Getting Smarter, Playing it Safer?

Yet another week of trying to be smart about my running and I think the approach, for the most part, seems to be working. A couple of weeks ago, as noted, I took one run "off" and got on the stationary bike instead for a 40 minute spin. Last week I decided another test was in order and on Tuesday hit the treadmill for a speed session. The idea was to see if I would be able to run four repeats of 800m in 2:52 or 2:55 with 2 minutes rest interval. These goals correspond to the Run Less Run Faster paces for either the 3:10 marathon or 3:15 marathon, in order words my "A" BQ and "B" BQ paces.

Anyway, it was a very tough workout, but I made it! There is an asterisk to the session as I took one extra minute of rest prior to starting into the last repeat, but not on account of the heart rate (which duly came down to 130bpm within 90 seconds each time), but simply because I was overheating as the gym had the worst stale air ever; absolutely nothing moving around in there at all and warm, warm, warm...

Long story short, the test was passed. But afterwards, maybe an hour or so later, I started to feel a pain on the top and outside of my right foot. This was not debilitating, but definitely worrisome. It was marginally better by Thursday, when I was to hit the gym for another run, but I decided to play it smart and safe and so it was back onto the stationary bike for another 40 minutes. I alternated one minute hard, one minute easy after a 5 minute warm up, and finished it off with a 5 minute cool down. It was a good workout, even if it wasn't running.

And so, as this past weekend came up, my foot was feeling better. However, coaching my little basketball team at the provincial championships had me focused elsewhere and a bit more than busy. Therefore, I decided to not run at all on Saturday. I woke up thinking I would get out there for an easy 4km, but the temperature had plummeted and it didn't seem like it was worth my time so I gave the foot one more day of rest. On Sunday afternoon, after coming home from the tournament, I hit the road for a general aerobic run where I managed a decent 10km in 50 minutes or so at an average pace of 5:02/km. My diet had been less than good over the weekend and this effort felt a loss worse than it should have, but I was happy that the foot was feeling 100%!

Today I hit the gym again at lunch and got on the treadmill for another general aerobic effort. I felt well enough after the first kilometre that I decided to do some faster sections, but not too fast. I alternated  1 minute at about 4:14/km with 2 minutes at about 4:52/km until I had run 9km total, then put in one more kilometre easy for a cool down. The total was 10km in 47:05 for a 4:43/km average pace. This was so much easier than my Sunday run and I am convinced that my diet affects me very clearly when training so I guess I'd better be good ;)

Anyway, things are going well. Another test is coming up on the training plan so we will see how I manage that. But for now it's play it smart, play if safe, and run healthy. I hope...

A Decent Week of Running

It was a pretty good week of running even though I wasn't expecting much after suffering through a cold that stopped me from doing anything last weekend and lingered on into this past week. I am still feeling the effects, but at least I'm able to run.

The long weekend started with a 16km run that was supposed to be only fifteen. I ran a bit too far out on the loop that I chose and I supposed that running that extra kilometre wasn't all that disappointing. There were some hilly sections on the way and I liked running them for a change. This shift towards liking hills has been good already even if I haven't seen any actual physical benefits just yet. I managed to finish the run in 1:20:59 for an average pace of 5:03/km.

On Saturday I ran over to the local track with Owen biking beside me and then proceeded to run with him. We warmed up with three laps then I paced him through a workout at just a bit faster than 5:00/km pace that went 400m, 800m, 400m with 60s rest in between. We ran a couple of laps together for a cool down and then I did two fast 800m intervals of my own with 90s rest in between. I managed both in 3:00 exactly, which is about 3:45/km pace. Not bad! I'm glad I only had to do two before jogging home and completing my 10km for the day. Malcolm's first baseball practice of the year was looming and we couldn't be late...

And today was my long run. I've been thinking a great deal about the approach I've been taking to long runs and am considering changing it. Instead of running for a set distance I am thinking of running for a set time. This, in theory, should slow me down a bit while at the same time allow me to stay out on my feet longer. I have to get to a point where I am out running for a minimum of three hours consistently no matter what the pace. Slow and easy, but long, is what I'm thinking.

I sort of planned to do a timed run today and just went off at an easy pace toward the Beaches without any real idea on what route I would take. I was hoping to stay out for at least two hours and just ran along with that goal in mind. After hitting the end of the boardwalk I ran back West and out toward the Leslie Spit. I figured this would be a good route for a two hour run and I was pretty much bang on. At the pace I was running I thought 24km would do the trick, but in the end I ended up running 25km in 2:08:16 for an average pace of 5:07/km. This probably was a bit faster than it should have been, but it felt pretty easy until the last little bit and in particular up the hill on Jones Avenue on the way home. Even so, my fastest split was the very last one (4:51/km). Ultimately, this was not exactly a long run based solely on time. I think I might have to strap the Garmin to my ankle or shove it in a pocket or something otherwise it is very difficult for me to NOT worry about pace.

The total for the week was 76km. Next Sunday I have a 10k to"race" and two weeks after that it's the Half Marathon. May will be a racing month!

Marching Forward

Hahaha. That's one of the worst post titles EVER! I stand by it...

Moving on, this IS the first day of the wonderful month of March wherein Spring is a promise sometimes kept, sometimes less so. The local papers are publishing rubbish to the effect that we will have a colder than normal season for the next three months. Just another reason to ignore the local papers.

This morning was a bit of a quick wake up that had me out of bed almost as fast as if there were a fire alarm going off. Instead, it was just my radio going on full blast that I had left downstairs. Hoping to keep the disruption to a minimum (because I love my family, of course) I bolted down the stairs, risking life and limb, to turn the sucker off.

After that it was the usual routine that had me out the door and running a nice and easy 8.5km recovery jog around what has become a customary route.

At lunch I finally managed to go get my haircut, an exercise that I really do dislike and tend to leave much too late. The intended 6 week between haircuts period this time stretched to over three months and it needed doing.

With the locks chopped I headed to the gym for a treadmill interval session. I wasn't sure if I would do the regular step down ladder thing where each fast and slow portion drops from five minutes down to one minute by a minute each time or if I would try something different. Even as I ran my warm up I was still not settled on the type of workout I'd put myself through.

Ultimately I changed things up a bit and I think it was the right move. Although my recovery pace is probably too fast to really get my heart rate get back to low numbers I think this type of training will benefit me in the long run (no pun intended, unlike the crappy title). Taking out the warm up and cool down the average pace for this run ended up being 4:33.5/km (7:19/mile) which is not too bad.

Here's what went down:

Duration	Speed	Pace (miles)	Pace (km)
5:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
5:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
5:00	9.0mph	6:40/mile	4:09/km
5:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
5:00	9.0mph	6:40/mile	4:09/km
5:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
5:00	9.0mph	6:40/mile	4:09/km
5:20	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
40:20	7.9mph	7:39/mile	4:45/km

Although the third interval in particular was tough I was happy with the way I managed to get through it. I was able to concentrate on maintaining good form and staying as relaxed as possible. Also, even though I slipped on this one a little here and there, it helped to try and keep up a fast cadence. I realize that there is still much work to do in this area despite the fact that I've come a long way since last November when I first began to experiment with picking up my turnover rate.

The total distance for the run was 8.5km, and with the morning run it all adds up to 17km (10.6 miles) for the day. A good way to start the month!

Bitter Cold, Better Treadmill

Today I got to experience both sides of running in a Canadian Winter. First, before the Sun was up and weakly trying to warm our City, I trotted out for an easy 5km at recovery pace. It was -13.5C (7.7F for those that use that freaky scale where something positive can still be positively freezing!) when I left the house, and the wind was definitely adding to the chill factor. Let's just say that I'm glad to have decided to put on that extra fleece jacket...

Then at lunchtime it was back to the great indoors for a bit of speed work on the treadmill. I didn't veer too far from what's been working since last November, but I did push the speed portion of the workout up by a notch to 8.9mph:

Duration	Speed	Pace (miles)	Pace (km)
5:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
5:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
5:00	8.9mph	6:44/mile	4:11/km
4:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
4:00	8.9mph	6:44/mile	4:11/km
3:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
3:00	8.9mph	6:44/mile	4:11/km
2:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
2:00	8.9mph	6:44/mile	4:11/km
1:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
1:00	8.9mph	6:44/mile	4:11/km
5:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
40:00	7.9mph	7:39/mile	4:45/km

The total ended up being 5.22 miles (8.4km) and it felt a bit easier than similar workouts that I remember doing in the past. Perhaps it was the big fan that I pointed in my direction to cool me off? Who knows. I definitely didn't feel that energetic just before the workout and was yawning up a storm, but sometimes those things don't really come into it and you end up surprising yourself.

Good day of running, both in and out of doors...

Has It Been That Long?

Only after running this afternoon on the treadmill did I realize how long it has been since I did one of these workouts! What happened? Well, I guess time just slips away. I've tried something else for speed intervals and suffered a minor calf injury as a result. Then I got sick. The weeks passed by...

But let's back it up. As Toronto is bracing for a major snow storm that is already hitting much of the USA I was able to get up early and fit in my usual 5km at recovery pace. My right calf was not an issue, and to be perfectly honest I was shocked.

As my lunchtime treadmill session neared I had no idea how the calf would hold up or what type of workout I should do. The training plan called for some "speed", and although I know that term is relative I typically push myself a bit harder on these than normal. On the walk over to the gym I made a decision that I would try something that had been working for me and if the calf started to give me trouble just turn it into another easy run or stop altogether.

No trouble from the calf as I repeated a workout that I hadn't done since January 4th! (Incidentally, that post was all about how I had not yet made any concrete goals for 2011, and I'm sorry to report that everything remains the same...)

Duration	Speed	Pace (miles)	Pace (km)
5:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
5:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
5:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
4:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
4:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
3:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
3:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
2:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
2:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
1:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
1:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
4:59	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
39:59	7.8mph	7:43/mile	4:48/km

In all I ran 5.19 miles (8.35km) and stopped the treadmill one second early of the desired 40 minutes, but it all doesn't matter. February is off to a good start!

Now bring on the snow...

Trying Something New for Treadmill Intervals

After an uneventful 5km run before work, during which I was pleasantly surprised to find that the sidewalks were almost completely devoid of snow and ice, I was once again ready for some intervals on the old treadmill at the gym at lunchtime. Looking back on my previous efforts of this sort I realized that what I was doing was more tempo/lactate threshold and less true speed work or anaerobic. It's because my recovery paces were too fast at just below 5:00/km (8:00/mile), so I wanted to do something that actually could be considered true speed work.

What I did was a set of near 800m intervals with two minutes of recovery. I say near 800m because I ran "fast" for three minutes, but just not fast enough to get through a whole half-mile in that time span. The pace I chose would have had me cross 800m at 3:14, but I wasn't about to try and follow that on the treadmill.

BTW, the 9.9mph or 3:46/km (6:04/mile) pace that would allow me to complete 800m in exactly three minutes is just too aggressive for me right now, though I'd like to be able to get there sometime this year.

So, to keep things simple, here's what went down:

Duration	Speed	Pace (miles)	Pace (km)
10:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
3:00	9.2mph	6:31/mile	4:03/km
2:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
3:00	9.2mph	6:31/mile	4:03/km
2:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
3:00	9.2mph	6:31/mile	4:03/km
2:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
3:00	9.2mph	6:31/mile	4:03/km
2:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
3:00	9.2mph	6:31/mile	4:03/km
2:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
5:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
40:00	7.64mph	7:51/mile	4:52/km

I had a bit of a scare right after my fourth fast three minute portion: as I slowed the treadmill down to 6.7mph for my two minutes of recovery I felt a twinge in my right calf that felt like the muscle was about to cramp up. I paused the treadmill and stepped off to test the calf and stretch it. A minute or two of that and I decided it would be OK to get back up there and do the last interval. Before starting into the fast portion, however, I ran the two minutes of recovery that I had just started before my calf scare. I guess that means that I took too much rest before the last fast bit, but I'd rather do that than suffer an injury.

I ran the last fast portion really concentrating on my form and saving the calf as much as possible. After that I ran I finished off the run at the slower pace until I completed 40 minutes. The total distance was 8.2km and I hope that the calf is not a harbinger of things to come. I'll have to watch it and make sure things don't get out of hand. After all, injury-free running takes a lot of discipline, which I equate with enforced disappointment. Not the type that comes with an injury which puts you on your ass for weeks or months on end, but the kind that comes with the realisation that perhaps you will not hit some of the training goals you've set for yourself until the problem area settles down and you're back to 100%.

Difficulty Focusing on 2011 Goals

Here I am four days into 2011 and I have yet to set real goals for the year beyond the obvious attempt at a BQ (pending whatever changes the BAA makes to the qualifying standards). Either way, running a marathon in 3hr15m is the BIG ONE. As for the milestones along the way? They're still a bit blurry...

I am charting a course to make an attempt at running the Around the Bay 30k in 2hr15m at the end of March if for no other reason than to earn a Silver medal. They give out Gold medals to finishers under 2hrs, silver medals for those who cross the mats between 2hrs and 2hr15m, and Bronze medals for anyone slower than that. I already have a Bronze from my pathetic and injury plagued attempt at the distance back in 2009. Now, like a good Canadian, I want SECOND PLACE! (If they had a shinny medal for something equivalent to fourth place that would be the logical Canadian target, but second place will have to do in this case.)

This goal will require a rather speedy pace of 4:30/km or faster, and given that the medals are based on Gun Time and not Chip Time I will likely have to run a couple of seconds per kilometre faster. It's worth noting that this is my current 10k PR pace I am really stretching to make it a possibility, but should it come to pass it will definitely set me up for a confident attempt at 3hr15m in the marathon in October.

Anyway, those are two big racing goals. I am also mulling another Half Marathon at the end of May, which, if I do enter it, will come with its own time goal.

Other than that I am currently mired in a training plan creation malaise. The overall impression that I am left with whenever I sit down and try and plug things into my Training Plan spreadsheet is "There's just not enough time to fit everything in!" How do I get enough mileage in while working out at the gym to try and continue to add much needed strength and a bit of bulk to my weak legs?

Anyway, I will get there. But until then I am still committed to the biggest goal of all for 2011: another year of injury free running! (But this time with some speed work thrown in for spice.)

With that being said, I started off my first full week of training in 2011 with a recovery-paced 5km over snow covered sidewalks this morning. It gave me the opportunity to test drive a new running hat and light jacket that was purchased yesterday at MEC. They were great! I also bought some running tights (against every fibre of  my being since I really dislike the whole tights look on men, and on myself even more). It wasn't cold enough to test those bad boys out, but I'm not looking forward to it...

Next up? A little treadmill interval session at lunch. Yay!

And they went like this...

Duration	Speed	Pace (miles)	Pace (km)
5:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
5:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
5:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
4:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
4:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
3:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
3:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
2:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
2:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
1:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
1:00	8.8mph	6:49/mile	4:14/km
5:00	6.7mph	8:57/mile	5:34/km
0:51	6.2mph	9:39/mile	6:00/km
40:51	7.8mph	7:43/mile	4:48/km

I stopped the treadmill at 5.28 miles and my on the fly calculations were correct because that works out to a tidy 8.5km run! It was certainly tough, but it's these kinds of efforts that will pay off in the end. Certainly going down to 4:58/km (7:59/mile) pace for the recovery portions makes this much more challenging than it would be otherwise, but I figure that if I can make 5:00/km feel easy it's not a bad thing. I am slowly working the faster parts up as well having done this workout the first time with 8.5mph as the top end (4:22/km, 7:03/mile) back at the end of November. Each week, or whenever I do this workout, I move the speed up one tenth of a mile per hour for the fast bits and now sit at 8.8mph. It will be very cool to be able to run this workout at or below 4:00/km someday!

Toughing it Out

Boy, was I ever tired this morning! I couldn't sleep last night and at about 2am, right around the time of the Lunar Eclipse that was happening and visible in North America, I found myself outside on my back porch with my pyjama bottoms flapping in the wind looking up at the Moon. I was joined by my wife and then by Owen for the festivities, but Malks was not to be awakened and he remained blissfully asleep. The Moon was a deep orange-red at the time and I thought it was pretty cool.

By the time I was out for my morning run at 6am the Moon was a very bright white. I'd never seen it so bright before, but perhaps the effect was the result of the contrast created by the deep red that I saw earlier in the morning. Anyway, I had a decent though very slow and slightly creaky 5km run before breakfast.

Then, as I was heading to the gym at lunch, I was a bit concerned that I wouldn't be able to finish the planned workout on the treadmill. In my mind I was supposed to run thirty minutes at 4:30/km pace. Then, just as I rounded the corner next to the gym, I realized that today was a treadmill interval day! For some reason that seemed easier to tackle than the other and, as it turned out, I was right.

Here is the summary of the run:

Duration	Speed	Pace (miles)	Pace (km)
5:00	6.2mph	9:39/mile	6:00/km
5:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
5:00	8.7mph	6:53/mile	4:17/km
4:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
4:00	8.7mph	6:53/mile	4:17/km
3:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
3:00	8.7mph	6:53/mile	4:17/km
2:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
2:00	8.7mph	6:53/mile	4:17/km
1:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
1:00	8.7mph	6:53/mile	4:17/km
4:10	6.2mph	9:39/mile	6:00/km
39:10	7.6mph	7:50/mile	4:52/km

The total was 8km (5 miles, actually and as usual). It was tough, but thoroughly doable and I feel like I am making progress.

Double Running Goodness

Today calls for copious amounts of rain and this in and of itself is not a problem. But the prospect of running this evening while Owen is at basketball practice just didn't appeal to me and so I shook things up a bit.

Before work I was going to run no matter what the weather and, remarkably, as I set off at a little past 6am it was barely drizzling on me. I had a nice easy 5km run that seemed to (as usual) feel better with every kilometre.

Then, while at work, I sat there wondering just how tough it would be to get myself out the door for another run should the forecast prove true and the rains came. Well, I think my mind was influenced by the fact that I got soaked on my way to work while biking and was not in the mood for more potential sogginess. Therefore, instead of doing a 40 minute abdominal routine at the gym (my shoulder and neck are still all funked up and I am continuing to avoid upper body weight training at the moment) I decided to jump on the old treadmill yet again.

To make things interesting I decided to see what would happen if I pushed the pace a bit past my BQ pace of 8.1mph (or 7:26/mile in runner speak). Since the whole HTML table things is working for me here's what happened:

Duration	Speed	Pace (miles)	Pace (km)
5:00	6.2mph	9:39/mile	6:00/km
5:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
5:00	8.5mph	7:03/mile	4:22/km
4:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
4:00	8.5mph	7:03/mile	4:22/km
3:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
3:00	8.5mph	7:03/mile	4:22/km
2:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
2:00	8.5mph	7:03/mile	4:22/km
1:00	7.5mph	7:59/mile	4:58/km
1:00	8.5mph	7:03/mile	4:22/km
4:38	6.2mph	9:39/mile	6:00/km
39:38	7.6mph	7:56/mile	4:56/km

Not bad, eh?! The total distance was 8km and I was quite pleased with both the distance and the intensity of the workout. Clearly I have a long way to go, but these types of efforts can only help in my quest to qualify for Boston next year.

And since today is the last day of the month and I am not planning on running a third time I can now summarize my running for November thusly:

So, there it is. A decent month of running. I'm especially happy to see the average speed move up a bit from October (where it sat at a paltry 9.8km/h!). Although my average heart rate is up I am not concerned with that. I figure that running a whole year at low heart rates is enough and it's time to start slowly moving on up. Still in the aerobic range, but no longer moving like a snail. (More like a frightened sloth...)

And lastly, since I am short on time I will not post it here, but in the next couple of days I would like to share a very interesting and important article about the physiology of running that my Dad alerted me to (thanks Tata!). Every would be and seasoned marathoner would be well served to read it. Stay tuned!

Half-Yassed

I thought of that "witty" title for this post while in the middle of my last interval. What can I say; it sounded better when my heart rate was up in the 170s and I was gasping for air...

Anyway, the point is that I ran another interval session, though I won't call this "cruise intervals" because it was harder than that. I managed half a complete Yasso 800 training set (which calls for 10 sets of 800m), and I bookended the whole thing with a 400m on either end. It was faster than the previous three and that is good, but it felt harder and while jogging over to the track I had my doubts that I would be able to do it. I guess I am feeling the effects of all the high mileage that I am doing in the middle of marathon training...

Here are the details:

400m 1:39 (4:07/km, 6:37/mile)
400m recovery 2:36
800m 3:13 (4:01/km, 6:28/mile)
400m recovery 2:47
800m 3:10 (3:58/km, 6:23/mile)
400m recovery 2:38
800m 3:06 (3:54/km, 6:17/mile)
400m recovery 3:03
800m 3:03 (3:51/km, 6:13/mile)
400m recovery 3:00
800m 3:04 (3:51/km, 6:12/mile)
400m recovery 2:51
400m 1:29 (3:40/km, 5:55/mile)

The Garmin seems to measure some laps a bit longer than others and that accounts for the discrepancies in the paces and lap splits, but overall it's pretty bang on. (For example some laps I ran over 800m but I still list it as an 800m interval even though I know I ran longer since I wait for the watch to show 800m rather than stop at the starting point on the track. In short, blah blah blah...) Also, my heart rate got up into the 180s bpm starting with the third 800m repeat, and that is definitely nearing the 100% of max territory even if I think I could have pushed a bit harder. Certainly the last straightaway on the final 400m repeat was all out as far as heart rate goes and that one maxed out at 183bpm.

Also, my recovery times are getting a bit longer. That is why I can't call this a "cruise interval" workout. I'm still well within the range set by Yasso, so I am happy. The total run ended up being 12km with the jog to and from the track.

And there it is: Half-Yassed! On the road for being fully Yassed at some point, though right now that looks like a daunting task.

Cruisin'

So, according to McMillan what I have started to do the past few Wednesday mornings are called "cruise intervals" (the definition is about halfway down the page if you follow the link). Not as fast as true speed intervals, but definitely out of the old comfort zone. I feel this is a good start for me because it reduces my risk of injury while allowing me to train my body to handle a bit faster pace.

This morning was a good cruise interval session, and perhaps it got a bit faster than it should have. Everything started off nicely and then just kept getting faster as I went along despite very humid conditions. I added an extra 800m to this session from the one I did last week and here is how things went down:

400m 1:45 (4:26/km)
400m recovery 2:42
800m 3:24 (4:15/km)
400m recovery 2:40
800m 3:20 (4:09/km)
400m recovery 2:37
800m 3:17 (4:05/km)
400m recovery 2:45
800m 3:10 (3:58/km)
400m recovery 2:51
400m 1:34 (3:55/km)

It is clear that I am still not taking enough time between sets (but I am OK with that as long as I can complete the last rep at the same pace as the first one, or faster) and that I am enjoying pushing the pace a little bit as the workout comes closer to the end. Working out at the track really appeals to me since it speaks to my swimmer's brain, which has been programmed to keep track of precise measurements and intervals or splits for many many years. Sure it hurts a bit, but I like that kind of pain. Sure I get hot and sweaty, but that it the only way one can improve. I will keep doing these cruise intervals every week until a couple of weeks before the marathon and see if I can get up to a real Yasso 800 session of ten 800s. I'm up to four right now, so things are going well!

Today's total run was 12km. That is all.

Dipping into Intervals

This morning I woke up nice and early and hit the road at 5:30am for a nice run. It wasn't easy getting going as I felt a bit stiff, but as I ran along things slowly improved.

At about the 5km mark I found myself at the track and, like last Wednesday, I decided to do a little bit of "out of the comfort zone" training. This week I added an extra 800m repeat to the mix and increased the recovery to 400m from 200m.

Things went like this:

400m 1:47 (4:26/km)
400m rest 2:26
800m 3:32 (4:24/km)
400m rest 2:39
800m 3:29 (4:21/km)
400m rest 2:41
800m 3:25 (4:18/km)
400m rest 2:36
400m 1:42 (4:15/km)

Afterwards I ran around the track for a bit before heading home and completing my 15km run. It was not particularly easy, but it was not that hard either. Certainly I am nowhere near the puke threshold with my pacing on the repeats, and that is just fine right now. I know I can go a lot faster, I just am not willing to risk injury right now by running too fast. Also, if this looks suspiciously like the Yasso 800s it's because that is in my mind as a basis for interval training. I should be going a lot slower on the recovery 400s in that Yasso says your recovery lap should take the same amount of time as the 800m does to run. I might try and do that as I add more intervals, but for now my recovery is plenty for the pace at which I am running the 800s.

This afternoon I will test my shoulder at the gym with some upper body weights. Let's hope it holds up!

Out of the Comfort Zone

This morning I woke up weary and tired and did NOT feel much like running. It had been a late night as Malks decided that 5 year-olds are perfectly OK to stay up well past 11pm, periodically dropping into their parents' bedroom to update us on some uber-important news or request snacks. Yeah... The night before he had fallen asleep in the car on the way home from soccer and never woke up, didn't eat dinner, and subsequently slept through the entire night in his uniform. I guess he made up for that extra rest.

Anyway, so here I was staring at the clock on my bedside table as it ticked away the minutes...

• 5:30 alarm goes off and I had already been awake for a while.
• 5:35 my left leg is off the bed but the rest of the body simply won't follow.
• 5:40 and now I'm sitting up on the edge of the bed wondering why my eyelids are made of lead.
• 5:45 in the bathroom staring at my reflection and thinking that anyone who looks like this should definitely get more sleep before subjecting others to their presence.
• 5:50 dragging my ass down the stairs hoping that the Garmin won't lock onto a satellite and, therefore, give me an excuse to not run.
• 5:51 the Garmin finds satellites and I curse NASA and all manmade celestial objects.
• 5:55 and the running shoes are on, I'm on the front porch stretching my concrete calves.
• 5:56 I step gingerly down the stairs and wonder where the hell I should run.
• 5:57 and I'm off mumbling "damn it" with ever step.

So, there I was, stumbling along aimlessly in the early morning. I felt completely lethargic and didn't know how I would make it through without completely growing to hate running, mornings, or both. Not surprisingly things started to improve and I began to wonder if shocking my body a little bit with some faster running would be a good cure for not only the boredom but also for my marathon training.

As I got close to the high school track that I ran on last year, but haven't hit up even once in 2010, I made a snap decision and got on the hamster wheel. The Garmin went beep, indicating that I had just finished my third kilometre, and so it was the perfect time to pick up the pace. I ran:

• 400 out of my comfort zone (1:52, 4:40/km)
• 200 in my comfort zone
• 400 out of my comfort zone (1:46, 4:24/km) 
• 200 in my comfort zone
• 800 out of my comfort zone (3:32, 4:25/km)
• 200 in my comfort zone
• 800 out of my comfort zone (3:30, 4:21/km)
• 200 in my comfort zone

Then I jogged home to complete a sleepy, but rather interesting 8km. It was not hard or anything, but I ran the faster bits at around the 4:25/km pace, which is not super fast or anything, but definitely not that comfortable for me.

It remains to be seen how my legs take to this. I hope I can incorporate a bit more of "out of the comfort zone" running over the course of the next two months if only to make things more interesting as well as physically rewarding.

Major Abort

Just a quick note on my post from this morning in reference to my run on words: while on vacation I read a biography of Cicero (which was very good, BTW) and in there I learned that "books" from that period (first century BC) were written on long scrolls with no punctuation, no capital letters, no paragraphs or spacing. I can't imagine reading a sentence, let alone a whole book, in that format!

Anyway, to the task at hand...

The plan called for speed work today, and so off to the track I went with two things in mind. Number 1: I've been reading about the importance of step-back weeks in marathon training and that these are supposed to occur after every 4 weeks or so of hard training. This would make this a bit late for me, but looking at my training I've been adding mileage in a up a little, down a little, repeat type approach. Therefore, I've decided to step back not so much on the mileage, but rather on the intensity (at least for the intervals, or so I thought). And that leads me to point Number 2: I've also read something on the Runner's World Forum (in the 3:15 BQ thread since I, too, can dream) that interval pacing, no matter what distance, should be consistent.

Does everyone agree with this? What I take from this is if I am running mile repeats at 4:00/km pace (my theoretical VO2 Max pace based on a 45 minute 10k result), then my 400m repeats should also be at this pace, as well as 800s, 1000s, 1200s, etc... I've done 400m repeats at a faster rate before, so I figured to do them again at this slightly slower pace (roughly 1:37 per repeat) should actually feel rather easy. After all, last week's speed workout saw me run three one-mile repeats at this pace. Getting rest after every quarter-mile should help to make everything go smoothly, I reasoned.

I decided to run 12X400m repeats with about a minute of recovery between each. Rather than stand and wait out the rest (like I did in the heat and humidity about a month ago), I decided to jog slowly 200m between each rep.

Here is how I fared in the overcast and nicely temperatured climes of my local high school track:

1. 1:34.74 (3:53/km)
2. 1:34.45 (3:55/km)
3. ...
4. ...
5. ...
6. ...
7. ...
8. ...
9. ...
10. ...
11. ...
12. ...

As you can see, this was a good workout, but 10 REPEATS TOO SHORT! Just when I was beginning to think that marathon training, though tough, is a reasonable endeavor for someone missing a ligament in the old ankle to attempt, something completely out of the blue stops me in my tracks. Towards the end of the second lap I felt a twinge in the right calf similar to what I experienced at the beginning of March whilst completing my first ever 24km training run. The only way to describe it is to say that it felt like a major cramp had come and gone and all that was left was the lingering after effects. I stopped and stretched for a bit, then got up and tried jogging, but to no avail. I ended up walking home very much disappointed in this turn of events.

I have no idea why this happened. If this was the result of this past weekend's race then one would think that my Monday recovery run would leave me hobbled. If my near crash after Friday's run (where I really felt spent and I'm sure my muscles were completely out of energy stores) is the culprit then why didn't my calf tighten up during the race? Let's just say I am almost as upset with the fact that I don't know what caused this and, therefore, am powerless to prevent it as I am with the calf issue itself.

In the end I ran a total of 3.1km (2k warm up, 2 intervals at 400m with 200m easy jog in between, and a feeble attempt at more jogging for another 100m or so) in 16:35 for an average pace of 5:22/km. 'Nuff said.

Garmin don't lie.

Surprising Oneself

Sometimes you go into a run not expecting much and spend the hours leading up to the supposed ordeal coming up with alternative plans and justifications for why you might not run the way you were hoping you could. This was one of those times for me, and yet it turned out OK. In fact, it turned out a bit better than OK.

I skipped Mondays regular 5km recovery run because my knees were a bit sore from the Sunday long run and so I'd been itching to run again for a couple of days. That being said, I felt tight, I have not been sleeping well (thanks for nothing Home Run Derby, or should I say Commercial Derby!), and I've been feeling a bit under the weather on top of it all. So as today's interval workout neared I wondered just what I would have to contend with and was resigned to "just get through" and get back to resting and icing.

After looking at the various printouts of marathon training plans on which I loosely base my training I settled on what looked like a decent workout that I thought would be difficult to achieve, but somehow was easy on the brain and achievable for the body. This was to run 3 1-mile repeats with 800m recovery jogs in between. The goal pace was 4:15/km, or roughly 6:51/mile. Given my last two interval workouts I thought that this would be really difficult, but potentially doable. After all I had run 5x800m last week at an average pace of 4:00/km, and the week before that I ran 4x1000m with 1000m meter recovery jogs at an average pace of 4:08/km or so. Moving up in distance (total of 4.8km versus 4.0km) as well as longer interval distances I thought that slowing down to 4:15/km pace was reasonable. That being said, I was feeling a bit worn out and somewhat wonky in the knees. My quads felt tight, glutes ditto, calves yup yup yup. "This is going to hurt," I thought to myself as I left the house once getting back from work.

But then the surprise part started. The easy warm up jog over to the track felt pretty good, though not exactly speedy, and by the time I got to the track I was more optimistic than when I left. I dropped my water bottle on the grass and started into my first interval. The sky was overcast and threatening a bit of rain. A girls soccer game was going on and lots of people and dogs were milling about, but they seemed respectful of the three or four runners who were out there with me and stayed clear. After the first 400m I checked the trusty old Garmin and saw that my pace was hovering a little below 4:00/km pace, much faster than I thought I was going. I said, "Oh Oh!" and wondered how the rest of the mile would go, let alone the other two that I still had in front of me.

The impending doom never happened. I completed the first mile repeat pretty gassed, but not as much as one would expect. I slowly jogged the 800m recovery, dropped the water bottle again, and set off with a mind to running the next mile in the same time. After the second one I was really gassed. That last 400m was really tough. I had to walk the first bit of the 800m recovery jog and told myself that I only had one more interval to go. I knew it would hurt, but at least then I'd be done. Rain had started falling by this time, but it wasn't heavy enough to matter. In fact I'd wished for it to just open up and cool me off, but to no avail. As I started into the last interval I knew it would be a battle to the end, but was determined to get'er done. Here are the surprising results:

1. 6:19 (3:57/km)
2. 6:22 (3:58/km)
3. 6:20 (for some reason this shows up as 3:56/km on the Garmin data)

Not bad. (Though thinking back to my 5k race back in May that 4:15/km pace is only one second faster than race pace, so perhaps I was just a little too pessimistic in my predictions.) The entire 10km took me 52:54 for an average pace of 5:17/km (8:31/mile). Next up is a long easy run on Friday and then the Toronto 10 Miler race on Sunday morning. Wouldn't it be nice for another surprise to happen then?

Garmin don't lie.

Back Road Intervals

Went out for another run along the country roads of the County, this time attempting some interval type training. I decided to run up and down the gravel road that leads to the cottage we are borrowing since that would mean no dog encounters (or so I figured).

I ran 2k to warm up and then started into my planned 800m intervals with 500m easy jogging in between. I wanted to do five sets and then have another 2k of cool down at the end to complete the intended 10k run. My goal was to run the 800s at 4:00/km pace, so 3:15-ish for each rep or so. The hills along the road, as well as the loose gravel under foot, made this even more challenging. Also, the two ladies that came and stopped on the side of the road with their two big dogs meant that I had to go out onto the main road for the last two reps (no leashes, so no Vava). The stats went like this:

1. 3:20 (4:10/km)
2. 3:09 (3:55/km)
3. 3:15 (4:02/km)
4. 3:11 (3:57/km)
5. 3:09 (3:55/km)

Other than the first split I think it went as planned. I was a bit tight and relatively tired when heading out before breakfast, still yawning occasionally during the warm up. That, and the hills I encountered along the gravelly road, perhaps explains the miss on that first 800m.

Next up is another tempo run on Friday. These I find the toughest to get up for, mentally speaking.

Garmin don't lie.

Happy Canada Day!

A short post for Canada Day since I managed to get a run in this morning, and the rest of the day will likely be fairly busy what with the little ones all jazzed about our country's Birthday and all.

I couldn't find the tape I use to support my knee as I rummaged through my stuff this morning and was a bit hesitant to go running at all without it. However, with stores being closed today, I didn't want to let this little oversight keep me from my run. I figured I could just go for an easy run and forget doing any speed work if my knee was feeling off. I did skip Monday's easy recovery run partly because we were travelling that day, and partly because I thought that my knee could use the rest after a milestone week as far as mileage went. As result, I had no idea how my body would react and headed out nice and easy.

I ran towards the Canal and slowly started loosening up. By the time I hit the path that runs beside the Canal I decided that I would try and do some faster 1k intervals with easy 1k recovery jogs in between. No real plan, just go faster than 10k race pace was what I was hoping for. I guess that was a good goal because in the end I had a great run. The intervals looked like this:

1. 4:15.93 (6:51/mile)
2. 4:06.55 (6:36/mile)
3. 4:07.43 (6:38/mile)
4. 4:05.59 (6:35/mile)

It was definitely a tough workout, and the pacing in the recovery jogs just kept getting slower and slower, but I'm glad that I was able to do some speed work after all. In the end the entire run amounted to 10km in 53:41.34 for an average pace of 5:22/km (8:38/mile). Next up is a tempo run on Friday. This run also puts me over 600km for the year, which is nice. I should be well over 700km by the end of July if things go as planned.

Garmin don't lie.

Intervals Again

On the hottest day of the year I went out and did something that's been rare in the past year of running: intervals. After an off day yesterday it was time to hit the track. (I did not swim because I am waiting for the UofT office of convocation to update the student records system so that the Athletic Centre can see that I am indeed a first year alum and, therefore, eligible for a decent discount on a membership. Tomorrow I will see if that is all doable and maybe get back to swimming again.)

Anyway, after biking home in the +31C (90F) plus humidity weather I was already pretty tired, but had been looking forward to doing some speed work for the first time in quite a while. I got ready and biked over to the track with a bottle of water and another of Gatorade as well as some apprehension over what I would be putting my body through. The plan was to run a warm up and then do 12X400m intervals with 90 seconds rest in between. I found a shady spot next to a small utility type building and parked my bike. This would prove to be a great resting place between each interval since the sun was still pretty strong in the early evening and it was definitely hot. I like the heat, but haven't had a chance to get used to it just yet. Workouts like this one should help in that department.

I ended up running only ten intervals because I felt a twinge in my right knee on the ninth one, but I still consider the whole workout a success. I was trying to stay at 4:00/km pace or faster (6:25/mile or so), which meant 1:37 per 400m. Here's how it all went down:

1. 1:33.90 (3:51/km)
2. 1:32.80 (3:48/km)
3. 1:31.80 (3:46/km)
4. 1:32.97 (3:49/km)
5. 1:34.52 (3:54/km)
6. 1:33.84 (3:50/km)
7. 1:31.65 (3:49/km)
8. 1:32.85 (3:51/km)
9. 1:35.92 (3:57/km)
10. 1:34.17 (3:53/km)

The average pace for for these intervals is somewhere around 3:50/km, or 6:11/mile, so it was definitely right on target and perhaps a bit too fast. I tended to start out each rep a little fast and then had to hang on as I came around the last bend and ran straight into a headwind. This was not an easy workout and I definitely felt a bit sick to my stomach towards the end, but that was partly due to the huge lunch I'd eaten and all the Gatorade and water that I had been drinking to try and stay cool. I think next time, heat or no heat, I will save the drinks for later in the workout so that it doesn't all slosh around inside my stomach so much. Also, my max heart rate ended up being 177bpm so I don't think I pushed myself to the absolute limit, which was good.

After the intervals I ran another 6 laps to complete the workout for a total of 8km, which was the distance planned for today. (I warmed up with 4 laps, or 1.6km and then ran 4km worth of intervals with those stationary rest periods.) In summary, a great workout. The knees are feeling it a bit tonight, but I've already iced and foam rolled a bit so I am hopeful that they recover for my Friday run.

Garmin don't lie.

A Good Test of Intervals

Today was a bit of a rushed day, though it seems like most of them are at the moment. After a busy day at work I had to take off a bit early for a dentists appointment. It was not pleasant in any way, shape, or form, but I will spare you all the details. I have to go back next week for another session, though I was promised that it wouldn't be either as lengthy or as painful as today's.

The good news was that I was back home in time to go for a run before the madness that is rounding up the troops for baseball practice (this time Malcolm's). I'd been looking forward to trying out some intervals and since I encouraged Monica to do some 400m repeats last night I figured I should subject myself to a similar workout.

I ran a nice warm up on the way to the track and found it to be almost completely empty save for a lacrosse team that was just finishing practice. I put down my water bottle and started into the 6 sets of 400m intervals, which I was planning to run at between 1:28 and 1:32. I pulled those times out of the McMillan Running Calculator based on my dream 5k finishing time of 20:00. I don't actually think I have a shot at going into the teens for the 5k, but I thought that the intervals looked achievable. Given that I was only planning on six of them, and that I remember doing a set last year where my times were about 1:37 for the 400s, I didn't think that I would hurt myself too badly if I pushed it a bit faster. I was a bit short on time so I didn't do the 400m recovery jog that I remember doing and opted for a simple 1 minute recovery while sipping from the water bottle that I had brought. The intervals ended up looking like this:

1. 1:29 (pace: 3:40/km, 5:54/mile)
2. 1:25 (pace: 3:31/km, 5:40/mile)
3. 1:27 (pace: 3:34/km, 5:45/mile)
4. 1:25 (pace: 3:31/km, 5:40/mile)
5. 1:26 (pace: 3:32/km, 5:42/mile)
6. 1:25 (pace: 3:31/km, 5:40/mile)

Needless to say this was a success! It hurt like hell from the third repetition on, and the headwind I had to run into on the homestretch became more of an obstacle to overcome with each 400. I also found that I ran about 10 - 15 metres past the line where I started each rep in order to get the Garmin to register 400. I guess that means that my intervals, if the track is to be trusted as being an authoritative 400m, likely were a second or two faster than the above times indicate. I must admit that I am suprised with my ability to complete these intervals, and as hard as these workouts are I really do like them. As long as my body doesn't completely disintegrate I would like to do one interval workout per week throughout the summer. There's nothing like the feeling of getting a really good workout, and long runs, as hard as they are in their own way, cannot be compared to a good set of repeats that set your heart racing. Hopefully this is just the start for me and I'd like to do longer and harder interval workouts in the future.

After the sets I jogged easily home. The total for today added up to 6km and took me 28:27 of moving time to complete (not counting the 5 rest intervals, of course). The average pace for the entire run was 4:43/km, though I wonder if that matters at all in this sort of a workout. My heart rate peaked at 180bpm, and at the end of each minute of rest it always went back down into the 130s, which was good.

Garmin don't lie.

Intervals, with the wee ones in tow

Yes, I did some (pretty pathetic) intervals. The family piled in the car to go to the track, which we normally do not do, but given dinner plans, etc. and the boys' desire to "go see Daddy run" this made the most sense. I walked around the track once to warmup a bit while the boys ran in front of me, though only one did actually run. The 3 year-old kept on sprinting ahead, then turning around to tell me something interesting about something interesting. After the first lap, Owen (the 6 year-old) wanted to run with me a bit so we started on my warmup jog. He is looking forward to the "cub run" at the Zoorun 10k in October, and wanted to test himself over the 1km distance. I, the proud Dad, am impressed that even after his first 400m lap, he completed the 1k, and in 6:30! He wants to join his school's cross-country running team this Fall, which is awesome!

I went a bit further, and after 1200m started in on my intervals. My initial plan was to do 5X400, but I thought I'd play it based on how the knee was feeling. Between each 400 I jogged a full lap to recover. The splits were 1:41, 1:36, 1:36, and 1:37, and I had to dodge lots of people arriving for some kids soccer games, as well as my own son who jumped out near the end of the second interval to give me a hug - I was really close to putting my knee in his face, and that would have ended in the local hospital for him and the doghouse for me! In the end I ran a total of 5k in 27:27 and then walked the rest of the way home. I must admit that the knee felt better than expected, but I almost bailed after the third 400. I'd like to think it was only because of the knee, but it was as much because I was dying. I decided to do the fourth interval just because I was curious to see how much I would die. The split was similar to the others, so maybe I wasn't pushing as hard as I could have, perhaps protecting the knee... In any case, even though the distance is short this felt more like a workout, and that was a welcome change from the easy 5ks I've been limiting myself to doing.

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