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.

Training log - Week ending 2/27/2022

This week was 47 miles of running, ~1000 yards of swimming and 18 "miles" of pool-running -- training log is here.

This was the week I got my first round of platelet lysate injections in my lumbar area - judging from the location of the injections, it looks like my doctor injected at both the L4/L5 junction and the L5/S1 junction. 

The injections were remarkably easy and pain-free - definitely not as painful as PRP.  I think part was the location - back injections hurt less than ankle injections.  And part may be that the practice uses more lidocaine to numb the injection site than they used to.

Platelet lysate is supposed to kick in a bit slower than cortisone (but also last longer), and that has been consistent with my experience.  I did not have the AHA experience within the first 24 hours of injection that I did with the cortisone shot last month.  But it really does seem like things are better than they were last week already, and that's a good sign.

Dailies:

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

Tuesday: 12 miles, including a track workout of 400/800/1200/1600/1200/800/400 in 1:44, 3:24, 5:02, 6:43, 4:57, 3:14, 93.  84 second recovery after the first 400; 2:46-3:15 recoveries after the 800s and 1200s, and 6:23 recovery after the 1600.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: Streaming yoga and then 10.5 miles easy (9:34), plus drills and strides.  Platelet lysate injections in afternoon.

Thursday: Off.

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

Saturday: 8 miles easy (9:26), followed by streaming yoga and 4 miles very easy (9:36) plus drills and strides.  Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 12.5 miles, including 8 Iwo Jima hill repeats (each repeat is about 2 minutes up a 3% incline, then 90 seconds jog; 40-45 second downhill stride, and 60 seconds to the bottom.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 meters recovery swimming.

Training log - Week ending 2/20/2022

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

I met with my physiatrist this week to discuss the results of the cortisone shot near my L5 vertebra. Since that shot yielded substantial (if short term) improvement, we know that I have something inflaming and pressing on my nerves in that area, which is what is making my legs weak, wobbly, and clumsy.

We're going to try platelet lysate injections into that area. Platelet lysate is similar to PRP - they start by spinning your blood down to concentrate the platelets (just like PRP) and then go a step further in freezing the PRP, which shatters the platelets.  Which apparently makes them work slightly differently, in a way that makes them well suited for addressing nerve issues.

I get my first injection this coming Wednesday afternoon.   I'll take Thursday off and then start easing back into activity on Friday and over the weekend.  Most likely I'll get two injections total, spaced 4-6 weeks apart. 

Dailies:

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

Tuesday: 11 miles, including a treadmill workout of 6x3:00 (9.0-9.3 mph) with 2:15 jog (6 mph), full recovery, and then 4x40 seconds (9.8-10.1) with 80 second jog (6 mph).  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: Streaming yoga and then 11 miles very easy (9:31), plus drills and strides.   ART session in afternoon.

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

Friday: 12 miles including a treadmill workout of 6x5 minutes at tempo effort (8.4 mph) with 1 minute jog (6 mph).  Jogged for 8 minutes after, and then did 6x40 seconds at 10 mph with 80 second jog (6 mph).  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Saturday: 11.5 miles easy (9:39), followed drills and strides, and then streaming yoga.  Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 14 miles progressive, split as first 5 miles averaging 9:49 pace, next 4 miles averaging 8:31 pace, next 5 miles averaging 7:46 pace.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.

Training log - Week ending 2/13/2022

This week was 50 miles of running, 1500 yards of swimming and 18 "miles" of pool-running -- training log is here.

Jumped into a race on Saturday as a rust-buster/experiment in staying on my feet while racing.  I finished on my feet, so that was win.

In other news, I purchased a MOBO board - it's a wobble board that a) has a hole where one's 4 little toes would go and b) forces your foot to move diagonally.  I discovered almost immediately that my left ankle (which I always thought of as my GOOD ankle) was very stiff and would NOT move in the directions encouraged by the MOBO board.  

With a lot of thought, I can get my left ankle to move that way, so the restriction is not physical but neurological.  So I've got my work cut out for me.

My L5 cortisone shot has undeniably worn off - on Friday I found it very difficult to run on sidewalks that had been easy a week before.  I see the physiatrist again this Thursday to discuss next steps.  My primary care also gave me a referral to two back surgeons - one is an orthopedist, and the other a neurosurgeon.  The idea is that I should see if either one of them sees something in my MRIs that looks like an easy and quick surgical fix.

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 and 2x400 in 5:10, 4:59, 4:54, 4:51 and then 91 and 91.  One lap jog after each rep in between 2:30 and 3:30.   Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: Streaming yoga and then 8 miles very easy (9:25), plus drills and strides.  Sports massage in evening.

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

Friday: 4 miles very easy (9:45).  Foam rolling in evening.

Saturday: 3.5 mile warm-up, 5K race in 21:14, and then 6 miles (9:18).  Followed with some leg rehab work and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 14.5 miles progressive, split as first 5 miles averaging 9:42 pace, next 5 miles averaging 8:22 pace, next 4.5 miles averaging 7:28 pace.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.

Race Report: By George 5K, February 12, 2022

I ran the "By George 5K" today, finishing in a time of 21:14 (gun time), which was good enough for the female win.  So that was nice.

This race was basically a rustbuster to the nth power.  It's been about 5 months since I last raced (5th Avenue Mile in September 2021), and the last few months have been a struggle with weakness, wobbliness, dizziness, and a lack of coordination in my legs that at one point had me running at 12:00 pace.  No, it's not MS.    And yes, I've heard all about runner's dystonia the last few days, and while what I am experiencing has a lot of similarities, it has two key distinctions - a) I get better the longer I run, and b) I am improving.  Slowly, but the trend is the right way.

It's hard to describe exactly what's wrong - at various times it feels like I'm wearing pants that are too tight, or that the ground is moving and bouncing beneath my feet, or that muscles are contracting when they shouldn't, or that one leg is about to collapse on me.  The most consistent thing is that my legs simply don't respond very fast to the instructions my brain sends.

The last part tends to make me very nervous about running on uneven pavement or near others or in poor visibility - basically I can't react if I need to catch myself or adjust pace when someone else veers, slows, or clips my heels.  And the muscle tension that results from that nervousness just makes my issues worse.

A diagnostic corticosteroid shot near my L5 vertebra just over two weeks ago yielded amazing but short lived results.  For a bit over a week, my legs were listening to me again, and I was fine running on sidewalks etc.  So that was great and indicated that the issue was likely inflammation in the nerves stemming out of L5 and below.

But the shot's effects were only temporary - yesterday doing a shake out run on sidewalks was a real challenge.  Great, just in time for my race.

But I sucked it up and showed up for the race anyway.  This race wasn't even about getting a fitness check.  I just needed to get out there, and experience a race again, including a mass start and running with others. Racing with others was scary for reasons that had nothing to do with fears of a slow time.  So I needed to do it.  Immersion therapy.  If I fell, I fell.

***

I showed up at Hains Point to be greeted with fantastic weather - low 50s, no wind.  Seriously awesome.  Threw on my Next%s and went for my warm-up.  Only to realize that the Next%s were NOT going to work for me today.  Just too unstable, too bouncy - I couldn't trust my own legs in them.

Fortunately, I had brought another pair of shoes with me - my Takumi Sen 8s - lower stack, less bouncy, and with a bit of flexibility that meant I could feel the ground better.  So I finished my warm-up sequence in the Next%s as best I could, and then swapped to the Takumi Sens. I did a few strides which felt much better and then lined up to listen to the National Anthem.

This was a small race (50 runners I think). I seeded myself about 3 rows back, when I normally would have been at the front.  I honestly wasn't sure how the start was going to go, and 3 rows back wouldn't harm my competitiveness in the race, but it would reduce the chances of me getting in someone's way if I had a bad wobble.  Then we started, and I was running a race again for the first time in what seemed like forever.

***

The first 400m or so was an exercise in staying relaxed and calm while running near others, and not letting my gait get too choppy or awkward.  It was a lot of mental work to stay relaxed and calm, but I pulled it off.  Then things opened up a bit, and I was able to start eyeballing the field ahead.  I saw two women ahead of me - one closer, and one further.   I could tell that an effort that felt quite controlled and tempo-ish was reeling in the closer woman and staying steady with the further one, so I held that. 

 After a few minutes, I passed that woman, and then turned my focus to the female leader.  I could tell that my effort was still quite easy - definitely not 5K effort, and yet I was slowly gaining ground on her.  So I started to work to build my pace. This was hard, not aerobically, but from a coordination perspective.  I had an upper limit - if I extended my stride past that point, I'd start wobbling.

I pretty much spent the rest of the race playing with that limit - how fast could I run without losing my coordination (around the half-way mark I passed the woman who was leading the race).  I'd work to open up and push a little more, and then I'd start wobbling and I'd have to back off and reset, before going back to work.  I found a mini-pack to work with of two guys, and that was helpful too - it forced me to keep my stride coordinated WHILE running with others - exactly the kind of situation I wanted to confront myself with.  

There were no mile markers here, so I had set my Garmin to autolap.  When it hit mile 3 I tried to kick while staying coordinated.  It was honestly really hard, and I mostly couldn't kick.  But I made it to the finish having managed to a) speed up a bit while b) not faceplanting and so that was win.  In addition to the actual win.

Splits were:

Mile 1: 6:50
Mile 2: 6:53 (180 turn around a cone that I struggled to navigate)
Mile 3: 6:37
last .14: 51 seconds (6:22 pace)

I had half-joked before that my goal for the race was to finish on my feet.  And that was only partially a joke.  Finishing this race felt like a real achievement.  I also wanted to race well, regardless of the time on the clock, and I feel I did that in that I raced calmly, methodically, and with a negative split.  

Of course, anytime you race a 5K at what was at one point your marathon pace, it's a bit...I don't even have words for it.  But, you have to accept where you are, and also note that where you are doesn't define where you will be.  Races are beginnings, not ends.  And this was a good step forward.

I'm glad I did this race.

Training log - Week ending 2/06/2022

This week was 62 miles of running, ~1500 yards of swimming and 18 "miles" of pool-running -- training log is here.

[A belated entry, since I kept forgetting to submit this one.]  I felt pretty good at the beginning of the week, with improved coordination, and then things seemed to fade as the week went on.  By Sunday, I could tell I had lost some balance and bounce.

It's a bit sad - I was hoping to get 2-3 weeks from last week's cortisone shot, and instead I got about 10 days.  But the purpose of the shot was diagnostic, not a cure, so I guess I shouldn't be too disappointed.

At the gym, I started playing with plyometrics some, and realized that I have NO vertical leap at all.  I was trying jumping with both feet from the ground to a bench.  I realized quickly that my limit was a bench of about 2 inches high.  Which is not very high at all.  No wonder I have issues with curbs, uneven sidewalks, etc.  If I try bouncing with one foot, I struggle with even a single inch.

So...I have more plyos in my future.

Dailies:

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

Tuesday: 12 miles, including a track workout of 2x(1600, 800, 400) plus 2x200 in 6:57, 3:16, 94, 6:38, 3:07, 92, 46, and 46.  Recoveries of 5:3x after the 1600s, recoveries of 2:2x-2:5x after the 800s and 400s, full recovery for the 200s.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: Streaming yoga and then 11.5 miles very easy (9:20), plus drills and strides.  Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 9 "miles" pool-running and upper body weights/core.  ART session in afternoon.

Friday: 11 miles including a track workout of 2x3200 in 13:48 (6:55/6:53( and 13:44 (6:54/6:50) with 5:20 jog between the two.  Jogged for 7 minutes after, and then did 4x200 relaxed, each in 49 seconds.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Saturday: 8 miles easy on treadmill (9:43), followed by streaming yoga and 4 miles very easy on the treadmill (9:30).  Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 15 miles progressive, split as first 5 miles averaging 9:31 pace, next 5 miles averaging 8:10 pace, next 5 miles averaging 7:24 pace.  Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 meters recovery swimming.