July 28-29: A Step Back

Wednesday night’s workout did not go well. I once again struggled on a hot day and did 3 x 2m repeats in 10:13, 10:19, and 10:40. This was a step back for sure as I thought I was turning a corner. My breathing and overall strength was terrible. I just hope this is a “two steps forward and one step back” situation. One thing is for sure though, if I don’t start improving soon Chicago may not happen for me and I’ll be looking at preparing for Club Nats and then a winter peak race(Houston maybe, half or full). I think this is just a situation of trying to get back in shape at the same time was dealing with hot weather. I really hope it isn’t something further. I really want this and the effort isn’t missing, it is more of a physical thing. I blame myself for not cross training more when I was hurt and coming back slow.

All I could manage Thursday AM was a recovery 6. I still felt wiped out from the previous night. Not fun!

July 26-27

Good start to the week. The temperatures dropped to the lower 90’s which actually made a noticeable difference. I ran with Joe at night, getting in 13. We ran through Tilden Woods onto Tuckerman and then took the Cabin John Trails almost all the way to Democracy. It was carnage along the trail due to the storm but amazingly the trail was clear enough to run. We kept a decent pace and I felt pretty good out there.

Jordan and I ran in RCP on Tuesday morning, keeping a solid pace. We took advantage of the slightly better weather, hardly noticing we were running faster than usual on our Tuesday AM run. I added on a couple miles to get in 12 for the day. I want to try to find some time to increase the amount of stretching I do post-running and to get in the icebath again.

July 21-25: Hot Weather!

Wednesday was a planned workout in the AM because I had a doctor’s appt afterwards and couldn’t leave work early to make the workout. Em and I had plans to go to a concert at the Strathmore at night too. Due to time constraints and other issues I couldn’t make it to the hills, and did what I could around town (6). Very hot out. I did get some better asthma medication to help me out since the doctor said my breathing was still inhibited pretty badly. I am really hoping it will help because I haven’t felt like myself recently.
Thursday was a morning run, getting in 7 miles. I wanted to do more but was very tired. I was thinking the heat was getting to me. I planned to double but had a dinner in DC that didn’t get over until later than expected.

Friday was going to be a double since I ran short the previous 2 days. I did 8.5 in the AM and felt great, much better than the previous days. My additional 8.5 miles in the evening did not go as well. It was noticeably hotter and more humid than in the morning. It was a brutal effort just to get the miles in.

Saturday was a store run (12) and we met at 8 since the temp was getting up to 102 that day, with the heat index over 110. Wow! The first hour felt OK, but the last 20 minutes wrecked me. It was hotter than when we started and lacked shade. I felt dizzy when I stopped but then quickly felt better. I stayed in for the rest of the day until it was time to go to Mike Smith’s place to hang out at night.

Sunday we ran the Riley’s Rumble 13.1, which was turned into a “Fun Run” due to high temperatures. Joe, Huge, and I decided to run together and keep it in control. We stopped at the water stops and took on anything cold when we got the chance, including popsicles. We still managed to run about 6 min pace despite the hill, heat, and humidity. MCRRC did an amazing job with this run and it was the best way I could imagine getting in a long run in those conditions. We ran 5 afterwards to get in 18 for the day before heading to Scott K’s place for some food and fun. As you can tell from the picture in this post, we have a great team with some entertaining guys. We had fun until a wicked thunderstorm came through and ruined the party. It dented Huge’s car and was 3 feet away from knocking him out. It also left tress everywhere, keeping us from getting home quickly and knocking out the power. As I’m writing this, the power is still out and we had to spend at least a night with the in-laws to get pregnant Em in some AC. We will also lose all the food in the fridge/freezer. We've had some crazy weather here this year: all the snow in the winter and now extreme heat, an earthquake, and a tornado (maybe) in a week. I got in 86 miles which is decent but I’m still looking for more miles and greater intensity in the following weeks.

July 19-20

Two solid days to start the week. Monday was a PM run with Joe. I ran a short while on the trolley trail and then met Joe at the spot and proceeded to run a loop around his house and Tilden Woods. I felt pretty good out there despite a few patches where I felt the miles of the previous day. I ran home hard and got 14 in for the day. I also added some strength training at night. Good day except I am having some pain where my hamstring meets my butt (a different driving injury I think). It has been present for a week but has been getting worse. I stretched it out several times. Hopefully that helps.

Tuesday was an AM run with Jordan, Jake, and Scott K. It was nice to have Jake out there again. Hopefully his current injury is on the way out and he stays healthy for a while. I felt up and down on this run. Started out feeling good and then felt like I was zapped 25 mins in. I got a second wind that carried me until about the hour mark and then I felt parched and tired. I was happy to finish up with 12 miles for the morning. The hammy / butt injury was bothering me a lot the last 20 minutes or so. I wanted to ice when I was done but I only had time to stretch because I was running late for work. I will ice when I get home in the evening but will start to treat with ibuprofen if it doesn’t start feeling better.

July 16-18: Struggling

Friday was an easy 7 in the AM. I decided against the double and just took it easy after work since I was feeling tired. Saturday AM I rested up before the race and loosened up. I was actually feeling alright and was pumped up to race.

(Skip this next paragraph if you don’t want to read any negative thoughts, but I need to vent for a second). The race itself on Saturday night was a disaster. I felt really warm in the face getting up to the start line but other than that I felt ready to go. I went out in 4:55, well off the pace of the leaders, and I thought I was being conservative. It actually turned out that would be by far the fastest mile of my night. I convinced myself I was still capable of a good day through 2 miles but soon after I knew I was cooked. I just felt bad out there. There was no relief for the heat and humidity and I couldn’t push myself back into the competitive spirit late in the race. I really feel like I’ve lost a mental or physical edge lately. I am running over 2.5 minutes off my best 8K, which was set in just as hot and much hillier conditions than during this race. I hope I’m healthy but I certainly feel off. My only response is to step up my training and hope things fall into place. It’s time for more mileage, harder running, and more attention to the small things. My confidence to make the trials again has been shaken and I need to get it back.

Sunday was a good start, logging 18 miles with Joe in the evening, despite both of us feeling pretty tired. It was nice to get in over 2 hours on the trails of Cabin John. Bad week: 75.5 miles.

July 12 - 15

Monday was a solo 15+ mile run at Difficult Run after the storm. I missed my normal Monday running company of Mike Smith (Matt lately too) as he was stranded since the Smith Bro car was being fixed after being side-swiped by a taxi. I went the hilly way and probably ran too hard, attacking parts of the run. It felt good to finish but I was tired for the rest of the night.

Tuesday I ran with Jake in the AM. I did 10 really easy and but it felt really taxing at times. Jake was bothered by a bum groin which sucks because he might be out of the Twilighter and I thought we would be able to run together given we are at similar fitness levels. I hope the Red Fox can right himself soon.

Wednesday was a lighter pre-race workout (5x 1000m, 4x 200m). It was hot and humid starting out and I didn’t feel too good at the beginning of this but loosened up as we went along. It was nice to run in a group of Joe, Dickson, and Charlie Ban. I finished up with a 10.5 mile day after a barefoot cooldown on the grass which felt great. I do hope Saturday isn’t as hot as forecasted though.

Thursday AM I went really light as I sometimes like doing 2 days before a race. I played basketball with my boss and ran a few miles. I’m pretty sure I’ll do an easy double tomorrow.

July 10-11

Saturday was a cooler, rainy day and we went to the store for a long run with some hard running mixed in. We went 17 in total with 5 miles in the middle done in around 5:30 pace. I didn’t really feel great out there but I liked pushing through and taking advantage of the good weather. I feel it is important to run hard on days when I’m not feeling good, although I’m sure the lower temperatures helped me get through it. The workout was a great one for the team too. Joe and Jake were good as always and Bain and Murph are starting to step it up. I have to say it has been a pleasure running with Bain again. I certainly missed that guy at runs and workouts when he was banged up last season. He is tough and adds a lot to the team runs.

Saturday evening Em and I attended a wedding in Charlottesville and had a great time. It was already hot on Sunday when we woke up so we decided to enjoy the day in town and then stop on the way back to watch the World Cup final. Even match but I was disappointed in the result as I was pulling for Holland. 4 years to wait for the next one! Anyway, this meant I wasn’t running until the evening. I ran 10 miles around Grosvenor and then did some strength training. 59 miles for the down week with a couple days of active rest. I would be shooting for around 90 next week but since I’ll take a couple of lighter days to get ready for the Rockville Twilighter, I’d be happy with over 80 and a good effort on Saturday.

July 3-9

July 3-9

Saturday I just ran an easy 7 in the AM to get ready for the next day’s race. I threw in some strides on the beach as well. It was hot but not overwhelming.
Sunday I ran the Sister Blister 5K in Stone Harbor. Despite the 8AM start, the temperature was already high. The was a cash prize and some guys that looked legit on the line, so I was expecting it to be hard. I followed the pack for almost a mile before making a small move to see which guys were for real. Only a couple guys went with me and then they fell off soon after. I ran the rest of the way solo and had trouble pushing myself on the flat course, I just kept steady 5 min miles and ran 15:20-something for the win. It was nice to get some straight cash, homie (remind me to post Randy Moss video). Races should give cash prizes more often. I always like to use some of the winnings to treat teammates or people who came to watch to a meal or round. Emily, my parents, and I went out for a tasty breakfast after. The heat and family time prevented me from doing a second run to complete the long Sunday plan, leaving me with only 70.5 miles for the week.

Monday and Tuesday were days of active rest. I swam and played tennis, but no running, which was disappointing. The heat was intense even early in the morning and there was little shade to be found. In the future, I need to plan runs out better and drive to places if I need to when I'm visiting the shore. This was a vacation and I don’t regret spending some great time with the family instead of running but I’ve got to run more when I’m there in the future.

Wednesday I drove back to MD and did a short night run with Jake at 9:30 just to get back into the flow of things. It was strangely hot despite the time of day. I did 6and then got in some strength training.

Thursday PM (with Smith bros at Difficult Run) and Friday AM (with Klim and Joe W in RCP) were both 13 mile runs. I was a little more tired and tight on Friday but both runs were pretty good despite the continued heat and humidity.

July 1-2

Thursday evening I ran with the Smith twins after Matt came back from Ecuador the day before. We ran nice and easy for 13 miles at Difficult Run. The weather and conversation was good, and I felt fine except for some trouble from the “driving injury”. On Matt’s request, we ate Arby’s after the run.

Friday AM I met the Chicken Tender Runner for 8.5 miles and a couple strides. It was a beautiful morning and I felt great on the run. I will never understand why CTR was rooting for England in the World Cup, but to each his own. We had a good run anyway. I am heading to Wildwood Crest this evening and racing on Sunday so I’ll get to see where I’m at right now. I also want to make sure I keep up my momentum when I’m running at the shore (coming back Wednesday evening) which is sometimes hard. The race and having a down week scheduled for next week should make things a bit easier.

June 30th

800m – 1600m – 3200m – 1600m – 800m ladder workout with slow 400m rest at BCC (11 total for the day). The weather was a bit cooler and much less humid than for previous workouts. I felt much better out there and overall it was a pretty good team workout. I ran with Joe much of the way and it helped to switch off the pacing duties. 2:20 – 4:46 (faster due to pull of Jake M’s time trial) – 9:52 – 4:48 – 2:11 (closing in 62). The was the best workout of the season so far. I had some calve pain (return of “driving injury”) and some minor stomach pain but other than that I felt strong. This was an encouraging effort and it was nice to be pushed by Joe, Dickson, Jake, and the crew.