Race Report: One City Half Marathon, March 1, 2026

I ran the One City Half Marathon last Sunday, finishing in a time of 1:41:46, which was good enough to win my age group.

This is my fourth time racing this half, and I've got the day before routine nailed for this race.  Leave home as early as possible on Saturday (I left at 8:15 am) this year, drive down (stopping for Chipotle along the way), grab bib from a small but very organized and efficient bib pick-up/expo, check into hotel.  

The one tweak I made this year was to stay at the Holiday Inn at City Center.  The last few years, I've stayed in Hampton, VA - about a 10 minute drive from the finish line (and the buses from the finish line to the start). However, I did the math and the mapping and realized that the Holiday Inn's special rate was about half of what I would pay in Hampton, while only being about 5-10 minutes further from the finish line. I should note that there were also buses from the Holiday directly to the start line, but they weren't scheduled to arrive as early as the first finish line buses, and I need a long warm-up.

Getting up 10 minutes later on race morning wasn't worth $150 to me, so the Holiday it was.  Which was doubly fine because the Holiday was probably a bit nicer than anything I'd book in Hampton.

***

One of the many nice things about the One City Half is that the start is at a local high school, and for the past few years the high school gym has been open on race morning - providing a nice warm place to hang out, stretch, etc.

I always debate exactly when to get to the start of a point to point race, but for the One City Half, it's an easy decision. There's no reason not to be on the first bus there, since I can stretch and mobilize in the gym just as well as in the hotel. As early as possible this year meant the 5:05 am bus from the finish line. An early morning, but that's part of racing.  

My hotel had an 11 am checkout, and late checkout was prohibitively expensive (I would be charged 1/2 night if I checked out between 11 and noon, and for a full night if I checked out after noon). Since I was racing the half and would be done well before 9 am, checking out post-race was possible, but would come at the expense of cheering for friends running the full marathon. So, I decided to check out before the race - packing a clean change of clothes and some wipes in a separate bag for post-race.

This made for an even earlier morning.  Since I also had to time my Parkinsons medication with the race (I get roughly 4 hours per dose of Rytary), and with breakfast (Rytary works best for me if I take it at least 30 minutes before a meal or 60 minutes after) my morning ended up looking like this:

• 2:00 am - wake up, take Rytary, go back to sleep (I wasn't sleeping very well anyway).
• 3:30 am -wake up again.  Take asthma meds, eat breakfast and check the weather, get dressed, do some preliminary stretching, finish packing up everything.
• 4:30 am - check out of hotel.
• 4:55 am - arrive at finish line and park car (like every year, parking was well organized, efficient, and easy).
• 5:00 am - get on first bus to start line (like every year, it was very easy to find the right bus, with plenty of helpful volunteers and race staff).
• 5:05 am - bus leaves
• 5:45 am - we arrive at Menchville HS. Walk over to Menchville HS gym, hit indoor bathrooms before they get crowded, more mobilization.
• 6:00 am - take second dose of Rytary. Put on racing shoes.

After all of that, I walked over to the elite tent by the start line to drop off my gear bag. One City very generously invited me to be part of their elite field this year based on my para-athlete performances, which really meant a lot to me. And was also really convenient because I could access my gear bag until just before the start.

*** 

For my warm-up, I went with my standard - jogging for 15 minutes followed by 3 minutes at marathon down to half-marathon effort, 4x30 seconds faster, and then 4x10 second strides. I was wearing a jacket over a singlet with arm-warmers and thin tights.  The forecast started in the low 40s and ended at around 50 with a slight headwind and so I had been on the fence about tights versus shorts. My warm-up didn't help much with the decision (other than confirming that I didn't need the jacket). 

I stuck with the tights. One nuance of running with Parkinsons is that if my legs ever get chilled, my race is over - my legs lock up and then it becomes impossible to run hard enough to warm-up. The legs need to stay warm. And I haven't yet been bothered by legs that are too warm. OTOH, my torso seems to have a completely independent thermostat and can overheat pretty easily. So I went with tights and a singlet with arm-warmers. Plus an old heat sheet that I could wrap around me while standing in the corral.

***

With a few minutes to go, I entered the starting corral and made my way back to the 1:50 pace group.  It's very hard for me to get up to speed after standing for a few minutes, and so I generally seed myself by the pace I expect to run for the first mile, rather than the time I hope to finish in. It just works better for both myself and others.

We stood for a few minutes and then the gun went off.  Since I was back in the corral, I crossed the start line roughly 15 seconds after the gun. The first mile, as always, was rough. I focused on my balance and staying cool and remembering that this was a long race. After a mile or so, my gait settled and I was able to start working my way up into race pace.

Every year I seem to run this race a bit slower, which means every year the race (to me) seems to have more people.  It took some time to navigate my way up and past the 1:50 pace group, which had pulled ahead at the start. I could see the 1:45 group ahead, and it was a big group. Cones limited the race course to the width of one lane and the 1:45 group was spread fully across the lane and about 3-4 people deep. Getting past them was going to take some work.

It's probably helpful at this point to explain that one of my big challenges with Parkinsons is balance.  My proprioception and my vestibular sense are both lousy, meaning that I rely mostly on vision for balance. When I'm on an open road or track and can see far ahead, running is easier.  When I've got a group of people in front of me, most of whom are taller, running is harder. And it gets even harder as I get closer to the group. I can't spot something in the distance for balance - instead I see bouncing heads and backs. But the situation was what it was, so I did the best I could.

I worked my way up to the 1:45 group, but then was stuck, with no room on the course to pass them. Tt was really tempting to step outside the cones, as several other runners were doing, so that I could have a clear path past the group. But I didn't want to do anything that could be construed as course cutting, so I stayed inside the cones and bided my time.

Finally, just before mile 6, the course widened and I was able to slip past and open up my stride. The next few miles were about cruising, reeling in struggling runners, and slurping a gel.

***

Since I was in the elite field, I was allowed to put a water bottle out on course at mile 8. I had dropped my bottle off at the expo the day before, with a caffeinated gel taped to it. As I approached mile 8, the sun was coming out and I was starting to get a bit thirsty. Sometimes I grab my bottle just because; but this time I actually needed it. Or at least really looked forward to it.

Unfortunately, my bottle wasn't on the table. My best guess is that another runner grabbed it by accident. It happens.

The good news was that it was only water (also available on the course) and a caffeinated gel, which I could do without. The bad news was that I hadn't bothered to memorize where the water stations were on course. And I also had to be careful, because there were several unofficial community water stops, but taking water from one of them would DQ me.

Fortunately, the official race water stops were well marked and plentiful, and I was able to (poorly) grab a cup about a mile later.

***

At mile 10 I decided it was time to start hammering to the finish.  Fortunately, there was no shortage of people to chase down, which was really helpful. Less helpful were the numbered streets - when you know the finish line is on 25th Street, seeing a sign for 71st Street can be disheartening. I ignored the streets and focused on the people and the road ahead.

Finally, thankfully, the last turn loomed - I knew the finish line was about 100m after the turn. I accelerated as best I could (which wasn't all that much) to and across the line. As I finished I saw the clock ticking up to 1:42 and was slightly disappointed - I had hoped to go below 1:40. But I felt I had run a solid race so I couldn't be too upset.

Splits were:

Mile 1: 8:43
Mile 2: 7:50
Mile 3: 7:52
Mile 4: 7:42
Mile 5: 7:57
Mile 6: 7:45
Mile 7: 7:48
Mile 8: 7:42
Mile 9: 7:45
Mile 10: 7:49
Mile 11: 7:22
Mile 12: 7:22
Mile 13: 7:19
last .11 0:49 seconds

Other notes:

• Thought I didn't run as fast as I wanted, I did win my age group, which meant a lot to me.  I'm 3 years into my Parkinsons diagnosis, and I'm really happy that I can still hold my own racing against (presumably) runners that don't have Parkinsons.
• I also note that a few months ago I was working really hard to hit 7:50 pace during an 800m repeat. Things are definitely moving in the right direction.
• I ran the last 5K of this race in 22:52. I ran the By George 5K three weeks earlier in 23:23. This is the third year that I've run both races, and each time I've finished the One City Half faster than my standalone 5K time. By George is held on a very fast course, and the last 5K of One City is flat, not downhill, so race courses don't explain this.  It's just that it's very hard for me to run fast right away after standing. A 10 mile warm-up, on the other hand....
• My friends in the marathon ran well.  Unfortunately, the race got a bit too warm for fast marathons (55 degrees is fine if you've been training in it, but a shock to the system when you've been training in 14 degrees), but they both put in solid performances that they can be proud of.
• I saw a lot of familiar faces from the DC area at this race - it's really cool that more DC/Northern Virginia runners are realizing what a great race this is.
• Everyone in the elite field got a nice parting gift after - a bottle of champagne. You could also have it decorated with a customized message if you wanted.  It was a really cool perk.
• The finish festival for this race has a large assortment of food trucks, and runner bibs include a ticket for a free meal from a food truck. I grabbed some tacos, and they really hit the spot.

Training log - Week ending 3/1/2026

This week was 47 miles of running,and 500 yards of swimming.

This was the week that I raced the One City Half-Marathon.  Race report to come.

Dailies:

Monday: 6 miles very easy on the treadmill (9:46) and upperbody weights/core; foam rolling in evening.

Tuesday: 8 miles on the treadmill, including a workout of 6x3:00/2:00+6x0:30/2:00.  Three minute intervals were at 8.2-8.3 mph; 30 second intervals were at 8.8 mph.  All jogs at 6 mph.  Followed with leg strengthwork and PT exercises.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 7 miles very easy (9:48) with 2 hill sprints and 4x100m in 26 down to 24, followed by 500 yards swimming. Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 4 miles very easy (10:49) on trails, followed by PT exercises. Upperbody weights/core and foam rolling at night.

Friday: 6 miles with about 15 strides (meant to do a mile pick-up, but the track was too slick). Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: Travel to Newport News, DIY yoga, foam rolling.

Sunday: 3 mile warm-up, and then One City Half Marathon in 1:41:46. 

Training log - Week ending 2/22/2026

This week was 50 miles of running, 18 "miles" pool-running, and 500 yards of swimming.

Foer much of this week, running outside continued to be an icy challenge. The running trails were mostly clear but not all the way clear - and there is a difference between the two. As for the track, it wasn't clear and open to the public until Wednesday afternoon, so Wednesday morning's workout was on the treadmill. Which is fine - I don't mind running on the treadmill, and my fitness has been improving steadily over the last few weeks of treadmill-heavy training.

By Thursday, everything (roads, trails, the track) was clear of snow and ice.  We were also gifted with one nearly perfect morning - high 40s, overcast.  There was a decent wind at times (hence the "nearly") but still...so much better than the past few weeks.  

That nearly perfect morning was also Saturday.  Which happened to be the day I had a big marathon effort workout scheduled.  

I debated between 4-3-2-1 miles at marathon effort and 2x5 miles at marathon effort, then decided to play it by ear.  If I'm out of shape, the 4-3-2-1 is easier because there's more recovery.  However, if I'm reasonably fit, then the 2x5 is actually easier and lower stress, simply because it's hard neurologically (and thus tiring) for me to accelerate from easy effort to marathon effort. If I'm out of shape and early in a cycle, the stress from the neurological stuff is balanced out by the need for recovery during the workout; when I don't need that recovery as much, the balance changes.

Anyways...I got about 3 miles into the first rep and hit a rhythm, so I decided to keep going and do 2x5. That was good news. The really good news was that I had been hoping to be close to 8 minute pace for this workout, which I was doing by feel.  Instead, by the third marathon effort mile, I was well below 8 minute pace, and it felt controlled and comfortable - like I could go for a really long time at that pace.  Which is how a marathon effort workout should feel - if you are hanging on and gritting it out, that's probably not your marathon effort or pace.

I just cruised the rest of the workout, finishing the 2x5 miles averaging 7:53 pace over the 10 miles (8:01 pace for 11 miles if you include the mile between the 2x5). And I felt like I could have kept going for several more miles without straining.  Excellent.

This means that, fitness-wise, I'm already where I hoped to be at the end of this cycle, and I'm still 7 weeks out from Boston. The temptation is just to try to build on that even more and see how much fast I can get before the end of the cycle. Basically, to get a bit greedy.  But I've seen how that one plays out - you just end up peaking too early and underperforming. So better to try to cruise the rest of the training cycle - do the work conservatively with no heroics. That approach gives me the best shot of running well in mid-April. 

And, of course, I may still get a bit faster with that approach. Fitness is one of those things that likes to come to you when you don't chase it.

Dailies:

Monday: 9 "miles" pool-running and upperbody weights/core; foam rolling in evening.

Tuesday: 9 miles very easy (10:09) in the morning.  Yoga and foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 10 miles on the treadmill, including a workout of 7x5 minutes with 60 second jog, followed by 6x30 seconds with 90 second jog. Five minute intervals were at 7.7-7.8 mph, 30 second intervals were at 8.7-8.8 mph; all jogs at 6 mph. Leg strengthwork and foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 4.5 miles very easy (11:49) on trails, followed by PT exercises. Streaming Pilates in the afternoon; foam rolling at night.

Friday: 9 miles very easy (10:31) and 500 yards of swimming in the morning; foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 17.5 miles, including a workout of 2x5 miles at marathon effort with 1 mile jog in between. Splits were 39:57 (7:59 pace) and 38:49 (7:46 pace), 1 mile jog in between at 9:22. Followed with leg strengthwork. Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: Streaming pilates and 9 "miles" of pool-running. Foam rolling at night.

Training log - Week ending 2/15/2026

This week was 50 miles of running, 9 "miles" pool-running, and 1000 yards of swimming.

The most notable things about this week are that all of my runs were outside, and that I raced.  Oh, and I saw my favorite band (Nine Inch Nails) again.

The snowcrete has slowly started to melt away.  Between that and some plowing, there are several running routes that are mostly passable.  By which I mean that there are stretches of ice each morning (some of it black) from snow that that has melted the day before, seeped across the trail, and then frozen overnight. As the morning progresses, the ice melts away, and by noon there are plenty of good running options.  Unfortunately, I work during the day, so I continue to run in the morning, carefully picking my way around ice and sections that look like they could be water or ice.

The track is still far from clear, but I wanted to do some fast running outside last week in preparation for Saturday's 5K.  On Wednesday I headed down to Georgetown, thinking I could do a 10 minute tempo circling around the waterside park (the loop is about 1300m) followed by some strides, with running underneath the Whitehurst or in the plowed bike path as back-up options.

Unfortunately, stretches of the waterside path were icy, the road under the Whitehurst was surprisingly busy with cars, and there were numerous bikes using the bike lane.  So, I ended up finding a short section of the waterside path that was not icy and just going back and forth between two points that would be easy to identify on a map later.  I did 8 of the longer reps first - each took about 90 seconds so I went with a 60 second jog for recovery.  Then I did 8 shorter reps that took about 21-23 seconds each, at what felt like a very fast effort, with about 30 seconds for recovery.  

Later I mapped it out and confirmed that the longer reps were 330 m in length and the shorter were 90m (so 7:20 ish pace for the longer reps and 6:40-50ish pace for the shorter reps). It was obviously a unusual workout, but it gave me an opportunity to do some faster running on outside pavement, so I tallied it as a productive morning.

We saw Nine Inch Nails on Wednesday, which meant I went to bed just before midnight.  I took 2 hours of PTO on Thursday morning so that I could sleep in, workout, and then start work.  Even so, I still ended up in a bit of a sleep deficit that had to be repaired Thursday night, meaning that my running mileage was lower than I would like for Thursday and Friday.  I race better when I don't reduce mileage too much, and so I wonder how Saturday's race would have gone had I run more for the two days prior.  OTOH, I was pretty happy with the race overall, and seeing NIN was totally worth it, so in the end everything worked out.

Completely unrelated, but because I don't know where else to put it, here is my #1 tip for outside winter running based on the past few weeks: coat your face with a) sunscreen and then b) vaseline. Protects your face from sunburn, wind burn, and the cold.

Dailies:

Monday: 7 "miles" pool-running in the morning; yoga in the afternoon; foam rolling in evening.

Tuesday: Upperbody weights/core and 8.5 miles very easy (9:59).  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 8 miles in the morning, including 8x330m in 89-91 seconds with 60 second jog, followed by 8x90m in 21-23 seconds with 30 second jog.  Leg strengthwork and foam rolling in evening, followed by Nine Inch Nails concert.

Thursday: 4 miles very easy (11:09) on steep hills, followed by PT exercises. Streaming Pilates in the afternoon; foam rolling at night.

Friday: 4 miles very easy (10:46) and 250 yards of swimming in the morning; foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 4 mile warm-up, and then 5K race in 23:24 (7:41/7:33/7:14/0:56), followed by a 3.5 mile cooldown. Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 15 miles easy (9:55), followed with leg strengthwork, 750 yards of swimming and 2 "miles" of pool-running. Foam rolling at night.

Race Report: By George 5K, 2/14/2026

I ran the By George 5K on Saturday, finishing in a time of 23:24.

I went back and forth on whether to race this. I had assumed that the race wasn't happening after the Snowcrete storm of late January left the DC area encased in....snowcrete.  This race was to be held on Hains Point, which was a very low priority for being plowed (for completely understandable reasons, since there are no residences or businesses on Hains Point).  

As of the beginning of this week, Hains Point was still under about 8 inches of snowcrete, and thus completely unrunnable.  But, on Tuesday, Hains Point was plowed, and the race was on. Now I just had to decide whether I was going to run it.

I haven't been able to do any long runs in the past month due to the weather.  Since I'm now about 9 weeks out from Boston, I asked my coach whether it would be better to race the 5K or do a long run.  He was firmly in favor of the race, so that was an easy decision.

***

The race started at 8 am, with bib pick-up at 7 am. I got there around 6:50 in hopes of getting a 5 mile warm-up in.  Things like putting my shoes on and getting my bib took a bit longer than I expected, so I only got 4 miles in, including my normal 3:00 minutes/4x30 second/4x10 second fartlek.  That would have to do.

It was a chilly morning - between 28 and 30 degrees, depending on which source you consult.  I've learned that getting cold will wreck my race - it's pretty common for people with Parkinsons to discover that their symptoms get much worse when they are cold, and that has definitely been my experience.  In particular, my muscles get very tight, which then makes it challenging for me to run fast enough to warm up.

So...I need to stay warm.  Since this was a short race, I decided to err heavily on the side of warmth, with thick tights for my legs and a tank top plus two thin/breathable jackets and a buff.  I warmed up in this outfit, thinking that I'd remove one jacket for the race.  But I never felt too warm during my warm-up and this was a 5K, so I stuck with both jackets. Definitely overkill for most people, and the bulk probably slowed me slightly.  But I am confident it was the right choice for me - I was comfortable for the first half of the race and only slightly warm for the second half.

***

The race started right at 8 am.  I was able to jog around until about 3 minutes before, which I hoped would keep me loose at the start. As it turned out, I was a bit looser, but still tight.  I think some of this was from having to navigate around other runners, and some was because the urge to chase down others tends to make me tense.  I dealt with the latter by telling myself that the first mile was for relaxation, not chasing.

That mental technique worked decently, and I was able to find my groove earlier than usual for a race (win!)  From there it was just a matter of building pace while taking a bit of care on the course. There was a bit of ice on the inside of the course against the curb, and wet pavement meant that the painted lines and bicycle markings on the asphalt were a bit slick. I stayed a bit wide, rationalizing that any time lost from running with was much less than the time I'd lose from being overly cautious on slick pavement.

When I hit the halfway turnaround, I was already working pretty hard, which felt like a win.  From there it was just a matter of staying loose while continuing to build all the way to the finish, passing a few people along the way. And for the second time in two months, I had the great feeling of finishing a race knowing that I had given it my best effort.

Splits ended up being:

Mile 1: 7:41
Mile 2: 7:33
Mile 3: 7:14
last bit: .13 in 56 seconds (6:40 pace)

This course had no mile markers, so all splits were from Garmin autolap. The course was definitely accurate - that little bit of extra was a mix of Garmin satellite error and me running wide (mostly the latter since my current Garmin seems to be extremely accurate on Hains Point).

All in all, I was pretty happy with this one.  Technically speaking, it's not as good a performance as the 10 miler I ran last month.  But...because it always takes me about 2 miles to get up to speed, I know that my 5Ks are generally not going to be as competitive as longer races.  

When assessing my fitness from a shorter race, I'm more looking at relative stuff - just how bad was my first mile (in this case, much better than previous races).  And how fast were my final miles?  In this case, 7:14 is the fastest mile I've run in any workout or race (including some 3000s that I've raced) since last April, when I closed Cherry Blossom with a 7:08 mile.  So, to be able to run that fast and then pick up the pace from there for the kick makes me pretty happy - my training is on the right track.

Other notes:

• I wore the Hoka Rocket X3 for this race and was pretty happy with it. For a supershoe it's pretty stable and doesn't throw me forward the way many other supershoes do. It is definitely going to be my racing shoe for the One City Half Marathon and the Boston Marathon.
• I think the fact that I was so bundled up helped my race more than it hurt it.  I was starting to overheat slightly in the last mile of the race.  But...that was my fastest mile, so overheating didn't hurt me.  In a longer race, I think I probably would have gotten rid of one of the jackets.  But for a 5K, this was the right choice.
• My last 5K race (in October of last year, in perfect weather on a fast course) was 24:40, so over a minute slower. So, again, progress.

Training log - Week ending 2/8/2026

This week was 60 miles of running, 15 "miles" pool-running, and 1500 yards of swimming.

I was able to run outside some more this week, which emphasized to me just how important it is to do that. There are many tiny balance corrections and checks that I have to do when running outside that I don't have to do on the treadmill. And when I ran outside, after not having done so for a while, I noted that I was out of practice.

Similarly, skipping most of my PT exercises for a few days (because the gym was closed and our home gym setup lacks stuff like a bosu), reminded me of just how important it is to stay on top of that stuff also. It really is use it or lose it, and I lose skills and coordination very quickly when I'm not using them. 

The weather was still bad enough that I had to do two workouts on the treadmill.  Sunday's planned long run ended up being a double - I didn't want to do a full 16-18 mile progression run on the treadmill, so instead I did a shorter progression on the treadmill and then doubled with an easy pool-run.  Not exactly the same thing, but close enough for my purposes, and it kept me healthy and uninjured.

Completely separate from the above, a medication schedule change that I made a few weeks ago (but haven't gotten around to mentioning until now) has been working very well for me, so I might as well mention it.  

As background: dopamine is the neurotransmitter that my brain doesn't make very well any more, so I have to supplement it with pills.  I take a drug called Rytary, which comes in a few different size doses that can't be split. And my optimal dose of Rytary seems to be between two sizes that are offered (145 and 195).

Common wisdom in Parkinsons is that you should take a higher dose of dopamine when exercising, since you burn through it more quickly.  And this has made sense to me, because I definitely have more energy and power on the higher dose.  However, the downsides are that the higher dose also makes me more shaky and jumpy - as if I'd thrown down too many Red Bulls. Some people also have an issue with "dyskinesia" - involuntary movements of the arms, legs, neck, etc from too high a dose of dopamine.  

I don't get any obvious, visible dyskinesia from the Rytary 195.  However, at the same time, I've noted that I seem to run fast (emphasis for a reason) a bit better on the lower dose (Rytary 145), despite the fact that I feel slower and stiffer on it. 

Here's why I think that is.  Running is not just an aerobic activity but a skill.  And the faster you are trying to run, the more skill comes into play - specifically muscles firing and relaxing at exactly the right millisecond in each stride.

When I'm on the lower dose of Rytary, I feel slow and stiff - as if I'd run a hard race the day before.  But everything still works in the right sequence - I still have the skill of fast running.  

In contrast, when I'm on the higher dose of Rytary, I feel great energy wise - like I could run long distances easily (and weightlifting or power work is definitely easier on the higher dose).  But it's very hard to get my legs to do exactly what I want them to do.  That precise sequencing of muscles contracting/relaxing falls apart, with my quads or calves tensing at awkward points during my stride, etc.  And the faster I try to run, the worse it gets.  It ends up being frustrating, because I have lots of energy but just can't use it.

I've spent the last few years trying to work on my coordination while sticking with the higher dose, since (again) the common wisdom is that you need more dopamine when exercising hard.  But...a few weeks ago I decided to experiment with workouts on the lower dose. And...while I may not have as much energy, I'm coordinated enough to actually push myself and get my heartrate up and get fitter.

So...for the foreseeable future, I'm going to stick with the lower dose of Rytary pre-run, especially pre-race or pre-workout.  I do end up taking the higher dose of Rytary post-run - I've found that if I don't take the higher dose after the run, I don't feel great the rest of the day.  I'm guessing this is because I run up a dopamine debt while running that then needs to be repaid. So I've really just swapped two doses - from 195 pre-run and 145 post run to the reverse.  (I still take Rytary 145 the rest of the day, as I always have.)

I'm really interested to see how this works out for my races and training this spring.

Dailies:

Monday: 8 miles very easy (10:00) in the morning; foam rolling in evening.

Tuesday: 9 miles, including 8 Iwo Jima repeats (500m up a 2-3% incline, 250m jog, 200m downhill stride, 100m jog to the bottom; followed with leg strengthwork. Sports massage in evening.

Wednesday: 11 miles very easy outside (10:07) in the morning.  Upperbody weights/core and foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 8 "miles" of pool-running and 500 yards of swimming in the morning, followed by PT exercises. Streaming Pilates in the afternoon; foam rolling at night.

Friday: In the morning, 10 miles on the treadmill, including a workout of 6x4:00/1:12+ 4x0:30/1:30.  The four minute intervals were at 8 mph and the 30 second intervals were at 8.7 mph.  All jogs at 6 mph. Leg strengthwork and foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 9.5 miles outside under the Whitehurst Freeway (10:16), followed by PT exercises.  1000 yards swimming in the afternoon and foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 12.5 miles on the treadmill, split as 35 minutes at easy effort (5.8-6.3 mph); 35 minutes at moderate effort (6.7-7.2 mph) and 35 minutes at marathon effort (7.5 mph).  Followed with leg strengthwork.  Later did 7 "miles" of pool-running. Foam rolling at night.

Training log - Week ending 2/1/2026

This week was 47 miles of running, 12 "miles" pool-running, and 1000 yards of swimming.

The winter storm that hit the DC area late last week disrupted everybody's training this week.  We received about 6 inches of snow followed by a few hours of sleet and then freezing rain, which resulted in "snowcrete." Snowcrete is snow that is as heavy and hard as concrete - it is in fact hard enough to walk on without sinking in (I've done it). You can't shovel this stuff - you have to hack it into chunks with some sort of metal tool and then toss the chunks into the big piles of snowcrete chunks that seem to be everywhere right now.

Since, a) I had done a hard treadmill workout on Sunday, and b) the pool was closed on Monday, and c) I would likely be running on my treadmill for much of the next week, I skipped aerobic activity on Monday and just did some yoga and snowcrete removal. I'm worried about repetitive stress injuries from too much treadmill running (hitting the ground the exact same way with each stride), especially since I haven't been running much on my treadmill until this past week. So taking a day kinda/somewhat off seemed like the smartest choice.

Because of the worry about overdoing the treadmill, I tried to keep my runs outside whenever possible.  However, both my hard runs this week were on the treadmill - an interval workout on Wednesday and a kinda-marathon effort run on Saturday.  For both of these, the paces felt a bit easy, but that's not the worst thing in the world.

Normally I'd be doing a 14-16 mile long run with some miles at marathon effort at this point, since I'm about to start training for Boston.  But...the cold dry air meant that I didn't want to do any fast running outside, even after some of the local trails were plowed (asthma concerns).  At the same time, I didn't want to run for too long on the treadmill, for the reasons stated above.  So, I split my weekend up into a somewhat shorter treadmill run with 3x25 minutes (just over 3 miles) at marathon-ish effort on Saturday, followed by a two hour pool-run on Sunday to get some non-impact volume in. Not ideal, but it got the job mostly done while keeping me healthy.

Hopefully we'll get some melting of the snowcrete this week.  Maybe.

Dailies:

Monday: Yoga in the morning; knocking snowcrete off of my car in the afternoon; foam rolling in evening.

Tuesday: 9 miles very easy on the treadmill (9:38) and upperbody weights/core. Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 9 miles on the treadmill, including a workout of 2x4:30 with 3:00 recovery, 2x3:00 with 2:00 recovery, 2x1:30 with 1:00 recovery and 4x0:30 with 1:30 recovery.  4:30 reps at 8.0-8.2 mph; 3:00 reps at 8.2-8.3 mph; 1:30 reps at 8.4 mph, and 0:30 reps at 8.7 mph.  All jogs at 6mph. Followed with leg strengthwork. Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 7 miles on the Lever Runner at -15 mph. Breaking up snowcrete in afternoon. Foam rolling at night.

Friday: In the morning, 9 miles very easy outside (10:00). 550 yards of swimming in afternoon.  Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 12.5 miles on the treadmill, including a workout of 3x25 minutes with 5 minutes jog.  First repeat was at 7.3-4.4 mph, second two were at 7.4 mph.  All jogs at 6 mph.  Followed with leg strengthwork. Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: PT exercises and upperbody weights/core followed by 12 "miles" of pool-running and 450 yards swimming.

Training log - Week ending 1/25/2026

This week was 52 miles of running, 9 "miles" pool-running, and 1000 yards of swimming.

Super cold and dry air had me on the treadmill for two of my three workouts this week.  I did manage to squeeze in a track tempo on one of the few days that did have decent weather, and that workout went very well - about 15 seconds faster than 2 weeks ago, with a lower perceived effort. I also did some easy runs outside and was fine - my breathing is not as challenged when I'm running easy, and so my asthma doesn't flare from the dry air. 

It's fortunate that I don't mind running on the treadmill, because I suspect I'm going to be on it for a while due to weather over the next few days.

I did run outside on Saturday morning in ~10 degrees, mostly because I wanted to make sure I ran the Park Run again to work on running in crowds.  I never race these - just jog easy - so I was amused when I apparently set a "Park Run PR" despite the cold.  I think it was a combo of a) I'm getting better at handling crowds+uneven surfaces and b) the run was considerably less crowded than normal.

Dailies:

Monday: 9 "miles" pool-running in the morning. PT exercises and foam rolling in evening.

Tuesday: 9 miles on the treadmill, including a relaxed workout of 6x4:00 with 1:12 recovery + 4x0:30 with 1:30 recovery.  Four minute intervals at 7.6 mph, 30 second intervals at 8.6 mph, jogs at 6 mph. Followed with some leg strengthwork. Sports massage in evening.

Wednesday: 5 miles very easy (11:30) on trails followed by 500 yards of swimming. Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 9 miles on the track, including a 6400m tempo in 30:44 (8:03/7:44/7:34/7:23) and 2x200m in 55 and 52.  Followed with leg strengthwork. Foam rolling at night.

Friday: Upperbody weights/core followed by 9.5 miles very easy (9:39) with two hill sprints.  Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 9.5 miles very easy (10:00) including jogging a Park Run. Followed with streaming pilates and 500 yards of swimming. Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 10 miles on the treadmill, including 8 imitation Iwo Jima hills (each rep was 2 minutes at 7.7 mph and 2.5 incline, 1:30 jog, 30 seconds at 8.7 mph, and 60 second jog.  Jogs at 6 mph..  Followed with leg strengthwork.  Foam rolling at night.

Training log - Week ending 1/18/2026

This week was 51 miles of running, 7 "miles" pool-running, and 1500 yards of swimming.

I took the first few days pretty easy, both because I needed to recover from Sunday's race and because I had a social thing on Tuesday evening.

I attempted some top end speedwork on Thursday morning, but was partially blocked by high winds (20+ mph). I tried some 200s anyway, but each time I felt a weird twinge in my right knee that seemed to be associated with bracing against the wind around the turn. So I dropped that plan and just did 100s, which didn't bother my knee at all.  I haven't felt the knee since, so I think this was just a one time thing.

On Saturday I attempted a set of Iwo Jima hills.  Unfortunately, I started them too late.  Just as I finished warming up, the first of what would be an onslaught of tour buses with visiting children arrived.  It was sleeting as well, and after one cautious hill repeat I decided to abandon the workout.  I was sharing the road with the tour buses, I'm short enough and the buses are tall enough that the drivers can barely see me, and the limited visibility from the sleet only made things riskier.

So I moved over to the track.  After confirming that I still had good traction despite the sleet, I decided to try the 200s I hadn't been able to do on Thursday. However, despite the sleet a game of soccer was still going on, using half the infield.  The players were having a lot of trouble keeping the ball on the field and off the track (possibly because of the sleet?) so I decided to swap to more 100s (8 of them) plus some longer repeats in the lane 8, starting at the 100m start line and ending at what I think was the first hurdle mark for the 400m hurdles.  I'm guestimating 180 meters for the distance right now, but I'm going to do some more research here.

Dailies:

Monday: 7 "miles" pool-running. Yoga and foam rolling in evening.

Tuesday: 6 miles very easy (10:09) with 4 strides. Upperbody weights/core and foam rolling in afternoon.

Wednesday: 6.5 miles very easy (10:08) plus 4 strides in 24 seconds each, followed by 750 yards of swimming. Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 7.5 miles on the track including 21x100m in very windy conditions (28 down to 25). Followed with leg strengthwork. Foam rolling at night.

Friday: 7 miles very easy (9:58) plus upper body weights/core.  Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 5.5 miles including one Iwo Jima hill repeat.  Then relocated to the track for some 100s and "180s" (measured from the start line in the 8th lane to the first 400m hurdle mark in that lane). 8x100m in 29 down to 24 and 6x180 in 49 down to 44. Followed with 750 yards of swimming. Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 14 miles progressive, starting at 10:47 pace for the first 2 miles and ending at 8:25 pace for the final 2 miles.  Followed with leg strengthwork and PT exercises.  Foam rolling at night.

Race Report: DC Road Runners Al Lewis 10 Miler, January 11, 2026

I ran the DC Road Runners Al Lewis 10 Miler last Sunday, finishing in a chip time of 1:17:55.

This race wasn't in my original plan for January.  Plan A had been to run the Jacksonville Marathon in December and then use January to ease back into training.  My back up plan (aka plan B) had been to run the Houston Half in January if Jacksonville didn't happen for some reason (as it didn't).  

However, as the Houston Half approached, it became obvious to me that I wasn't fit enough to justify spending $1000 plus on flight and hotel for that race (yes, I had paid the entry fee, but that was a sunk cost). Plus, the Houston Half was a week earlier than usual, so I wouldn't have the Monday off after the race.

So, I bailed on Houston and shifted to Plan C - mileage and workouts. Tuesday's workout was 7 Iwo Jima hill repeats and then some squats.

Then, on Thursday, my teammate Matt mentioned this race. It cost only $10, and the weather was looking decent if not spectacular (45 degrees but potentially very windy).

The truth was that I really needed to race, since I get rusty if I go too long between races. A $10 chip timed race on a fast certified course in decent weather about a 15 minute drive away was too good a deal to pass up.  It was unfortunate that I had done 7 Iwo Jima hills on Tuesday, but whatever. We were now going with plan D.

***

I had a choice between 5 and 10 miles (essentially did I want to run the course once or twice)?  I chose 10 miles because I thought I would be more competitive at that distance.  Additionally, I always get a fitness boost from races in the 15K to half-marathon distance range - I suspect that's because they are basically extended tempo workouts.

[Plus, as my teammate Matteo noted, the 10 miler was also a better value, at $1 per mile compared to $2 per mile for the 5 miler.]

***

Race morning dawned early as always. Bib pick-up started at 7 am and the race started at 8 am. I woke up, did my pre-run stretching/medication routine (took a Rytary 195 at 6:40 am), and checked the weather. Low to mid 40s, with overcast sky and possible gusty winds.  I decided to race with thin tights, a singlet, and arm-warmers, and also bring a longsleeve shirt in case I changed my mind. 

10 years ago, I would have worn shorts, but I've discovered that now, when my legs get cold they get stiff and rigid, and it's very hard to loosen them up once that happens.  On the other hand, any overheating from wearing tights can be mitigated with a tank top and/or rolling my arm-warmers down.

I got to the race start around 7. After parking I grabbed my bib, pinned it somewhat poorly to my singlet (it's hard to pin a bib on while wearing the singlet), and then returned to my car to shed my winter jacket and do some final mobilizations* before putting on my racing shoes and starting my warm-up.

[*essentially, loosening up my ankles by walking on my toes, heels, outside of foot, and inside of foot for 45 seconds each; followed by some hip hinges, some walking with my knees bent, some backwards stepping, and some cariocas.]

***

I had less time before the race start than I had planned (I should have gotten there at 6:45 am).  I had planned to jog for 2 miles and then start my warm-up fartlek (3:00 marathon to tempo effort, 4x30 seconds a bit faster, and 4x10 second strides).  But I had to cut it down to 15 minutes of jogging and the 3 minute plus 4x30 seconds part of the fartlek.  Oh well - since this was a longer race I'd have time to ease into it.

Then I joined about 200 people at the start line for the 10 miler. It's hard for me to figure out where to seed myself these days, so I just went for about 2/3rds back in the group. It was a small race on a wide course, so things would work themselves out.

The start of the race was a surprise to me. There was no loudspeaker, and while those at the front might have heard "on your mark....go" I was far enough back that I didn't. Fortunately, I had about 10 seconds of shuffle time to get to the start line, start my watch, and start running.

***

I was pleasantly surprised that running in a group was not as much of an issue as it has been in the past.  I've been making a point to participate in weekly park runs as part of an easy run, and I think it's really helped me here. I could tell that I wasn't completely warmed up, but I knew that already.

The race course was an out and back on Hains Point.  The Hains Point route is shaped like a V, with the course starting at the top right of the V, then traveling down and around up to the top left of the V.  Turn around a cone there, and trace your steps back to the top right, and that was one 5 mile loop. The 10 mile runners turned around another cone at the finish line to go back for another 5 miles.

This structure made it easy to mentally break up the race into four 2.5 mile sections - my mental plan was to try to increase the effort after each turn-around cone. Using the first 2.5 miles to ease into the race fit perfectly into this plan.

In those early miles, I noted another woman in my age group - Mary.  It's been at least 8 years since we ran together, but I wasn't surprised to see her about 50 meters ahead of me. I mentally kept an eye on her in hopes that I would be able to reel her in later.

***

I've been working a lot on my body rotation recently when running - one of my big limiters is that my back and hips get stiff and don't rotate, which severely limits my stride length.  So, while one of my goals for this race was to simply get back out there, another was to keep rotating my upper body the whole time. I spent a fair amount of time during the race checking in on this..

I had several teammates in this race, and the double out-and back course meant that we had multiple opportunities to encourage each other - it came to be something I looked forward to each turn.  

The wind had also picked up slightly - it wasn't awful, but just enough that one was a bit slower running into it and faster with it at your back. This was expected (I was actually relieved it wasn't worse, given the forecast).  The wind also had the nice effect of breaking up the course even more, into eight sections alternating headwind and tailwind.

All of these points made the race go by a bit quicker, but 10 miles is still a long race for a rustbuster. As I approached the finish line for the first time (and the turn around cone for another 5 miles) I started to whine mentally. It took a fair amount of effort to shift my focus to the start of the third 2.5 mile section, meaning it was time to pick it up.  Fortunately, there was a trail of runners just ahead of me who were fading, and so I used them as targets to pull me forward.  Unfortunately (for me), Mary wasn't one of them.  Instead, she was pulling further ahead.

***

A long run into the headwind preceded my approach to the final turnaround cone at the top left of the "V." As the cone came into sight, a white one-ton pickup truck (presumably US National Park Service, since this was a closed course) passed me to park near the cone.  As I pivoted around the cone, the race marshal cautioned me to avoid the truck. 

No problem - I definitely saw it.  Internally, I smiled slightly at the universe's latest attempt to troll me by making me navigate around a truck that looked (at least from the front) exactly like the truck that hit me a few years ago. This universe-sponsored white truck trolling happens surprisingly frequently.  Probably because I run a lot on NPS land and the NPS has a lot of white one-ton pickup trucks for maintenance work.

Once safely past the truck, I reminded myself that it was time to empty the tank.  I couldn't see Mary ahead of me anymore, but I reminded myself that anything could happen, and emptying the tank was my best chance of catching her.

The last two miles really hurt.  Racing should always be much more painful than training, and when you haven't raced in a while you lose your tolerance. That's why I generally prefer a 5K or a mile for a rustbuster - because the period of pure suffering is much shorter temporally (even though it seems like forever). But I had entered this race to rebuild that tolerance, so I needed to keep at it.  And, of course, keep rotating my upper body.

Look at that upper body rotation! 
(though I could probably do a bit more)
(picture by George Buckheit)

***

As I approached the finish line, I saw the clock counting down from 1:17:40.  I had told Matt at the start line that I thought I'd probably run between 1:18-1:19 based on my current fitness, so going under 1:18 was something to get excited about.  I did my best to find a bit extra while also continuing to rotate my upper body and keeping my legs loose, relaxed, and unlocked (my legs tend to be so rigid that if I relax them as much as possible when I run, they have just the right amount of tension).  

The clock just ticked over 1:18 as I crossed, but I thought that I had enough of a gap between the gun and my chip start to get me under 1:18 on chip time. Ultimately, breaking 1:18 wasn't hugely significant (it does qualify me for seeded entry to Cherry Blossom, but I had that already). But I really liked the idea beating my predicted finish time, even if only by a few seconds.

After wobbling on my feet for a few seconds, I checked my watch.  Yup, 1:17:55. Cool!

Splits (using autolap on the Garmin since there were no mile markers) were:

Mile 1 - 8:11
Mile 2 - 7:56
Mile 3 - 7:55
Mile 4 - 7:39
Mile 5 - 7:44
Mile 6 - 7:34
Mile 7 - 7:44
Mile 8 - 7:45
Mile 9 - 7:28
Mile 10 - 7:29
last .07 - 31 seconds (7:09 pace).

As always, I ran this one without looking at my watch, just focusing on effort and chasing others. I'm glad I did, because those last two miles were faster than anything I've run on the track (other than 100m strides) in the past few months.

Other notes:

• Mary did beat me by a bit over a minute.  However, we were both beaten in our age group by a woman whom I didn't recognize (possibly new to the area) who ran 1:11-ish.  I need to up my game.
• The weather ended up being 45 degrees with a wind from the north of about 15 mph. So not perfect conditions, but pretty good for mid-January in DC.
• I wore the Hoka Rocket X3 for this race.  I resisted picking them up for a while, because I had read reviews stating that they were stable but very laterally biased.  However, I finally gave a pair a try, and I'm glad I did.  They work well with my gait and are forgiving if my legs lock up.  And they have much better traction on wet pavement than the Rocket X2 (my chief complaint about that shoe).
• My official gun time was 1:18:06; official chip time was 1:17:55.
• The course was certified for 10 miles, and yet the watch read 10.07 miles.  For once, I am going to blame the tangents.  Hains Point has minimal trees and no tall buildings so Garmin error is usually minimal there.  However, the double out and back meant that I had to swing wide at the bottom point of the V when running counter-clockwise, so that oncoming runners could take the inside.  Not a big deal, and I'm still counting the official chip time as my time, rather than whatever my watch said when it beeped for the 10th mile.
• I'm pretty happy that I ran faster than I expected based on my training - it indicates to me that my training is on the right track.
• It is such a privilege to have my body working well enough that I can hammer (and hurt) at the end of a race.  I try to remember this every time I race. Because as much as race pain sucks, not being able to achieve it sucks more.