More Miles...Feeling Good

Week of Feb. 15 ~ 21
127km (79 miles)

Monday
Rest. Lucky — cold and hard rain.

Tuesday
20k @4:41. 1:33:34
26:02/23:12/22:24/21:56 @5:12/4:38/31/23 (15k@4:31)
Planned to run 15k @4:45, but felt good. Not pushing at all. Last 5k was at 4:29-=26, then tried to run last k at 4:21 and ran 4:10.
Time: 3:00
Temp: 5C/41F, cloudy
Weight: 60.4kg
Shoes: 240g
Morning: weight and core at gym

Wednesday
12:00 - 12k @5:36
7:30 - 8K at track 1600/1200/1000/800/600/400
6:28/4:46/4:00/2:59/2:18/86
Moderately hard workout @ 4:00/k pace (shorter ones faster).
Cold. Legs a bit tired but felt ok.

Thursday
20k @5:11
Planned 5:00/k pace, but quads a bit sore, so that was a little too fast.
Anyway, this is a recovery run.

Friday
20k @4:45 1:34:52
26:55/24:08/21:56/21:51 @5:23/4:50/23/22 (15k@4:32
Originally planned 15k@4:40, but ran 15k@ 4:31 on Tuesday, so wanted to do that again.
Mainly wanted to run a good last 10k, although did not plan to run MP. Actually, felt better when running at MP than when running at 4:50.
Time: 3:45
Temp: 8C/46F
Weight: 60.5kg
Shoes: 220g
Morning - weights and core in gym.

Saturday
12k @5:27
Legs not sore, but stiff and tired. Decided to run 12 instead of planned 15 (35 tomorrow). Finally warmed up and felt capable of running a decent pace at 8k.
Jr. high baseball players were running along the bicycle path. I told one he had good form (he did) and maybe he should run instead of playing baseball. He yelled "Thanks!" We have to get our recruits where we can find them.

Sunday
35k @5:00 2:55:30
27:01/26:18/25:46/25:00/24:27:24:14/22:40 @5:24/16/09/00/4:54/50/32
Last 2k: 4:28/16
Each 5k faster - not planned, although wanted to do it last 3 5Ks. Felt good. A bit tired with 10k to go but kept picking up the pace without feeling bad. Very good run at the end of a long week.
Drank one gel and ate one pack of Gu Chomps (like gummy candies). I like Gu Chomps!
Time: 2:30
Temp: 10C/50F, partly cloudy.
Weight; 60.4kg
Shoes: 270g

Total for week: 127k (79 mi.) 10:46

Piling on the Miles

Week of Feb. 8 ~ 14
Enough of them, I hope. Anyway 120km this week (74.5 mi.)

Monday
Rest

Tuesday
20k @4:51 1:37:09
25:59/24:38/23:25/23:05
@5:12/4:55/42/36
Cruising easily, felt good coming back.
11:00am - weights and abs.
Springlike weather at 16C/61F

Wednesday
20k 10:00am - 12k @5:21 1:04:09
At the track at night - 8k
1600/1600/1000/1000/600
6:40/6:10/3:46/3:48/2:10
Legs felt ok. Running fairly hard, but not all out.
6C/43F - spring went away again.

Thursday
18k @5:04 1:31:15
26:18/25:39/24:28/14:48
@5:15/8/4:56/56
8:00 in the morning but felt ok. 5:04 for recovery run is good.

Friday
12k. 6k warmup @5:25
6k @4:31 (4:28/35/36/33/29/24)
Planned 6k at MP (4:21) but it was quite cold. I can't run fast in the cold and dark (6:00pm). Also had in the back of my mind that tomorrow will be a fairly hard run.

Saturday
32.2k @5:07 2:40:50
Went to my father-in-law's at Tsudanuma and met Cory McGowan for a run in Makuhari. He is a relatively new but pretty good runner who will be running the Tokyo Marathon. We have been emailing for about 6 months and finally met for a run. It was planned as 25k and may have been somewhat less but the 5:07 pace seems right so I am calling it 25k (plus 7.2k there and back to meet him). It was cold with intermittent rain but we had an enjoyable run.

Sunday
18k @5:15
Just taking it easy. Legs tired but not sore.

Total for week: 120.2k (74.5 miles). 10:14

Half Easy Week

Week of Feb 1 - 7
100km / 62 mi.
This was planned as an easy week (90km, easy runs), but Jedi Master Joachim told me I should do a long run EVERY week (speeding up at the end), and I also finished Once a Runner and read an interview with Masters legend Ed Whitlock (who does 3 hours EVERY day), AND one with a 67-year old who just ran a 3:01:56 and who runs further, at a faster pace, than I do. So feeling both guilty and motivated, I cranked it up a bit the last three days of the week.

Monday
Rest

Tuesday
10k @5:30.
AM - weights and abs.

Wednesday
10k @5:16

Thursday
10k @5:15
Legs felt fresh, but it was cold (3C/37F) 5:30pm

Friday
20k @4:45
24:57/24:31/23:16/22:20 @5:00/4:54/39/28
Felt good 2nd 10k after getting warmed up. Not trying to run this pace, but it felt comfortable.
AM - weights and abs.

Saturday
20k @5:07
@5:14/14/4:58/5:01
Strong wind! Against me going out. A "hat-tightening" wind. (After grabbing your hat 6 or 7 times, you have to come to a complete stop, take off your hat, tighten the strap, and jam it back onto your head.) Still, was running a decent pace - without paying any attention to it, just fighting the wind. Coming back was delightful.
Planned this as a recovery day, which used to be 5:25-30 pace, but the damn 3:01 guy does his recovery days at 5:00.

Sunday
30k @4:55 2:27:39
26:21/26:31/25:46/24:22/23:11/21:26
@5:15/18/06/4:52/39/17
Felt ok going out, but not great. Planned to come back at 4:50,40,30, but legs felt a bit tired at the turnaround, so thought 10 seconds slower each 5k would be ok. Drank a gel (Weider Protein) during that 5k and managed 4:52 pace. Then just kept getting faster. Surprising! Very focused over the last 5k (4:27/27/15/11/06) and ran faster than marathon pace. A very good run.
Time: 2:30
Temp: 9C/48F, windy, but not as bad as yesterday
Weight: 60.8kg
Shoes: 240g Nike Air Zoom (marathon shoes)

Total for week: 100k/62mi. 8:26

Once a (120k) Runner

Week of Jan 25 - 31.
Did 120k for the week and felt ok.
Decided to re-read Once a Runner and it was well worth it. Great motivational book (a few silly/unnecessary bits, but they go by quickly). Fortunately I didn't read the 400s workout section until Friday night, otherwise the Friday workout would have been 20 400s. There are some very good things you can take away from it, the main one being the "secret" of becoming the best runner you can be. The secret is...there is no secret. You just pile on the miles, day after day, year after year. As many as you can possibly handle. And you WILL become a good runner. Coincidentally, I just read this in several other places, one being the blog Younger Legs for Older Runners, where Pete Magill says: There are no good workouts, just good, long-term workout programs. And of course there's our boy Hosaka - the same 30k every single day for years, resulting in a 2:36 marathon at age 60.

Monday
Rest (I ain't Hosaka)

Tuesday
20k @5:00
(25:33/24:47/24:34/24:50)
AM: weights and abs

Wednesday
10:00 10k @ 5:32
7:30 7.8k. 5,000m time trial at the track, running with Fabrizio.
18:53 (3:49/51/42/47/43
Felt ok, but not great. Quite cold...a bit too cold for me to run fast.
5 seconds slower than in Dec., which is...ok, I suppose.

Thursday
20k @5:20
Quads getting sore at the end, but the pace felt comfortable.

Friday
12.2k. 6.2k WU @5:26
5k @4:08 (4:00/07/12/17/04)
Felt so-so, 12:30 and a bit hvy from a big breakfast, although I went to the gym before for weights and abs.

Saturday
20k @5:26
Got 3 brief cramps in left calf at 8.5k. Stopped and stretched, then ran more flat-footed. Drank a lot of water at 9.1k and 11.1k. No cramps thereafter, so maybe I was dehydrated.

Sunday
30k 2:33:33. 28:26 / 28:19 / 26:10 / 24:29 / 24:00 / 22:07)
Pace: 5:07 (5:42/39/14/4:54/48/25)
Felt pretty good the whole way. Tired last 10k, but was able to pick up the pace without feeling bad. Good run to end the week!
Time: 1:00
Temp: 12C/54F, sunny
Weight: 60.6kg
Shoes: 230g, light Nike Cage 2

Total for week: 120k/74.5mi. 10:16.
Despite the miles, miles, miles mantra, I will cut back next week and then do 3 long weeks. Then will have 3 easier weeks after that until the LA marathon.