This past week was a pisser. I had some harder workouts, it continues to be an Indian Summer here in Chicago, and I’ve been stuffing mileage in where I can.
A huge knock on wood here... My calf feels solid again. My dead legs are long gone. With the exception of feeling tired, I continue to plug along.
In the last week:
- Tuesday evening progression – it was hot and humid, 14mi total w/ 5.5 at MGP or faster.
- Thursday afternoon track – Another hot and humid day. 10x800 at 2:36.4 average w/ 90sec recovery. It was about two seconds slower than I would've liked, but I think given the conditions, it was all I could expect.
- Thursday evening Olympic double – 11mi at a moderate pace. It made for a bitch of day, but it was an absolute mandatory run. A huge thank you to my friends, Michelle and Anu Parekh for including me in Anu’s birthday festivities.
Long story short, Michelle surprised Anu by having Matthew Centrowitz join a small group of us for the evening. In case you need a refresher... Matthew Centrowitz was freshly crowned the Rio 1500M Gold Medalist. He's the first American to win the 1500M Gold Medal since 1908!! Literally, HE IS QUENTIN CASSIDY FROM ONCE A RUNNER... only Matthew won the gold!!
The whirlwind festivities included an 11 mile run with him on Thursday evening, then dinner/drinks and hanging out, and then another 8 again on Friday AM. Everyone was totally geeked out by this. There’s no way we couldn’t have been!! The guy has inked his name into running history for having won one the greatest races I've ever watched. And to top it off, Matthew is a really friendly and genuine person too, let alone a complete stud. Seriously, a thoroughbred racehorse at his prime. It’ll be fun to watch him perform over the next few years as he ventures into more competitions and new distances. We’re all huge fans of his following this experience.
- Saturday 5K – There’s nothing to brag about here, as I choked out a lame 16:30 at Park Ridge. It was just that... me gutting the thing out.
First mile was solid and I clung to a 3rd place position, at 5:13. 1st and 2nd places were about 5 seconds ahead of me, and I had 4th slightly off my tail. Second mile I over took one of the front runners, but slowed to 5:19. And that was the end of it for me. The guy that was originally in 4th passed me and I just let him go. I slipped to a 5:23 in that third mile, and closed at 33 sec for the 16:30 and 3rd overall. The lame thing was, the guy that wound up passing me and in 2nd place was only 4 seconds ahead. I can’t say that I sucked, but I definitely didn't lay pipe like I was supposed to... I was just plain old tired. That capped off a 102 mile week, which had me over-running in the past couple days. There was no taper or letting up going into this thing.
- Sunday 24 – So following yesterday's 5K and now being officially two weeks from the Chicago Marathon, I was struggling with what to do with myself. I wanted a long run, but I didn’t know if I should push 20, 22, or 23. I started easier and just let it unfold. First 8 miles averaged about 7:15. I then began plugging away. I knocked it down with about 9 miles of 6:35-6:45s, followed by a couple of 6:10-6:15s in the 22+23rd miles. I felt completely strong the whole way and finished without the slightest dent from 75 degree heat or dehydration. Absolutely no complaints there, and it totally redeems my 16:30 the previous day.
In light of the 24, I’m definitely fit but I’m not done yet. It’s clearly risky doing all this two weeks out from the marathon, but given my lull in July and early August, then my speed bump a couple weeks ago... I don’t think it’s a bad strategy. After today, I have easy miles tomorrow, another bigger tempo on Tuesday, a day of rest on Wednesday, and then my infamous 20x400 track workout on Thursday.
After that, the peak is in and I can start a massive recovery for the following nine days. By Thursday, I’ll how fast I should gun this marathon.
Hopefully Centro has rubbed off on me, and helps my motivation to lay pipe on marathon morning:
No comments:
Post a Comment