This week was 53 miles of running, 17 "miles" of pool-running and 1000 yards of swimming -- training log is here.
This was my last week of strengthwork - I'll return to the track next Tuesday. My last track workout was on June 18th, so I'll have been gone for about 5 weeks. In that 5 weeks, I raced a half-marathon, then spent nearly a week in the pool to reboot, followed by a lot of hill work interspersed with some aerobic running. I'm feeling really solid and strong right now, as well as fresh and eager - a good place to be starting a new training cycle.
I jumped into a road mile on Wednesday for fun -- I was happy with how I raced and competed, though the time was a bit slower than my low expectations. I knew I wouldn't run fast - training at 6:20-30 pace (even if it's uphill) with a few fast downhill strides isn't optimal training for racing at sub-6 minute pace. But I was expecting to be below 5:40, rather than the 5:48 I ran. On the other hand, it was hot and humid, with a notable headwind, and I think the temps might have affected the times slightly, and the headwind a bit more.
Either way, it was a fun evening, and got me fired up to return to the track.
The other news of the week was the hot weather that hit DC this weekend. And....this is the part of the weekly post where I get up on my virtual soap box.
People of DC (and Arlington too): you are NOT going to vaporize or spontaneously combust if you walk outside in this weather while wearing running shoes.
Yes, it's hot. Yes, you will run slower and need to drink more water and modify your workouts and it's probably not a bad idea to try to get out a bit earlier in the morning or do your run on the treadmill or split your run in two. Y'know, like everyone in the REAL south (Florida, Carolinas, Louisiana, Texas) does every summer. And if you start feeling dizzy or shaky, you should probably end your run early.
But...these are not the end times. Heck, as of the time I'm writing this blog post we didn't set any records. This is the hottest weather we've had in three years....which means that it was hotter than this three years ago, and we survived and ran our fall races just fine.
I'm not saying don't respect the weather - absolutely do respect it and modify. And I also think it's helpful to note the weather for each run, and to acknowledge the effect it may have on your run (like y'know, I did right above). The same effort is going to yield different paces in 20 degrees, 50 degrees, and 80 degrees - that's just data. Like wind or pollen levels or air quality or elevation change or shoe choice or what you ate beforehand (all stuff I also track in my log).
But you don't need to overreact. The weather is a data point, not a barely surmountable obstacle demanding every bit of our heroism. When you make the weather that much of an issue, you just make running that much harder for yourself.
Acknowledge, adjust, move on, and maybe laugh a bit.
Yes, it's hot. Yes, you will run slower and need to drink more water and modify your workouts and it's probably not a bad idea to try to get out a bit earlier in the morning or do your run on the treadmill or split your run in two. Y'know, like everyone in the REAL south (Florida, Carolinas, Louisiana, Texas) does every summer. And if you start feeling dizzy or shaky, you should probably end your run early.
But...these are not the end times. Heck, as of the time I'm writing this blog post we didn't set any records. This is the hottest weather we've had in three years....which means that it was hotter than this three years ago, and we survived and ran our fall races just fine.
I'm not saying don't respect the weather - absolutely do respect it and modify. And I also think it's helpful to note the weather for each run, and to acknowledge the effect it may have on your run (like y'know, I did right above). The same effort is going to yield different paces in 20 degrees, 50 degrees, and 80 degrees - that's just data. Like wind or pollen levels or air quality or elevation change or shoe choice or what you ate beforehand (all stuff I also track in my log).
But you don't need to overreact. The weather is a data point, not a barely surmountable obstacle demanding every bit of our heroism. When you make the weather that much of an issue, you just make running that much harder for yourself.
Acknowledge, adjust, move on, and maybe laugh a bit.
Dailies:
Monday: Yoga and 8 "miles" pool-running in the morning, foam rolling at night.
Tuesday: 8 miles very easy (9:12) followed by light upper body strengthwork and core. Ice bath to freshen up a bit; also foam rolling at night.
Wednesday: In the morning, 2 mile shakeout (9:15) plus DIY yoga; 4 mile warm-up, mile race in 5:48, and 1 mile cooldown in the evening.
Thursday: 9 "miles" of pool-running. Foam rolling at night.
Friday: 4 miles very easy (8:57), yoga, and then 7 miles very easy (8:44) plus drills/strides. Foam rolling at night.
Saturday: 12 miles, including 8 hill repeats (about 2 minutes up, then ~1:30 jog, then ~30 second stride, and ~60 second jog down to base of hill); 30 second water break after every 2 repeats. Followed with leg strengthwork and 1000 yards easy swimming. Foam rolling in afternoon.
Sunday: 11 miles very easy (9:15) plus drills and four hill sprints, then upper body weights/core, followed by 3 miles very easy (8:56). Foam rolling at night.
You guys did get some crazy weather this week! Meanwhile we actually cooled down with the rainstorms in our area. We got a cold front in yesterday, and it's 76 degrees right now with a high of only 82! It's almost worth the street flooding...
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