SO, acknowledging that it needs to be addressed before I can train for another marathon, I've taken a different course of treatment. I started seeing a Chiropractor about 6 weeks ago. 2-3 treatments a week are not cheap by any means, but I feel that I've had significant progress.

His findings have been pretty cool: Basically, my hips have been out of alignment and slightly rotated so that my left hip was tracking behind and lower than my right hip. I've probably been like this for years. Being out of alignment has caused some muscles to be shut off while other muscles have been getting over worked and increasing imbalances. The result has ultimately lead to my left foot striking too far in front of my left hip, in spite of striking under my body. This undoubtedly causes shin splints and IT-band problems.... which have been consistently happening under my left hip for years. (It certainly explains a lot!!)

If nothing else, his adjustments have me standing much taller and more upright, and my hips feel much more aligned. My running form has improved somewhat. And the hope is that I will be less prone to shin splints. ...The troubles on the outside of my left calf (which ultimately shut down my training for NYC) are the result of overly tight IT-Bands and uneven muscle strength in my upper quads (a result of being out of alignment). I'm PT'ing myself to correct this.

SO, all of that said, I'm starting to feel more normal again with my running. I do feel out of shape - but that'll come back soon enough. I can finally start running again.

Today is 12/31/10. With the New Year and a resolution, I move on to better and more healthy running.

I have officially cherry picked my next goal race:

The flat, fast, and infamous Rotterdam Marathon, on April 10.

I start rolling back up tomorrow.... hang over or not.

Coming clean on NYC

OK, it's been long enough. I've delayed writing about this debacle as I've really just wanted to move on.

After months and months of hard training and fresh PR's: I bombed the NYC Marathon.

It was a nightmare. Undoubtedly, New York was the worst race and biggest disappointment of my running career. All I can do is chalk it up as a nasty experience and try to learn from it.

It boils down to this:

1) I pushed the redline too long with my training. I was ready weeks before I finished my peak, yet I continued to push the training. Somewhere around my Chicago Half Marathon, I tweaked something in my left calf. This problem compounded in my final peak weeks. My taper never allowed me to fully recover from this breakdown. My legs did feel better on race day - but I was still not 100%. Ultimately, I think I lost some of my zip in those weeks before toeing the line.... all other things being a non factor, and I might have been able to deal with this. BUT...

2) Race day weather was shit. Very unaccommodating for an aggressive race plan. New York's course goes North for the first 20 miles, then back South for the last 6 miles. The worst possible condition is a Northerly headwind. Guess what we got? A solid, relentless, 15 mph pounding headwind at all times for the first 20 miles, followed by swirling winds in the final miles. And of course, being the stubborn idiot I am, I decided to charge into that fucker without a care of conserving any energy for the last few miles.

3) The icing on the cake was 2 monstrous blisters, which took nearly 3 weeks to fully heal! This was poor planning on my part as they were caused by wearing socks that had given me blisters in the past. It was stupid. I felt the first blister coming on at about the half way point, and by mile 17 it was unbearable. I was forced to stop at 19 and pop it. Sitting down for 2 minutes after hammering for nearly 2 hours doesn't bode well. As a result, I unleashed a flood of lactic acid upon on my legs. After another 2 miles, I knew it was over.


SO, given that, here's how the blood bath went down...

The race plan was to try go "easy" for the first few miles over Vz Bridge, then start easing into a 6:05 to 6-flat pace. Split it at around 1:19:45.... then it was just a matter of hanging on to a 6:05ish pace. Net result was to hit 2:38-2:39.

Jason and I had planned on running together, but even before race day he wasn't overly confident about running a sub 2:40. I think given the weather, he became even more cautious. As a result, I chose to control the pace in spite of the winds.

Keep in mind, a sub-2:40 marathon in NYC puts you inside the top 150-200 runners (20+ could be female elites though, which don't run with the men). Not a lotta other guys to work with!

SO... given the relentless wind... and very few people that were around us, which always seemed to be going slower than us... this meant that if I was trying to control a pace, then I was leading the charge... and ultimately, I was not drafting at all.

Miles upon miles, my front running had me expending significantly more effort than I otherwise should have been. A 6:00 pace felt like a 5:50, if not faster. There was no way I would carry a 5:50 effort in New York. It may not have felt too badly through the half, but it eventually wore me down.

I say this because in hind sight, this strategy was flawed. At the time I was willing to accept that flaw in exchange for "giving it a shot." After I dropped to fix my blister, Jason still went on to finish in 2:41... actually a pretty solid run in those conditions. It remains to be seen if I could've hung on... regardless of my over training and the weather... but, my unforeseen fuck up with the blisters definitely blew that possibility out of the water.

My splits:

1 - 6:32.9 - A bit faster than it should've been - as we were working quite hard in the wind on VZ Bridge and getting around slower runners.

2 - 5:46.0 - More wind. Waaaay too fast!! We should've been closer to 6-flat on this down hill.

3 - 5:59.2 - More wind. Fast again! Should've been 6:10ish. Anyone who didn't belong around us was gone.

4 - 6:00.2 - More wind. On pace. No packs at all at this point. With Jason off my back, I lead the charge. We'd play yo-yo over the next several miles. I'd get a little ahead of him, then let him reel me back in as I'd take a break.

5 - 6:03.0 - More wind.

6 - 5:58.4 - More wind.

7 - 6:00.2 - More wind. Made a push to catch a small pack (or thin line) in front, with the hopes of drafting off of them. This group immediately fell apart as Jason and I hit it. We sliced right through it. A couple guys grabbed on and drafted off of us. They'd soon be dropped. It still left me leading the charge.

8 - 6:04.3 - More wind.

9 - 6:05.8 - Wind. Clifton Hill.

10 - 5:55.4 - Wind.

11 - 6:10.5 - Wind (I think you're getting the theme here).

12 - 6:01.7 - Wind.

13 - 6:06.0 - Wind.

13.1 SPLIT - 1:19:28 - 1/2 split was on the money for a sub 2:39. 17 seconds ahead of planned, but as Jason and I crossed the line we said to each other that it wasn't as easy as it should've been. I initially started to feel a blister building under my right foot. There wasn't anything I could do about it. It was just a matter of how much pain I could take.

14 - 6:10.2 - Tons of Wind. Pulaski Bridge - The wind was bad here. I recall rolling up the bridge and getting scum suckers drafting off of me. 2 guys hung did eventually hang. Everyone else seemed like they were crawling.

15 - 6:14.8 - No so much wind as up hill. Beginning of Queensboro Bridge. I was swapping the lead with one of the guys; the other dropped. The hanger was quite annoying, and actually stayed with Jason through 22 or 23.

16 - 6:17.6 - More hill than wind. Queensboro Bridge. Jason and I finally started running side-by-side more consistently. The bridge really ballooned my blister. Gripping on the up then down magnified the effect. By the time we hit Manhattan, the bottom of my right foot was on fire.

17 - 6:06.1 - 1st Avenue. Yep, wind. Mark Wehrman jumped in from the sideline and begun to pace with us. For the first time all day, I didn't feel the need to lead.

18 - 6:09.2 - Wind. The sting from my blister was unbearable. It was directly on the ball of my foot. I actually started to fall off the back of Jason and Mark. The blister was killing me. I attempted to slam my foot down on the ground with a few strides, in a hope that it would pop from impact. That only intensified the pain. By the end of the mile, I knew I couldn't go on.

19 - 7:21.5 - Wind. I was dropped by Jason and Mark. I absolutely had to pop the blister. Either that, or stop running altogether. Sub 2:40 was officially out. I didn't care. I couldn't go on like this. I pulled off to the side and immediately sat down, tore my shoe off, and began to claw at my right foot with my finger nails. The crowd stared at me in disgust as I literally ripped a silver dollar sized piece of skin from the ball of my foot. It gushed as I cut all around the sides... like no blister I've ever had before. Fucking sick, but instant relief. There was second blister in my left foot, but I wasn't worried about that right now. Just get the one done, get myself back together, and run as fast as I could.

Separately, while the spectators all looked at me as if I was a freak - a really nice guy did come over and held his hand out, waiting for me to finish so that he could help me up. It was a really nice gesture at a time of need.

All in all, the pit stop took a little over 1:30 of time. That means I dropped a sub 5:50 that mile... all in nasty wind. The adrenaline was pumping. There were no other runners around. This was a huge mistake.

20 - 6:30.0 - Lots of wind. I recognized that I pushed too hard after getting back up, so I pulled back a little. The wind also intensified as I crossed over Willis Street Bridge. I tried running with another guy at this slower pace. By the time I hit the mile marker though, I was a little concerned. It was 6:30. I didn't think I slowed up that much... and it certainly didn't feel easy.

21 - 6:50.8 - Swirling wind?? Bronx. Aside from the Yankees, I fuckin' hate the Bronx. I remember thinking the something back in 2008, when I ran through here. My little slow up in mile 20 wasn't a fluke. Pain was setting in now, only this time it was lactic acid. Sitting down to pop that blister wound up popping my whole race. My body was now pumping cement into my legs instead of blood and oxygen. Crossed the final bridge back into Manhattan. That mile was WAAAY too much of a struggle. I saw the split. I knew it was over.

22 - 7:05.8 - More swirling wind. 5th Avenue. There was negotiating here whatsoever. As soon as I saw 6:50 for the 21st mile, I pulled the plug instantly. (As if I had a choice). This was the smartest thing I did the whole day (followed immediately by the dumbest).

My race was over and I had purposely slowed up my pace. Now it was merely a debate as to how to get to the finish line. Should I stop altogether, try to freeze my ass off and find a subway? Do I barter with a cabbie? Do I find a medical tent somewhere?? I've never dropped out of a race. The smart thing to do would've been just to stop running altogether. But I did some simple math and decided that I could jog to the finish... 7:15-7:30's, and I'd still be somewhere between 2:47 and 2:50. Not good... but hell, I'd still get the fucking finisher's medal. (The logic that go through a tired, dehydrated, and weary mind).

23 - 7:27.4 - Nice 'n easy... How do I still have a head wind though?? The absolute pity is that I'm now getting passed by scores of runners. I was starting to feel embarrassed.

24 - 7:47.2 - All I could think is.... "I've come this far, and any asshole could run 3 miles. It's really just become the principle of getting to the finish. If I didn't stop after 21, then why should I stop now?? No pain here... I just can't go any faster if I wanted to. Where the fuck is Central Park?? Shouldn't it be here already?!? More runners passing... Move along, Dick. Nothing to see here.... Shit, this is a joke... I could run faster backwards."

25 - 8:10.0 - Death becomes me. Everything was stiff. Too late to bother stopping though.

26 - 8:13.1 - I saw a lady with a walker on the sidewalk... I swear she was going faster than I was. I felt nothing but sadness, anger, rage. I wanted to cry. Why the fuck did I choose to "jog" all the way to the finish line??? That was a really stupid idea.

.2 - 1:47.9 - Whatever.

Overall: 2:50:55

1/2 split - 1:19:28
2nd split - 1:30:57!!

Pace through the first 18 miles, before I stopped: 6:05. Pace in the last 5 miles after I pulled the plug: 7:45. It turns out that those last 5 miles of NYC were the slowest 5 miles I've had in a marathon in 5 years, and 9 races!!

There is no pride in what I did, and for that I regret it. Sure, I got a medal. A medal I hate and spite.

I should've just stopped running altogether after 21 miles. I still have no idea what was I thinking??

I ran a damn 1:14 half marathon BEFORE I EVEN ENTERED MY PEAK TRAINING... and then I pulled this shit.

NYC was a complete and total disaster.


So what do I learn?

1) The socks immediately got thrown out. I don't care if I PR'd twice in them. I knew right then and there that they were shit.

2) If it's insanely windy or poor conditions... don't be a hero. It's tough to admit it, but tuck and roll is a much easier and safer strategy than leading a charge to certain death.

3) Training... Not sure what I learned here, other than I knew I had an ailing calf. I thought the calf would heal by race day. It did get much better, but wasn't 100%. Maybe 85%? But the damage was done. I tapered too much to over compensate. So did I over train?? By that measure, yes. Was the training a disaster? No. Like I said, all other things being equal, and on an easier course with perfect conditions... I probably would've been alright.

Everything added up though... I busted my NYC.

Like it or not, it's go time.

I'm still not feeling 100%.

Out of the 4 runs this week, Monday was my best (a measly 4 miles at RP, and it still didn't feel easy). Since then, I've kinda been lumbering through everything else. I'm still feeling trashed.

Last night was 2x 1 mile amidst rain, wind, and hail. A 5:52 was into a ridiculous head wind, followed by a 5:35 while being pelted by hail! I cut the workout short and skipped my strides because it was so annoying. Not an ideal pre-marathon workout.

We're taking off in a few hours. Flying with Sarah, Jason, and Jamie. I'm heading to New York with feelings of disappointment and discouragement after chomping at the bit for the last 4 months. I know I've put in the work... way more than I have for any other race. I know I should be able to do what I'm setting out to do... But will my body let me? Have I recovered enough? ...As much preparation as I've done, as I sit here now, I'm feeling incredibly insecure and even frightened of what's to lie ahead.

It's all gonna boil down to: Can I toe that line feeling fresh on Sunday morning? Can I loosen up enough in the first couple miles to not only push the pace when needed, but merely maintain my pace in spite of headwinds and rolling hills? Can I keep my heart rate under control?!

Miles of trials and an ultimate trial of miles.

Time to focus

OK, last night's pace run went well. I can breathe a sigh of relief.

9 miles total with 4 at a goal pace. Splits were 6:10, 6:06, 6:00, 5:52. First couple miles had wind at the back, last two had a very nasty head wind. Eased into it, and then pressed a little with wind to see how I'd handle it.

It didn't feel as "easy" as I had hoped, but given the wind I shouldn't be all that discouraged. More importantly, a little tightness in the calves, otherwise I didn't hurt too badly. It may have been one of the more comfortable runs that I've had in weeks.

A month ago, I wanted to tear my teeth into some pavement. A week ago, I wanted to curl up and die. After last night, some of that confidence is coming back.

Time to focus on the actual race, as opposed to nursing my aching body.

A main concern will be the wind. I'm sure it'll change significantly between now and Sunday... Right now though, Weather.com is calling for Sunny, 38 Lo / 50 Hi, 15mph W winds. Temp is ideal; wind is definitely not!

There's good and bad here. With the layout of the course, optimal wind would be from the SW for the first 20 miles, and then we do an about-face... so NE for the last 6 miles. A Westerly wind may not be all that horrible until the last 6 miles, which still wouldn't be a direct onslaught. Also, we can only hope that it's not a nagging, steady, Chicago-style wind.

Anyway, I can only worry so much about this. I'm either gonna have it after the Bronx or I'm not. Fifth Ave is a bitch no matter what. Hopefully I'll be lucky enough to still have Ream and a few guys to work with.

In the mean time, here's a nice video of the course combined with the map:

It's always darkest before dawn.

Three weeks ago, I felt as fit as could be. The best shape in my life. Unfortunately, I'm now questioning that I may have trained to get through the training, not to toe the line.

This taper has been a killer. My legs have felt trashed for far too long now. I've compensated by taking numerous days off, living in compression socks, on ice, and on Aleve.

So not only do I feel like I'm not running enough, but I'm also eating and drinking like garbage to boot. Not good!! Maybe this has been some sort of subconscious sabotage and depression as a result of over training? When I add it all up, it seems disgusting what I've done to myself in the last few weeks. I'm officially on a serious detox and diet for the next 7 days.

On the brighter side of things, with each passing day my legs do feel better. Two out of my last 3 runs have been reasonable. As of yesterday, my calf is no longer overly tight or swelled... It's actually starting to feel human again. Today I'm walking 100% pain free for the first time in a while. Could this be a ray of hope?

Tonight's run will be a key test. Can I go 4 measly miles at race pace without feeling totally gassed, or being trashed tomorrow AM? If so, then I think game on.

There is still the possibility that I didn't over train for this thing and leave my best miles on the lakefront or in Barrington. It's always darkest before dawn, and this morning I felt the sun starting to rise.

Growing impatient

My taper is becoming a lame duck session. A week in, and I'm starting to question my training.

Simply put, I'm feeling banged up. My calves are trashed, especially my left. Not so much the shins, but general lingering soreness and knots that feel like they've been ingrained in my legs for months now. I fear that I may have torn something and it could get worse before it gets better.

Last week I planned on taking 2-3 days off. I wound up taking 4 days off and running a measly 33 miles. I missed my first long run of the training season.

Sarah has given me 3 massages in the past week. Seriously, who gets 3 massages in a week?? As much as they seem to help, and as much as she knocks shit out of them... the next day I feel like I'm right back at square 1. I keep waiting for that magical morning where I wake up and nothing hurts.

At least I can say I haven't killed my quality (yet)...

Last Wednesday, we did a huge 12x 800 workout. I averaged 2:34/2:35 throughout the workout. Unlike the previous set of 800's though, I didn't seem to have the strength to pick it up towards the end. Maintaining was hard enough.

Last night, in a windy tempo workout, I struggled to maintain marathon pace for 8 miles. I seriously felt like I was giving it all I could, only to run marathon pace. Sad.

I'm not quite sure where to go from here. Maybe I need to kill the quality? I'm feeling like garbage the morning after harder runs, when I should be slowly feeling better with each passing day. I can't stop running altogether, otherwise I risk "racing" the marathon.

This is very disappointing. I put in a lot of work, and had awesome training. It really didn't seem like I was over doing it. Now I'm paying for it.

Taper, bitchez!

A few weeks back, I claimed that I was going to attempt to hit 375-385 miles over a 28 days streak. Well it didn't happen. I pushed the red line too much. Fortunately, I didn't break.

I did come close though, as I strung together 359 miles over a 28 day period of time. 378 miles over 29 days. Basically 13 miles a day. I was forced to take 2 days off in there, which I hadn't anticipated and I wound up about 15-20 miles shy of my goal. In the end, this wasn't easy. The last several runs were totally forced.

By the simple measure of missing 2 days of running, and 15-20 miles - I failed in my training goal. But that's ridiculous to think that way. In the process, I've put in some of the best training I've ever attempting. I've had a 5 monstrous weeks that included:

A solid PR in the half marathon.

5 long runs ranging from 20-24 miles (1 of which had about 20 miles @ 6:15 avg pace).

5 mid-week long runs of 16-17 miles.

4 tempo runs at 7 miles or more (1x7, 2x9, 1x10).

3 ballz out track workouts.

Running through a 5K PR, the morning after a 22.

2 separate 100+ mile stretches over 3 weeks.

PR of 103 miles within 7 days.

After last night's 10 miles at 5:55 average, I'd say that pretty much puts the icing on the cake. The core of my training is done, and my reward is a couple of much needed days off.

Now I recover and replace quantity with quality. 2-1/2 weeks until NYC.

Insane Ladder

Forget the Crazy Ladder... this shit was Insane!

4x 400 @ 77/76/75's
2x 800 @ 77/78's
1x 1600 @ 5:10 (77/78)
2x 800 @ 77/78's
4x 400 @ 73, 72, 71, 70
75 sec rest, except for 2 min before/after the mile.

= 5 miles of WOWWZA speed!!

Monster, Ream, and I plowed through the thing. Jason did most of the pacing, since I forgot my stupid watch (who forgets their watch for the track??)... Michael kept me rolling by pushing from behind. I had it easy by just staying in the middle of the pack.

The fact that we ran this in the middle of our peak week speaks volumes. Everyone's tired. Everyone's sore. Everyone's motivation is slipping... each day feels like we're hanging on by a thread with our training.... our bodies want rest and recovery... I've been waking up in the morning thinking that I'm one run and a crutch away from a damn telethon...

But together we run stronger than alone. And together, we made it through this bitch of a workout, and got faster the further we progressed.

Runs like last night's are a testament to running with a group or training partners. There is no way I would've pushed as hard as I did on my own.

Thanks for your help guys!!

Almost done

103 miles in the last 7 days.

Almost all of this has been easy (7 min pace), longer runs. I've had a 16, 17, and a 20 miler. After a week off from speed, I did 14 miler on Monday with 9 progressing to tempo.

This last month has been all about peaking... Jamming in as much quantity as I can with a good mix of quality workouts. I briefly paid for it, but after a week of pulling back I'm now feeling much better. Somehow I've actually recovered in the middle of all this...?

Back to the track tonight.

6 more days of hard running before I start to shut my training down.

3 1/2 weeks until NYC.

Marathoning in Racing Flats...

This is a snippet from an email chain. It's a good subject, so I felt it was worthy to post for future reference. The original question was from Ken Fandell, asking whether or not he should run the Chicago Marathon in Nike Zoom XC 2's.... an ultra-light weight racing flat.

Here was my response:

-------------------------------------
The history of Rabbit's racing flats.........

Prior to last year, I was doing my marathons in the Nike Marathoner... good shoe. Not great - because I found that I was getting sore calves and/or tired feet late in the race. I think part of it had to do with the sole being slightly more stiff than typical racing shoes.

Boston '09 - I wore Lunar Racers... F*cking horrible. It went the complete opposite direction as the Marathoners. Not stiff, but ultra cushion AND a thick shoe. Absolutely stupid for a racing shoe. I have no idea how anyone ever considers them racing shoes (sorry Dan, Verdo and other fans).... They're like running on pillows. You lose all ability to "feel" the road, which is the beauty behind a racing flat. (Also, I firmly believe that the Lunars are what caused my shin splint that has persisted for the last 6 months - I ran for 2 months in the Lunar Trainers early this year and have been dealing with the side effects ever since.... it's just a come-and-go issue now that'll probably get cleared up with rest.)

(Years back, I did run a couple marathons in the Brooks ST Racers - I'd say they're a cross between the Marathoner and the Lunar Racers... slightly thicker than Marathoners w/ more support and cushion, but still light and you're able to feel the road.... I don't believe they've changed the shoe much since then. If you feel you absolutely need support, these could be good shoes. However, the argument is that during a "race", you shouldn't need support.)

Chicago '09 was the first time I ran a marathon in an uber-light flat... I used the Katanas (slightly more beefed up than the XC2). I had some big concerns leading into the race, thinking that they wouldn't have enough cushion. Hogwash!! They were great! No troubles at all. No calf flare up, no sore feet, no sore hips, nothing..... Added bonus is the grip on the bottom of the shoe. My only complaint was that they were just a little too narrow... but not a big enough deal to cause a problem. (Mind you, this was also still prior to me running significant amounts in flats).

London '10 - I wore the Nike XC2's - Awesome! Big improvement from the Katanas... better toe box and much lighter. No problems what so ever. I finished the race with my legs feeling better than any other marathon. I liked them so much, they're now my training shoe (along w/ 2008 version Adidas Adizero Adios Pro... which is actually my preferred flat, but I'm not allowed to race in them... they may have wrecked the newest Adidas version though). I'll be wearing XC2's again in NYC.

Conclusion: You'll be fine!!! You'll most likely feel even better wearing the flats. You'll definitely feel faster!!

As Jason said, you absolutely need to make sure you run a few times in them though. Make sure you've had at least a 10 mile run in them, if you intend on doing a marathon. Also, think light as a feather!! Don't go crushing your heel on the ground wearing them... Don't get sloppy. Stand tall, and use quick, light, strikes..... From my experience, the XC2's almost prevent you from getting too sloppy late in the race.

Probably WAAAY more information than you needed, but the whole point is - give it a shot. What is this, like you're 20th marathon? What do you have to lose? You're doing another in a month......
-------------------------------------

Full Disclosure: I've officially given up on trainers. With the exception of 2 runs since August 15th, I've been running 100% of my runs in racing flats! I have to say, I feel great - I have had no ITB troubles, no knee troubles, no hip troubles, and it feels like my form has significantly improved. My strikes are quicker, lighter, and back is straighter. I feel totally comfortable running each and every run in my racing flats.
HOWEVER, I am still having calf troubles. This is very frustrating and confusing. My left calf just will not let go! It is a lingering issue that goes back years. The only thing that seems to help is Aleve, massage, and multiple days of rest. This most recent bout has come from 1) rolling up too quickly after a break (primarily at the beginning of the year and post London), and 2) rolling up in the wrong shoe (I ran in Lunar Trainers back in January and February). Until I can rest either during my taper or after NYC, then I'll just have to deal with it.

Bucktown 5K

I can't say that I'm overly proud of this, but I did PR my 5k over the weekend... 16:45.

My 5K is pathetic. I don't race them often, and when I do it's not fun. Too much pain. I enjoy easing into a race, and there's nothing about easing into a 5K. It feels way too much like a sprint right off the line.

In theory I should be running 30 seconds faster in my 5K. Granted, I did run 22 miles the day before this race, but that's not the point. The point is, it's taken me 2-1/2 years to PR a 5k, and yesterday I couldn't fathom going any faster - regardless of how sore or fresh I was. Hell, my pace probably isn't much different for a 5K than a 5 mile race! Sad.

I guess I chalk it up and say that I've built myself in to a distance machine. I endure more like a turtle than a rabbit.

Bucktown 5K:
1- 5:21
2- 5:28
3- 5:18
.1- 0:37
= 16:45 (5:24 avg)

-------------------------------------

Separately - I've been banged up the last several days. I clearly pushed too hard in too short of a period with my 101. I had a lot of quality amidst quantity and as a result my calves have been extremely sore for a handful of days now. Sarah has really helped a lot with her massage work. I am finally feeling better today. I'm not hitting the speed button again until Wednesday... if even then. I need quantity this week and can't afford to take another day off.

101

101 miles in the last 7 days.

I sweated yesterday's track workout all day. I was feeling trashed. Legs were incredibly sore and tired. Still, I was resilient:

10x 800's w/ 75 second rest:
1 - 2:33.4
2- 2:34.7
3- 2:34.3
4- 2:35.5
5- 2:36.5
6- 2:34.5
7- 2:33.7
8- 2:34.0
9- 2:35.5
10- 2:31.5
Avg: 2:34 (77's)

Even better - I had to pace it all alone. McHair and Monster were there, but running their own paces. No Reamers to pull piggy back off of. I still felt plenty strong though, and easily could've belted out a couple more... or even pressed the pace slightly more.

My reward: I'm sore again this morning. Too sore. It's all in the calves. I had nightmares last night about getting injured.... and again, I've been sweating today's planned double.

I'm pulling the plug on my plans to close the week at 100. I'm already there w/ 101. I'm not going to gain anything from running myself into the ground. It shouldn't be this stressful so I'm taking today completely off and relaxing.

Hello 100

100 miles in the last 7 days.

Last night's tempo was supposed to be 4.5 miles at MGP (~6-6:05), then progress slightly for 4.5 miles. Splits were roughly 6:03, 5:56, 6:00, 5:54, 5:54, 5:51, 5:51, 5:42, 5:36... avg 5:52. I let Verdo do most of the work with the pace. In the end, it was way faster than I needed/wanted/intended. It definitely didn't feel as comfortable as I would've liked - but that's to be expected given my last several runs.

I'm sore today. Icing the calf and taking Aleve to come back down to earth. I'll also hit the hot tub and take a nap shortly.

I'm happy to see 100 again... but... I'm already ahead of my schedule for the week. I'm now pushing the red line with that many miles a week and a half sooner than I had originally anticipated. I need to exercise some restraint and be patient.

1 down, 3 to go

Target hit for the last week: 94 miles. After today's run, I'm at 98 miles in the last 7 days. 1st week through my 4 week peak. I had 3 hard quality runs amidst quantity...

Monday nite tempo - 7 miles on a windy night @ 5:44 pace. Progressed from 5:50ish down to 5:40ish. Happy with the results, but it certainly wasn't easy. Pace was similar to my half marathon - only the half marathon was significantly more comfortable.... I guess chalk that up as a lack of recovery from my 22 mile run 2 days prior.

Wednesday nite at St IggyPiggyopolis - 8x 3x 200 Cut-Downs, hammered at 34.5/33/32 splits (45 sec recovery after the 1st 2 reps, then slow 200 after the 3rd rep)... Awesome track workout. The cut-down stragergy focuses on turn-over and really gets the wheels going faster and faster. Ideally, I'd like to get another one of these in before NYC.

Back to Barrington - 22 miles on Saturday in Barrington. 2:19:30 total time, or 6:20 average pace, which included 1 mile warm up and 2 mile "ease" down... In other words, a near goal paced run with >1000 ft climb and >2000 ft net change.

I ran it solo. Basically out and retraced back (which is more difficult than running the Barrington Loops as it adds more intense hills later). Sarah assisted me on the bike, and that was an huge help!

I set out thinking I'd hold something more aggressive than my typical long run. After getting settled in with the first mile, everything just started falling into place. By the time I was able to catch some accurate splits, I was hitting 6:15's. Way more aggressive than I wanted, but it felt smooth so I just went with the flow. Most of the splits I took fluctuated between 6:05-6:20.

This was a huge run and confidence booster as: 1) I never had any rest/stopping since Sarah was able to help with Gatorade and Gu... 2) It was effectively an ultra-long "tempo" run... 3) The pace + hills provided a great NYC simulation... 4) I felt comfortable and strong the entire run.

After the past week, I'm feeling decent. Tired, and calves are sore (especially left).... otherwise no major complaints. I definitely feel like I need a day off, but can manage. At this point, I'll try to push 100 this week, step down slightly next week, and then pop the last week back up.

It's Business Time

After the 1/2, I took Monday off. I figured I had earned it. That'll be the last of that for a while. Since then, a double and 3- ten mile runs. Total for the week will be 82 after tomorrow's 20.

I build from here. It's go time. I have 4 weeks of solid training ahead of me. Everything I've run up until now has been merely to prepare me for these next 4 weeks. If all goes well, then those 4 weeks will prepare me to absolutely torch 5th Avenue.

Quantity with a handful of quality workouts. I'll take it week by week - but the goal is to have at least 1 week in the 90's and 2 weeks breaking 100 miles each. In all, I should see 375-385 miles over the next 28 days..... Come to think of it, 395-405 over the next 29 days. (GULP!)

Truly a trial of miles.

Mid-term Aced!

I fretted about this year's Chicago Half Marathon. No idea why, since I wound up blowing the doors off it. Simply put, I just started running and tried to maintain as long as I could. In the end, and aside from dealing with a monster blister on my foot in the last two miles... I killed it.

Weather was ideal for race conditions. I couldn't ask for a better day. Sunny, low 60's, a slight side wind from the west (occasionally annoying, but never hindering). Course was on the south-side of Chicago: looped through Jackson Park, headed north on Lake Shore Drive, then returned south on LSD, and finished in the park. Mostly flat except for a few overpasses.

Gun was at 7am. Pre-race rituals were pretty standard. Got down there with time to spare and everything flowed smoothly right up to the gun.

My initial goal was to go out at ~5:50. I’d either hang on to that, or if things felt good then I'd try to push splits down to 5:45. Ideally, I wanted sub-1:16.

Miles 1-3:
I started only a couple rows back from the line. However, it's a big race. Easily 50 guys took off fast and were ahead of me through at least the first mile. I wasn't sure how many of them actually belonged there, but eventually most would come back to me. Mile 1- 5:43.5... A tad faster than I wanted, but nothing critical. I had settled down after the first 1/2 mile anyway.

Cruised in the 2nd mile. Many of those overly eager soles started to get weeded out. I coasted by a couple packs of 5-10 runners. Nobody wanted to play with me.

By the end of the second mile a small pack formed with 5 or 6 up ahead, but otherwise I was amongst a thin line of runners. I saw a local stud, Jeff Jonaitis jump in with the pack. Either he was pacing or just doing a workout with another runner in that pack. His presence reassured me that they’d act as a steady measuring stick. I chose to play their chase. Mile 2- 5:49.1.

As we finished winding through Jackson Park, I had a handful of randoms around me that were trying to jockey for position. This was pretty annoying, as we didn't quite formed a pack. None of them wanted to work together. Lots of surging by some of them, and then laying off, but we had a long way to go to be messing around. I got cut off a couple times going around turns by one of the guys. Nothing like having to step over someone's heel because he has no respect for your personal space. Maybe I should've clipped him? 5:41.9. Still felt good, but the annoying maneuvers from the other runners upped the pace slightly.

Miles 4-8:
Heading north on Lake Shore Drive now, which meant wide lanes and long sweeping turns for almost the remainder of the race. The tangents would be extremely important to maintain. No sense in making the race any longer than it needed to be. Unfortunately, Gatorade and water tended to be on the outside of the course. Because of this and the fact that it wasn’t blazing hot - I limited the amount of times I took Gatorade (grabbed 3 drinks at one point or another).

Mile 4’s split was waaaaay off - 5:09.8! All I could do was laugh. Last year’s race was horribly mis-marked. Unfortunately, this year wasn't any different. Miles 5- 5:47.3, 6- 6:05.0, 7- 5:37.1, 8- 6:05.7. It felt like I had cruise control set on a 5:45ish pace in here, so mile 4’s error was returned over the next several splits. In this stretch, I simply tried to maintain and not lose too much distance on JJ’s pack ahead of me. For the most part, they were always about 25-50m ahead. As for my little angry pack, it gradually dissolved by mile 7. None of them were of any help, and they were also no longer threats as each of them fell off the back.

Miles 9-11:
The course turned with mile 9 on the 31st Street off ramp / on ramp, and began heading south again. I still felt very smooth and strong at this point, so I set my sights ahead. In my mind, everything up until now was not a race. It was merely getting me to a point where I could possibly pick up the pace. The questions at this point were: How fast was I actually going? And how much could I afford to pick it up?

The pack ahead began to fall apart after the off/on ramps. JJ and his partner were taking off. In the far distance, I could see Joe Guinness’s bright green FF singlet (aka - something was going wrong for him). I hit mile 9 with 5:35.3. The split actually seemed honest too. Since it didn't kill me, I continued to press on. I started to reel in the 4 or 5 guys that fell off of JJ. Each upcoming road kill became my motivation, and I easily passed each of them. Mile 10- 5:38.8. Gatorade. 5K to go. I approached Joe. A great runner, much faster than I am – but just not having a good day. We exchanged a few words, and I pulled the trigger. Mile 11- 5:29.2.

12-Finish:
Last 2 miles. Crowds were a non-event up until now. People all along the sides of the course. Masses of runners on the other side of the median. This part of the race actually became entertaining. Unfortunately, I was too dehydrated and deep to care. It was just noise. After passing Joe and 1 final runner, I had no more road kills for the taking. The next guy up had considerable distance on me.

Somewhere in here, I started to feel an extremely nasty blister on the ball of my right foot. Over the course of the next mile, the pain became quite intense. That's what I get for washing my shoes the night before and running in new socks!! This and a lack of motivation forced me to ease up slightly. Mile 12- 5:46.4. I was to easily hit mid-1:15's, if I didn't fall apart. I passed Sarah. She was screaming at the top of her lungs at me. Without any other motivation though, I just tried to keep my pace and avoid burning the hell out of my foot. Every step hurt at this point.

Turned off Lake Shore Drive onto Hayes. Mile 13- 5:46.8. As I approached the marker, I saw it ticking 1:14. Awesome! Given the blister, any kick was likely out of the question, but I had time. Hold and I can cruise to sub-1:15.

Then, just out of nowhere - some formerly road killed, sand baggin' son of a bitch snuck up and passed me. All I could do was try to get him back and stay with him. My foot was absolutely on fire! Burring him was out of the question. I didn't have the room, the pain threshold, or the will since I could see I was already sub-1:15. We basically crossed the line together – in my mind, I may have had a step or two on him. It turned out, that slag had 4 seconds on me by actual versus chip times, so he got the better placement. To add insult to injury, he was in my age group.

Finish: 1:14:50. 18th overall out of 14,000+, 3rd age group.

All in all – an absolutely awesome run! Well above my 'hopeful' expectations of a mid-1:15 run, in spite of a nasty blister.

The course was identical to last year. I’m not sure what that means... either its total distance is actually correct (depending on how perfectly you run the huge tangents), or it was long again. A couple runners with GPS’s both told me they ran 13.17 miles. Either I can still be upset about last year, or I can have solace in this year’s run and know for sure that I didn’t run a short course. Regardless, HUGE PR! 1:40 under Cary '09, and almost 2 minutes under Chicago 1/2 '09 on the same course.

Split recap:
1- 5:43.5
2- 5:49.1
3- 5:41.9
4- 5:09.8
5- 5:47.3
6- 6:05.0
7- 5:37.1
8- 6:02.7
9- 5:35.3
10- 5:38.8
11- 5:29.2
12- 5:46.4
13- 5:46.8
.1- 0:38.1

Finish- 1:14:50 / Avg- 05:42.5

Mid-term Exam

Front end loaded this week so I can get some rest and recover before Sunday's Chicago 1/2 Marathon. I'm taking a whopping 1 day off (today), and then doing a measly recovery run tomorrow. I'll still be in the low 60's for the week.

Today is much needed. It's my first day off since August 26th and basically my second in the last month. After the PF5 on Monday, I'm feeling it. Looking back, in the last 7 days I have 87 miles. Not ridiculous, but the most I've put in a 7 day stretch in 12 months. Left shin, right knee, left ITB are all tender.

This weekend's half marathon will be my first time running the distance since last year's Chicago 1/2. Unfortunately that course was slightly long, otherwise it would've been a PR for me. Hoping that they've sorted their shit out this year. It pisses me off beyond belief when a race distance is incorrect. (I mean seriously, how difficult it is to measure a course??)

This should be a great mid-term exam to see where I am with my training, but I have no idea what to expect. A) I'm pretty much running through it with 87 miles in the last 7 days, and coming off a mini-peak. B) I've had basically no racing to gauge myself. C) My track work has been handicapped by the summer weather, so I have no idea what kind of speed is under me. I'm just trying to go into the thing with no expectations, and if it feels good then I can go for it.

Park Forest 5mi

I haven't raced much in the last several months, since I've been building my mileage back up. The Woodsmen's 10.?K a few weeks back was the ice breaker, and really just a tempo on hills. Over Labor Day weekend, I ran the Park Forest Scenic 5 Miler.

I went into Park Forest thinking it would a glorified tempo, but unlikely anything all-in. I wound up running a very steady and controlled race.

It was a stacked race w/ some prize money. Something like 9 Kenyans showed up for a 300 person race! Also had a number of guys vying for top seats in the CARA standings. Weather was decent, however, winds were generally tails for miles 1 and 3, and heads on 2, 4, and 5.

Mile 1... Slightly down hill with a tail wind. Pretty much guaranteed to be the fastest mile. Several runners pushed ahead of me. Since I had no idea what I was actually going to wind up running, I just let it unfold. Everything felt good. A group of college / high school kids rolled by me. For a moment, I was impressed with how easy they were jamming. 5:27.

Mile 2... Blew by the kids. I thought they were going to suck on me as we turned into some head winds for about 1/2 mile. They weren't ever a threat. Dumb kids. I was no longer impressed. However, Felipe Lopez passed me (he'd be the last). Up in the distance were Steve Breeze and Mike Egle. All race hogs. Felipe and Steve are in my age group for the CARA Circuit, and they're generally slower than I am. I haven't seen them in a year, so this created a good measure for myself... They shouldn't blow me away. If they did, then I'd really need to start questioning my training. Felipe quickly put 20+ meters on me, and he still had another 20+ before Steve and Egle. 5:38.

Mile 3... Settled into auto pilot now. I still felt good, but didn't know how long that might last. I was slowly getting dropped by Felipe as he pushed to catch Steve and Egle. Maybe 50 meters between us now. Then all of a sudden, it was as if someone pulled in the train. We approached a few turns on the course, and I gained significant ground on their pack. I passed a few other guys that started to fade. 5:37.

Mile 4... I sat on Steve, Mike, and Felipe for a minute now. We turned a corner into the wind, and I immediately dropped them. No body challenged me. Somewhat surprising that Egle didn't step up. He's typically more aggressive than that. Either he had his own agenda, or he's starting to show his age. From here on, I was pretty much alone - one runner in the distance... easily another 100m up. I still felt strong, so I put a little more distance on the pack as I headed into a slight wind. 5:34.

Mile 5... Now straight into head winds, which were very steady and relentless. I still had plenty of gas, but the wind definitely made the final mile a challenge. At some points I was crawling. Other times, I was hammering. I mainly didn't want to get caught by my former road kills, so I just kept pressing. The runner in front of me was initially an after thought, but he started to show pain as the mile progressed. I could see him looking back and gauging me. We hit a quarter-mile long incline, and I started to reel him in. By the final 200m, he became my bitch. I buried him. An unimpressive 5:35 for the 5th mile, but given the evil headwinds, I'll take it. 27:53 overall.

First age for Circuit purposes... 14th over all... loaded w/ 9 Kenyans.

Split recap: 5:27, 5:38, 5:37, 5:34, 5:35... 27:53.

For comparative purposes: Back in the spring, my Shamrock 8k was 28:05 (also treated as a fast tempo versus all-in race). 8k is fractionally shorter than 5 miles. On an 8k basis, I could possibly shave another 8-10 seconds off the Park Forest time. Considering I didn't feel extremely taxed, I would say this was a nice test race.

Adirondacks

Two weeks at the cabin in the Adirondacks. I had the pleasure of spending the time with 5 dogs, 4 nieces, 3 sisters, 3 brother in laws, Mom and Dad, and The Most Interesting Man in the World. I can't really say that the trip was all that relaxing - but it was some much needed family time.

Clearly a whole ton of activities: rappelling off the cliffs from the falls, water skiing, swimming, hiking, 4-wheeling, boating, etc... and of course, my running...

Prior to getting up there, my left calf was starting to nag me. Once again, my age old fight with shin splints was on. They seem to go into hibernation, but never just die away. I took 3 days in a row off to chill things out and recover. (Probably much needed given the heat exhaustion/dehydration I've been experiencing in Chicago too). It would be one of my last opportunities to do this for quite some time. In the process, I loaded up on some anti-inflammatories, and started to stretch the hell out of my big toe (more so than ever before). And in the end I was running splint free by mid-week at the cabin. To note: all but 1 of my runs were in racing flats or VFFs.

I logged an 85 mile week and a 76 mile week. The 76 week was cut short because of a day trip to Old Forge. Every single run was on hills. Weather was very accommodating! Mostly in the low 70s for my runs, and only a couple soggy days. Importantly, no major injuries.

Adirondack Training Circuit:

Most was done on the 8 mile Soft Maple stretch between Effely Falls Road and the No. 4 Road (out and backs for 16). I also added a hill run to Stillwater, a tempo down to Croghan... and for the first time I ran the Woodsmen's Field Days 10k.

Croghan to Stillwater is a 2,000 foot climb, net 3,150 elevation change. My typical 16 mile loop is an 1,100 climb, net 2,100 change.

Workouts included:

16 mile progression run MGP (not so easy given the hills!!)

Woodsmen 10K: Hilly and clearly long by about 0.1mi. I went into it planning on doing a workout and going 35-36 depending on the hills. Sub-37 typically wins this thing. After I saw the first several runners bolt out of the gate (2 clearly belonged in front of me) - I stuck to the workout plan. Splits were 5:34, 5:38, 6:18 (hill+long!!), 5:47 (hill), 5:53 (hill), 5:34, 1:27.

11 miles to Croghan w/ 7 at roughly MGP (most of the MGP was rolling, w/o net elevation change).

20 miles w/ 7 at 6:35 on the hills.

The Chicago Steamer

Word on the street is that this summer is the WETTEST in history for Chicago. Combine that with steady 80-90+ degrees on a daily basis, and you get steam.

It's extremely uncomfortable and flat out sucks for training conditions. If by some miracle it's not ultra humid, then it's unbearably hot. It is impossible to run in this shit. It is also impossible to maintain any sort of hydration. At this point, I'm yearning for those frigid 0 degree days.... (though I know I'll regret that statement soon enough).

In spite of the weather, the last couple weeks' tempo runs have gone well. 6 miles for each of them, averaging low 5:40's. Last week wasn't 88 degrees, so I went marginally slower yesterday.

On the other hand, last Wednesday's track workout was a shit show. It was like 99.9999% humidity and 85 degrees. My 16x400's were at a sloppy 76-77 pace. Pathetic compared to what I should be able to run them in, and pathetic compared to the fact I basically ran the 400's at my 800's pace. I'm a whiny bitch... but it's justified because I haven't had a single decent track workout in this round of training. Each of my 5 workouts have been altered due to the weather.

I only have a few more days to deal with this though, as I'm leaving for the cabin on Friday. It'll definitely be cooler up there, though not necessarily less humid. I'll have 2 weeks in the Adirondack Mountains. When I get back, things should be more bearable and I'll be in much better shape to tear it up.

Hills, Hills, and more Hills.

Quote of the day courtesy of Erik:

"King of the Hills = PR."

I spent another weekend up in Wisconsin... and in between surviving on only the finest foods to be found at a gas station, including drinking enough beer to kill a dairy cow... I managed to run 27 miles... all on the hills in the beautiful country side.

6 miles w/ the guy on Friday. 21 alone on Saturday.

My 21 miler included a whopping 2280 feet of climbing and 4572 feet of elevation change:

http://www.usatf.org/routes/view.asp?rID=383577

2 WI weekends, + I'm guessing at least 1 or 2 long runs in Barrington, + spending 2 weeks in the Adirondacks, + at least another weekend up in Wisconsin...
= King of the hills = PR.

If I get through all of this... the next time I see 5th Ave, I'm gonna torch it.

Hitting a Wall

Pulling the plug on tonight's run. My running has been going well lately, but mentally I've hit a wall:

I've been getting my ass completely handed to me at work. I can't stop losing money. Today was another doozie. Market goes down, I lose money. Market goes up, I lose money. If the market goes down and then up in any given day, I lose even more money. Shorts are killing me, longs are killing me. It makes absolutely no sense. In theory, I should be slaying it with my bets, yet for some fucking reasons beyond my control (too many to potential to list here), I'm stuck in a horribly perfect storm working against me... The world fucking hates me, and it's been steadily getting worse for the last month and a half. I've had like 8 up days out of the last 32 trading days. Pathetic. Depressing. I feel like there's no cure. It's wearing on me.

Up until now, I've been able to ignore it and run through it. Today I can't. All I can do is hope that tomorrow I can cope with it better.

I've had total garbage for sleep lately. 6 hours a night for the last week+, and it's clearly catching up with me. It's making me even more cranky from work.

Lack of sleep and uber stress with work has my body literally feeling sore and bloated today. This is a wall that I can't run through... at least not today. The last thing I need is to disappoint myself with a shitty tempo run.

My solution: spend the evening with Sarah, make dinner, watch TV, totally vege out, and kill my $100 bottle of Del Dotto 2005 Napa Cabernet. Try again tomorrow.

Tempo

Last night... on a hot and humid evening, after a long day of work, and after running 26 miles of brutal hills in Wisconsin over the weekend... I ran 5 miles of tempo.

5:50, 5:42, 5:44, 5:39, 5:38.

I didn't smash any records, but it was a very respectable run with a nice negative split. I rolled at a good clip, and did it without dying or begging myself to end the run. I actually finished wanting more. Complete satisfaction.

A runner's high.

Summer Runnin'

In general, just lots of easy / steady runs lately. That's gradually changing though...

I'm above 50 for the last couple weeks (actually 69 for the last 7 days). All in all, I feel pretty decent. No significant pains anywhere. All systems "go" to continue rolling up.

Most notable over the last couple weeks:

First ever run totally barefoot!! Very cool! It was a couple miles on some mixed terrain w/ Chris Woods. We went to see Barefoot Ken Bob host a fun run out in Woodstock, IL. He's a totally off the wall, California-hippy that could pass as Jerry Garcia's stunt double... only BFKB's addicted to barefoot running (no need to speculate on any of his other vices). Anyway, BFKB's been 100% barefoot for the last couple decades, and completed something like 75 marathons and countless other races.... and in respectable times too! Let's just say that if anyone knows anything about barefoot running, then it's Barefoot Ken Bob. He started blogging his running back in the late '90s to document his work and hopefully help other runners make the switch.

It was interesting to hear BFKB talk about where people often go wrong when running without shoes. He made some very good points about how the foot strike and lift off can especially lead to injury... and not just about stepping on something sharp either. Toeing off too much or landing too far up on the ball will ultimately produce nasty blisters and potentially stress fractures down the road (yes, I know the feeling). Also, he is fairly convinced that when starting off barefoot, you must run purely barefoot as opposed to in VFFs... VFFs ironically still provide a lot of protection to our feet.

When it comes to running in general, everything's all about reducing impact forces and improving efficiency. Barefoot running takes that to the 1,000,000th degree. I'm slowly learning that these are things I can't naturally feel unless I totally lose protection on my feet. Its very easy to see how your body naturally straightens up, and your stride improves when running barefoot (as opposed to strapping pillows under your feet). It is an awesome learning tool... and cheaper than any coach or expensive running shoe.

So, the bug is back... I ran in my Vibram Five Fingers twice last week. It was awesome! The closest thing to being barefoot without actually being barefoot. It sounds cheesy, but running like this is such a great feeling of freedom. Once you do it a few times, you'll only want more of it. As excited as I am though, I still have to remind myself of the consequences of doing too much too soon. The last thing I want to do is risk another stress fracture. I'm saying no more than 2 runs a week in my VFFs (max of 5 miles each), and maybe a mile or two sans-everything.

Spent this past weekend up at Erik's place in Wisconsin. We went up to watch Myra slug it out with a disgusting 50 miler Dances with Dirt. Huge congrats to her for finishing that damn thing! - It was a ridiculously difficult course on an extremely hot day. That must have been brutal both physically and mentally.

Anyway, over the weekend I ran a 16 miler on Saturday and a 10 miler on Sunday. Both runs were on some rolling hills... OK, so 1,250ft of climbing and 2,500ft of total elevation change on the 10 miler alone. I guess a little more than "just" rolling? I'll be back up there in a couple more weeks for round 2. Hills like that are going to turn me into a monster...

Mid-Year Update

Silly McHair has inspired me to do some math:

It's June 30th. Half way. After this evening, I'll be at roughly 1,000 miles for the year.... or roughly 38 miles per week average.

A year ago, I was at around 1,225... or roughly 47 miles per week average. I rounded out last year with a total of 2280 in 10 months, then 2 months of absolute downtime due to the SFX.

Sadly, I'm embarrassed to say I've only run 1,000 miles this year. I'm 18% under where I was a year ago, and a lot of this year's mileage has been concentrated in only a very short period of time.


YTD:

- I was basically handicapped for the first month of training this year, which delayed any decent mileage until March...

- Then I crammed for London... which included many shin splits.

- Then took a couple weeks of down time or lower volume to recover...

- Then paced 20 miles of the Green Bay Marathon with Claudia and Jason, which GB+London took a far greater toll on me than I anticipated...

- So I then took even more down time for a few more weeks...

- Then when I was finally ready to start bumping my miles on June 1st, I basically broke ANOTHER toe at a street fest by massively stubbing it, and was forced to delay any sort of roll up in mileage....

- Which brings me to now: I finally hit 40 miles last week. Not quite where I'd like to be, but not horrible. I only feel mildly disgusting... but at least I'm healthy.


Going forward: I'm only signed up for 2 races at this moment... the Chicago Half Marathon in September and the New York City Marathon in November.

Any racing leading up to NYC will be a function of training for a PR in NYC - which won't be easy, since its a very difficult course.

Training basically began for NYC last week - with my whopping 40 miles (gotta start some where). I had 1 workout last week: a 4 mile tempo run. I'll have 1 workout this week: mile repeats tonight. Next week, I start kicking it into gear.

My basic stratergy: I'll make a steady climb up towards ~75 miles/week, hang on to that for 3 or 4 weeks, then push to 100 for a month, then come back down.

The key will be remaining injury free and trying to stay as "fresh" as possible.

Since London

Miles have been easy, and few and far between. But plenty of good times in the last month and a half....


London:

Paris:

Strasbourg (Straßburg):

My "new" 1986 Porsche 911 Carerra Targa: Frau Sandy Sarable. Drove from Utah to Chicago to pick her up... (then Chicago to Green Bay, then Chicago to Buffalo):

Memorial Day Gluttony w/ Humes:

Thumper gets married:

I moved in with this PYT:

Maifest mit keiner Lederhosen :(


...I later smashed and potentially broke my middle toe on my left foot at the fest... fortunately I was only forced to take a handful of days off.

Hawks win the Cup!!

My 5th Major: The London Marathon

Alright, this is long over due!! It's a month late. I've been very lazy about updating this blog as I've been preoccupied by traveling across Europe, then traveling across the country and getting a car, then Green Bay, then moving, blah blah blah. So, better late than never...


The London Marathon - April 25, 2010


All things considered, it went extremely well. I say all things considered because... 1) I didn't know if I was gonna even be able to get out of the country due to that freak'n volcano... 2) I had a bad case of insomnia for several days leading up to the trip... 3) I then had jet lag and barely slept the night before... 4) I had to stand outside in the cold rain for 2+ hours while waiting forever for the gun... 5) I had a horrible seed at the start, which made the first couple miles very difficult... Oh and 6) Let's not forget that I had a stress fracture 5 months earlier and had to force a crash course training schedule.

Not that I'm making excuses for anything, but I'm just pointing out that I had a lot stacked against me going into the race. That said, I exceeded my expectations of "low-2:40's", so I am very pleased. I ran a great 24 mile race... the last 2 miles, not so much... but everything was going so incredibly well for so long that I just had to go for broke.

The weather was a comfortable cool, but in typical London fashion we had to deal with rain in the morning, which made for a very annoying start. As the rain cleared up, it was replaced by a slight head wind while we ran mostly into the west.

The course was a point to point run that started in the south east part of the city, snaked, and finished to the north west. It reminded me of an inverted "S". Other than that, I had absolutely no idea what to expect. I've heard the course was flat. It wasn't. We started on some high ground, so the first 1/2 was mostly rolling down. We crossed Tower Bridge at the split, then stayed north of the Thames. I thought the 2nd half would've been flatter... I was again wrong. We continued downhill for another several miles, but then we had to basically retrace those down hills, and then roll to the finish.

This was important, because ultimately I ran the course the way that it wanted me to run it... I hit the gas on the downs, then recouped on the flats/ups. The slight downs and rolling persisted through about 20 miles, then a number of steady ups were 21-24, then rolling through 26.

Unfortunately, I started the race behind like 1000 people who had no business being in front of me..... The first mile was entirely spent scrambling and jockeying for some breathing room. By that point, anyone going my pace was long in front of me and I essentially ran the entire marathon alone, while steadily passing people.

After a few miles, I was so amazed with how fresh and strong I felt. So in spite of what I might have thought prior to the gun, I was getting all green lights to go for it. And that I did. I started hitting numerous sub-6 miles. They just melted away as I kept rolling.

Not in my wildest dreams did I think I'd be able to PR this thing. Yet as I had crossed the half at blazing 1:19:08, I started to wonder how long I could maintain. I knew eventually we'd have to go up hill somewhere... London wasn't a bottomless pit (though some might argue this). Per the results, I split the race in about 410th place, but finished in 172!!... I mean I passed hundreds, if not a thousand runners in the first 13 miles. I don't recall getting passed by a single person - until the 25 or 26th mile.

Ultimately, I couldn't maintain. As I expected, I gave time back on the up hill portion of the race between 21-24. A PR was still in the bag though.... Until... in the 25th mile I fell asleep. 6:44! All I had to do for something fantastic was maintain 6:15's. I have no idea what happened, but I went bust. I totally ran out of gas. No strength left whatsoever. 26 was a struggle to salvage any self-honor as I choked out that last 6:27.

Maybe it would've been different if I didn't press so hard so early? Or if I had a few more weeks of training? Or if I had more sleep? Regardless, there wasn't much I could do about it. I felt good, I committed to an aggressive race, I went for broke, and I knew I'd eventually have to pay some time back while going up hill later.

I wouldn't have changed a thing about it! I had to see if I could do it. And hey, it wasn't all that bad! It was a sloppy positive split, but from what I saw in the results - EVERYONE, with the exception of very very few people around my finishing time posted a mildly flat split, let alone negative. Chalk it up as experience for an experienced marathoner.

First half - 1:19:08, 410th
Second half - 1:20:45, 172th
Final - 2:39:53, 172th Overall, 2nd American


I now own 2 sub-2:40 marathons, all 5 World Marathon Majors, and 11 marathons total.

Mile splits:
1 - 6:19
2 - 6:02
3 - 5:47
4 - 6:02
5 - 5:57
6 - 6:13
7 - 6:09
8 - 6:05
9 - 6:02
10 - 5:57
11 - 6:01
12 - 5:57
13 - 5:56
14 - 5:54
15 - 5:57
16 - 5:58
17 - 5:57
18 - 5:50
19 - 6:10

20 - 6:05
21 - 6:14
22 - 6:17
23 - 6:16
24 - 6:15
25 - 6:44
26 - 6:27
.2 - 1:23

5K splits:
5 - 18:45 / 6:02
10 - 18:54 / 06:05
15 - 18:51 / 06:04
20 - 18:39 / 6:00
25 - 18:19 / 05:54
30 - 18:35 / 05:59
35 - 19:11 / 06:11
40 - 19:54 / 06:24
2.212 - 08:45 / 06:22

Eyjafjallajokull (update)

Looks like old man volcano is chilling out... or at least the EU was willing to bow to pressure from the airline industry to open up the sky for travel. Flights have been rolling steadily since last night.

Game on. Heading to the airport in a bit.

I'm starting to accept the fact that I'm going to have to run a marathon in a few days. Nerves are getting wiry.

Eyjafjallajokull

OK, so here's a fun wrench that I've been dealt in the last week:

The beautiful island of Iceland has decided to blow up - literally! Iceland is known for its numerous volcano's and hot springs, many of which are buried or surround by glaciers. Well guess what - one decided to blow up.

"Eyjafjallajokull" (pronounced "try to fucking screw Robert's London Marathon plans")... has been erupting on and off for the last month. A week ago, part of the volcano, which is essentially covered with a glacier, started to get violent. Lava, magma, glacial ice, and ash have been getting blasted 30,000 feet into the atmosphere. Combine that with the current heavy jet stream, and the result is Norther Europe is getting heavily shit upon . Hence, flights all over the continent have been cancelled for the last week - particularly in London!!! About 75% of all flights in Europe altogether have been cancelled in the last week!!

Ummm, not the ideal concern I'd like to have in the days leading up to my marathon! The whole experience is still a pretty surreal for me, as I feel like I'm in a bit of "marathon denial mode" - but this isn't helping any of my pre-marathon nerves.

Travel plans could be hosed. Sarah and I are supposed to leave for London tomorrow afternoon. I have no clue what the odds of that actually happening are. We're basically on a day-to-day basis. WTF!?! Apparently, London just now is opening up for some air traffic however, most US bound flights are still cancelled. It remains to be seen whether UK bound flights from Chicago will be starting back up today. I'll know more in a few hours. Leaving tomorrow is a crapshoot.

Let's not even get into the conversation that the air quality in London is crap right now too! I've seen comments that suggest the streets are slowly getting covered in dust. Not good.

The icing on the cake: I didn't opt for the European Volcano Trip Insurance with our travel plans.... We'll easily be hosed on maybe $2,000 worth of reservations that won't be refundable.

Eyjafjallajokull-whatever-yer-name-is can continue to erupt for the next 12 months or as long as it wants to, and spew massive ash plumes into the atmosphere every other day. ...Just a friendly reminder that mother nature rules above all else. Gotta keep an even keel.

Better

For the first time in 6 months, I finally feel like I'm getting into shape. Unfortunately, I feel like I'm maybe 3-4 weeks shy from being in a much better condition (as opposed to peaking)... and instead I'm gonna force a marathon in about a week.

I've pulled together a few good workouts in the past :

* 4/9 - 22 miles on a Friday night after a long day at work.
The first 10 were easy @ 7:15s. The next 6 were progressing from 6:45 to 6:20. Then 5 miles @ 6:15 progressing to 6:00. Final mile was a cool down. This was one of those pinnacle long runs where I just had to force myself to run faster and faster, slowly pulling a trigger. I finished strong and didn't have any troubles whatsoever.

* 4/12 - 12 w/ 8 miles tempo.
There was a good headwind for the first few miles of the run, but that clearly came back to help me towards the end. Goal was to start out at marathon pace into the wind, progress towards 1/2 marathon pace, then go nuts at the end. It went perfectly.... 6:09, 6:00, 6:08, 5:50, 5:44, 5:44, 5:29, 5:23 = 5:48 avg. A massive negative split. I finished feeling gassed, but not toasted. I plowed right through any lactic acid. I could've easily thrown in another couple miles (of course, slower than 5:23).

* 4/14 - Yasso 10x 800s.
In my mind, this is a key workout. I've said it before, I'll say it again - If I can't do these things at 2:40 reps, then I shouldn't even considering thinking about a low 2:40s marathon. I ran an average of 2:36. Unfortunately, the faster ones were earlier (going 2:33-35s). I did hang on through the end though (finishing 2:37-38s). 80 seconds rest. The last time I did this workout in the fall, I gave myself an extra 10 seconds rest. This tells me that I can have some confidence in running low 2:40s in London.

Reality

The reality of all this is that I had a stress fracture. I broke my foot. I was at my peak performance a little over 5 months ago. I was then forced to take about 2-1/2 months completely off. So I'm now only about 2-1/2 to 3 months back into my running.

Rule of thumb: It takes you twice your down time to get back to where you started. After all of my garbage running and down time over the last handful of years, I firmly believe that. If you take 1 week off, it takes you almost 2 weeks to get your fitness back. I took 2-1/2 months, and it'll take me 5 months of hard training to get back. I'm half to where I was in October. It will likely take until June or July to fully hit my stride again... probably longer, since I'll still have to recover from London.


I say this because in spite of a decent 20x 400m workout last night (jogged a 200m recovery - basically not allowing myself to fully rest between reps).... I still felt unsatisfied. The workout went very smooth, I held my splits, I even picked it up in the second half.

However, Jason was running 5x 1000s at a faster pace than my 400s. He eventually lapped me. Late in my workout, some of the other elite guys started running. I think they were doing 1600s... they were going at least my pace. (aka, potentially easing into sub 5min mile repeats). At one point, one of them blew by me like I was standing still.

It was very humbling. I actually felt embarrassed. Jesus, I was doing measly 400s!! I felt that there's no way I'm even in the same league as these guys. I was the piece of shit slow kid, and in their way on the track. Not a single one of the other "elites" even acknowledged me. I'm on their team! Or are I? Maybe I'm just the pity fuck?

On my lonely cool down, I came to my reality - I've only been running about 2-1/2 months; I've just started to right the ship. I'm half way to getting back in shape.

I have a marathon in a little over 2 weeks, and I'm far from where I wanted to be when I signed up for the damn thing... but its thousands of miles away and costs too much to bail on. Maybe it'll be dubbed the London Lay-up, but hey, at least I'm heading in the right direction.

Cramming

Last week got the ball rolling. Now its just a matter of hanging on for as long as I can....

-14 miles last Friday after work.

-23 miles on Saturday morning in Barrington (avg likely 6:50ish).

-12 miles on Sunday around noon.

That's 49 miles all within like 40 hours.

Socially my life has gone down the tubes. I'm in bed by 9:30 every night. Get up, go to work for 10 hours, come home, run a couple of hours, eat, go to bed. Such is the life of trying to cram for a marathon.

Since the weekend,

-I doubled for the second week in a row on Tuesday, w/ 6mi tempo after work. Tempo was solid, considering an 18 mile day - 6:00 down to high 5:40's, but I had some help from a wind at my back.

-Tracked last night with a variance of 200 cut downs. 4 sets of 4x 200, with an easy 200 jog in between reps (roughly 75 sec)... reps were consistent w/ #1 = 35-34, #2 = 34-33, #3 = 33-32, #4 = 32-31.
Looking back at my fall workouts, we ran with on 45 sec rest, and did 3 reps going 35, 33, 31.


All in all - Cramming is the only way to describe it... and quickly. I'm not terribly sore, but my legs no longer feel fresh. Calves feel like balloons. I'm tired. I'm hungry, but afraid to eat too much during the day as it'll upset my run.

The shins/calves are the only notable pains. They're better than they were a month ago, but keep tightening up with every 5-6 day streak. Massages have helped a lot. It's been a week since Sarah's had the chance to work on me though. I can tell. I'm stuck taking Aleve once or twice a day to reduce the swelling. I should probably suck it up and start wearing compression stocks while I'm not running.

Basically have 2 more weeks to cram in miles, then cut back for about a week and a half days. It all boils down to about 3-1/2 weeks of 80+ miles with as much quality as possible. Not your ideal marathon training, but its gonna have to do.

The Crazy Ladder

The missing piece to the puzzle lately has been my speed workouts. I've had some so-so track workouts in the past couple weeks. All a reminder that speed doesn't come back instantly.

Last night, however, was a pretty solid workout. Dubbed as a Crazy Ladder... and one to be repeated in a few weeks:

4mi warm up

1200 @ 86s
800@ 79, 80
400 @ 77
1600 @ 81-82s
1200 @ 80-82s
800 @ 79, 81
400 @ 71
90 rests

2mi cool down

The goal was to ease into the speed with the first 1200, get some fast endurance with the mile and second 1200, and add turnover with the 400s. Nothing ridiculously fast, but just a strong workout. It was definitely taxing, but ultimately I felt much more comfortable this week versus last week. I'm finally starting to see some gains.

Eyes on the Prize

The season opener for Chicago racing was yesterday... the ol' Shamrock Shuffle.

My expectations weren't overly high for one of my favorite races this year, given that I've hardly done any speed work lately. My main goal was just to run something of a steady, fast tempo... and not kill myself.

Weather was chilly - mid 30's. No ridiculous caked slush to deal with, like last year. With the exception of a nasty NE headwind, which effected the second half of the run, conditions were good for the race.

I wound up going 28:05 (unofficial because of elite start)... Splits were 5:30, 5:36, 5:42, 5:38, 5:38. Mike was a huge help, as he got me going. We ran the first 3.5 miles together. The only complaint I have is that I lead a train of scum suckers into some brutal wind during the latter part of the race. It seemed like nobody wanted to man up, and then a handful of them passed me in the last quarter mile. Roosevelt was a pisser this time around. It felt like I was crawling up that thing with the wind. Oh well.


Aside from the Shamrock though, I had a great 20 miler on the lakefront on Friday night. I ran about 17 of it at around 6:40ish pace. 6:30s with the wind at my back... and mid-6:40s with the headwind.

Hitting that pace for a long run, and then going a steady Shamrock tempo 36 hours later makes me feel a lot better about my running lately.

As of now, no shin splints. No massive knots in my calves. No pains in my foot. A little soreness from the Shamrock... otherwise, all systems go.

Eyes on the prize.

5 weeks 'til touchdown in Londontown.

Feel more like a turtle than a rabbit

I feel like I've been in a rut for the last couple of weeks. I'm finally starting to get some miles... In the 60's, but I've been plain old lethargic when it comes to adding speed.

Easy and maintenance miles are no problem. Long runs feel good the whole way. Even progression runs have gone well. Track speed sucks.

A couple of tempo runs in the last few weeks have gone alright, considering they're my first attempts. Last week I had 5 miles that started at about a 6min pace, and got down to 5:49... OK, but easily 10 seconds slower per mile than they should be.

I've also done two speed workouts in the last two weeks. Both were 6x 800's. Both were disappointing. I was hitting 79-83 second laps. Very inconsistent... with the expectation that I was consistently running the second lap slower than the first. Not good. Last night was especially lame. I was hoping to see week-over-week improvement but got nothing. I even pulled the plug and cut it short (6 instead of 8 reps). A morale loser.

I know I can't expect myself to all of a sudden start running at the pace I was back in the fall... but I'm discouraged by the fact that I've had to ramp up a little more slowly than I anticipated.

Shamrock Shuffle is on Sunday. Typically this is one of my favorite races. Last year, I had an excellent run in horrible conditions. I'm expecting a pretty lame showing this year. I'm not training hard enough to even consider tapering into it (not that there's even much to taper). I'll run through. 20 tomorrow night just to spite the fucker. Then treat the race as a tempo workout.

This week's miles are little light, as I took a long weekend to ski in Colorado. Next week will be a jump up in miles. I'll hold that for 3-4 weeks, then take it easy for a week into London.