Another week in the books, with one more to go before taper.
I mixed stuff up a bit this week. Normally my hard run days are Tuesday (intervals), Friday (tempo), and Sunday (long run). This weekend I had the final "4-3-2-1" workout on tap, which I had to do on Saturday due to the Marine Corps Marathon being on Sunday. This raised the question of where to fit in the tempo workout. The only real option was to do it on Thursday, but I really prefer to have at least 2 days between track workouts, since they're fairly hard on my body (the constant turns annoy my hips and ankles). After talking to my coach, we decided just to skip the tempo altogether this week - it just made sense since the tempo for this week was a fairly minimal cruise intervals - not that important a workout. And I think I'm better off for having only two hard workouts this week - it's not about packing in as many workouts as possible, but about hitting the proper balance of stress and recovery.
The other thing I mixed up were my shoes. My quest for the perfect shoe is quite the saga. By way of background, I ran very happily in the Kinvara for several years, including my first marathon. Until Saucony changed the shoe on me, so that it no longer fit my foot well. (Why do companies change good shoes?)
The was the start of a long quest for the perfect shoe. Or several perfect shoes (I don't ever want to get dependent on one shoe again - damn you Saucony). After a long cycle of injury, and test driving many shoes, and many consultations with podiatrists, PTs, etc, we determined that many of my injuries were caused by ankle instability. This ankle instability is accentuated by shoes that are soft and cushioned, allowing my foot to sink and wiggle with each strike. (I also supinate slightly, so despite my instability issues, "stability shoes" that correct pronation just give me peroneal tendonitis.)
So, I swapped to firm, light neutral shoes, and they've worked very well for me. The Mizuno Hitogami was instrumental in getting me healthy again, and the Adidas Adios Boost has been a good shoe for me too.
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| My current rotation, if you're interested. From left to right - Mizuno Hitogami, Mizuno Sayonara 2, Adidas Adios Boost, Adidas Adios Boost 2, Adidas Boston Boost 5 |
The problem is that neither of those shoes seems to be quite enough cushioning for me for the marathon (I know others have raced marathons well in them, but we're all unique). I don't feel I can race longer than 10 miles in the Hitogami; I had been planning on wearing the Adidas Adios Boost for my marathon, but my forefeet have been getting pretty sore during my long runs. Plus, it feels like the Adios is just a bit stiff for me.
So...went back to Road Runner, and picked up a pair of the Adias Boston Boost 5. On paper it seems like just what I wanted - very similar to the Adios, but slightly more cushioning in the forefoot, and also a lot more flexible. I took them for two test runs this week - an easy run on Thursday, and my "4-3-2-1" workout on Saturday. And....yay. They're not perfect - my forefeet were still slightly sore at the end of Saturday's run. But my ankles and heels were also slightly achy - indicating that I definitely don't want to go any heavier on the cushioning. These seem to strike the best balance. For me.
But the really good news was how ridiculously fast both runs were. I usually do my runs by effort - on easy runs I don't check pace at all, just heart rate. On my marathon pace runs, I do check pace, but I still stick to marathon pace effort, even if that means that my actual pace is slower or faster than goal MP. For both Thursday and Saturday's runs, my perceived effort was completely out of whack with the times I ran. In a good way - about 15 seconds faster per mile than perceived effort. These shoes are just a really good mate for my stride, I guess - running slow or fast felt easy and fun in them.
So, I'm going to run in these shoes 2-3 more times, including my last 20-22 miler this Sunday. Then I'll marathon in them. Hopefully they'll continue to work their magic.
I just wish they weren't hot pink.
Dailies
Monday: Yoga in the morning, foam rolling at night.
Tuesday: In the morning, 12 miles, including 6x800 in 3:05, 3:04, 3:00, 2:58, 2:57, 2:52. Followed with injury prevention work and 2000 yards easy swimming. Foam rolling at night.
Wednesday: 9 miles very easy (8:50), then yoga, followed by another 7 miles easy (8:38), plus drills+strides.
Foam rolling in the evening.
Thursday: In the morning, 3.5 miles very easy (8:47), then yoga, then another 6 miles very easy (8:12) followed by drills+strides and some upper body weight training/injury prevention work. Foam rolling in the evening.
Friday: 10
miles easy (8:22) followed by drills and strides. Foam rolling in the afternoon.
Saturday: 16.5 miles averaging 7:33; did the 4-3-2-1 workout. 3 mile easy jog, then:
4 miles in 27:42 (6:56/6:55/6:55/6:56), followed by a mile at 8:34 pace (and a quick bathroom break)
3 miles in 20:29 (6:50/6:45/6:40), followed by a mile at 8:03 pace (and a quick bathroom break - damn stomach)
2 miles in 13:44 (6:45/6:59 - think Garmin lost signal here during the second mile under the freeway), followed by a mile at 8:09 pace
1 mile in 6:34 (felt like 6:50 effort). Followed by half mile slow jog cooldown. Total time for the 10 hard miles - 68:29 - 6:51 average pace (was shooting for 7-ish).
Followed with some injury prevention work, 1000 yards easy swimming, yoga, and foam rolling.
Sunday: Cheering at the Marine Corps Marathon (my teammates rocked it, BTW) - logged 10 miles total jogging to different locations along the course. Later did 2000 yards of swimming and foam rolling.
Hey Cris, I have similar foot issues - I need stability but also tend to peroneal tendinitis - and I use the Kinvara and the Mizuno Elixir, though the Sayonara doesn't seem quite to work for me. I ran my last mrathon in the Brooks Pure Flow, which is like the Kinvara with more cushion - I don't know if it is too cushy for you, but you might give it a try.
ReplyDeleteI am going to look into the Adios Boost as several people I know have suggested it.
Thanks! I did try both the Pureflow and the Pureconnect this spring, running for several months in them. They were just too much shoe for me, though - I had recurring bouts of plantar fascitis and peroneal tendonitis in them. They're just a bit too stiff and cushioned for me.
DeleteLOL on the hot pink, just like those compression sleeves from a few years back. The universe is trying to tell you something! I always love hearing about other people's shoe journeys, and I am glad you found something that will work. Having the right shoe is so important! Nice job on your workouts last week. Sounds like things are going really well.
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