Week of Sep. 13 - 19, 2021
This was the nineteenth week of my training plan. This plan includes the following races:
- Crow Vineyard 5k, July 31, "C" race - done
- Planning to run this very easy as part of my taper
- Allegheny Front Trail Race (I am doing the 14-miler), August 7, "A" race - done
- Cherry Blossom 10-Mile Run (I deferred my 2020 entry to 2021, and then the April 2021 race got postponed to September!), September 12, "C" race - done
- Planning to run this in about 2 hours as an easy long run
- Virtual Boston Marathon, October 8/9/10, "B" race
Monday before dinner: 90-min walk on treadmill
Tuesday
- Before breakfast: legs and pull-ups workout
- 2 x 11 glute bridges with 30 lb
- 2 x 8 pull-ups, 2 unassisted
- 2 x 10 each leg hamstring curls with band
- 2 x 8 chin-ups, 2 unassisted
- 2 x 11 each one-leg squat on bench
- 2 x 8 close-grip pull-ups, 2 unassisted
- 2 x 11 goblet squats with 30 lb
- 2 x 14 superman to banana X
- 20 each leg high step-up
- After work:
- 40 min easy
- T+D 150, 4.5% effect
; T 84 F
- time: 40:01
- distance: 3.39 mi
- average pace: 11:49
- splits: 11:57, 11:58, 11:25, 12:05
- ave HR: 136 BPM - within my target range
- elevation gain: 131 ft (uncorrected)
- route: Sligo Creek Trail
- comments: I was happy with my pace and average HR on this run, given the high T+D.
Wednesday after work: 45-min walk on the treadmill
Thursday
- Before breakfast: upper body workout
- 2 x 11 decline push-ups with one leg raised
- 2 x 8 pull-ups, 2 unassisted
- 2 x 6 shoulder presses with 25 lb per arm
- 2 x 11 military push-ups with one leg raised
- 2 x 8 chin-ups, 2 unassisted
- 2 x 11 triceps dips on bench with feet elevated
- 2 x 11 wide push-ups with one leg raised
- 2 x 8 close-grip pull-ups, 2 unassisted
- 2 x 6 front raises with 12 lb per arm
- 2 x 7 push-ups to side plank with hands on medicine balls
- 2 x 6 each arm lawnmowers with 30 lb
- 2 x 6 lateral raises with 12 lb per arm
- After work:
- 10 min easy + 4 x (3 min hard + 2 min recovery) + 10 min easy
- T+D 145, 4% effect ; T 73 F; rained the whole time
- time: 40:06
- distance: 3.57 mi
- average pace: 11:13
- hard splits: 9:30, 9:09, 8:58, 8:56
- elevation gain: 66 ft (uncorrected)
- route: Rock Creek Trail
- comments: I had to modify my two other weekday planned runs because of life issues. I have recently been going tempo intervals on trails, but here I did shorter ones on pavement. I had no idea what paces I would get for the effort, but I was happy with those.
Friday
- Before breakfast: core workout
- 20 starfish
- 20 dead bug
- 20 bird dog crunches
- 20 isometric quad holds
- 20 bicycles with hold
- 5 hollow-body holds for 10 sec
- 30 sec side plank, each side
- 20 double leg lower/lift
- After work:
- 70 min easy on trail
- T+D 146, 4% effect ; T 79 F
- time: 1:10:01
- distance: 5.25 mi
- average pace: 13:21
- splits: 12:53, 13:30, 13:54, 12:59, 13:21, 13:44
- ave HR: 139 BPM - within my target range
- elevation gain: 249 ft (uncorrected)
- route: Northwest Branch Trail
Saturday
- After breakfast: 2-hr tennis practice
- Before dinner:
- 90 min easy on trail
- T+D 154, 5% effect ; 84 F
- time: 1:30:01
- distance: 6.55 mi
- average pace: 13:45
- splits: 12:16, 13:18, 13:22, 13:23, 13:46, 14:45, 13:08
- ave HR: 141 BPM - just above my target range
- elevation gain: 351 ft (uncorrected)
- route: Valley Trail, Rock Creek National Park
- comments: It was so incredibly humid! During the second half of the run, I really had to slow down to keep my HR down.
- comments: Took 1.5 L water and drank about half.
Sunday afternoon:
- 220 min LR on trail - FAIL
- T+D 140, 4% effect; 75 F
- route: Seneca Bluffs Trail
- I was so psyched up for this run - I really wanted to have my second-longest trail run ever. I was ready and the run was going smoothly for the first 30 minutes..and then I sprained my left ankle! This is the one that I sprained twice in July. As far as I can tell, I didn't step badly or anything - it just rolled over. GRRRRRRR. So frustrating to have the run end so fast! More comments below.
This sprain was extra frustrating because it kept me from completing my peak LR on my peak training week for the virtual Boston Marathon, which I plan to run on Oct. 10. I am not sure if I should try to make up for it a bit by making my LR next week a little longer. My previous longest training run in this cycle was 180 minutes and it was two weeks before, which was 5 weeks before race day.
I will do the rest of my runs before Oct. 10 on pavement, so there should be no risk of re-spraining the ankle - it really has only happened on non-paved surfaces. It's going to be mentally difficult, because I really love the trail runs.
I should probably also get the ankle looked at. It had been two months since the last sprain. I thought it was mostly healed. It was tender to tilt the foot to stretch that area, but it had good range of motion and the tenderness lasted for a really long time on my right ankle when I'd previously sprained it (not by running).
Health
I had an additional PT session. This is apparently going to be the last one for awhile because my authorization for the remaining four sessions ran out while I was away visiting my mother. They are asking to get the authorization extended, but it's been a week and I haven't heard anything yet. I've been really trying to get myself back in the habit of doing the exercises at home, but I've been doing that for some 6 months now and it's getting old.
I saw my neurologist on Thursday. He thought I should try keeping up with the PT at home for a few months (I admitted that I hadn't done it while at my mother's house in August) and did not change anything about my meds. So I feel like this is going nowhere, but I've been feeling like that for awhile. The headaches have been a bit better when I get a few days in a row with PT, but they definitely aren't gone.
