62 Days to Go (I Don't Believe in Humans!)
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Date - Day - Scheduled Workouts (Intervals within desired pace)
7/30/18 - M - OFF
7/31/18 - T - 7 miles @ EA (8:14)
8/1/18 - W - 1 mile WU + 8 miles M Tempo + 1 mile RI + 5 miles M Tempo (10/13)
8/2/18 - R - 7 miles @ EA (8:14)
8/3/18 - F - 11 miles @ EA (8:14)
8/4/18 - Sat - 7 miles @ EB (7:42)
8/5/18 - Sun - 7 miles @ EA (8:14) **Was suppose to be 16 miles LR
Running duration = 6:52 hours
Running mileage = 49.5 miles
Indoor Virtual Biking duration = n/a hours
Indoor Virtual Biking mileage = n/a miles
Total (training) duration = 6:52 hours
Total (training) mileage = 49.5 miles
Number of running SOS intervals within pace = 5/6 (83%)
Monday
Nothing comes to mind.
Tuesday
The last two weeks I had been dealing with a sore/tight hamstring. On Sunday last week, I had decided to pull back on the workout from 9 miles of T, to a blind run at whatever felt right. The goal was to allow the hamstring to heal and hopefully not be an issue moving forward. The good news is I felt no tightness/soreness in my hamstring. The bad news is the top of my calf suddenly was giving me signals that it had been pulled. I've had this occurrence before, but it's almost always happened because I pushed the pace on an uphill. I don't have any recollection of doing that, so I'm a bit surprised I was getting that feeling. It definitely wasn't a one-off thing either as it happened roughly every 0.5-1.0 miles. This is usually another minor injury that lasts about a week. So we shall see.
Some neighbor kids had a lemonade stand. Stopped by and asked them the cost. Told them I'd be back by later. So ran home, got some money, and then ran back to their stand. They poured me a cup and then I practiced my cup pinch drinking method while on the run. Definitely got a very confused look in return.
But 75 cents seemed too cheap, so I gave them a dollar for each kid working the stand.
7 miles at 8:39 min/mile with a HR of 132 at a T+D of 147.
Wednesday
After Tuesday's "calf strain" (like really what was up with that?) I wasn't quite sure what I was going to get for Wednesday's T paced run. I had decided based on how the hamstring reacted to the workout two weeks ago with I and R pacing, that for the remainder of this training plan I wouldn't go back to those paces. So the run originally was a 6x1 T with 8x200R, but I dropped the R. I did decide that since the Sunday workout was a lesser and I was dropping the R, to try and move to the actual T pace without the 10 second adjustment for the 1st half of the plan (again Daniels recommends starting the training plan at all slower relative paces and moving the pacing structure up a few times during the plan up to actual current fitness).
T pace = 6:25 min/mile + 0 sec adjustment + 3% adjustment (T+D 137) = 6:37 min/mile goal pace
T Pace = 6:41, 6:31, 6:36, 6:37, 6:45, 6:39
Certainly can't complain about that. I did lose track on the 6:45 min split. I had reversed direction on the loop and just didn't do a good job checking in on the pacing. But all in all, a solid workout. The calf was noticeable, but not an issue. Nothing to note about the hamstring which gives me confidence that I've put that behind me again. Given the HR splits, I'd say this run is another reassurance that I'm right on track. If I get ideal weather, then we'll be ready to roll. Anything less than ideal, and I'll have to adjust expectations.
Thursday
7 miles at 8:38 min/mile with a HR of 134 and T+D of 135. I could tell I was starting to get sick. G, Steph, and SIL have all had a summer cold and it appeared it was my turn...
Friday
A quick turnaround and run on Friday morning. Less than 12 hours between the two runs because we were heading to Notre Dame (Indiana) and Michigan (beach) for the weekend. My SIL was kicking us out of the house for a weekend since this was their only weekend all summer without something to do. So they wanted some relaxation with us out of the house.
Also, boo to a summer cold!
So I was up early and out the door. It was a T+D of 127 and I was scheduled for 90 minutes of EB pace (or HR of 137). Average pace was an 8:09 min/mile with a HR of 138. Ended up with 11 miles in total. Got in the house, showered, ate breakfast, and then we hit the road.
Some quick hits about Friday:
-Stopped at the WI state fair to see my mom. Checked out the farm animals. Only stayed for about an hour because we wanted to hit Chicago traffic before it became a disaster.
-We forgot to get the IPass for quick toll road driving from our in-laws. So we decided to stop at an Oasis and get one for ourselves. Lost about an hour there.
-Between the Oasis and getting to the fair later than we intended, we did indeed hit that disaster traffic in Chicago. So the trip that was suppose to take about 3.5 hrs in total ended up taking about 6 hours. Boo! Thankfully we didn't actually have any plans so it all worked out fine.
-We stayed right on the Notre Dame campus at the Morris Inn which was really nice. Highly recommend.
-We took a walk around the campus and it is downright beautiful. A different vibe than Madison. Madison is way more urban/city university. Whereas, Notre Dame was all campus inside a fenced in area with almost exclusively walking paths rather than streets. I could definitely see myself sending G there if she got the finances in order (not cheap school).
-Ate in the hotel restaurant. Had a burger and it was one of the best in a long time for me.
Saturday
We woke up and the plan was to get to the Silver Beach in St Joseph, Michigan. We had breakfast at the hotel and then headed to the car. Walked out the door and saw some people wearing a "Volunteer" shirt holding some poster boards. I thought, hmm that's interesting. Then turned and took a few more steps and saw some cones in the street. Interesting.... Then finally got my confirmation when I saw an Aid Station with Gatorade. REALLY? There's a race... on campus... outside my hotel this morning? Turns out it was a 5k/10k race starting at 9:00am. Although the purpose was an early beach day to beat the traffic, so I only gave it a moment's thought. Between eating breakfast already, and the true intent of the vacation being the beach, it was an easy decision just to move on from the idea of a sudden race.
We made our way to Silver Beach. We had been warned multiple times that it gets crazy busy and to be early. So we were so early we actually got to park in the first row of the parking lot right on the beach. We were like, what was everyone talking about this isn't that bad. Then we bummed around a bit on the beach with our pick of beach/water locations to place our stuff down. Chose something right on the water line and settled in for a morning of fun. We made a sand castle with a tunnel bride. Although G destroyed my tunnel bridge later on... Grr..
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After several hours on the beach we decided to check out the carousel.
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Then ate some pizza at a place that was rated #1. It was actually quite good. We had a prosciutto, arugula, garlic pizza. Although I would have preferred a bit more prosciutto and less than the 2 pounds of arugula we got. Must have emptied a bag on our pizza. We shouldn't have even ordered a salad with as much arugula as they gave us. Then we made our way up the hill to an ice cream shop. I asked for the ice cream with the most peanut butter in it and it didn't disappoint. They were also having a street chalk competition and the competitors were ridiculously talented.
As we made our way back to the beach it became apparent why it was such an advantage to come early.
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While there were maybe 50-100 people when we came, there were now literally thousands and thousands. The cars trying to get in looked like a never ending line. So if you visit Silver Beach in MI, come early and enjoy that first parking spot. You'll thank yourself later. G and Steph played in the splash pad, and then after several hours on the beach we made our way back to Notre Dame.
Got back to the hotel and I prepared myself for a nice/easy 7 miler. I was eager to run on campus in my WI gear as well as on a route that was nearly completely flat. The T+D would also be my second highest ever at 170. So I got out there and placed my water bottle down and enjoyed the campus. Ran by some Notre Dame fixtures (Gold Dome, Stadium, and Touchdown Jesus). I was watching my HR and it was running a tad high for an easy run (140) but was understandable given the temps. I ran a two mile loop to my hotel so I could stay hydrated with a bottle I had stashed in the bushes.
7 miles at 8:28 min/mile and HR of 139 with a T+D of 170.
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Finished up, cleaned up and headed to dinner. But I just didn't feel right at dinner. I had the chills, couldn't get an food down, just overall bleh. It became apparent that I probably had a heat related illness associated with the day at the beach, possibly dehydration, and then a run in some brutal hot/humid temps. I just went upstairs and laid in bed and after a few hours started to feel normal again. Just not a great feeling overall.
Sunday
We said goodbye to Notre Dame and headed to the Brookfield Zoo outside of Chicago. This time hoping that the loop outside the city and the much earlier start would help us avoid the disaster traffic. It worked. The zoo was nice. Had some interesting things to look at. Quite a few up-charge experiences. G did get to feed a Giraffe which was pretty cool.
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The one weird thing, was the "Bison Grille" was located right outside the Bison exhibit. You literally sat at Picnic benches within feet of actual Bison, while potentially eating a Bison burger (I had a chicken sandwich). Just seemed a bit off to me.
We called Steph's mom on our way home and she let us know we probably stop by and see Lucy. It's been a few weeks since I had seen her and there had been some rumblings that her health had gone downhill. I had thought maybe some of those rumblings were hyperbole and exaggerations, but unfortunately they were not. When I had last seen in her late June when we moved out of our house she was still able to walk up the stairs. She walked sideways and fell down some. They didn't quite know the cause, but a few different opinions were cancer, blood clot that was released into the brain, or that she died during the teeth cleaning and was brought back to life. Regardless of the why, it's sad. She can't even walk anymore. Her eyes twitch independently of each other. Her front and rear legs are crossed when she just lays there on her side. When you place her upright, she has no control and just falls over. She can't even put her paws on the ground (instead her knuckles) as she just tumbles down. I liken the appearance of it to muscular dystrophy. All in all, whatever suddenly happened to her has progressed quite aggressively. The strangest thing appears to be that her hair hasn't even grown since her last hair cut. We got cuts together for father's day and now weeks later it barely appears to be different which is quite odd and unlike past experience. Unfortunately, the combination of all of these things means that this will likely be her last week. She'll never get to make it to the new house. We got to spend some quality time with her Sunday night.
Got back to my SIL and with a thunderstorm I just got what I could get in. I felt it was more appropriate to spend time with Lucy then to rush out of there for a silly run. So I only ended up with 7 miles (60 min) at a very easy pace as I really lacked motivation and wanted to take it easy after the heat illness from the day prior. 8:29 min/mile at a HR of 133 with a T+D of 145.
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That one is also my favorite from these pictures, but it was because the pattern is smaller and what I'd describe as a little more regular. 
I have 48 days to tunnel marathon. I need to be ready and healthy. 
