Week of Oct. 13 - 19, 2025
For the fall, I made a 14-week training plan for the Tuckahoe 25k on Nov. 22, 2025; this was week 9. This is a relatively local race on the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay. It's supposed to be relatively flat. I plan to try to improve my speed a bit, since this race should not be overly challenging in terms of distance, vert, or technicality. I'm going to continue to run only 4 days per week and do a hike on one weekend day like I did this summer, so we'll see how that seems to affect my training, as well.
Unfortunately I waited to register for the race because there was a possibility that I might do a different race with friends....that didn't pan out. I went to register for the race Oct. 4 and it's filled! That was unexpected, especially so early. I'm on the waitlist, but I have no idea about the chances of getting in.
I think that if I don't get in from the waitlist in another week or so, I'm going to register for the Naked Nick 25k trail race on Dec. 14 that is up in Leesport, PA. It's a tad hillier, but shouldn't be too bad. The question will be whether they get any significant snow by then.
This week, we had our new "fall break" this semester, which means we got Monday and Tuesday off. Previously we had no breaks between Labor Day and Thanksgiving. This was a nice treat.
For farther in the future: I had recently found out about the 7-day stage race TransRockies Run, only to learn that this year was the last running. But now they are doing a 3-day version. It's July 19 - 21. More info:
https://www.transrockies-run.com/ This very much sounds like something I'd like to do, although it would be quite expensive. There are still over 200 of the 500 spots left, so I have a little time to think about it.
If anyone would like to do it with me and split a camping situation or hotel room, let me know.
Monday
- Before lunch:
- Hill repeat HIIT -- 13min easy + 3 x [7 x (20sec sprint uphill + 20sec walk downhill) + 4min walk downhill]
- T+D 115, 1% effect, T 60 F, breezy
- time: 40:00
- distance: 2.93 mi
- repeat splits: 8:36, 9:01, 9:04, 8:42, 8:34, 8:52, 9:24, 8:17, 8:56, 9:14, 8:41, 8:39, 9:22, 8:56, 8:28, 9:05, 9:03, 8:31, 8:33, 9:35, 9:42
- elevation gain: 202 ft (corrected)
- route: neighborhood loop 1
- In evening: 2-hr tennis doubles match - my partner and I lost 6-4, 6-1.
Tuesday before dinner:
- 60 min easy on trail
- T+D 120, 1% effect, T 66 F
- time: 1:00:00
- distance: 4.73 mi
- average pace: 12:41 (GAP ave pace: 12:30)
- splits: 13:02, 12:26, 12:31, 13:01, 12:16
- ave HR: 135 BPM
- elevation gain: 238 ft (corrected)
- route: Valley Trail, Rock Creek National Park
Wednesday
- Before breakfast:
- Core workout
- 90-sec plank with 20-lb vest
- 20 starfish
- 20 dead bugs
- 20 bird dogs
- 20 each side flutter kicks
- 20 bicycle crunches with hold
- 5 10-sec hollow-body holds
- 2 30-sec side planks
- 20 double leg lift/lowers
- Foam rolling and stretching
- In evening: walk on treadmill
- time: 1:27:48
- distance: 5.18 mi
- average pace: 16:57
- incline: 1% for first 45 min
- comments: I had a work event in early evening, so this was later than I like to do.
Thursday
- Before breakfast:
- Workout 1
- 3 x 5 - suitcase squats with 62.5 lb + 20-lb vest
- superset
- 3 x 5 - lat pull-downs with 49-lb bands
- 3 x 5 - bench presses with 62.5 lb
- 3 x 5 - Romanian deadlifts with 62.5 lb
- superset
- 3 x 5 - shoulder presses with 47.5 lb
- 3 x 5 - band pull-aparts with 13-lb bands
- Foam rolling and stretching
- Tempo interval -- 15 min easy + 14 min tempo + 15 min easy
- T+D 94, no effect, T 61 F
- time: 44:01
- distance: 3.96 mi
- tempo split: 9:52
- elevation gain: 106 ft (corrected)
- route: Sligo Creek Trail
- comments: This route was paved, so it was not a trail run.
- comments: The T+D below 100 felt wonderful!
Friday
- Before breakfast: foam rolling and stretching
- Before dinner: walk on treadmill
- time: 1:27:23
- distance: 5.16 mi
- average pace: 16:56
- incline: 1% for first 45 min
Saturday before dinner:
- 160 min LR on trail
- T+D 117, 1% effect, T 70 F
- time: 2:40:01
- distance: 11.86 mi
- average pace: 13:30 (GAP ave pace: 13:16)
- splits: 13:16, 13:13, 12:54, 13:35, 13:13, 13:57, 13:32, 13:51, 13:14, 13:57, 14:13, 13:56
- ave HR: 147 BPM
- elevation gain: 819 ft (corrected)
- route: Seneca Greenway Trail
- comments: I took 1.5L of water + Nuun and 0.5L of water and drank it all. I ate ~150 g of dried pineapple, three Honey Stinger waffles, and a serving of Skittles.
- comments: I hadn't run this trail since spring, but I have run it so much that I can still almost visualize it all with my eyes closed. It hadn't changed much (no new trees down!) except that the grassy parts were longer than usual from summer and more annoying to run through. This route doesn't have as much shade, so that sucked.
- comments: The law of averages is a b$tch. I hadn't tripped and fallen on a trail run in months....and I did twice on this. Fortunately with all the leaves on the ground, it made for soft landings and I barely got scraped up. Unfortunately on the second fall, my sunglasses fell off the top of my visor and I didn't realize it until I was too far away to go back and try to find them.
- comments: Increasing my distance as my training plan is building up is definitely a challenge. Definitely feeling it.
Sunday afternoon: hiking - Little Bennett Regional Park, a lollipop loop made up of a bunch of trails - Kingsley, Western Piedmont, Bennett Ridge, Stony Brook, Wilson Mill, Big Oak, Little Oak, and maybe some that I missed.
- T 73 F, T+D 129, 1.5% effect
- time: 2:16:05
- distance: 7.37 mi
- average pace: 18:28
- elevation gain: 558 ft (corrected)
- comments: This park is about 25 miles north of where I live, and the leaves were changing and very colorful! The leaves still aren't changing much around my house.
Health
Flu and covid shots: for the second year, I got the non-mRNA covid vaccination and it gave me MUCH FEWER side effects than the mRNA ones had in prior years. I felt crummy and tired for about 36 hours, but then that was it. The mRNA ones would make me feel like crap for twice as long. My arm felt bruised for nearly a week, though.
Nothing notable with long-term issues. The knees are still ok most of the time, painful some of the time, but not too bad given that I'm ramping up the training. The left glute/hamstring is still weird, but gradually improving, I think.
