Training log - week ending 5/3/2026

This week was 35 miles of running, 15 "miles" of pool-running, and 1000 yards of swimming.

This was my second week of Boston Marathon recovery/catching up on stuff. I kept things easy for the first part of the week before a "baby" workout on Thursday.  

My intent on Thursday was just to feel things out and reintroduce a bit of faster running, so I went with a mile at tempo effort followed by a few 100m repeats.  The 100m repeats were faster than I expected, especially since my shoes (the Asics Novablast 5) were slipping on the wet track.  The Novablast 5 is a great shoe, but only if you are running on dry surfaces.

I followed that with some strengthwork at the gym and then headed to the doctor to get some platelet lysate injections in my back/SI joint. This was a follow-up to the prolotherapy injections I had just before Boston - those injections were just a short term fix to get me through the marathon healthy; this was the longer term fix.

After the injections, I took a day off from aerobic exercise, limiting myself to upperbody weight machines that had pads to stabilize my back.  (I also caught Rabbit in the Moon and Infected Mushroom in Baltimore that night - maybe not the best idea, but I tried to not bounce too much at the show).

The second day was in the pool, and then I returned to normal activity with an easy run on Sunday.

I was pleasantly surprised by the pace of the Sunday run - much faster than I was expecting.  The weather was similar to what we had for Boston two weeks ago, and I was dressed warmly (tights, longsleeve, windbreaker), and I felt much better than I did during the marathon - just looser and less stiff.  I guess that's evidence that I really should have gone with at least a longsleeve shirt for that race. Noted for next time.

Dailies:

Monday: 7 miles very easy (9:52) and upperbody weights/core.

Tuesday: 7 "miles" pool-running and PT exercises. Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 7 miles very easy (9:42) and 500 yards swimming.

Thursday:  8.5 miles, including a 1600 at tempo effort (7:48) followed by 4x100m in 26, 25, 25, 25.  Followed with leg strengthwork.  Platelet lysate injections in back in the afternoon.

Friday: Upperbody weights. Rabbit in the Moon/Infected Mushroom show at night.

Saturday: 8 "miles" pool-running and 500 yards swimming. Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 12.5 miles easy (9:32), followed by core and PT exercises. Foam rolling at night.

Training log - Week ending 4/26/2026

This week was 32 miles of running and 12 "miles" of pool-running.

A marathon, marathon recovery, a head cold, and head cold recovery. I started running again at the end of the week but kept it on the trails so that I could start working on my dynamic balance as part of my return to running.

If there's ever a good time to get sick, it's right after your goal race.  My only real regret is that I ended up missing seeing Clan of Xymox - they played Baltimore on Friday, but I was both too contagious and too run down to go.

Dailies:

Monday: 1200m warm-up and then Boston Marathon in 3:43:54

Tuesday: Off - just travel home.

Wednesday: 6 "miles" pool-running. Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday:  6 "miles" pool-running. Foam rolling in evening.

Friday: Off. Sick.

Saturday: 1 hour walk/jog on trails.

Sunday: 5 miles very easy on trails (10:41) and streaming Pilates. Foam rolling at night.

Race Report: Boston Marathon, April 20, 2026

I ran the Boston Marathon last Monday, finishing in 3:43:54, which was good enough to with my para-athlete division again, though not sufficient to break my course record.

This year's Boston Marathon adventure started with a mixture of good and bad luck.  The bad luck was that my flight first boarded and then deplaned, due to a ground stop in Boston.

The good luck was that when I boarded for the second time, my seatmate recognized me, which in turn caused me to recognize her.  It was Lisa Levin - a talented local runner that I had formerly competed against for age group awards (the former is on my end, not hers - she is still quite competitive). She's also one half of a great coaching group that has a great podcast.

The box.  Gels, jogging clothes,
throwaway clothes, snacks.

It was pretty funny.  She hadn't recognized me before because I had a mask on for the flight. I didn't have that excuse; I hadn't recognized her because I was distracted thinking about everything I had on my plate for the upcoming weekend.

It was a quick flight once we were off the ground quickly (made even quicker by good company) and I made it to my hotel at 7:02 pm.  Unfortunately, the FedEx store embedded in the hotel closed at 7 pm, which meant that I would have to wait until 9 am the next morning to retrieve the box I had shipped to myself.  Not a huge issue, but I wouldn't be able to do a shake out jog until I had my box (with my shake out jog clothes, among other things).

I slept in on Saturday, then cheered at the Boston 5K before picking up my box. Then it was time for my para-athlete classification at the Convention Center.

***

For those who don't know, classification is the process through which a wannabe para-athlete is a) confirmed to be impaired enough to be eligible to be a para-athlete and b) assigned to a para-athlete class for competition.  USATF is now taking a larger role in the governance of American Para-Athletics, and they have a nice webpage that lays out the whole process.

Two years ago, I was classified as a T36 para-athlete. The T stands for “track” (which includes the roads); the 36 means that I am neurologically impaired in a specific way.

Some classifications are permanent, while others must be reviewed on a set interval.  Generally, impairments like missing limbs get a permanent classification, while impairments that can fluctuate or progress (e.g., neurodegenerative) are assigned a review year.  In 2024 I was assigned a review year of 2026, which meant that I had to redo my classification before I could compete in this year's Boston Marathon - my first para-athlete competition of 2026.

So here I was, once again, in a large conference room on the floor below bib pick-up.  Just like two years ago, most of the chairs and tables were stacked along the walls, leaving the vast room empty. There was one table with four chairs, two of which were occupied by the classifiers. Off to the side was a medical examining table identical to that in a doctor’s office.

***

The classification began with a brief interview - what were my best performances in the past two years?  How much did I train and how did I train? When was I diagnosed?  What medications was I currently on?  Did I use any braces or other devices when competing?

After that, I removed my shoes and moved to the examination table. They first flexed each of my joints in turn and assigned a number, before tapping some places with a rubber hammer (more numbers). Then came what I call the hokey-pokey/Macarena - touching my finger to my nose, touching my finger to their finger, tapping my feet on the ground quickly, rotating my wrists between palms up/palms down quickly, sliding my heel up and down my shin.  Yet more numbers and some muted conversation.

The next step (pun intended) was walking back and forth, followed by running back and forth. Then running in a zig zag pattern, some side steps and cariocas, and an extended period of shuffling from side to side, changing direction randomly as directed.  They also included some standing jumps, some heel and toe walking, and some tandem walking.  All of this barefoot on the hotel carpet.

By the end I was tired.  And relieved that I had once again made it through classification without an injury that would screw up my marathon.

They excused me outside the room for a few minutes and then called me back for the verdict. I had been classified T36 previously, but based on what they saw today, it was a close call between the more impaired T36 and the less impaired T38 (to answer the obvious question - there was never any question of whether I was a T37, because T37s have one good side and one bad side.  I have two bad sides - the question was how bad they were).

They were tentatively classifying me as a T36, but they would be watching me closely on Monday. After observing me on Monday they might reclassify me as a T38, or alternately keep me a T36, but require me to repeat classification as early as next year.

(This felt oddly like a colonoscopy - “we’ll take a look and then tell you when you need to go through this again.”  Fortunately, though I was tired, I retained sufficient tact to not say this out loud.)

I suspect they thought I would be upset about this decision. While the T36/T38 distinction was meaningless for this race (Boston currently combines T35, T36, T37, and T38 into one division) being reclassified to T38 came with serious competitive implications. T38s are minimally impaired, and so the T38 division is much faster than the T36 division and I would be less competitive. Similar to being moved from the 50+ age group to the 40+ age group.

At the same time, when you have a progressive neurodegenerative disease, and there are no medications that slow or reverse the progression, being told that you might look better than you did two years ago is huge.  HUGE.  So, I saw this situation as a win/win.  Either I'd keep my T36 classification, or I'd have evidence that a condition that is only supposed to worsen had done the opposite, while retaining eligibility for the T35-38 division on Monday.  Either outcome was cool.

*** 

After classification I picked up my bib from the para-athlete room.  My bib came with a lanyard and badge identifying me as a professional athlete.  I would spend the rest of the weekend debating when and where it was appropriate to show this off display this.

My preciousss

I was hungry by this time, so my next stop was Chipotle.  In a distressing reprisal of last year, the Boylston Street Chipotle was closed.  However, another one about 8 blocks east was open, so I was able to get what I needed, albeit with more walking than I would have liked.

The rest of the day was spent mostly resting, punctuated by repeated trips to the nearby CVS to panic-buy things that just a few days before I had been sure I wouldn't need.

*** 

Sunday began with a shakeout jog - my energy levels were great, though my hips were slightly sore from all the side shuffling yesterday. This was followed by a DoorDash Chipotle order (I decided that I preferred to pay someone else to wander Boston looking for Chipotle.

That afternoon I was scheduled to be part of a “professional para-athlete” panel. About 45 minutes before the panel was scheduled to begin, I wandered through the expo towards the stage, marveling at how the crowds would part anytime I waved my pro athlete badge.  I had the chance to meet up with a few friends before, who kindly stayed for the panel.

I thought the panel went well, though I noted that my habit of speaking like a lawyer when presented with a microphone (slow, measured words) was a contrast to the free flowing conversational style of the other panelists.  I did manage to demonstrate what life was like as a coordination impaired athlete by spilling water all over myself, so that was win. I think.

****

The official schedule for race morning looked like this:

• 5:00-5:30 am - para-athlete check-in (hotel lobby)
• 6:30 am - para-athlete bus departs for start line
• 7:20 am - para-athlete bus arrives at the start
• 9:35 am - para-athletes walked to start line
• 9:50 am - para-athlete start

Since a) I need my Rytary to function, b) I get about 4 hours from each Rytary dose, c) Rytary works best when spaced well apart from meals, and d) one needs to eat breakfast before a marathon, I structured my morning like this:

• 4:00 am - wake up, eat first breakfast
• 5:15 am - check in
• 5:30 am - take Rytary
• 6:30 am - bus to start
• 7:20 am - arrive at start, eat second breakfast, stretch
• 8:50 am - short jog
• 9:30 am - take Rytary
• 9:35 am - head to the start.

In between all of that, of course, were opportunities to reunite with old friends and connect with new ones. And several bathroom breaks.

***

The forecast was fantastic for marathoning - weather in the low 40s, increasing to around 50, with a tailwind.  I debated shorts versus light tights and singlet versus long sleeve. I briefly considered long sleeve over shorts, so that I'd have the option of removing the longsleeve if I got too warm.  But I had two bibs to wear - front and back - so that didn't seem like a good option.  Ultimately I went with singlet and shorts, plus arm-warmers, reasoning that a tailwind would be much warmer than a headwind.

Sooner than I expected (but right on schedule), we were walked to the start.  This was my third time standing at the start line and seeing nothing but empty road ahead, and it felt as surreal as the first time.  Then the gun fired, and we were off.

The first downhill mile went remarkably smoothly.  I've been working a lot on my downhill running this past year, and I felt the results.  I knew that the classifiers were also watching me run, and that my chances of retaining my T36 classification were slipping away with each smooth step, but it was what it was.  And it felt good to be running downhill mostly unafraid of falling on my face.

Of course, I knew what was coming from behind. It was heralded by a cyclist wearing a Boston jacket, who spoke to us of the arrival of Wave 1, and instructed that we (the para-athletes) were to stay to the right.

I wasn't thrilled about this.  As a para-athlete I've run Boston once on the far right and once on the far left.  I much prefer the left for all the same reasons someone else might prefer the right - the bigger crowds are on the right, as are the majority of the water stations.  Staying on the left means that I'm less likely to be squashed between faster runners on one side and people waving signs or holding water cups on the other.

But, when racing, you do what the race staff tells you to do, so I shifted to the right.  Soon after, Wave 1 began as a trickle that turned into a stream, and then a turbulent river, before becoming…washing machine-esque?  (The metaphor is admittedly strained).

I heard another para-athlete describe this part of the race as “intense,” and I can’t come up with a better word than that.  What was relatively serene becomes loud and almost overwhelming.  And while the wave 1 runners try to be careful, there is inevitably some physical contact.  I was elbowed a few times, and shoved hard from behind once.  The latter forced me to grab onto a water table to save my balance.

This is always the hardest part of this race for me - in these early miles I want to spend as little mental and physical energy as possible, but at the same time I'm continually bracing for impact.

Fortunately, the field thinned out early, so only miles 2 to 6 were truly sketchy. And some of this was balanced out by those who would cheer for me as they passed - reminding me of my teammates at home on the track.  

Every time a woman passed by (wave 1 was, of course, mostly men) I felt a wistful twinge of jealousy, remembering that one pre-Parkinsons Boston Marathon where I had been in Wave 1.  It seemed both fresh and a lifetime ago.

*** 

My plan was to stay really quiet and careful until the Newton hills, get up those hills without too much effort, and then hammer home the last 10K.  There was one problem.  I was cold.  And keeping my effort controlled wasn't warming me up any.

However, the fact that I was cold also meant that I couldn't really pick up the effort - I was too stiff.  So I went with what I had, hoping that things would literally warm up by the time I hit the hills.

Spoiler alert - the weather stayed cool, even chilly, all the way to the end.  And so I stayed stiff until the hills, which took their toll.  Rather than crushing the last 6 miles I struggled in, with an emergency caffeinated gel making things worse, not better.  I also noted the pollen in the last few miles (I'm not sure why I didn't before). Even with a puff from my emergency inhaler, my breathing still felt way off.  In retrospect, this might not have been asthma but my chest and neck muscles tightening - something that I am currently working on in PT.

***

I finally, painfully crossed the line. Then I checked my watch for the first time - 3:43. Not as bad as I had expected, given how rough I felt at the end. I didn't know how I had placed, but a check of my cell phone a bit later confirmed that I was the first woman in my division to cross the finish line, and I had successfully defended my title. A quick text to my coach confirmed that I had also run a negative split for the first time ever on this course, and I was pretty happy about that.

***

Splits were:

Miles 1-2: 18:26
5K mark: 9:33
Mile 4 (.89 mile): 8:03
Mile 5: 8:56
Mile 6: 8:31
Mile 7: 8:31
Mile 8-9: 16:45
Mile 10: 8:09
Mile 11: 8:17
Mile 12: 8:03
Mile 13: 8:09
Mile 14: 7:59
Mile 15: 8:18
Mile 16: 7:47
Mile 17: 8:24
Mile 18: 8:19
Mile 19: 8:00
Mile 20: 8:32
Mile 21: 9:05
Mile 22: 8:21
Mile 23: 8:57
Mile 24: 8:13
Mile 25: 9:12
Mile 26: 9:32
last bit: 1:51

I'm pretty happy with this, all the way up to the last 10K.  Those final miles don't look bad in the context of the rest of the race, but are far slower than I had hoped to close. 

On the bright side, I did negative split this course for the first time in four tries.  And, though this wasn't my fastest Boston, in some ways I feel like it is my best-executed Boston so far.  Though there's still a lot of room for improvement.

Other notes:

• The weather ended up being 43 degrees in Hopkinson, 48 degrees in Boston, with a 13 mph tailwind. Simply fantastic.  In retrospect, I really wish that I had dressed a bit more warmly.  I've known for a while that I need to dress much more warmly than I used to, and that I'm fine wearing longsleeves and tights into the 40s. I just didn't quite trust that knowledge this time.
• I flew home on Tuesday morning, surrounded by people wearing Boston Marathon medals.  I was slightly tempted to don my Boston Marathon Pro Athlete lanyard, but decided that doing so would just flag me as petty and shallow.  (I may indeed be petty and shallow, but I try not to broadcast it).
• A few days later, I checked the USATF Para-Athlete Classification Database. And whadya know, I am listed as a T36 with a review year of 2029 - 3 years from now.  I guess I didn't look as good as I thought I did.
• I say this every year because I feel it strongly every year - I am so incredibly grateful to the opportunity that the BAA gives to para-athletes to strive and shine.  In a culture where they message is so often that those with an impairment should be sheltered and protected from disappointment, the BAA treats us with respect, as athletes. This respect promotes a cultural shift, both within and outside the running community, in how those with impairments are perceived and treated.
• On that same note, several events and conversations over marathon weekend made me realize that I have a responsibility now - I need to do my part to promote athletic opportunities for those with impairments. It's not something I asked to take on, just like Parkinson's isn't something I ever wanted to deal with.  But the BAA and other organizations like Move United have provided me with literally life-changing opportunities. And I need to pay it forward. I've spent the past week giving a lot of thought as to how to do that.

Training log - Week ending 4/19/2026

This week was 28 miles of running, 4 "miles" of pool-running and 500 yards of swimming.

This is a placeholder for my last week of taper before the Boston Marathon.

Dailies:

Monday: 6.5 miles easy (9:07) in the morning; foam rolling in the evening.

Tuesday: 8.5 miles on the track, including 5x800 in 3:50, 3:43, 3:41, 3:39, 3:35 with 2:3x-2:4x recovery between each, followed by 4x100m strides (25 down to 23). Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 6 miles very easy on the towpath (10:04). Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday:  4 "miles" pool-running and 500 yards swimming, followed by PT exercises and a sports massage.

Friday: 4 miles, including 800m in 4:19 and 2x100, each in 25.  Followed by travel to Boston.

Saturday: Classification appointment (to confirm my status as a para-athlete) and foam-rolling/stretching..

Sunday: 3 miles very easy (9:55).  Foam rolling at night.

Training log - Week ending 4/12/2026

This week was 37 miles of running, 18 "miles" of pool-running and 1000 yards of swimming.

I didn't do a great job of planning this week out.  By which I mean that I forgot a) that I had a massage scheduled on Thursday night, and b) that I planned to cheer at Cherry Blossom on Sunday (meaning no long run). Had I remembered those, I would have gone with a more significant track workout on Wednesday and a long run on Saturday.

But I didn't remember and thus my plan for the week was some very short fast stuff on Wednesday, a tempo on Friday, and then a long run on Sunday.  It wasn't ideal to do a tempo on Friday after a massage Thursday night, but we kept the massage light and focused on the upper body.  The tempo was still a bit slower than I would have liked - I'm not sure how much was the massage and how much was the fact that I overdressed, wearing black tights and longsleeve shirt on a morning that started cool and overcast but warmed up quickly.

As for Sunday, I ended up doing my "not so" long run in the pool.  I woke too late to run before cheering at Cherry Blossom.  While I could have done a mid-day run, I preferred not to - Parkinsons means that I have an increased risk of skin cancer, and so I try to avoid running more than a few miles outside when the sun is at its peak.  And yes, I know I have a marathon next week in the sun, but that's the exception to the rule, and also a good reason not to add more midday sun this week.

Given a choice between the pool and the treadmill, the pool made more sense given where I am in the training cycle, so I went with that.

The good news is that everything feels good and all systems are go for the marathon on 4/20. And I'm feeling far better about my fitness than I was at this time last year.

Dailies:

Monday: 8 "miles" pool-running in the morning; foam rolling in the evening.

Tuesday: 7.5 miles very easy outside (9:49) with 4x100m strides (26 down to 25) and two hill sprints, upperbody strength/core in the afternoon. Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 9.5 miles, including 10x100m in 27 down to 25. Followed with 400 yards swimming. Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday:  4 miles very easy on the towpath (10:19), followed by PT exercises.  Pilates and sports massage at night.

Friday: 8 miles, including a 6400m tempo in 29:47 (7:38/7:29/7:25/7:17), followed by leg strengthwork. Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 8 miles very easy on the towpath (9:29) including a Parkrun, followed by upperbody weights/core. Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: Cheering at Cherry Blossom and PT exercises. 10 "miles" pool-running and 600 meters of swimming.  Foam rolling at night.

Training log - Week ending 4/5/2026

This week was 43 miles of running, 16 "miles" of pool-running and 1500 yards of swimming.

After last week's long run, I decided I was still a bit worried about my right leg/hamstring.  It felt mostly fine, and I was able to run on it fine, but it felt like there was something still lurking there. Not painful or sore, just...lurking.

I reviewed my running log, and the last time I had this feeling was in early 2020.  Then, everything blew up (technical term) right before my marathon, and I ended up dropping out of the marathon early. I struggled with it for a few weeks after, and then got prolotherapy to tighten up loose ligaments in the SI joint and back.  Once I did that, everything cleared up within a week.

So...I called the doctor who did the 2020 prolotherapy, and he had an opening on Wednesday afternoon.  I played things carefully until that appointment, where he confirmed that I was again loose and unstable in my right SI joint. 

He offered to schedule me in a few weeks, but then generously fit me in immediately when I explained that I had an important marathon in 2 weeks (all marathons are important, but Boston is really important to me).  And once again, everything cleared up within a few days.  No more sense of lurking right leg doom.  (Some would argue that this was a placebo effect.  Perhaps so. I don't care. I got the result I wanted.)

Since I had missed the tempo workout planned for the middle of the week, I substituted it in for Sunday's planned 16 mile long run (I had also previously considered racing on Sunday but decided not to).  Of the various options, I felt like the tempo would benefit me the most and was also the least stress on my body.  

Sunday morning was more like summer than March - I ran the tempo in 73 degrees with a 21 mph wind blasting at me. This was not quite as bad as it sounds - the wind basically meant that half of each lap of the track was effortless, while the other half was hard work, but into a strong cooling fan.

I once again ran this one completely ignorant of my watch - since the weather was not great I wanted to ensure I stuck to the proper effort and didn't tense up in response to slow splits. And I was once again pleasantly surprised by my splits when I reviewed the watch later.  A 37:32 8K tempo indicates ~3:30 marathon fitness on a good weather day, and Sunday was unquestionably not great weather for fast running (though my muscles do seem to work better and be less rigid when it is warm).

Two weeks to go.  Time for bubble wrap!

Dailies:

Monday: 7 miles very easy (10:12), upperbody weights/core in afternoon; foam rolling in the evening.

Tuesday: 7.5 miles very easy outside (10:01) with 4 short hill sprints, followed by leg strengthwork. 2.5 miles very easy (10:00) in the afternoon.  Sports massage in evening.

Wednesday: 9 "miles" pool-running in the morning, including a workout of 20x70 seconds hard/20 seconds rest. Followed with 500 yards swimming. Prolotherapy injections in the afternoon.

Thursday:  Upper body weights/core + PT exercises in the morning (no running or aquatic exercise the day after the prolo). Foam rolling at night.

Friday: 7 miles very easy (9:59) in the morning; 500 yards of swimming and PT exercises in afternoon. Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 9 miles (9:30) mostly very easy but with a brief fartlek (3:00 at tempo, 4x0:30 faster, 4x0:10 strides). Followed with 500 yards of swimming. Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 10 miles, including an 8K track tempo in 37:32 (7:48/7:32/7:27/7:24/7:21). Followed with leg strengthwork and 7 "miles" pool-running.  Foam rolling at night.

Training log - week ending 3/28/2026

This week was 55 miles of running, 15 "miles" of pool-running and 1000 yards of swimming.

This was another uneven week.  On Wednesday, I warmed up in a jacket over my longsleeve shirt and tights, and felt good.  I took off the jacket for the workout and felt awful for the first two 3200s.My body was very stiff and I just couldn't move.  I decided to experiment and put the jacket back on for the third rep and felt much better.

It was only 39 degrees, so not that cold. But apparently 39 degrees is no longer longsleeve weather for me during a workout.  Noted.

I did my last 20 on Sunday, and was satisfied with it.  Like my previous 20, this one included climbing and descent on the last 7 miles, with the difference that rather than a rolling course, I just ran up and then down. The down involved dodging a number of walkers, but that was fine - good practice for a big race. I did have a few twinges of nerve/hamstring during the final miles, but nothing super concerning.

So that's my Boston training cycle done.  Now I just need to taper.

Dailies:

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

Tuesday: 6 miles very easy trail-running (11:11) plus PT exercises.  Yoga and foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 12 miles including a workout of 3x3200m in 15:47, 15:46, and 15:12, followed with leg strengthwork. Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 8 miles very easy (9:58) with four 100m strides in 28 down to 26. Yoga and foam rolling at night.

Friday: 8.5 miles very easy (10:13) with eight 100m strides in 30 down to 27.  500 yards swimming in afternoon. Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 20 miles progressive, split as the first 7 miles averaging 10:00, the next 6 averaging 8:58, and the last 7 miles averaging 8:00.  Followed with a .5 mile cooldown.   Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 6 "miles' pool-running and 500 yards swimming; foam rolling in evening.

Training log - Week ending 3/22/2026

This week was 56 miles of running, 15 "miles" of pool-running and ~1000 yards of swimming.

Since the low point of last weekend was me bailing on a Saturday marathon effort workout after my right hamstring cramped, this was a cautious week.  I pulled back on mileage and pace for the first half, while also getting the knots worked out of the hammy and doing some strengthening work on my hip rotators. (This was because I suspect that irritated and tense hip rotators pressing on the sciatic nerve were a significant factor in the hammy cramping.) I also emphasized mobilization work on my ankles, since they seemed to play a role as well.

I was supposed to race Shamrock Half-Marathon this weekend but decided early in the week to skip it due to my hamstring/hip blip. By the second half of the week, things were better, but I stayed home anyway. Being healthy at Boston is my top priority, and I didn't need to do a half-marathon as a tune-up, given that I did one three weeks ago.

I tested the hamstring with a very cautious track workout - about 2 miles of work - most at tempo pace but with some strides at the end.  My objective was simply to check how things felt without ever working too hard, since I hoped to get some sort of long run in on Sunday.

As for how I felt on Friday?  The hamstring was fine, but my gait was definitely off - when I don't do fast strides regularly, I lose the muscle memory for fast running.  Fortunately, by the time I got to the strides, I had "remembered."

My plan for Sunday was 12-14 miles with 2x4 miles at marathon effort. The first mile at marathon effort was influenced by my paranoia - sometimes a tweak or injury can be gone, but one is so hyperfocused and worried about it that the muscle in question tightens up in response.  After that mile, I got my groove back, and felt better with every mile.  About a mile into the second rep, I decided to swap from 2x4 to 4, 3, 2, 1 at marathon effort. That went well (admittedly a bit too fast at the end), and no pain, tightness, or cramping during or after, so yay.  

Perhaps I could have done Shamrock after all, and I'm sad to have missed it.  OTOH, if I had reaggravated the hamstring/hip racing Shamrock, I'd be very upset right now. And doing a marathon effort workout is nowhere near the physical stress of a half-marathon raced all out.

Related - in case anyone else ever has the issue of weak hip rotators triggering sciatic pain and cramping, here is how I strengthen those muscles (keep in mind that I have no medical training or expertise, and what works for me may very well not work for you.  Caveat lectoris.):

• Program your Garmin to time intervals of 10-15 seconds, with recovery until you lap the watch.
• Lie on your stomach.  Your legs should be straight behind you; your hands can be under your forehead or wherever.
• Bend one knee and bring it out to the side, with the inside of the knee touching the floor.  Your ankle should be lying on the back of your other knee (that leg stays straight).  Basically, your two legs should make a triangle, with the three points being your hip, your knee, and your ankle on top of the back of the other knee.
• The exercise:
• 1) Isometrically press the front of your hip into the floor, as hard as you can tolerate (if your hip rotators are weak, you may have some cramping), for 10-15 seconds.  This works some hip rotators.
• 2) Isometrically press the inside of your knee into the floor, as hard as you can tolerate, for 10-15 seconds. This works other hip rotators.
• 3) Isometrically press the inside of your ankle into the back of your other knee, as hard as you can tolerate, for 10-15 seconds.  This works yet other hip rotators.
• Now, slide your ankle down your leg, to the bottom of your gastroc (the thick muscle at the top of your calf).  Repeat the three steps above (for the third isometric, press the inside of your ankle into your calf.
• Now, slide your ankle down more, so it's on top of your other ankle.  Your legs are still making a triangle - it's just a longer, flatter triangle. Repeat the three steps above again (for the third isometric, press the side of your top ankle into the back of your other ankle).
• Now, switch legs, and repeat the whole thing again on the other side.  This will be 18 isometric holds in total (9 each side), each lasting about 10-15 seconds.

This exercise takes about 6 minutes to do and can be done anywhere there is floor space.  I'm not making any promises or representations about whether this can help others, and I expressly disclaim responsibility if someone gets hurt doing this.  Again, I'm not a PT, and PTs are the experts on this sort of thing. However, this is the exercise that has cleared up things for me any time I've had hip rotator pain, or sciatic pain and cramping down my leg that I suspect is caused by tight hip rotators.

Dailies:

Monday: 6.5 miles very easy (10:08) with 2 untimed strides in the morning; foam rolling in the evening.

Tuesday: 8 miles on the treadmill, including 6x3:00/2:00 - intervals at 7.6 mph with 6 mph jogs.  Followed with leg strengthwork.  Sports massage in evening.

Wednesday: 12 "miles" pool-running in the morning; upper body weights/core in afternoon.  Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday:  7 miles very easy on a muddy towpath (10:23).  500 yards swimming at lunch. Foam rolling at night.

Friday: 9 miles, including testing the hamstring/hip with 2000m at tempo effort (7:53), 3x400m at tempo effort (1:54, 1:55, 1:54) with full recovery, and 4x100m strides (25, 25, 24, 24) with full recovery . Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 8.5 miles easy on a muddy towpath (9:50), including a Park Run in 29:56. Followed with PT exercises and 500m of swimming.   Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 17 miles, including a workout of 4, 3, 2, 1 miles at marathon effort with 1 mile float in between.  Splits were: 36:08 (8:02 pace), 23:27 (7:49 pace), 15:23 (7:41 pace), and 7:37.  Floats were 8:51-8:53.  Followed with 3 "miles" pool-running and leg strengthwork.  Foam rolling at night.

Training Log - Week ending 3/15/2026

This week was 44 miles of running, 21 "miles" of pool-running and 1000 yards of swimming.

Two workouts this week - one good and one not quite as good.

Wednesday's workout was a 4 mile tempo - in years past I've done 3x3200 as a slightly less-stressful alternative to my coach's preferred 25x400m at 10K pace. Being a bit older now (and having two half-marathons on the schedule), I decided to go even more conservative, with a simple 4 mile tempo. Better to undertrain than overtrain at this age and point in the training cycle.

The tempo went extremely well - I was expecting to run around 30 minutes, which would have been a big jump from 6 weeks ago, when I ran 30:44. Instead, I ran just over 29 minutes, which was a real shock. (I ignored my watch during the tempo, and so I didn't know what my splits were until I finished). Training is working.  Cool!

On Saturday, I hit Anacostia Park for my second 2x5 miles in fairly windy conditions. The effort during the workout felt remarkably easy,  Unfortunately, my right hamstring began to spasm during the second 5 mile set, so I shut things down before a spasm turned into a hamstring pull.

I'm pretty I know what caused this.  My hip rotators like to get tight sometimes and press on my sciatic nerve, which causes spasms and tightness down the leg. On Saturday my ankles were really tight (it happens sometimes), there was a strong crosswind which forced me to stabilize with my hip rotators, and my legs were cold (and thus rigid) due to a poor choice of shorts over tights. All of these combined to irritate the hip rotators on the right side, and...spasming hamstring.

Since I stopped rather than run myself into actual injury, this shouldn't take too long to fix.  Heck, if I was 20 or 30, it might have already vanished. But I'm 51, so it'll take slightly longer. As for the fix, I need to:

1. reduce my running but not stop altogether (both because it's harder to come back from zero and because running is the best tool I have for keeping my hips and ankles somewhat flexible)
2. work out the knots in my hamstring and hip rotators
3. mobilize and strengthen the hamstring and hip rotators.

So that's the plan for the upcoming week.

Dailies:

Monday: 8 "miles" pool-running; foam rolling, yoga, and PT exercises in afternoon.

Tuesday: 8 miles very easy (9:59), followed by 500 yards of swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 12 miles, including a 6400m tempo on the track in 29:01 (7:24/7:15/7:14/7:08) plus 4x200m in 54, 55, 53, and 52. Followed with leg strengthwork.  Foam rolling in evening.

Thursday:  5.5 miles very easy on the towpath (10:42) followed by upperbody weights/core and PT work. Foam rolling at night.

Friday: 6.5 miles very easy (10:14) and 500 yards swiming. Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 12 miles, including a workout of 5 miles at marathon effort (40:06), 1 mile jog, and 1.5 miles at marathon effort (8:03).   Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: Upperbody weights/core and 13 "miles" of pool-running.

Training log - Week ending 3/8/2026

This week was 63 miles of running, 9 "miles" of pool-running and 1000 yards of swimming.

The first half of the week was recovery from the One City Half.  We had yet another bout of icy conditions on Tuesday (fortunately shortlived) so Tuesday was a treadmill run.

One of my goals this training cycle is to be very smart about my recovery between hard efforts.  With a half-marathon last weekend and a progressive 20 miler this weekend, my mid week workout was intentionally half-assed - a 1600 at tempo effort and then some 200s and 100s to preserve some speed.

On Saturday I once again structured my easy run to include the Fletchers Boathouse parkrun.  Even at an easy effort, this parkrun is challenging for me (in a good way).  It has crowds and an uneven surface (the towpath), and a section that transitions from the towpath to concrete and back that is really hard (pun somewhat intended). Transitions between harder and softer surfaces are tough in a way that I can't really explain but a neurologist might.

It was in many non-physiological ways a hard easy run, but that was the whole point, and I once again felt better for doing it.  Additionally, I set a "Fletchers Boathouse Parkrun PR" of 28:28, so I seem to be getting better at these.  Or it's getting warmer.  Or I'm not being good enough about keeping the effort restrained on these.

Sunday's long run was a huge confidence boost. I ran it in Rock Creek Park as three out-and-backs of various lengths. Admittedly repetitive, but structuring the run this way meant that I did the whole run on rolling hills and was able to include two decent longer climbs - 1000m at a 1.5% incline and later 600m at a 2.3% incline - during the final third of the run at marathon effort.

I made a point of focusing on marathon effort (not pace) during the final third, and so was pleasantly surprised to see at the end of the workout that I had averaged sub-8 minute pace for the seven miles at marathon effort.  A few months ago running 800s at sub-8 pace was hard, so this is definitely progress, even if I am always at my best at the end of a long run.

Traditionally my running does three long runs of 20-22 miles split into 3rds, with 1/3rd easy, 1/3rd moderate, 1/3 marathon.  My coach told me to do two 20s, and I had no objection to that.  Additionally, I kept the run at 20, rather than the 21 or 22 I would have done previously.  Some of this is age - as an over 50 runner I think it's essential that I not stress my body any more than is necessary to achieve my goals.  

But there's also the fact that I'm slower now, and so running 20 or 21 or 22 miles keeps me out there longer. And there's a point where I'm simply running for too long, even if it's less miles than it was before. Doing a 20 miler structured as 7/6/7, rather than the 7/7/7 or 8/7/7 split that I used to do, means I still get the most important part of the run done (7 marathon effort miles on tired legs) but reduces the risk of overdoing stuff.

As I get older, and presumably slower, I suspect I'll probably modify these long runs even more, perhaps even down to something like 6 miles at easy effort, 5 at moderate effort, and then 7 at marathon effort. It seems the smartest way to balance the demands of marathon training with the reality of aging/slowing.

Dailies:

Monday: 9 "miles" pool-running; foam rolling and PT exercises in afternoon.

Tuesday: 5 miles very easy on the treadmill (9:52), followed by 500 yards of swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 9 miles very easy on a muddy towpath (10:22).  Upper body weights/core and foam rolling in evening.

Thursday: 10 miles, including a track workout of 1600 at tempo effort, 4x200m, 8x100m.  Splits were 7:31 for the 1600, 54, 54, 54, and 53 for the 200s, and straight 24s for the 100s. 5:17 recovery after the 1600, 1:2x recovery between the 200s, full recovery for the 100s. Did two short hill sprints after. Followed with leg strengthwork. Foam rolling at night.

Friday: 7.5 miles very easy to gym (9:48), upperbody weights/core, 3 miles very easy home (9:28). Foam rolling at night.

Saturday: 8 miles easy on a slightly less muddy towpath (9:29) including a parkrun at easy effort (28:28).  Followed with 500 yards swimming and PT exercises.  Foam rolling at night.

Sunday: 20.5 miles, split as the first 7 miles averaging 9:34 pace, the next 6 miles averaging 8:45 pace, and the last 7 miles averaging 7:57 pace, plus a half mile cooldown.

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.