avondale training journal, starting Dec. 2018 (comments welcome)

Week Dec. 17 - 23, 2018

Running
  • Monday, Dec. 17: 3EA (target pace 11:56), T+D 73, ave. pace 11:51, splits 11:50, 11:47, 11:52. (Originally scheduled for Tue.) Route: around the neighborhood.
  • Tuesday, Dec. 18: 4EB (target pace 11:08), T+D 60, ave. pace 11:06, splits 10:58, 10:56, 11:21, 11:05. (Originally scheduled for Wed.) Route: around the neighborhood.
  • Thursday, Dec. 20: 3EA (target pace 11:56), T+D 64, ave. pace 11:49, splits 11:56, 11:50, 11:46. (Originally scheduled for Thu.) Route: Sligo Creek Trail north.
  • Friday, Dec. 21: 4 EB (target pace 11:08), T+D 122, correction 1.5%, ave. pace 11:10, splits 11:06, 11:15, 11:10, 11:09. (Originally scheduled for Sat.) Route: Rock Creek Trail north.
  • Sunday, Dec. 23: 5 LR (target pace 10:50), T+D 65, ave. pace 10:50, splits 10:51, 10:48, 10:48, 10:53, 10:48. (Originally scheduled for Sun.) Route: Grosse Pointe, Lake Shore Drive.

Other
  • Monday, Dec. 17, morning: prehab routine, foam rolling and stretching
    • Single-leg glue raises
    • Arm raises
    • Hip strengtheners
    • Single-leg calf raises
    • Single-leg eccentric calf raises
    • Wrist curls
    • Wrist reverse curls
    • Wrist hammer curls
    • Wrist twists
  • Tuesday, Dec. 18, morning: foam rolling and stretching
  • Wednesday, Dec. 19, morning: Shanks workout 1, foam rolling and stretching
    • Squats, 3 x 8, 60 lbs
    • Bench chest presses, 3 x 8, 60 lbs
    • One-arm bent-over rows, 3 x 9 per arm, 20 lbs
    • Hamstring plate drag, 3 x 11 per leg, 10 lbs
    • Swiss ball roll out to pike, 3 x 9
  • Friday, Dec. 21, morning: Shanks workout 2, foam rolling and stretching
    • Romanian deadlifts, 3 x 5, 60 lbs
    • Standing dumbbell presses, 3 x 8, 40 lbs
    • Chin-ups, 3 x 5 unassisted plus 3 negatives each set
    • Reverse lunges, 3 x 11 per leg, 30 lbx
    • Wood chops in lunge position, 3 x 8 per side, 10 lbs
 
Week Dec. 24 - 30, 2018

Running
  • Monday, Dec. 24: 4 EA (target pace 11:56), T+D 58, ave. pace 11:54, splits 11:48, 11:58, 11:56, 11:51. (Originally scheduled for Tue.) Route: Grosse Pointe, Lake Shore Drive.
  • Tuesday, Dec. 25: 6 EB (target pace 11:08), T+D 54, ave. pace 11:05, splits 11:04, 11:07, 11:06, 11:04, 11:03, 11:04. (Originally scheduled for Wed.) Route: Grosse Pointe, Lake Shore Drive.
  • Wednesday, Dec. 26: 4 EA (target pace 11:56), T+D 65, ave. pace 11:55, splits 11:54, 12:01, 11:51, 11:52. (Not on original schedule - extra run.) Route: Grosse Pointe, Lake Shore Drive.
  • Thursday, Dec. 27: 6 EB (target pace 11:08), T 30 F, ave. pace 11:01, splits 11:02, 11:02, 10:53, 11:00, 11:08, 11:02. (Not on original schedule - extra run.) Route: Venango County PA, Sandy Creek Trail.
  • Friday, Dec. 28: 4 EA blind (target pace 11:56), T+D 90 with drizzle and rain, ave. pace 12:01, splits 12:00, 11:57, 11:56, 12:09. (Originally scheduled for Thu.) Route: Venango County PA, Allegheny River Trail going west.
  • Saturday, Dec. 29: 6 EB (target pace 11:08), T 30 F and WC 21 F, intermittent light snow, ave. pace. 11:06, splits 11:06, 11:04, 11:09, 11:04, 11:06, 11:08. (Originally scheduled for Sat.) Route: Venango County PA, Justus Trail going west.
  • Sunday, Dec. 30: 8 LR (target pace 10:50), T+D 76, ave. pace 10:47, splits 10:44, 10:41, 10:49, 10:48, 10:49, 10:45, 10:49, 10:50. (Originally scheduled for Sun.) Route: Rock Creek Trail going north.

Other
Since I was traveling to visit family over Christmas, I didn't do any strength training or tennis. I did foam roll a couple of times, since I have a small rumble roller for travel.

Health
I just thought to track this.
  • Still have the cold that started approximately Dec. 15. It's been a mild cold, but I am really tired of it.
  • Still have the continual headaches that started around Labor Day. These have been made much more painful by the above cold. MRIs scheduled for Dec. 31 and then neurology visit Jan. 7, so hopefully something will be figured out soon.
 
Nice job getting runs in while traveling, that's not easy! I hope you get some answers about the headaches - those are no fun.
 


Week Dec. 31, 2018 - Jan. 6, 2019

Running
  • Monday, Dec. 31: 4EA (target pace 11:56), T+D 83, rain, ave. pace 11:47, splits 11:39, 11:47, 11:49, 11:51. (Originally scheduled for Tue.) Route: Sligo Creak Trail, going north.
  • Tuesday, Jan. 1: 0.5WU + 2 x 1T-pace with 2 min RI + 3 x 2 min I-pace with 2 min RI + 0.5CD, T+D 111, correction 1%. T-pace splits (corrected target pace 9:17) 9:17, 9:17; I-pace splits (corrected target pace 8:24) 8:27, 8:31, 8:31. Track workout. (Originally scheduled for Wed.)
  • Wednesday, Jan. 2: 4EA (target pace 11:56), T+D 76, ave. pace 11:51, splits 11:51, 11:53, :11:50, 11:49. (Originally scheduled for Thu.) Route: around the neighborhood
  • Saturday, Jan. 5: 5EB (target pace 11:08), T+D 89, ave. pace 11:07, splits 11:05, 11:08, 10:59, 11:06, 11:12. Route: Sligo Creek Trail, going north.
  • Sunday, Jan. 6: 5LR (target pace 10:50), T+D 87, ave. pace 10:44, splits 10:39, 10:51, 10:44, 10:44, 10:43. Route: Rock Creek Trail, going north.

Other Activity
  • Monday, Dec. 31, afternoon: walk on treadmill approx. 45 min
  • Tuesday, Jan. 1, afternoon: 2 hours tennis doubles practice
  • Wednesday, Jan. 2, morning: Shanks workout 1, foam rolling and stretching
    • Squats, 3 x 8, 60 lbs
    • Bench chest presses, 3 x 8, 60 lbs
    • One-arm bent-over rows, 3 x 9 per arm, 20 lbs
    • Hamstring plate drag, 3 x 11 per leg, 10 lbs
    • Swiss ball roll out to pike, 3 x 9
  • Thursday, Jan. 3, morning: prehab routine, foam rolling and stretching
    • Single-leg glue raises
    • Arm raises
    • Hip strengtheners
    • Single-leg calf raises
    • Single-leg eccentric calf raises
    • Wrist curls
    • Wrist reverse curls
    • Wrist hammer curls
    • Wrist twists
  • Thursday, Jan. 3, afternoon: walk on treadmill approx. 45 min
  • Friday, Jan. 4, morning: Shanks workout 2, foam rolling and stretching
    • Romanian deadlifts, 3 x 5, 60 lbs
    • Standing dumbbell presses, 3 x 8, 40 lbs
    • Chin-ups, 3 x 5 unassisted plus 3 negatives each set
    • Reverse lunges, 3 x 11 per leg, 30 lbx
    • Wood chops in lunge position, 3 x 8 per side, 10 lbs
  • Saturday, Jan. 5, morning: walk on treadmill approx. 45 min
  • Sunday, Jan. 6, afternoon: walk on treadmill approx. 45 min

Health
  • Still have the cold that started approximately Dec. 15. I suspect it's really my second or third cold back-to-back.
  • Had the MRIs on Dec. 31. Go to the neurology doc tomorrow for interpretation. Still have headaches when awake.
 
Week Jan. 7 - 13, 2019

Running
  • Tuesday, Jan. 8: 5EA (target pace 11:56), T+D 97, ave. pace 11:55, splits 11:47, 11:57, 12:08, 11:51, 11:50. Route: around the neighborhood.
  • Wednesday, Jan. 9: 2 WU + 4 tempo (tempo target pace 9:32**), T 36 F and WC 24 F, tempo splits 9:29, 9:35, 9:33, 9:37. At the HS track. This really killed me - I had to stop for complete breaks after miles 3, 4, 5, and 5.5. **I did HM tempo pace, but it turns out I was supposed to have done M tempo pace (9:56). That would have been much better!
  • Thursday, Jan. 10: 5EA (target pace 11:56), T 32 F and WC 20, ave. pace 11:56, splits 11:56, 11:50, 12:02, 12:00, 11:51. Route: around the neighborhood.
  • Saturday, Jan. 12: 3 WU + 3 x 1.5 T-pace with 3 min RI + 1 CD, T 32 F, T-pace target 9:11, splits 9:10, 9:36, 9:49. At the HS track. I really, really struggled with this one. For the second two intervals, I started at the target pace, but faded rapidly. At coach's instruction, I ran slower rather than taking a break. HR around 170 BPM. (This run was originally scheduled for Sunday, but we moved it up so that I could do it before the snowstorm covered the track.)
  • Sunday, Jan. 13: 5 EA (target pace 11:56), I did this at 5.0mph on the treadmill. The snow was too deep and not yet shoveled to go anywhere outside.

Other
  • Monday, Jan. 7:
    • morning: prehab routine, foam rolling and stretching - like previous
    • afternoon: walk on treadmill
    • evening: tennis doubles match - we won!
  • Tuesday, Jan. 8, morning: Shanks workout 3, foam rolling and stretching
    • One-leg hip thrusters, 5 x 10 per leg
    • Decline push-ups, 3 x 10
    • Reverse-grip rows, 3 x 8, 20 lbs per arm
    • Step-up and cross-over with knee lift, 3 x 8 per leg, 16 lbs
    • Back extensions, 3 x 10
  • Wednesday, Jan. 9, morning: 1-hour tennis lesson
  • Thursday, Jan. 10, morning: Shanks workout 4, foam rolling and stretching
    • Rear foot elevated split-squat, 3 x 10 per leg, 30 lbs
    • Chest flye, 3 x 8, 25 lbs per arm
    • Pull-ups, 3 x 4 unassisted + 4 negative
    • Swiss ball hamstring curls, 5 x 10
    • Plank march, 3 x 8 per side with 3-s hold
  • Friday, Jan. 11, evening: neck PT
  • Saturday, Jan. 12, morning and evening: neck PT
  • Sunday, Jan. 13:
    • afternoon: walk on treadmill after 5EA run
    • morning and evening: neck PT

Health
  • I think my cold is still holding on, but it improved quite a bit over the week. Went from coughing so much that I couldn't sleep to only coughing up one lung after running. Still have some stuffiness and gunky/mildly sore throat as I write this.
  • The neurology doc said that my brain MRI showed no problems. He said that the neck MRI shows that I have some bulging disks and mild arthritis. This could be the cause of my headaches, but said it should be able to be managed with physical therapy.
  • Went to physical therapist Friday morning. She said that I have very tight occipital muscles, which are the muscles at the base of the skull (top of the neck) in the back. This is probably due to hunching over and bending my neck funny at work to look at my computer. She gave me a number of stretches to do 2x daily, and I will be seeing her 2/wk for 4 weeks. She thinks that the stretching should relieve the tightness of the muscles and stop the headaches. Yay! Oddly, her diagnosis doesn't seem to have anything to do with the bulging disks or arthritis...but whatever works. I had always been suspicious that posture issues may have been the root of things, but it took a long time for the doctors to get there.
 


Week Jan. 14 - 20, 2019

Running
  • Monday, Jan. 14: extra run 4EA (target pace 11:56), temp 34 F, ave. pace 11:56, splits 12:06, 11:53, 11:48, 11:56. Route: around the neighborhood. The route was all hard-packed snow. I wore my microspikes, and it seemed like very little additional effort with them.
  • Tuesday, Jan. 15: 5EA (target pace 11:56), temp 30 F, ave pace 11:56, splits 11:45, 11:51, 12:06, 12:08, 11:51. Route: around the neighborhood. Most sidewalks were shoveled, but there were some areas of ice/snow/slush, so I wore my microspikes. (Originally scheduled for Tue.)
  • Wednesday, Jan. 16: This was supposed to be a mix of T-pace and I-pace on the track, but the track was still snow-covered, with 1 - 4 inches of snow. By pre-arrangement with Billy, I changed this to a 5LR, but allowing my pace to slow according to effort. Well, the effort here was hard. The snow was pretty loose, unlike the Monday run, and so the microspikes didn't help as much. Some people had used the track and their footprints froze, creating lots of weird ridges for bad footing. I ended up pacing this run by trying to keep my HR in the aerobic range (about 150 BPM or less). I did 5 miles at an average pace of 12:20, splits 12:23, 12:19, 12:25, 12:13, 12:17. In retrospect, I should've just called off the track workout and ran around the neighborhood at home again.
  • Thursday, Jan. 17: 5EA (target pace 11:56), temp 34 F and snowing. ave pace 11:51, splits 11:48, 11:50, 11:51, 11:58, 11:50. I only did 4.66 miles, because this finished my third loop and the snow was getting harder and I wasn't wearing my microspikes, so I didn't do the extra bit.
  • Saturday, Jan. 19: 7EB (target pace 11:08), temp 37 F. The multi-use trail had a mix of bare spots and lots of areas with ice/snow/slush, so I wore my microspikes. It was warm enough that the ice was melty and slippery, so even with the microspikes, it was often tough to get traction. Again, I aimed to keep my HR at 150 BPM or less. Ave. pace 11:22, splits 10:54, 11:11, 11:25, 11:30, 11:24, 11:50, 11:21.
  • Sunday, Jan. 20: 1 WU + 6 M-tempo (M-tempo pace 9:56), temp 37 F, but winds at 23 mph and WC 22 F. Tempo splits: 9:57, 10:07, 10:46, 10:06, 10:33, 10:29. The rain overnight cleared most of the trail, so I didn't wear the microspikes. But the wind was brutal. After the first tempo mile and a bit, my HR was going over 170 BPM, so I stuck to trying to keep my HR in the 160 - 165 BPM range. My legs just did not have the energy for this run.

Other
  • Monday, Jan 14:
    • Morning: Prehab routine - as described previously; also foam rolling and stretching
    • Morning: Neck PT - I have a sequence of stretches for my neck from the physical therapist that take about 20 min to do
    • Evening: Neck PT
  • Tuesday, Jan. 15:
    • Morning: Shanks workout 1 - as described previously except 1 more rep in all sets; also foam rolling and stretching
    • Morning: Neck PT
    • Afternoon: PT appointment
  • Wednesday, Jan. 16:
    • Morning: 3 x 60s planks, 2 x 30s starfish side planks, each side, foam rolling and stretching
    • Morning: Neck PT
    • Evening: Neck PT
  • Thursday, Jan. 17:
    • Morning: Shanks workout 2 - as described previously except 1 more rep in all sets (except chin-ups); also foam rolling and stretching
    • Morning: Neck PT
    • Evening: Neck PT
  • Friday, Jan. 18:
    • Morning : PT appointment
    • Evening: Neck PT
    • Tennis doubles match: we won!
  • Saturday, Jan. 19:
    • Afternoon: Neck PT
    • Evening: Neck PT
  • Sunday, Jan. 20:
    • Morning: Neck PT
    • Evening: Neck PT
Health
  • I may finally be over my cold. I'm still coughing a lot after any kind of of exertion. Still getting a sore throat every night, but it seems to be slowly improving.
  • My headache has not been so bad - not sure if the PT is helping already, or just because the cold is going away.
  • We got a blood pressure monitor a couple of weeks ago because unfortunately my husband's BP has been a little high. He's trying to monitor it and also cut out some sodium. We are both data geeks, so I am having fun tracking mine. I tend to have low BP. My morning BP tends to be about 108/65 give or take about 5 in both numbers. Evening is about 5 higher in the top number, but the bottom is still about the same. I do take some meds that tend to lower BP (that's not why I am taking them), but I started with a few days when I was on no meds, and it was just as low.

I am getting discouraged that I haven't been able to hit my fast paces in my runs recently. Weather excuses only go so far. I hope I start improving on this soon.
 
Week Jan. 21 - 27, 2019

Running
  • Monday, Jan. 21: 5EA (target pace 11:56), temp 21 F, WC 5 F with 15 mph wind, ave pace 11:54, splits 11:55, 11:51, 11:52, 11:55, 11:53. Route: Sligo Creek Trail going north. (Originally scheduled for Tue.)
  • Tuesday, Jan. 22: 5EA (target pace 11:56), temp 32 F, ave pace: 11:54, splits 11:44, 11:56, 12:01, 11:50, 11:55, this route is hilly, so hard to stay consistent with the pace. Route: around the neighborhood. (Originally scheduled for Thu.)
  • Wednesday, Jan. 23: 1 WU + 2 T-pace + 4 min RI + 3 x 3min I-pace (with 2 min RI) + 0.5 CD., temp 45 F. T-pace target 9:11, splits 9:12, 9:13. I-pace target 8:19, splits 8:46, 8:40, 8:46. HS track. I was very happy to hang onto the T-pace miles, but I had nothing left for the I-pace.
  • Saturday, Jan. 26: 8EB (target pace 11:08), temp 34 F, ave pace 11:07, splits 11:04, 11:05, 11:07, 11:13, 11:09, 11:01, 11:10, 11:08. Route: Rock Creek Trail going north.
  • Sunday, Jan. 27: 2 WU + 5 M-tempo + 1 T-pace + 1 M-tempo + 1 T-pace + 1 CD, temp 46 F. M-tempo target 9:56, splits 9:57, 9:51, 9:57, 9:52, 9:56, 9:58. T-pace target 9:11, splits 9:25, 9:47. HS track. I was pleased to hit all the M-tempo miles, but the T-pace miles didn't happen.
This was a really hard week for running. I'm glad this upcoming week is a cut-back week!


Other
  • Tuesday morning:
    • Shanks workout 3: like before, but one more rep per exercise per set
    • Foam rolling and stretching
  • Wednesday morning: foam rolling and stretching
  • Thursday morning
    • Shanks workout 4: like before, but one more rep per exercise per set, except for pull-ps
    • Foam rolling and stretching
Health
  • Still doing the PT routine 2x per day. My headache is definitely improving.
 
Week Jan. 28 - Feb. 3, 2019

Running
  • Tuesday, Jan. 29: 4EA, target pace 11:56, did on treadmill at 5.0 mph due to ongoing snowstorm (originally scheduled for Mon)
  • Wednesday, Jan. 30: 5EB, target pace 11:08, did on treadmill at 5.4 mph due to -5 F windchill; this was Saturday's run, but I swapped the runs with the hope of being able to do speedwork on the track on Saturday.
  • Thursday, Jan. 31: 4EA, target pace 11:56, splits 11:33, 11:29, 12:06, 11:38, this was a blind run. Route: around the neighborhood.
  • Saturday, Feb. 2: 5EB, target pace 11:08, splits 10:57, 11:01, 11:10, 11:03, 11:03. I had hoped to do Wednesday's speedwork run, but we got an inch of snow the day before and the track was covered. Wore my microspikes and did the 5EB.
  • Sunday, Feb. 3: 5LR, target pace 10:50, splits 10:42, 10:45, 10:43, 10:41, 10:47. Route: Rock Creek Trail going north.

Other
  • Monday evening: subbed for tennis doubles match (we lost, but team won!)
  • Tuesday morning: Shanks workout 1: same as previous, but 1 more rep per set, and increased one-arm rows to 25 lbs; also foam rolling and stretching
  • Wednesday morning: prehab routine and foam rolling and stretching
  • Thursday morning: Shanks workout 2: same as previous, but 1 more rep per set except for chin-ups; also foam rolling and stretching
  • Thursday evening: after run, 1-hour private tennis lesson
  • Friday evening: tennis doubles match (we lost, but team won!)
  • Saturday evening: tennis mixed doubles match (we lost and team lost)

Health
  • PT for my neck is still going 2x per day; headache is much better.
  • Tweaked my lower back working on open-stance forehands in my tennis lesson, but it seems to be improving rapidly.
  • New personal record low BP: 90/56. :)
 
Week Feb. 4 - 10, 2019

Running
  • Monday, Feb. 4: 5EA, target pace 11:56, splits 11:46, 11:51, 11:53, 11:38, 11:54. Route: around the neighborhood. (Originally scheduled for Tuesday.)
  • Wednesday, Feb. 6: 0.5 WU + 5.5 M-tempo, M-tempo pace 9:56. Splits: 9:55, 9:56, 9:56, 9:53, 9:55, 9:53. How's that for consistency? T+D 94!! 50 F and light rain the whole time. Route: HS track.
  • Thursday, Feb. 7: 5EA, target pace 11:56, splits 11:53, 11:49, 12:03, 11:49, 11:49. T+D 96! Route: around the neighborhood.
  • Saturday, Feb. 9: 8EB, target pace 11:08, splits 11:00, 11:09, 11:04, 11:11, 11:01, 10:59, 11:01, 11:01. T 34 F and windchill 27 F. Route: Rock Creek Trail, going north.
  • Sunday, Feb. 10: 2 WU + 10 progression + 2 CD. Target/actual: 11:40/11:39, 11:20/11:19, 11:00/11:02, 10:40/10:41, 10:20/10:18, 10:00/9:59, 9:45/9:45, 9:30/9:28, 9:15/9:57, 9:00/10:03. I ran to the HS track for the warm-up and back for the cool-down, since the distance was about right, and it meant I only had to go around the track about 40 times!
I was very happy to hit all my M-tempo miles in Wednesday's run, since I had missed that run last week due to weather. The progression run today scared the heck out of me, so I was really happy to only fade in the last two miles - and I did manage to keep those at M-tempo pace. I am pretty dead tonight after that run.


Other
  • Monday morning: foam rolling and stretching
  • Tuesday
    • morning: Shanks workout 3 - same as previous, but increase all reps by 1 in all sets; foam rolling and stretching
    • evening: tennis doubles match - we lost and the team lost.
  • Wednesday morning: prehab routine - same as previous; foam rolling and stretching
  • Thursday morning: Shanks workout 4 - same as previous, but increase all reps by 1 in all sets except pull-ups; foam rolling and stretching
  • Friday
    • morning: foam rolling and stretching
    • evening: tennis doubles match - we lost and the team lost
I am on a frustrating 5-match losing streak in tennis. Can't seem to get it together.


Health
  • Still doing the neck PT stretches 2x per day.
  • My two PT appointments with the doc were canceled this week because I needed to get authorization from my insurance for more sessions, but it didn't come in until Friday afternoon. Meanwhile, my headache has started to get worse throughout this week. I guess it means that the PT appointments are doing something! But also kind of discouraging that it can get worse again so fast. My next appointment is on Tuesday.
  • My rheumatologist (for Raynaud's and possible lupus) is concerned because two blood tests so far in 2019 have shown some signs of liver damage. The only med or supplement I'm on that has liver damage as a possible side effect is the tizanidine (muscle relaxer), for which it is listed as a very rare side effect. So I stopped taking it and will get another blood test in a few weeks. The tizanidine was something I was taking for the neck/headache. The headache started getting worse early this week, before I stopped the tizanidine, but I guess we'll see what happens. No idea what is up with the liver, but not worrying about it at the moment, as I have no other apparent symptoms of liver damage. Heck, I just ran 14 miles!
 
Week Feb. 11 - 17, 2019

Running
  • Monday, Feb. 11: 5EA. Did this on the treadmill at 5.0 mph because of freezing rain. (Originally scheduled for Tuesday.)
  • Wednesday, Feb. 13: 1WU + 2 T-pace (5 min RI) + 3x3 I-pace (2 min RI) + 0.5 CD. T-pace target 9:11 and splits 9:09, 9:10. I-pace target 8:19 and splits 8:29, 8:32, 8:41. I could only keep the I-pace for the first 90 - 120 sec of the interval and then faded pretty badly. HS track.
  • Thursday, Feb. 14: 5EA, target pace 11:56 and splits 11:46, 11:53, 11:51, 11:49, 11:50. Route: around the neighborhood.
  • Saturday, Feb. 16: 8EB, target pace 11:08 and splits 11:01, 11:05, 11:08, 11:11, 11:04, 10:57, 11:06, 10:59. Route: Rock Creek Trail, going north. During mile 6 when I went a bit too fast, I was running through the course of the local 5K parkrun. Amazing how the idea that some of the other runners there were racing that made me pick up my pace - I had to really try to slow myself down.
  • Sunday, Feb. 17: 1 WU + 8 M-tempo, M-tempo target pace 9:56 and splits 9:53, 9:57, 9:54, 9:53, 9:59, 9:55, 9:53, 9:55. HS track. I was very happy to have totally crushed this run.
I tested out the carb-loading protocol yesterday. It was some 2700 calories with about 90% from carbs. I did not experience any problems with this. I spread out the food throughout the day, and I have to say that I didn't feel overly full. No problems today. I don't know if it helped me with my run today or not, but it certainly didn't seem to have any adverse effects.


Other
  • Monday morning: prehab routine as described previously and foam rolling and stretching
  • Tuesday
    • morning: foam rolling and stretching
    • evening: tennis mixed doubles match with my husband - we won!
  • Thursday morning: foam rolling and stretching
  • Friday
    • morning: foam rolling and stretching
    • evening: tennis doubles match - we won!
I was feeling really tired this week after that progression run last Sunday, so I turned this into a rest week from my usual strength training.


Health
  • I started up the PT visits with the doctor again this week - two visits this week. My headache has been worse, though, with the week off from seeing her. Also, possibly because I had to stop the tizanidine last week. My headache this weekend has been significantly worse. Sigh. Still doing the PT stretches 2x per day.
  • I was having pain in my left hip flexor for several days this week, worst on Friday. It would hurt quite a bit when I got up from sitting for awhile, bad enough to make me limp really badly. It didn't bother me when I ran or played tennis. Over the weekend it has improved - I guess running a lot this weekend helped it! :) Probably I tweaked it and it is just getting better.
 
Week Feb. 18 - 24, 2019

Running
  • Monday, Feb. 18: 5EA, target pace 11:56, splits 11:42, 11:55, 11:44, 11:46, 11:45. Route: around the neighborhood. Windy. I did this run a little too fast, but it didn't feel harder. (Originally scheduled for Tue.)
  • Tuesday, Feb. 19: 5.5EB, target pace 11:08, splits 11:07, 11:04, 11:04, 11:00, 10:58, 11:07. HS track. (Originally scheduled for Wed.)
  • Wednesday, Feb. 20: 5EA, did on treadmill at 5.0 mph. We got 4 inches of snow followed by a quarter-inch of ice, so I did not go out. (Originally scheduled for Thu.)
  • Saturday, Feb. 23: 8EB, target pace 11:08, splits 10:58, 11:01, 11:01, 11:06, 10:56, 10:59, 11:05, 11:00. Rain sprinkles the whole time. Route: Rock Creek Trail, going north.
  • Sunday, Feb. 24: 2 WU + 6 M-tempo + 2 T-pace + 1 M-tempo + 1 T-pace + 2 CD. Target/split for M-tempo and T-pace: 9:56/9:56, 9:56/9:54, 9:56/9:54, 9:56/9:53, 9:56/9:56, 9:56/9:57, 9:11/9:47, 9:11/9:58, 9:56/10:24, 9:11/10:30. Ran to/from the HS track during the WU/CD. T+D 83 at start and 101 at finish. I did fine on this until I tried to speed up to the T-pace. I never got near T-pace, and the attempt pretty much wiped me out for the rest.
I am wondering if the carb loading did help me last Sunday. Last Sunday I had 8 M-tempo miles, which I hit comfortably, but today I was struggling to keep the pace for 6 M-tempo miles and then faded quite a bit. This week's run only had 2 additional hard miles, but it felt much, much harder. I'm really wiped after this run.


Other
  • Tuesday morning: Shanks workout 1, foam rolling and stretching. Increased my weight for most moves.
    • Squats, 3 x 8, 66 lbs
    • Bench chest presses, 3 x 8, 66 lbs
    • One-arm bent-over rows, 3 x 9 per arm, 25 lbs (I had increased this weight in the prior iteration.)
    • Hamstring plate drag: 3 x 14 per leg, 10 lbs
    • Planks, 3 x 60 sec
  • Wednesday morning: prehab routine as previous, foam rolling and stretching.
  • Thursday
    • morning: Shanks workout 2, foam rolling and stretching. Increased my weight for most moves
      • Romanian deadlifts: 3 x 5, 66 lbs
      • Standing dumbbell presses: 3 x 8, 50 lbs (25 lbs per arm)
      • Chin-ups: 3 x 5 unassisted plus 3 negatives each set
      • Reverse lunges: 3 x 13 per leg, 30 lbs
      • Wood chops in lunge position, 3 x 8 per side, 12 lbs
    • evening: private tennis lesson

Health
  • Continuing my PT stretches 2x per day.
  • Continuing to see the PT. Unfortunately the headache has been getting worse again. Maybe the improvement when I started PT was just coincidence? My PT is concerned that I'm not improving like she thinks I should be, so she and neurologist are conferring. I should know next week if we are changing anything.
 
In a vaccum you could compare the 8 vs 6+2+1+1 and wonder why one was doable and the other not. Consider as well all the runs, weightlifting, and general stress levels as well around these runs. The carb loading could have helped and additionally maybe something else just made the hybrid harder. Although you were able to mostly hold pace and possibly lost a little motivation when you couldn't drop the pace further. No worries though as no one run defines the cycle.
 
Feb. 25 - Mar. 3, 2019

Running
  • Tuesday: 5EA, target pace 11:56, splits 11:47, 11:57, 11:56, 11:58, 11:56. Route: around the neighborhood. Wore my new shoes, a new version of the same shoes that I just retired.
  • Wednesday, 0.5 WU + 5.5 M-tempo, M-tempo target pace 9:56, blind splits 10:18, 9:51, 9:42, 9:27, 9:41, 9:36. Clearly the "blind" part didn't go great. I could tell I was a little slow on the first mile, but then couldn't slow down the others. It turned into almost a progression run. Route: HS track.
  • Thursday, 5EA, target pace 11:56, splits 11:45, 11:51, 11:46, 11:50, 11:55. It was windy. Route: around the neighborhood. I have to go to the website to turn on the corrections to make my elevation measurements accurate. I finally remembered to do that for this route: 350 ft of elevation gain in 5 miles (it is a loop that I do 3 times).
  • Saturday, 8EB, target pace 11:08, splits 11:07, 11:08, 11:05, 11:04, 11:08, 11:02, 10:58, 11:06. Route: Sligo Creek Trail, going south. I haven't run this trail for awhile, and I forgot how "fun" it was on the return leg, as it is all uphill - 340 ft of elevation gain in 4 miles.
  • Sunday, 8LR, target pace 10:50, splits 10:39, 10:45, 10:48, 10:41, 10:50, 10:39, 10:51, 10:49. Route: Rock Cree Trail, going north. Wore my new custom insoles. Also my new hydration vest, see below.
I am getting psyched for the race! I feel like I've trained pretty well for it, so I am looking forward to a good showing. There are 4:20 and 4:35 pace groups, so I plan to join the 4:35 pace group.

In my last marathon, I carried 1.5L + 0.5L of Gatorade in my hydration vest and throw-away bottle. I ran out before the end. I got a new hydration vest that can hold 2L and will carry 0.5L in a throw-away bottle again. With the lower temperatures that I should have in this race, that should be sufficient. I ran with the new vest filled with water today in order to get the fit correct.


Other
  • Monday evening: tennis doubles match, we won 4-6, 6-2, 1-0, and the team won, too!
  • Tuesday morning: Shanks workout 3, with some updated weights, then foam rolling and stretching:
    • One-leg hip thrusters, 5 x 10 per leg
    • Decline push-ups, 3 x 13
    • Reverse-grip rows, 3 x 8, 25 lbs per arm
    • Step-up and cross-over with knee lift, 3 x 8 per leg, 20 lbs
    • Back extensions, 3 x 13
  • Wednesday morning: prehab routine, then foam rolling and stretching
  • Thursday morning: Shanks workout 4, with some updated weights, then foam rolling and stretching:
    • Rear foot elevated split-squat, 3 x 13 per leg, 30 lbs
    • Chest flye, 3 x 8, 30 lbs per arm
    • Pull-ups, 3 x 4 unassisted + 4 negative
    • Swiss ball hamstring curls, 5 x 10
    • Plank march, 3 x 1 per side with 3-s hold

Health
  • Still doing neck PT stretches 2x per day.
  • I got on a new muscle relaxer to replace the one I went off of a couple of weeks ago, because the headache got much worse without it. Fortunately the new one is helping.
  • I have one more PT appointment, which is tomorrow morning. My PT thinks that the headache must have some other cause than muscle issues, because if it was that, I should have responded better to the PT. So, I will wait to see what the neurologist wants to try next. I have an appointment with him March 19. Until then, at least the current meds mostly keep the headache at a lower level, but it's always there.
 
Mar. 4 - 10, 2010

Running
  • Tuesday, March 5: 5EA, target pace 11:56, splits 11:42, 11:50, 11:53, 11:55, 12:14. Route: around the neighborhood. Actually only 4.82 miles - see below.
  • Wednesday, March 6: 0.5WU + 5.5 M-tempo. M-tempo target pace 9:56, splits 9:53, 9:55, 9:51, 9:51, 9:52, 9:50. HS track. Windchill 19 F.
  • Thursday, March 7: 5EA, target pace 11:56, splits 11:46, 11:57, 11:48, 11:49, 11:51. Route: around the neighborhood.
  • Saturday, March 9: 5EA, target pace 11:56, splits 11:47, 11:44, 11:51, 11:51, 11:49. Route: Sligo Creek Trail, going north.
  • Sunday, March 10: 5 EB, target pace 11:08, splits 11:15, 11:00, 10:56, 10:58, 10:54. Route: Rock Creek Trail, going north. My GPS was really playing games with this one. I can see on the map how it has me going way off trail randomly; my lap pace would suddenly slow way down for no reason.
Tuesday night's run ended at 4.82 miles when I tripped over a protruding sidewalk edge that I have purposely missed about 100 times (literally) this winter. Caught myself on my hands and really scraped them up. That's when I made a bad decision: it was dark, so I decided to shine my running light on my hands to see how bad they were. Not a good idea, because they were bleeding, and I tend to faint at the sight of blood coming out of wounds, especially out of MY wounds. I immediately got lightheaded. Sat on the sidewalk for a bit with my head down, but it was too cold to do that for long. I was literally only a 3-minute walk from my house, but I only managed to stagger about 10 feet before I knew I had to sit down again before I passed out. Ended up calling my husband to pick me up for the shortest rescue ever. But he's not going to let me live that down for awhile! The scrapes were all superficial, but messy. As I write this 5 days later, they are still sore, but healing up.


Other
  • Monday, March 4: walked on the treadmill after work
  • Tuesday, March 5, morning: Shanks workout 1 - increased reps by 1 in each set - foam rolling and stretching
  • Wednesday, March 6, morning: prehab routine and foam rolling and stretching
  • Thursday, March 7, morning: didn't think my hands would like pull-ups and heavy weights, so I skipped the lifting and just did some foam rolling and stretching
  • Friday, March 8:
    • morning: foam rolling and stretching
    • evening: tennis doubles match. Gripping was a bit painful, but fortunately my right hand didn't get scraped up as badly. My partner and I won our match, and our team won overall!
  • Saturday, March 9: tennis live ball clinic in the morning, 90 minutes
  • Sunday, March 10: walked on the treadmill after dinner

Health
  • My last PT visit was Monday morning. The PT was apologetic that she couldn't help more with my headache. I did all my stretching religiously, and she was certainly working at it, so I feel like both of us did our best. I am meeting with the neurologist again on March 19, and I'll see what he wants to do next.
  • Slipped on the stairs today while carrying a full laundry basket. Stupid. Didn't hurt much except my pride, and a bit of a knock on the back of the head. Sigh.
  • My headache has been much worse, starting Tuesday evening. That was after my fall on the sidewalk. Coincidence or not? Dunno. I certainly didn't hit my head, but maybe I jarred my neck or something. It just makes me feel tired and blah. Then after my slip on the stairs today, the headache has been killer, but I suppose that's reasonable. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.
  • Good news: my bloodtest on Thursday showed that my liver seems to be back to normal with the different muscle relaxer drug. So one fewer worry.

Overall, I am getting really excited for my race! I feel like this training cycle went really well, so I am looking forward to a strong race. It would just be nice if my headache wasn't so bad. At least I don't tend to notice it as much when I am running.

I am heading to Virginia Beach on Saturday afternoon to pick up my bib. Since I will be doing the carb-loading, I'll be bringing all my food for Saturday with me. My hotel room has a fridge and microwave, so I'm also going to bring all my breakfast foods, so I can have my usual breakfast. I will be making the trip alone, as my husband doesn't care to come along and just wait for my race to finish. The race is Sunday morning at 7:30am - a reasonably civilized time!
 
I feel for you on that fall. I had something similar happen to me a couple of summers ago - tripped on a crack in the sidewalk and down I went, badly scraping a knee, an elbow, and a hand. I haven’t ran on sidewalks since! That’s good that your hubby was around to pick you up, even if it was the shortest rescue ever!
 

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