Training log - Week ending 3/27/2022

This week was 46 miles of running, 1000 yards of swimming and 18 "miles" of pool-running -- training log is here.

Everything seems on the right track, so that's good.  Better coordination, better balance, and I was pretty happy with Tuesday's track workout.  Even Sunday's race felt much improved in terms of balance and how hard I was able to push.  I was a bit surprised by the time, which I felt didn't reflect the effort, but I guess that happens sometimes.

Dailies:

Monday:  9 "miles" of pool-running and upper body weights/core.   Foam rolling at night. 

Tuesday: 11 miles, including a track workout of 2x1600, 2x800, 400 in 7:08, 6:42, 3:11, 3:12, and 91. Recoveries of 5:17 and 5:42 after the 1600s, really long recoveries after the 800s (3:20 and 3:40).  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 8 miles easy (9:36) plus drills and four hill sprints.   Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 9 "miles" pool-running and upperbody weights/core.  Foam rolling at night.

Friday: 7 miles, including 1600m uptempo in 6:45 and then 2x200m in 48 and 47.  Foam rolling at night

Saturday: 4 miles very easy outside (9:29) plus drills.  Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 4 mile warm-up, and then a 5K race in 22:11.  8 miles easy after (9:30) and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling at night.

Race Report: Scope It Out 5K, March 27, 2022

I ran the Scope It Out 5K this morning, finishing in a time of 22:11, which was good enough for second place female.

This 5K was the next installation in my recurring series of "put yourself in situations that trigger your wobbliness/whatever issues and force yourself to deal with it."  Two things that really aggravate my issues are running in groups and strong side or tailwinds.  This race promised to have both, so yay.  And I was supporting a cause - colorectal cancer research - that is very important to my good friend Jillian, so that was an extra bonus.

The race started at Freedom Plaza at 9:00 am.  I've done enough races at Freedom Plaza to know that you need to get there fairly early to get a decent parking space, so I left my home at 7:30 and found parking a bit before 8 am (after circling around a few times).  Then I put on my shoes and started warming up.

For this race, I decided to go with the New Balance RC Elite V.2.   This shoe has felt great at marathon effort, but arguably a bit soft and slow to turnover at anything harder than that.  However, I'm currently running 5Ks at my previous marathon pace, so I thought they were worth a shot.  Also in their favor - they are the only carbon plated shoes I seem to be able to handle right now.  Everything else is too unstable and bouncy.

***

I warmed up with my standard 15-20 minutes of jogging, followed by 3:00 at half-marathon effort, 4x30 seconds at 5K effort, and then 4x10 seconds at mile effort.  I noted a strong wind from the west that would be a tailwind to start and a headwind to end.  About the time I finished, I saw some old running friends (Jake, Brent, and David) and got to catch up with them, so that was nice.

Then we lined up, and after a moment of silence, the race started.  Mindful of my balance issues, I lined up on the far left side of the race start, so that I could angle off to the side and avoid most of the early race chaos.  Of course, what I hadn't planned on was a bunch of high school kids that were doing the whole "sprint, slowdown, swerve, sprint, slowdown, swerve" thing.  My first quarter mile of the race was spent navigating around them, which was both scary and exactly why I signed up for this race.  So I dealt with it.  

After that first quarter mile, things settled down, and I could relax into the action.  I had a very strong tailwind behind me (20 mph) and the course was also slightly downhill.  Both of these were balance challenges, but I was really happy with how well I handled them - I felt so much more stable than before.  Stable enough that I was able to look around for other women runners.  There was one woman about my age who I reeled in pretty easily, and another younger woman ahead.  For a while I was holding steady behind the younger woman, and I had some hope that perhaps she was going out too fast and I would be able to run her down later in the race.

Then we went around a turn and the tailwind became a crosswind, and I had to work a bit to stay on my feet.  Another turn, and we were back into the headwind for a quarter mile before a 180 around a turn.  At some point here, the younger woman started pulling away, and then I only had other men to run with and chase.

***

I'm familiar with this course - at least I thought I was.  My 5K pr was set in a race starting and ending at Freedom Plaza, just like this race.  However, somewhere in the second mile, the course took a right hand turn to route us near the Capitol - a bit of a surprise, but I went with it (I think Jillian told me this would happen, I just didn't process it).  

Eventually we made our way back to the course I knew, with a mile-long push up Pennsylvania Avenue into the headwind.  I had been running with 2 other men for most of the race, but once we hit the headwind, they fell back and I was solo for the last mile.   It took some digging into my mental tool box, but I was able to stay tough in that final mile and push to the finish.

I crossed the finish line as second female, stopped my watch, and checked it.  22:11 was the time - a bit of a shock (and not in a good way).  This race had honestly felt like a better and stronger performance than my last one.  I felt much more stable on my feet this time, and also felt like I was able to push harder as a result.  According to my Garmin, my heart rate was 180 or above for the last half-mile, and peaked at 183 - significantly higher than I saw in my last race.  At the same time I ran this 5K about a minute slower than my previous one - I wasn't expecting to see that number.    

In one sense, the time doesn't matter at all - I'm nowhere near PR shape, and my goal was truly to stay on my feet.  On the other hand, I had been fairly sure that I was going to run a bit faster than my previous 5K, so there was a moment's disappointment and doubt upon seeing that I had not come close to even that time.

But it is where I am.   I do feel really good about the fact that I felt so much more secure on my feet than I did before, and also that I was able to push myself a bit harder.  

***

I never saw mile markers 1 or 2 for the race, so I could only take a manual split for mile 3.  My Strava of course broke down my splits by mile - from that I see that my splits were:

Mile 1: 6:51
Mile 2: 7:01
Mile 3: 6:54
last .20: 1:25

(Strava/my Garmin say the course was 3.20 in length.  I don't think this version of the Freedom Plaza 5K course is certified, so maybe it was this long).

Other notes:

• The temps were great for this race - 45 degrees.  The wind did make things colder.  I wore thin tights and a tank top plus arm-warmers, and that felt like the right clothing choice.
• I talked some friends into watching me as I finished, and got some valuable feedback.  Apparently I'm not rotating my hips when I run - so that's something else to consider and work on.
• On reflection, I don't think I like the RC Elite V2s for this distance (which matches what pretty much all the reviewers have said).  I think it's back to my Takumi Sens for this distance until I get my stability in a better place and can start using Vaporflies again.
• I got to cooldown with a group of friends (Rachel, Brent, and Jake) after.  It was really fun to catch up with them.

Training log - Week ending 3/20/2022

This week was 60 miles of running, 1500 yards of swimming and 18 "miles" of pool-running -- training log is here.

Tuesday's workout was in the dark again (thanks, daylight savings time) and I really struggled with my balance until the sun came up for the last 800.  From then on, things were much better

Friday's workout (after sunrise) was better, though still a bit wobbly due to shoe choice.  I decided to test myself with the New Balance RC Elite 1, which in the past was a shoe I just could NOT run in - I managed to run in it on Friday, albeit with a lot of concentration and some wobbliness.

Today's long run felt like a big step forward.  I decided to challenge myself with the unholy trifecta of a) supershoe (the New Balance RC Elite 2 - slightly more stable than the RC Elite 1), b) downhill running, and c) windy conditions.  These are three things that make running hard for me right now.  And....I stayed on my feet and actually didn't ever feel like I was going to face plant.  It was amazing.  I don't care that much about the pace.  I care a ton about how I felt while running at that pace.

In other news, I finally saw the back surgeon on Thursday.  He looked at my MRIs and told me that I had the lumbar MRI of a 20 year old.  In his words "it would be criminal to operate"  (absolutely fine with me).

Like everyone else, this doctor thinks I need to get a second neurology opinion (when I told him which neurologist I saw, he noted that I had already seen the really good guy, so he wasn't sure where I should go for a second opinion).  He also thinks I should get checked out for Lyme disease, so I guess that's now on the list.

Next Sunday I'm going to jump into another 5K, so we'll see how that goes.

Dailies:

Monday:  9 "miles" of pool-running and upper body weights/core.   Foam rolling at night. 

Tuesday: 12 miles, including a track workout of 6x800, 2x400, 2x200 in 3:27, 3:26, 3:23, 3:20, 3:18, 3:15, 93, 92, 45, and 45.  2:2x-2:5x recovery after the 800s, ~80 second recovery for the 400s and 200s.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 10.5 miles easy (9:37) plus drills and four hill strides in the morning; streaming yoga midday.   Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 9 "miles" pool-running and upperbody weights/core.  Foam rolling at night.

Friday: 11.5 miles, including a 4 mile tempo on the roads in 28:08 (7:12/7:05/6:57/6:54), 20 minutes jogging, and then 2x"200m" (approximate) in 47 seconds each.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming. 

Saturday: 8 miles easy outside (9:31), followed by streaming yoga and then 3.5 miles very easy (9:27) plus drills and two hill strides.  Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 14 miles progressive, split as first 5 miles averaging 9:44, next 4 miles averaging 8:14, and the next 5 miles averaging 7:15 before a half mile cooldown.   Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.

Training log - Week ending 3/13/2022

This week was 61 miles of running, 1500 yards of swimming and 18 "miles" of pool-running -- training log is here.

Things definitely improved this week - my coordination is better and I have notably more power.  On Friday I ran at sub-6 minute pace for the first time in a long time in my last 200m repeat.  Now granted, there was a time when I was running sub-6 minute pace for mile repeats.  But that's not where I am right now, and this felt like a step forward.  My limitations have been mostly mechanical, not fitness, so anything that shows improved top end speed is a victory.

I ended up running on the treadmill all weekend due to weather (very high winds on Saturday; very cold and dry air on Sunday).  In one sense, this wasn't ideal.  On the other hand, I think there are benefits to occasionally doing a progressive long run on the treadmill due to the very steadiness of the effort, which is great for aerobic development.

Incidentally, I've also noted improved energy levels since getting my back injected - I think that feeling unsteady on my feet was tremendously draining, at least emotionally.  Now I feel much more steady and secure, and that results in feeling more energetic and confident.

Dailies:

Monday:  9 "miles" of pool-running and streaming yoga.   Foam rolling at night. 

Tuesday: 12 miles, including a track workout of 1600, 5x800, 4x200 in 6:54, 3:16, 3:14, 3:17, 3:16, 3:16, 47, 48, 46, 47.  5 minute recovery after the 1600, 2:3x-3:0x recovery after the 800s, 80-90 second recovery for the 200s.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 5 miles easy on the treadmill (9:40), upper body weights/core, and then 6 miles very easy (9:30), plus drills and four hill strides.   Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 9 "miles" pool-running and streaming yoga.  ART session in afternoon.

Friday: 11 miles including a track tempo workout of 4x200 moderate with 200 recovery, then 5x1200 at slightly faster than tempo with 200 recovery, and then 400 jog before 2x200 at mile effort with 200 recovery.  Splits were 48, 50, 49, 48; 5:07, 5:06, 5:03, 5:00, 4:57; and then 45 and 44.  Eash 200m recovery was in about 80 seconds.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming. 

Saturday: 8 miles easy on the treadmill (9:49), followed by streaming yoga and then 3.5 miles very easy on the treadmill (9:33).  Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 15 miles progressive on the treadmill, split as first 5 miles averaging 9:39, next 5 miles averaging 8:26, and the next 5 miles averaging 7:33 before a half mile cooldown.   Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.

Training log - week ending 3/6/2022

This week was 54 miles of running, 1500 yards of swimming and 18 "miles" of pool-running -- training log is here.

I'm definitely noticing some improvement from the back injections already - I'm much more stable and less wobbly when running.  I still have some issues with running downhill or on uneven sidewalks, but it's less than it was before.   My speed hasn't jumped up the way I had hoped it might, but I probably need to give it time.

My wobbliness now seems to have been replaced by a general lack of power, which I think stems from lack of stability when pushing off.  So my focus for the next few weeks is on fixing that.

To that point, since I don't have any plans to run any races longer than 5K in the next 2 months, I decided I'd get more out of skipping my long run this weekend in favor of focusing on running mechanics.  So I subbed in a Sunday morning track workout, starting with 4-6 laps at tempo effort to get me truly warmed up (I needed 6 laps, as it turned out), and then shifting to 200m repeats with equal distance recovery, focusing on running smoothly and playing with different aspects of my form.

This workout ended up very beneficial - I feel like I learned a lot.  A very strong gusty crosswind and having to navigate around others on the track (there were several joggers in lanes 1 and 2) gave me an opportunity to figure out exactly what I do that makes me feel unstable in certain circumstances (like crowds, high winds, and low visibility).

I identified two key things that I do when I get distracted or concerned about my stability:  1) I invert and lock my left ankle, so that I'm no longer pronating on it and 2) I lock up my shoulders. Focusing on fixing both of those things helped me keep a smooth stride while passing others or being buffeted by the wind - I'll experiment with those some more in my track workouts this week.

Dailies:

Monday:  9 "miles" of pool-running and upper body weights/core.   Foam rolling at night. 

Tuesday: 11 miles, including a track workout of 4x1200, 2x400 in 5:08, 5:02, 4:53, 4:54, 92, and 93.   1 lap jogged recoveries after each in between 2:28 and 3:21.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: Streaming yoga and then 10 miles easy (9:34), plus drills and four hill sprints.   Sports massage in evening.

Thursday: 9 "miles" pool-running and upper body weights/core.  Foam rolling in evening.

Friday: 11 miles including a track tempo of 6400m in 28:15 (7:17/7:06/7:00/6:50).  Jogged for 4 minutes after, and then did 2x200m in 46 seconds each.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming. 

Saturday: 10 miles easy (9:37), followed by streaming yoga.  Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 12 miles, starting with 2400m in 10:12, and then doing 16x200m, starting at 49, 50 for the first two, and then the rest all between 46-47.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.