The end of the road (are we there yet?)

Krusty_Clown

pgmcpq wrote: »

Thursday AM: 7 miles recovery. Pace 9.09
Forgot the HRM. Run with breaks for bathroom, ATM and to help pop a car hood!

By pop, I presume you mean open, rather than gun-down? Also by car hood I presume you mean bonnet, rather than a local gangsta?
Sounds like a great way/place to see-in the new year. Have a great one.

pgmcpq

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

By pop, I presume you mean open, rather than gun-down? Also by car hood I presume you mean bonnet, rather than a local gangsta?
Sounds like a great way/place to see-in the new year. Have a great one.

No - correct the first time - stopped on the run to engage in a little cross training gun play with with the local car thief One too too many gansta film over the new year ?

Happy new year !

pgmcpq

Friday: 20 miles w/10 PMP (6+10+4). Pace 7.45

Needed to get this run in as the chances of my getting 20 miles in on New Years Day seemed remote ! Great day for a run/ Ran on a bike path that goes through the dunes for about 10 miles. One drawback is that the run is very hilly - other than one short climb - nothing particularly severe but still enough that I decided that hitting MP consistantly was unlikely. So aimed at 7.15-7.30 pace for the MP miles.

MP Miles: 7.14, 7.21, 7.20, 7.25, 7.30, 7.17, 7.01, 7.12, 7.17, 7.11

Last few miles were on flatter ground. A few miles slower than PMP but a strong finish - so happy with that session.

Saturday: 9 miles, easy. Pace 9.02

Intended a recovery session but running up on the Cape was so much fun that it was hard to turn around.

Sunday: 6 miles, recovery Pace 9.16

A quick early morning run before a six hour driver back home. Finally remebered to bring a camera - and hit heavy fog as soon as I stepped outside .

pgmcpq

Monday: 18 miles, Pace 8.37, HR 136/192

Back home. This is my last day before returning to work so decided to try to get a long run in. Many of my usual routes are still ice covered and the snow drifts mean the roads are down to one lane making running a bit of a gamble on the other folks driving skills ....so it was a bit of a mixed bag.
Found the run tough. Was struggling a little pretty early and the last few miles were a grind. Only knowing that getting any time in would be a battle against work and weather allowed me finish.

Happy with the session - four days after a LT/PMP run this is not bad. However the state of the roads do mean that LT sessions will be in the gym.

Tuesday AM: 6 miles recovery. Pace 9.29 HR 128/179

Playing fields are under snow and my left knee is beginning to get cranky again being forced to run on hard surfaces. Not sure about the club run tonight ....

pgmcpq

One setback since returning from the new year break is that our plumbing has developed a problem and we can not take a shower or bath. In a house with two people training for a marathon this is a problem. So my morning routine now includes a drive to an apartment I can take a shower. In my increasingly stretched day post run stretching has lost out.

Tuesday PM: 3+ miles

Failed to get out of work on time so after a search to find my running group I gave up and did my own run. My old Garmin 205 - now my backup - failed miserably again - it seems to have taken being benched with all the grace of a Man City player. No less than 3 miles, no more than 4 miles. Black ice and darkness made the pace 'cautious'.

At least being close to the 'backup' apartment I was able to take a bath.

Wednesday: 13 miles, Pace 8.53 (?), HR 134/189

Tough getting this run in. Pace figure is dodgey as one mile reports as 13.00+ - cannot remember why this is.

I was reminded yesterday that I have a 5 mile race Saturday. Had completely forgotten about this. Given that we are getting hit with snow again Friday night this should be an interesting race :eek:. My enthusiasm is not there right now - but I am going to use this in place of my tempo session this week.

Thursday: 6 miles, Pace: 7.53

Ignored the alarm so when I finally guilted myself out of bed time was short. Knee is not feeling too good for the first mile - once it warms up it is fine. But the pressure of work, having no shower in the house, the weather, and a succession of incidents that make me feel like I am wearing a "kick me" sign, is taking a toll on me right now. Sleep and stretching are being sacrificed and I'm probably going to pay a heavy price for both if I keep this up. Not feeling like I'm making progress. Hopefully this is just a "bad week".

pgmcpq

Friday: 7.5 miles w/4LT (2.5+4+.5), Pace: 7.41 HR: 153/185

Well the race on Saturday has been postponed to Sunday due to snow. This messes my week up a bit. Sunday is awkward as it it leaves me with either doing the LSR before the race or missing it. Since I had planned to do the race in place of an LT session the loss of the race is also a problem. *Sigh*.

So I was a bit ambivalent about the the session this morning and was still undecided between a recovery session and an LT session while stepping out the door. The snow falling over already slippy paths did not help much. I decided after a mile or two to try the LT session but in truth not being fully committed to the session it did not go too well and I cut it short at 4 LT miles.

LT Miles (Target Pace=6.45)|1|2|3|4|
Pace | 6.45 | 6.51 | 7.01 | 6.44
HR Avg | 149 | 157 | 160 | 165
HR Max | 156 | 160 | 161 | 168


Not a good session. I am undecided between trying an LSR Saturday and then running the race as another LT session on Sunday, or skipping the race completely and just getting the LSR in Sunday.... either way I have to resign myself to not racing the race. Snow is expected on Saturday but doing the LSR in snow is not a problem .... unless we get hit with a blizzard again, but am I taking a risk thinking about the race Sunday ?

Finally have the plumbers out. Fingers crossed I might be able to shower at home again - that would really lift my spirits !

menoscemo

You are still putting in some savage mileage!!

See you in Barcelona, I'll be coming ina round the 4hr mark this time.

pgmcpq

menoscemo wrote: »

You are still putting in some savage mileage!!

See you in Barcelona, I'll be coming ina round the 4hr mark this time.

Yeah .... I'm trying to cure the 'fade' that seems to keep undoing my marathons. Following your ultra training with interest. I'm not sure I could see myself doing a marathon as a training run !

So .... with snow due on Saturday night I decided to give the rescheduled race a miss and get my LSR instead. Feel a little guilty about as the race is closed but I would not have signed up if it had been scheduled for the Sunday. So ...

Saturday: 20 miles, pace 8.36, Duration 2:54 HR 128/184

Plan was for a time-on-feet run. I wanted to hit a duration of 2h 50m mark and get a 20 mile run in. Rather messy run. My big mistake was underestimating how cold it was. At 10 miles I gave up and returned back to the house to get an extra shirt. The was a stiff wind that was taking the wind chill down to teeth chattering levels. At mile 5 I took a short break to look at the hawk that has returned to my local park. A woman taking photos told me it had just finished a tasty snack of pigeon !!
She had great shots ... and I as ever had no camera.
Tricky conditions underfoot .... but all in all a satisfactory run. My plan to to try to get a few 3hr+ runs in.

Sunday: 7 miles easy, Pace 8.43

Cold and colder still. Windy conditions made this a 'hard' easy run when facing into a head wind. Enthusiasm started to drain quickly by the end.

Monday: 6 miles recovey, Pace 9.09, HR 124/168

Colder still ! Conditions were a bit brutal this morning. My left knee would appreciate a return to a softer surface ... so I with the possibility of anther heavy snow fall Tues/Wed I may retreat the gym for a while .

pgmcpq

Tuesday: 15 miles (4.5+7.5+3) - threadmill 1% incline, progression 6.7 - 8.8mph

A new record : Longest threadmill run ever ! Could not face the dark and even more the cold this morning and with my knee begging for a softer surface - decided to head to the gym. Actually ok - the Marathon Talk podcasts and gradually increasing the pace to near tempo for a mile or two ease the tedium. With another snow storm starting tonight I am glad to have this in the bag.

pgmcpq

My big reservation about signing up for Barcelona was whether winter weather would cooperate. December looked good ... but January is making up for it :mad:. So far I've kept up with the training program but it is getting more difficult.

Wednesday AM: 60 mins bike

No chance to get out - a fresh 8 inches of snow on top of what we already have.

Wednesday PM: 8 miles threadmill, incline 1%-4%, Speed 6.6mph-7.2mph.

Back indoors.

Thursday AM: 6 miles recovery w/10 strides.

Intended to return to the gym but on stepping out the door I found it was not too cold - well below freezing but the wind had dropped so it was tolerable. But the path surfaces and even the roads still have snow and more to the point ice. Found one stretch to do strides - probably a little shy of 100m but as good as it gets. No idea right now how I will get an LSR in this weekend as we will get nowhere near freezing point before then so the ice will remain.

For tomorrow's LT session it's back to the gym again. I am not sure if this give the same benefit as an outdoor LT session but no way would I risk an LT session outdoors right now.

pgmcpq

Friday: 10 miles w/ 2m+2m+1/2m LT, treadmill - incline %1, Speed 9.1-9.2mph

Legs were tired and podcast ran out so I took the hint and split the LT miles by a 1/4 mile recovery/find a new podcast break. Tagged on a find 1/2 mile at LT pace to compensate (and so I could get out and get work before noon:eek:). Scenery was wonderful. Dare I risk a return to the roads with a club run tomorrow morning ?

pgmcpq

Saturday: 18 miles, Pace 10.09, Duration 3.06

Well ... this began as a 9 mile group run. First time on this route this year. Snow reduced it to a single file run much of the time over a surface that was treacherous in places. So it got off to a slow start. Only a few people doing the longer run and I ended up running with a woman training for her first marathon. She was struggling and we got dropped by the rest of the group.
Sections of the later miles in the 9 mile route were calf deep in snow so the pace slowed to < 12.00 for several miles. She wanted to get to 13 so as I had intended tacking on a few miles I offered to accompany her. I left her at mile 13 and at that stage decided to go ahead and get my LSR in with five slightly faster miles ... but even so they were only dipping below 9.00 to my surprise. Well I did get in 3hrs on my feet ... but I think pace this slow may not be productive for me.

Sunday: 6 w/4MP, Pace 7.26

Time was short so after Saturdays ulta slow run I decided to push the pace here.

Monday AM 6 miles, recovery, treadmill
Monday PM 5 miles, easy, treadmill

Bitterly cold ... so retreated to the gym again.

Tuesday AM 8 miles, easy, treadmill

Snow/sleet/slush - conditions underfoot are miserable. Back indoors again. Really do not feel I am getting the quality of training in this time compared to the run up to Dublin. Hopefully I am wrong ... this weekends HM will be an interesting checkpoint.

Plumbing fixed yesterday ! ( Of course need to re-tile part of the bathroom floor). Porch roof leaking today .... *sigh* ...close to tears. Anyone wanna buy a 'charming' house ?

pgmcpq

Wednesday: 14 miles, treadmill

Debated ... but again caution prevailed. Back to the gym.

Thursday: 7 miles recovery, w/10*100m

Sky, air, cars, squirrels ! Figured conditions must be better. Still tricky - need to keep a sharp eye on the ground. I would not risk a temp session outside yet. Found a relatively clear stretch and returned to finish with some strides. Good to let loose.

Snow again tonight so tomorrow I will take a rest day - maybe some light bike/eliptical work but this ends my running streak at 47 days.

Saturday is the Manhattan HM - the start of the 2011 series. Forecast is for a high for the day of 20f (about -6C) so the 8.00am start is going to be fun :eek:. Water stops will have to be avoided as far as possible as they will turn into skating rinks as soon as the first water is spilt. Two climbs of Harlem Hill (can cost a minute per loop) - this is going to be interesting.

A little anxious about this race as it is my only real checkpoint before Barcelona. It's very hard to judge condition having spent so much time on a treadmill recently. The race is a tough course so it is hard to get estimate a time. After my 15k last month, under better conditions I would have been hoping to PB (<1.29) or at least close to it. Not sure if that is realistic on this course or conditions. Will set out at 1.30 pace and see how it goes.

Edit: Don't know if it is the treadmill but I seem to have picked up a strain in the arch my of my left foot. It fades once I get running but today I am noticing a few hours after I ran. Worrying ...

pgmcpq

Saturday: 19 miles total 2w/u + HM + 4 easy.

Cold. Very,very cold. Temp was 14f (about -10C), the wind chill was was 2F (about -17C). With 4 shirts, tights, two sets of gloves, hat and ear warmers on I was feeling so much pain on the warmup I serious toyed with returning to the baggage area and getting my coat ! Mrs P decided to go the Carlos Tevez route and took a scarf with her. I asked her if the flapping would bother her but she told me (I think as the reply was muffled) that it would worry her less than **** hypothermia.

The cold really took a toll on numbers 4,300 rather than the 7-8,000 from last year. So there was little congestion and my demotion to the second corral has little effect. Current and recent weather, the heavy mileage and the lack of any recent speed or tempo work meant I had no real idea how this race was likely to go. In addition it is 2+ loops of Central Park undulating at best, with long drags and short but steep hills. My strategy was to keep a 6.50 pace as far as possible, limit damage on the hills and see how I felt. By about mile 4 I started to feel normal (warm!) and was pretty happy with the way I was going - the miles were clicking away at sub 7.00. I tried to pace myself off other runners but for some reason there were few doing an even pace and everyone was so bundled up there was little sense of interaction with others. Conditions underfoot were largely good but there was ice around which inhibited letting loose on the downward slopes. Still I had seen a few 6.3x miles go by. Starting loop 2 I saw a sign that read "It may be cold but you are flamingos". Wondering what flamingos had to do with things kept me going a few miles. The second climb of Harlem Hill was as ever the point at which I began to struggle. After the descent from the hill there follows several other short but sharp climbs to survive. By mile 11 I calculated that if I could just keep below 7.00 I could break 1.30 - a significent target as it guarentees me entry into a couple of big races in 2012 - and began to look for a pace that was sustainable. I began to think that a PB might be in range. Passing the starting I found the flamingo sign again and read more carefully - it actually read "It may be cold but you are flaming" - ah - ok sorta get it now. Last few miles began to be a problem we had to lap the tail end of the race and the walking wounded. This was a bit discerting. Last mile was an up hill - aren't they always - at mile 13 I say the clock showing 1.28 so pull out all stops but could not stop it's progress and crossed at about 1.29.17. Chip time was 1.29.00 a PB .... by 8 seconds !

189th overall and 10th in AG. Finally a top 10 AG finish in a NYRR race. Last time they revised the results and I slide down to 11th. This time after 24 hours I am still on the honors list. If it holds that two 2011 goals down.

Race was won in 1.10 by - a local 17 year old - that's impressive.

At 1.29 in a HM I am again stuck by what an achivement a sub 3 marathon is. Holding that pace for another 13.1 miles ..... I salute you all.

Did a two miles warmup, and finished with four miles inclding a loop around the snowy path at the resevoir, for a 19 mile day totai.

Happy with the day. Suggests that despite being forced to the treadmill for much of January I am still ok for Barcelona. Not great but ok. Sadly more snow is expected Tuesday/Wednesday so realistically there will be little quality outdoor work before Barcelona unless there is a complere reversal in weather - not likely in early February. Ce la vie.

Sunday: 12 miles, easy 9.00-9.30, treadmill.

Perhaps a recovery session might have been called for here ... but this is a case of a) get the miles in when you can and b) 'bunch' the long runs. Still ... called it at 12 miles - legs were not interested in any more.

pgmcpq

Monday: 6 miles, recovery treadmill. Pace 9.15-9.40

A struggle !

Tuesday: 10 miles, Pace 8.11

Sky. Air. Birds .... yes a return to the outdoors ! Temp as 28f (about -2C) with little or no wind ... a veritable heat wave. Underfoot is still a bit tricky especially after it began snowing around mile 4. Surprised at the pace - I was taking it by feel but I thought I was comfortably below 8.00 ... there were a few points where I had to slow up to navigate some treacherous patches (any notion of strides was wiped out the first time I felt my foot give way) but not enough to account for the difference between the pace I when I glanced at the Garmin and my final reported pace. Still pleased reasonably with this. Legs feel pretty good post the the race.
More snow expected so a club run tonight ... and then probably back to the treadmill.

pgmcpq

Tuesday PM: 3.5 miles

Nice night out with the running group for a short run. Garmin failed but in total (to/from home) probably a little less than 4 miles. Over freezing -which feels like a heat wave, but we've had a few spills in the group so I am still weary of the road surface especially in the dark.

Wednesday: 15 miles, Pace 8.38, HR: Avg 133 Max: ??? 212 reported...cannot be right.

Ok ... so I had a cunning plan. Up and out before the storm due at noon.
Quick check on the weather at 6am - we are good to go. Nice calm, reasoanbly warm morning.

Mile1,2 - good start, settle down to a fairly comfortable pace (about 8.20-8.30). This is nice.
Mile 3 - wind has picked up and is blowing some snow off the trees. Very pretty.
Mile 5 - Eh ... no it is snowing. Very picturesque.
Mile 6 - really snowing .. near fall #1
Mile 7 ... and sleeting ..
Mile 8 ... mixed with freezing rain. Look there's my footprints from the last loop. Not so much fun anymore.
Mile 9 ...HTFU. ...near fall #2 (same spot as near fall #1)
Mile 10 ... Can't see where I am going.
Mile 11 ... Snow plough drivers are playing bumper cars, Hope they can see me ... I think.
Mile 12 ... It's cold ... HTFU ...
Mile 13 ....My footprints are getting wiped out before I loop back. This is miserable. Can I go home yet ? One more HTFU and I and my conscience are going to have words.
Mile 14 ...Snow ploughs doing wheelies ?? Gotta get off the roads before I get taken out ... Pace now > 9.00
Mile 15 ... going home - taking up the guitar. I miss the treadmill.

pgmcpq

Thursday AM: 6 miles. Pace 8.45 HR 143/201

Another 18 inches of snow so this run followed 2 hours of digging out. Needless to say surfaces to run on were limited. A bit faster than I wanted probably due to the need to say warm. The HR is a bit alarming

Thursday PM: 4.5 miles, recovery, treadmill

Kept Mrs P at the gym for the end of her run.

Friday: 12 miles w/7LT - treadmill.

Interesting. First time ever a woman tried to pick me up at the gym ! This sort of thing never happens to me (well never when I was single). She chooses the treadmill next to mine in almost empty gym at 6.30am. "Is that your favorite treadmill?" was a bit of a weak opening. While I took a break before restarting for the LT miles she then got on her cell phone and started one of those loud annoying "he said .. then she said..." discussions. Romance died ! I really need to start wearing my wedding ring again. Oh ... the run. Ok LT miles were tough and I was hanging on a bit at the end (Varied pace between 6.27-6.52 as per the treadmill). Really feel that an outdoors LT session would be useful but it seems unlikely that the roads outside will allow that.

Saturday: 20 miles (total), Pace 9.04, Duration 3:01

Mixed bag. Ran with my normal Saturday group. Parts of the usual route were pretty bad underfoot and in one short stretch we had about half the group (12) fall before we found an alternate route. No injuries beyond bruising thankfully. Finished off the 9 mile run and after collecting the group again I added another 11 miles on. Tough after the LT session the previous day and at mile 12 I turned for home before giving myself a talking too. Gutted out the remaining miles with a few good climbs and a break for a gel at mile 15. Elapsed time was 3:23 ... so there is 22 minutes of breaks in the run - mostly from the group run. Bit of a messy run but hopefully the last few miles of this run will serve me in the later stages of Barcelona, and I am getting in the time-on-feet.

Sunday: 10 miles, Pace 7.50

After Saturdays ultra slow run, I wanted to pick up the pace a little here. Tough run but happy that there was some juice in the legs after three tough days.

Monday: 6 miles, recovery. Pace 9.07, HR 132/187

Handy enough. Had to reel in the pace a few times - probably the exuberance of getting a few days outdoors. Another storm to start overnight tonight which blows any chance of doing some speed work this week. *Sigh*

Brianderunner

Whats the goal for Barca? Didnt see it in the last few posts. I imagine it'll be similar to mine when i decide on it :pac: (3'10-3'20). Are you flying transatlantic? thats hardcore! Fair play for training through all that snow, its the main reason i didnt want to emigrate to Toronto. See you in Barca.

pgmcpq

Brianderunner wrote: »

Whats the goal for Barca? Didnt see it in the last few posts. I imagine it'll be similar to mine when i decide on it :pac: (3'10-3'20). Are you flying transatlantic? thats hardcore! Fair play for training through all that snow, its the main reason i didnt want to emigrate to Toronto. See you in Barca.

Goal is probably 3.15-3.20ish. Not really sure as I've done no speed work at all since the new year. Looking at your last tempo session (nice consistency) I think you're a few steps (miles) ahead of me there. Using Barca as a holiday too - we'll stay a week - so not that hard core ! Training in winter is always a bit of a gamble - this year the house is threatening to wiped me out ! Back in December I was thankful I was not in Ireland ... so it goes. Btw, I think we met briefly in the lobby of the bar after DCM - you were with Meno and I was looking for the rest of my group ?

Brianderunner

pgmcpq wrote: »

Goal is probably 3.15-3.20ish. Not really sure as I've done no speed work at all since the new year. Looking at your last tempo session (nice consistency) I think you're a few steps (miles) ahead of me there. Using Barca as a holiday too - we'll stay a week - so not that hard core ! Training in winter is always a bit of a gamble - this year the house is threatening to wiped me out ! Back in December I was thankful I was not in Ireland ... so it goes. Btw, I think we met briefly in the lobby of the bar after DCM - you were with Meno and I was looking for the rest of my group ?

Yeah i remember now alright, i was in a rush to get to a pint of guinness though :P Yeah it was great to be out of Ireland in December alright, i left at the perfect time. Poor b*stards wading knee deep through the snow. I dunno about being miles ahead of you, i may die a death Cork marathon style the 2nd half depending on pacing, make sure you keep me a seat at the bar when if that happens :pac:

pgmcpq

Brianderunner wrote: »

.... i may die a death Cork marathon style the 2nd half depending on pacing

OI.... none of that thinking please. This from two weeks ago says different !!
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=70109554&postcount=258

Monday PM: 4 miles, recovery, treadmill
Tuesday AM: 10 miles treadmill 4 miles, 5*725m @9.00mph, 4% incline + 0.25 miles recovery.

Ok ... I decided I really needed to get some of the speedwork in the plan done. So I grabbed Danial's and did quick read to come up with the 9mph and 4% incline formula. Unfortunately I guessed 0.45 miles would be 800m. But no ... it's actually only 725 - hence the funny length. I did feel that it was a little too easy as I normally really struggle with speedwork and often fail on my last interval. Next time I'll get the length calculation right. On leaving the gym freezing rain was falling (changed from snow). It took 15 minutes to chip the ice off the car. Roads are likely to be unrunable for several days .

pgmcpq

Wednesday AM 7 miles, treadmill
Wednesday PM 75mins on stationary bike

Plan was for 15 miles, had arranged work to make time for it. But ....a) got complacent and slept late and b) a major ice storm over night meaning I had to clear the path outside the house and then chip the coating of ice off the car. This took over an hour .... By 10.30am I had only done 4 miles ... so at 7 I had simply run out of time. Picked up the pace in the last few miles but bit of a "junk" run - neither long run/nor recovery/nor speed.

Hit the bike at a decent resistance (15lbs) in the evening.

Thursday: 13 miles

No messing around - up and out to the gym by 6am. Got 13 miles in ending with a few MP miles. Had Mrs P's car so no chance to get the 15 in.

Next storm comes Saturday - hoping I can get my club run in before it starts. This winter looks to have no end and is beginning to sap my enthusiasm - worse lots of towns are out of cash so only clearing the major roads - useless for running.

A couple of snowless/iceless weeks so I could get back to road running before taper ....any chance ?

pgmcpq

Friday: 6 miles, recovery. Pace 8.47

Bit too fast for recovery

Saturday: 22 miles, Pace 8.44, Duration 3.17

Bit of a surprise. Went out with my Saturday morning group intending to beat the coming storm. Condition were tricky underfoot but the sleet turned to rain and conditions really improved. If there are snow mounds to clamber over in Barcelona this run will have served well as race specific training. After the run I hooked up with anther guy from the group who is training for a 100k in a few months and his wife training for her first marathon, so I ran with them for about 10 miles. Both the company and the relatively decent conditions made a difference so I decided on the way to get my long run done. I left him about at about 18 mile as I planned to end with some PMP miles. Hit PMP pace but the road surface was not good enough to keep up any sustained pace. Still 22 miles in - happy with that.

Sunday: 11 miles w/7 PMP Pace 7.25

Great day ! Temperature broke about freezing. Decided to get in the PMP miles I had failed to on Saturday. Choose a familiar loop of about 2 miles which was now reasonably clear of ice and went for it. This is the first time in weeks I've been able to up the pace outside.

Target pace 7.15 (maybe!):

7.15, 6.51, 7.32, 7.12, 7.13, 7.18, 6.58

A bit uneven ... a combination of over enthusiasm, and hills. Prett pleased given how little speedwork I had done and the 22 miles the previous day. Legs do know they have worked hard.

Monday: 6 miles recovery, Pace 9.07

Warmer temperatures make recovery pace a lot more attractive ! That's three days training outdoors. Who'd have believed it !

Killerz

Some excellent training there, even better considering the conditions. I too am getting a bit sick of the cold, snowy, icy weather, but I'd rather get out there in the -30 celsius than go on the treadmill. Camelpak tube freezing up an all that, but still, anything other than the treadmill!

Finding my long run times considerably slower in the cold weather, but some of my shorter runs going faster, in terms of min/ miles. Probably due to the fact that the long ones are during the day when its a bit warmer, whereas I have to push hard at night to keep warm.

Is that the end of it now for the serious storms down your way?

Fair play on the HM time - great work.

pgmcpq

Killerz wrote: »

Some excellent training there, even better considering the conditions. I too am getting a bit sick of the cold, snowy, icy weather, but I'd rather get out there in the -30 celsius than go on the treadmill. Camelpak tube freezing up an all that, but still, anything other than the treadmill!.

Your weather probably makes here look like spring ! With no grass to run on the treadmill at least is a bit of a breather for the knees.

End of storms ? Hopefully ...but hard to know ... there's nothing major forecast right now - temps are dropping too low for snow for a while... but Feb is hard to call.

Running Boston for fun - very jealous !

Tuesday: 10 miles, Pace 8.17 HR: 134/165

Ooooh .. the weekend's efforts are still in the legs. Nice morning not too cold and I was able to get the bulk of the run in before the wind kicked in. Tonight the wind kicks in and temps will drop back to seriously cold ... so not sure about my club run tonight.

pgmcpq

Wednesday: 16 miles treadmill.

Following on from the last entry .... windchill of 5 ( -15C) .... so with a tip of the hat to Killerz, it is back to the gym for me ! Pushed the lst few miles of this session with a few miles at close to PMP - in part to get back in time for a work meeting.

Thursday: 8 miles ease, w/10*100m+. Pace 8.08

Originally had planned a LT session .... but a few miles into the warmup I knew it was not happening today. The cold, a brish wind and yesterdays 16 miles combined ...so rather than force it I dropped back to an easy pace. To retrieve some fast work from the session I finished with 10 extra long strides/mini fartlek(s) on the road. I might skip tonight's club run and tomorrow try the LT session again.

Bad news: My favorite HM - the Brooklyn Half in May has filled up. Went to register today and ... found it closed in a day . Really gutted - this was a nice course and I was thinking about this as my big shot at a PB. Also means I cannot complete the Grand Prix series this year.

pgmcpq

Friday: 12 miles w/7LT (3+7LT+2) Pace: 7.23

Skipped last nights club run and I think it was a (one of my very few) wise decision. Cannot say the LT session was perfect ... pace varied widely (+/- 25 secs a mile) and half the 1mile + loop was into a stiffish head wind. Still the first outdoor LT session since Jan 7th:eek:.

LT Miles (target is 6.45): 6.41, 6.38, 6.42, 6.44, 6.46, 6.45, 6.44

Probably better on paper than it looks but it is nice to see it is a little better than my pre DCM LT sessions.

pgmcpq

Saturday: 20 miles, Pace 8.25, Duration 2.56

4 miles solo, club run for 9 and 7 solo. Did not feel the love on this run. The tempo run was still in the legs so not overly concerned. The route is still hit and miss in terms of icing. Took a gel at mile 15 and that definitely provided a boost without which it is not certain that I'd have completed the run.

After the run I went for a massage where I was told that my legs were very tight. The therapist was heading off so I got no more specific info. More on this later ....

Mrs P has also joined a running club (women only) ... but a different one to mine (we're completely incompatible runners). Of course we met when the two Saturday runs crossed path. It's very odd explaining why, married and training for the same races we rarely train together. Happy Valentines Day !

Sunday: 7 miles, recovery Pace: 8.44

Too fast. Chilly and no grass to run on so it is hard to keep the pace under control. The run was a struggle .... legs were very heavy - much more so than I would have expected. I'm questioning whether the massage had any part in this. It's never happened before.

Monday 8 miles, recovery. Pace 8.51

Legs are still heavy. This is now strange and I am still wondering if the message is the bit that is different. I have another appointment in two weeks - a week before Barcelona but I am now thinking about canceling unless the legs rebound. The tempo session followed by long run is asking a lot but I have repeated this pattern before without this effect.

With three weeks to do the I am dropping the mileage from now on (last three weeks have been 80+). Hopefully one more day will see me bounce back ....

pgmcpq

Tuesday: 9.5 miles (3e+2MP+3LT+1MP+0.5e). Pace 7.54 (forgot to stop the watch)

Legs were much better today. I could almost feel them recovering last night. But the temperature dropped overnight and there was a strong wind picked up. Considered the gym but decided to try outdoors with a new wicking balaclava Mrs P got for me. Intended a 3e+3mp+3lt session but actually dropped to LT pace too early so I decided to roll with it.

MP Miles Pace (7.15): 7.14, 7.00
LT Miles Pace (6.45): 6.48, 6.45, 6.50
MP Miles Pace (7.15): 7.16

Not terrible ... not great. I am a bit concerned about my lack of PMP miles. The weather for the last 6 weeks has not been favorable for any kind of fast running ...but it's a bit late to try to fix this now. Endurance has been my problem so hopefully I have done something to address this.

Heading out tonight with the local club so my running stuff is drying on the window of the office. It is supposed to be odor "fighting" - sure hope so of my colleagues may finally have had enough.

Brianderunner

pgmcpq wrote: »

I am a bit concerned about my lack of PMP miles

I've done none at all if it makes you feel any better :pac: Why do pmp miles in training when you can just save it all for race day