May 2011 - Over The Hill

Weekly Training Report for 2011-05-29

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May 282011

Workouts	7
Time	414 min
Cycling	20.6 miles
Running	22.8 miles
Weights	50 min

mon: Locksley-Essex out and back. Ran 4.2 miles for 80 minutes at 18:57 pace. I have never bonked on an easy training run before, but I had to walk the last two miles home. It was if I could actually feel my batteries running down. I even tried to run a few times on the way back but just couldn’t. I think it was some combination of being underfed, overtired or overtrained. I think I need some time off. I think I ran too many miles too soon after the half marathon and it has screwed me up.
tue: Lynnfield-Wakefield-Reading-Peabody-Loop. Rode 20.6 miles for 72 minutes at 17.04 mph. Finally my bike was done with its tune up and not a minute too soon. I need (at least) a day off running and I have been missing the cycling. Great ride through a few towns and finished up through the grasslands of Peabody. I will post a few pictures from the route. Oh.. I forgot my glasses and spent the entire ride picking grit and bugs out of my eyes.
wed: Running workout. Ran 0.5 miles for 5 minutes at 11:00 pace. Half mile barefoot run down the road and back. No real problems to speak of, but still easing into the transition.
wed: Around neighborhood. Ran 2.7 miles for 26 minutes at 9:54 pace. I meant this to be a slower run, but with the VFF’s I footstrike more rapidly, which drives up both my HR and speed. Technically I should have run this around a pace of 11:00. If I slow down then my impact is greater. I may (for now) have to do all my easy runs and recovery runs in my trainers so I can jog more slowly. I can’t count this as an easy run since my avg HR was 158. Tomorrow I will try again.
thu: Locksley-Essex out and back. Ran 4.2 miles for 50 minutes at 11:51 pace. Very Hot. No matter. Ran very slow and easy and brought hydration.
thu: Home gym. Lifted for 50 minutes . 2×12 pulldowns, 2×12 mid row, 2×12 chest press, 2×12 leg lift, 2×12 bicep curl, 50 lunges with 50 lb weights, 50 x 35 lb kettleball swings, 2×12 squats
sat: Lynnfield Long Run. Ran 11.2 miles for 130 minutes at 11:36 pace. Great morning for a long run. Headed out at 5:45 am without heart monitor or Garmin. Just kept the pace easy and light. I worked on my form most of the way and I think all the BF and VFF running is paying off even with my heavier shoes. I also am experimenting with switching from GU Chomps to Hammer Gel for sustenance and I think it is a good move.

Weekly Training Report for 2011-05-22

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May 212011

Workouts	5
Time	228 min
Running	21.5 miles

mon: Kissing Pillings Pond. Ran 4.1 miles for 47 minutes at 11:37 pace. Recovery run in the rain wearing my VFF’s. Oh it was so nice to go “barefoot” after yesterday’s effort in my Sauconys. I tried to keep the pace as low as I possibly could. Using my half marathon time as my new best effort I have recalculated my target paces using the McMillan calculator as follows:
Recovery Jogs 12:12 to 12:42
Long Runs 11:12 to 12:12
Easy Runs 11:12 to 11:42
Steady-State Runs 10:09 to 10:26
Tempo Runs 9:43 to 10:09
Tempo Intervals 9:35 to 9:55
400m 2:03.7 to 2:09.0
800m 4:12.3 to 4:23.9

Does anyone else find their target paces frustrating? Everyone who just wants to go out every day and run as fast as they can please raise your hand!
wed: Locksley-Essex out and back. Ran 4.2 miles for 39 minutes at 9:23 pace. Selfish run. I wanted to run fast and screw my training schedule. Felt awsome! Back to being a good little soldier tomorrow. Did half mile barefoot, then the 4.2 in VFF’s then 1 mile walk to cool down.
thu: Running workout. Ran 2.2 miles for 22 minutes at 10:14 pace. Ok that did not go well. My legs were feeling tweaked from yesterday *and* I picked the wrong shoes for today’s run. I started getting pain in the very upper of my left calf (almost to my knee pit) about half way through the run. Had to call the wife a half mile from home to come get me. I just iced it and I will cross-train next couple days and let things rest. As far as i can tell this isn’t an injury, just a tired muscle yelling at me.
fri: Slow easy miles. Ran 3.3 miles for 36 minutes at 10:58 pace. Yes I went for a run despite my plans to take some days off. I might have a running addiction issue. Well anyway I kept this light and easy and didn’t experience much discomfort until over 2 miles.
sun: Lynnfield-Summer-Essex-Loop. Ran 7.7 miles for 82 minutes at 10:43 pace. I had planned for a 12 mile run but shortened it at the last possible turnoff. Ever since I have been working on faster foot strikes my hamstrings get tired faster as I work to pull my feet off the ground faster and more frequently. I think I need to start some hamstring strength training.

Twin Lights Half Marathon Race Report

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May 212011

Last weekend I competed in the inaugural run of the Twin Lights Half Marathon in Gloucester, MA. It was an important race for me because I had several milestone goals:

I wanted to run the 13.1 miles continuously without stopping even briefly or walking at all.
I wanted to improve upon my 2:28:17 time from the first half of the Boston Marathon
I wanted to keep my pace as even as possible

Weekly Training Report for 2011-05-15

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May 142011

Workouts	6
Time	260 min
Running	26.3 miles

mon: Locksley road loop. Ran 4.0 miles for 38 minutes at 9:37 pace. Longest run yet on my new Vibram Five Fingers. I am so in love. But I am getting the achilies ache that is so common at first so I will have to continue easing into the transition
tue: Running workout. Ran 2.3 miles for 21 minutes at 9:31 pace. Heart Rate: Average=169, 99th Percentile=182, max 182
efficiency=81.3
wed: Sherwood forest loop. Ran 2.7 miles for 25 minutes at 9:30 pace. Although I am tapering for the twin-lights half marathon I took these new racing flats out for my tempo run. Wow, they are really interesting. I felt like I was between my VFF’s and training shoes.
thu: Locksley-Wildwood out and back. Ran 3.1 miles for 31 minutes at 9:55 pace. Last run before the half-marathon on Sunday. I felt a bit sluggish and my HR was up too high for the relative pace.
sat: Down the street. Ran 1.0 miles for 9 minutes at 9:49 pace. I just needed to loosen up. I wasn’t supposed to run for th 2 days preceeding the half-marathon but I couldn’t stand it.
sun: Twin Lights Half Marathon. Ran 13.1 miles for 132 minutes at 10:08 pace. Now *that* is a challenging course! Quite a lot of hills and coming back they seemed especially brutal. I really pushed myself hard and feel I gave it my very best. The reward was a new PR of 2:12:47, down from 2:28:37. This was more a matter of will power than fitness because my average HR was 173 and I actually hit 202 at the end. I came in 30th in the old man division, probably out of 30. BTW even with the hills I loved the course.. some amazing scenic views and quaint New England towns to run through. I took some pictures and video which I will also post.

Vibram Five Finger Bikila LS Introduction

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May 082011

The Vibram Five Kinger show (called VFF by many) is a unique foot glove that allows you to run in a barefoot style while being protected from road hazards. The VFF Bikila is designed especially for road running. Here is a video introduction to the shoe and my first impressions.

For those interested in more information regarding these shoes here are some links:

Main Product Link: http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/Five-Fingers-BikilaLS-Mens.htm

Best fan site on Vibram Bikila I have found: http://birthdayshoes.com/bikila

Weekly Training Report for 2011-05-08

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May 072011

Workouts	6
Time	242 min
Running	21.9 miles

mon: One mile warm up, X miles at pace and then one mile cooldown.. Ran 3.1 miles for 35 minutes at 11:19 pace. Run went extremely well. In fact I had a 20 min stretch at 10:00 pace and my heart rate stayed down.
tue: Run easily so that you can carry a conversation. Ran 3.0 miles for 34 minutes at 11:24 pace. Workouts3.csv
wed: Run easily so that you can carry a conversation. Ran 3.0 miles for 30 minutes at 10:08 pace. No issues, nice run
fri: 3 mile easy run + 1 mile in VFF. Ran 4.0 miles for 45 minutes at 11:15 pace. First day doing some of the run in vibram five fingers. THe 1 mile VFF run was amazingly fun and nice.
sat: Running workout. Ran 6.1 miles for 66 minutes at 10:52 pace. Last long run before the Twin Lights half marathon next Sunday. Low miles, slow pace.
sun: Recovery run. Ran 2.7 miles for 31 minutes at 11:29 pace. Easy peasy

25 Mile Gloucester Loop

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May 072011

This was my first ride of the season with the North Shore Cyclists club. The 25 mile loop contained some very scenic views of the coast from Manchester to Gloucester. I was still recovering from the marathon and my bike is in serious need of tuning so I opted for the shorter 25 mile distance.

The following pictures were taken with my latest point-and-shoot experiment, the Fujifilm FinePix XP30 14 MP Waterproof Digital Camera with Fujinon 5x Optical Zoom Lens and GPS Geo-Tagging Function. I was very unhappy with the quality of the camera even though it is basically indestructible. I had to do a lot of post-processing on the images to make them presentable. You can read my full review here if you are so inclined.