Month: July 2023

Back to road work. I decided to push it a bit. Get to a point where the legs are saying “hey, I’m really tired, how about scaling back to walking?” This is what the race on Sunday was like. Get to that point today and then say “what happens if keep pushing?” How will the legs respond? Tired? Who cares. Need to practice pushing through it.

Today’s run was an 8.05 mile rolling hills route. Pace was 9:09. Weight was 146.4.

I decided to take a rest day yesterday. The legs were really sore from the race on Sunday. Knees too — rather steep downhills pound the knees a bit. Today is a day for putting in some work on the bike. Get things loose, do some work, and avoid the impact pounding from the road.

Today’s bike work was 39.5 minutes. Weight was 146.2.

Recovery run day. Nice and easy to start. Very, very stiff and sore, but it felt better after a mile or so.

Today’s run was a 2.18 mile rather flat route. Pace was 9:40. Weight was 146.8.

Race day. Just about the worst conditions: near 100% humidity, no breeze, and the fog burned off by 8:30 or so (race started at 7AM). I totally died by about mile 10.

Lots of people were doing what I was doing: mixing running and walking. Races/results like this are a real wake-up call: It’s obvious that more work is needed, and to be out in the daytime as much as possible.

Today’s race was the Mad Marathon in Vermont. Pace was a terrible 11:16.

One more warm, humid early morning. Clear and not much of a breeze. Good training weather. The race on Sunday will be in similar weather, except that the Sun will be up.

Time to focus on recovery and race prep.

Today’s run was the 11.0 mile rolling hills route I usually run two days before a race. Pace was 9:46. Weight was 145.8.

One more 110% humidity early morning. It’d be better training if it was after the sun was up.

The run was interrupted by a freight train that blocked the road for about 25 minutes. Nothing to do but try to stay loose. This is the second time that I’ve been stuck at that crossing.

Today’s run was a 12.5 mile rolling hills route. Shoes were the Carbon X3. Pace was around 10:00. Weight was 146.2.

Decided to trim the run to just a short recovery run. My back felt rather stiff when I woke up. Relax and listen to the messages you body is sending.

Same weather: mild and 110% humidity. No complaints — good for training.

Today’s run was a short 2.18 mile mostly flat run. Pace was 9.50. Weight was 146.6.

A very, very humid morning for a run. The goal was a 17-mile route, but after about 10 it was time to intermix some cool-down walking with running. This is really good training weather, but whew!

One thing I’m re-thinking is the Camelbak. It’s a small backpack, and I bet it’s not the best on hot, humid days. Wearing something that keeps the heat in is not going to work. There are water stops at all the races, but the amount of fluid you get doesn’t cut it. You can lose 4 to 6 ounces per mile. Getting may 2 or 3 ounces every 4 miles or so is just asking for trouble late in a race.

Today’s run was roughly a 15 mile rolling hills route. Pace was a slow 10:14. Weight was 145.2.