Steve - you sound like me when I am travelling. I really do not like to pack. Its always the what ifs. I hope you have a fantastic trip of skiing for 5 days. Will your pack get a little lighter through out the trip as you eat some food, or is the pack just full of clothing and other supplies. Here's to fantastic weather, amazing company and awesome ski conditions. Be safe and the Boston crew looks forward to hearing how the trip goes. Take some pics and post them. I am a pic/vid girl.
You've got plenty of work ahead of you, Steve. Surely no need to stress over a missed run. Play safe and have fun.
I second the hatred of packing. I'm probably the world's best, but least efficient, packer. I can fit everything I need into the smallest possible space, but I'll spend 12 hours doing it. My biggest downfall is indecision. I already know what I should be taking for race day in Boston, but I'll still pack 5 different options. Same goes for racing tris. I have a standard race kit, but I still hang 3 different options in the closet the night before .... you know .... just in case I change my mind. And sometimes I do change my mind.
I'll probably try to squeeze in an 8-9 mile tempo run sometime today, and hopefully knock out most (if not all) of tomorrow's bike workout this evening. I'm looking at 20-21 miles on Sunday, so I'd rather beat up on my legs today in favor of recovery tomorrow - maybe I'll log some Z3 time on the trainer. I don't mind running Z2/Z3 on tired legs, but I can do a much greater proportion of Z3 and Z4 work with a bit of R&R.
As always, life may throw in the inevitable curveball. We're getting socked with snow - again. Get to work on my Z4 shoveling skills - again. My daughter finally got clear of her illness, but as most of you can imagine she kindly passed it on to my son. Looks like another weekend of long days and short nights. Trip to Boston next week will probably leave a couple of blanks on my training log .... but it's only March. Happy trails!
@ B & Justin – you both really nailed my dilemma….. It always comes down to the ‘what ifs’. And being the kind of athletes we are, most likely we are all a little too anal retentive and obsessive compulsive for our own good. I do the same things as you for most vacation and race related trips – several outfits for what ever mood/weather dictates. The biggest difference between those type trips and a backcountry trip is for a race you only need to carry your stuff from the car to the hotel room. Backcountry trips require you to carry everything on your back and there are no stores to pickup a forgotten item – that is were the severe anxiety really kicks in.
Do you carry it ‘just in case’ or do you do without? What did I forget? Do I really need it? Do I really need 3 of them? I know I forgot something… Why do I need that? Now what’s missing?
My packing for a camping trip usually starts 2 weeks before I go. I collect anything and everything I can think of that I might need, and then some. As the ‘go’ date gets closer I try to eliminate duplicates and unnecessary items till I get down to less than I want, but all that I need.
@ B – last night with all but a few little items, my pack weighed 26 lb (11.8 kg) without water, and only 2 days of food. Our trip leader had a friend do a food drop for us to save us from lugging 5 lb (2 kg) on our 2 longest days. Once I add 3 L of water and the last incidentals I expect my pack to weigh 26 + 7 + 0.5 = 33.5 lb (15.2 kg).
Current forecast for snow looks like 12” by tomorrow AM. We may have a heck of a time breaking trail unless there are others going our way, which is doubtful.
8.5 miles of tempo for lunch, done as 2 miles each at Z1-Z4 (on the treadmill, of course). Felt amazingly strong, but the elation was interrupted by the sound of Taps ringing through the locker room. My feet have been pleading with me, and now I must concede. It's time to retire my absolute favorite pair of flats. They have provided unparalleled performance and comfort for over 2 years, but the soles are beyond repair - and I have the blisters to prove it.
I'm still contemplating whether or not to move my weekend ride to this evening (in full, or in part). I would love to have tomorrow free and clear, but I fear that 35' of FTP and 30' of Z3 might be overly ambitious considering this week's FTP test and last night's 2x20'. Like all scheduling decisions, I'll probably just shoot from the hip and see what happens.
Maybe I'll tip my hat to Steve and throw a 30-pound pack on my back for the weekend. That would make things interesting.
Lets us know what you decide, especially if it is the option of the 30lb pack on your back for the weekend. Which ever it is, I hope it is a good one Justin. I am going to attempt the 4 x 2.5 at 215w again tomorrow.
@ Steve - have a safe trip! My sympathies on the packing issues! I am a fast packer and pack way in advance. I'll be packed for Boston by 4/1!!! Ha! I have to pack for Madison too you know, so I need to be organized!! We are going home to Cape Cod too so all in all a 1 1/2 week vacation!!
Last I wrote was Wed post ride with Tom Glynn. I ended up not sleeping enough Wed night and cancelled my Thurs am run and slept in. I proceeded to have a horrific work day and my mood and exaustion was huge by Thurs night. So I rested all day Thurs and today ran a peaceful run outdoors by a lake at a 9:00 pace with my girl Tanya!! It is a hilly roller of a path and we just chatted and solved the worlds problems! Best run in a long time. I feel much better! Plan to do bike intervals tonight and tomorrow then Couple's relay Sunday.
Doesn't it suck when you have a really bad day?!?? That was my Thurs. Glad that is over!!
Booooo on the bad day Carrie, but yaaaaa on the run you did with your gal pal today. Care to share what world problems you solved :-). Really happy to hear that you are going to make your Boston trip to include a trip home. That sounds really nice. We are going to go up on April 14 and not leave until April 20th. We will be staying with friends who moved from Ottawa to Medford this past summer and also will be meeting up with some friends that we met at Mooseman last year. Just love Triathlon because you get to meet so many cool people at races. I hope your bike ride this evening and tomorrow go well and that your couples 5km run this Sunday is awesome. I am enjoying my rest day and have had a great week of training. Just enjoyed a steak, smashed pototoes, brocolli and brussel sprouts. Going to hit the couch and snuggle with my honey.
Sending some positive vibes to Jeff tomorrow on his bike. Got get ur done dude.
No ride tonight! Nice dinner with the family! Reading and playing with Madison in her room. She is currently reading to me from a kids encyclopedia. I just learned about dinosaurs and snow leopards! Ha! 6 years old and reading like a champ. Amazing the difference from Kindergarten to first grade! Being a Mom rocks!
@ Carrie - how was dinner and time with Madison. It sounds like she is a smart cookie. Ride today went much better than last week. Must of been what I mentioned to you Carrie. Feeling really good. Did not hit my marks on the dot, but came much closer than last week. Did not have to short the ride, or cut the intervals down or lengthen the recoveries. I missed the mark by 2-3%, but am happy with the results. Do not feel trashed. Leg is feeling fantastic. Think my physio and I have figured out how to treat the beast. Tomorrows 33km on rolling hills will tell me what is up.
Off to coach the Cast Iron Group. We have about 10 from the local tri club doing IMLP. Can't wait to be able to cheer on the EN and OTC teams in July.
I had another good long run of 20 miles today. I have come a long way since January and feel great! i am learning a lot from this EN training! my bike test this week was successfull! I increased my FTP to 200! That is progress for me. Now I have to live up to the new numbers! i didn't have a chance to do the run test this week. I refuse to do it on a treadmill and the roads were too snowy/icy. I will get it done eventually.
Carrie Good for you sleeping in. Sleep is very important and you must have needed it. Good luck in the couples relay tomorrow! Can't wait to hear about it!
Brenda That is great you coach triathletes! I do some coaching too. i work at a running store. i teach running 101. I help new runners train for their first 5K race. Then in the summer I coach new triathletes to complete their first triathlons. it is fun! i love my job even though it doesn't pay well. Good luck with your run tomorrow! Jane
Great job Jane. I just did my FTP test today and had a small bump in wattage but increased watts/kg from 3.9 to 4.4 mostly due to 10+ lb weight loss. Was hoping for more wattage but the hack is killing my legs for riding hard. I'm sure losing weight is hurting my fitness gains and recovery some too but I wanted to go into Boston near race weight to alleviate some of the pounding on my heel since I'm trying to resolve this plantar fasciitis. Anyway I'm about done losing weight and will start maintaining status quo and hopefully will get my run in order in the next month.
I hope everyone else has a great weekend and stays healthy. We are only about a month away from taper time gang!!!!!!!
Steve Great job on the weight loss! I still have some to lose. I have had PF before. It is nasty! I had it last year and had to have shock wave therapy. It finally went away. I think the hard biking workouts are helping strengthen my legs for running. Or maybe it is the brick run after the bike session! anyway I am going to keep up all the bike workouts if I can through my Boston training. Jane
Glad to hear your legs are stronger. Hoping the bike helps me there also. I had shock wave on my heel 4.5 weeks ago. Slowly improving. How did yours progress? Thx
I had a series of three shock wave therapy sessions. They were about one or two weeks apart. That was after cortazone shots were tried. it was a slow process but my foot got better. I took 6-7 weeks off from running and it got better. I missed Boston last year because of it. I started back running in late March. Jane
@ Jane - thanks. I really just implement the program that the head coach has put together and give guideance. I also coach 4 athletes on a private basis, so that keeps me busy. I am in the fitness business. I have been a personal trainer for 10 years, a Level 1 NCCP Triathlon coach for 5 years, a Mad Dogg spinning instructor for over 10 years and I also Coordinate a Community Centre gym with 8 employees. On another note - glad to hear your running is going so well. 200w as your new FTP. Dang girl. Have you worked with power for long? This is my first year and I am really enjoying it, but would be happy to see 180's for my FTP by the end of OS. Maybe 200 next year.
@ Jeff - you rocked it out today on your test. Holly crap. Nice work my man. Very happy and proud of you. Now you get to do 120% of your NEW FTP for the VO2 stuff. Ouch!
I know that both you and Jane are going to try to keep the marathon hack runs as they are assigned and the bike workouts as they are, but you might find that you need to back off on the long runs. I seem to be able to do all the workouts as assigned except the long run. I keep the distance as given, but do a rolling hills course or hill repeats and keep the pace at MP to MP +15-30sec. With only 1 rest day a week I do get tired by the time I get to the rest day, but after I seem to be okay.
Wow, Boston! Sounds like a productive day across the board. Way to bump the FTP, Jeff. It's not easy on tired legs, and judging by my last 2-3 workouts, it doesn't get any easier. Enjoy the ride!
As Brenda said, now is an important time to start managing the individual runs in the hack. The long run (as prescribed) will require a fair amount of recovery, and one day off - followed by a solid ride early in the week - is not always going to be sufficient. Take what your body will give you, but don't beg for more. Boston is 7-8 weeks out, so you'll be well-served to work on staying sharp on the shorter days, and building bulk volume on the longer days (primarily Z2/Z3).
Today was a pseudo-bust for me. I had 90-100 minutes planned on the trainer with about 35 of those minutes at Z4. As I was wrapping up my first 15' interval and my rear tube blew out. So, I debated what to do. My legs were dragging, and going from FTP to a complete stop left them stinging. I contemplated calling it a day, but would at least pull my bike off the trainer and change the tube. Afterwards, I put my bike back on the trainer and decided to regroup and finish up later. This evening, my wife wanted to get the kids out of the house, so I jumped back on the bike and knocked out the remainder of the work. Had to break the Z4 work into 4 x 5' intervals, but got it all done with a full dose of 88-89% in between.
Between the crappy weather and 2 solid weeks of sick kids (i.e. sleepless nights), I'm starting to fade a bit. Tomorrow's long run will most likely be a Z2 fest, and may also drop back into the 14-15 mile range. I've got some positive things lined up this week (unrelated to training) so hopefully that plus an extra day with my feet up will give me a second wind. Keep up the good work everyone!
31km done in the rolling hills of Manotick today. Was planning on doing 33km, but overestimated the turn off to the car, so since my husband was waiting for me, I called it a day and went for breakie with him. Good news is that I handled the hills well and have lots of energy left. I will do two more 30km before Boston and I think that will be good.
So many congrats to go around here on all you guys have accomplished: @Brenda on your killer bike yesterday and long run today!! "Energy left" is a good thing!! @Jane- Miss 200W!!! Very nice and a huge milestone. Happy for you. And 20 miler. GOOD LORD!! @ Justin- BLOWN tire on the trainer and still managed to get your workout in over the course of the day. Impressive. @ Jeff- Increased FT and 10 pound weight loss. I bow down!! Losing weight rocks. Makes everything feel better! Good for you on that. It is so hard to lose weight.
I had a helluva last 3 days before today. Crap Crap Crappy Thursday, Fatigued out on Friday with flat legs on my run and HORRIBLE trainer ride yesterday. I rode 2 hours on the trainer so I would not COOK myself on the group ride. Well good thing I stayed home as there were no watts to be had. WEIRD. Where did they go? So I rode at and around IM pace, some 80% but when trying for 100% it was brutal. Got in a few minutes here and there at 100% but that is it. So after my ride my right leg cramped in adductors and hurt me all day. I was a bit freaked out as we were racing the Couple's Relay today, each a 5K. I rolled the muscles out all over my body all day and PRAYED to not get injured racing today. I even considered pulling out of the race. Steve was cool with whatever I decided but it was a big team thing and we would be going anyway.
Needless to say I was fine today!!! PHEW. No pain in my leg when I woke up. I felt fine in the warm up. Ran easy for 2-3 miles.
We ran a 37:33 for 10K and won our 80-99 AG!!! Women run first and then the guys run. I was 5th across the line( 3rd from my team) and took 50 seconds off last year and ran 19:45. Steve ran 17:48. He was not himself today, running 47 seconds slower than last year. He has not been feeling good running lately. Kind of feeling sluggish. This is his first stand alone marathon and he thinks maybe the long miles are tough on him?
We call this our team competion: WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP!! Lots of smack talk leading up to the race. We were first team couple last year, this year we were 4th( 6th in the race). We lost by 40 seconds to our team's first team. The World Title leaves our house and moves on but we will be back to challenge the TITLE next year!!! A very fun morning indeed.
I am so grateful my body held up today. Hoping to find my missing WATTS soon. Off to roll and relax.
@ Carrie, you are just the sweetest. Congrats on your amazing performances today. Sorry Steve is not feeling the running today, but training for a marathon, especially at the paces you guys are pumping out has to create some fatigue, which is probably why you are missing some watts and Steve has stale legs, but those times you put out today are nothing to laugh at. Pretty sweet in my books. All we have to do is hold on for just a bit longer and then the marathon will be over and we will be able to get back to our multisport training. I hope your rolling and resting leaves your legs fresh for the start up of the week. Cheers my dear. Hugs to you and Steve (hope that is not weird, I am just a hugger)
Carrie Wow 50 seconds off last year! That is great! Super effort from both of you especially considering you are both marathon training!
I did my usual bike/run session today. I was also missing a few watts on the 12 minute intervals but was within range for the 6 minute one. The new power zones are tough! It was still a good workout. I felt great on the brick run. I did this after a 20 miler the day before. I can't believe I am doing this. My pace has dropped 30+ seconds per mile since Jan. in the same aerobic hr zone.
eeeeek, 7 weeks. Holly crap. Okay, calm down Brenda, it is going to be okay.
LOL Breathe! Brenda Wanna trade legs? Its all good! OK so counting this weeks mileage of 2,5,2,5,1 and 10 , last weekends half mary I am up to 67 miles total in past 11-12 weeks. Yesterdays 10 was slow and my quads are cooked (first long run a day after EN bike wow what a wake up call). Anyway knee is good. I am looking at 7 weeks as plenty of time to get ready I have time to build my long run next few weeks from 14,16,18, and then the 20 miler on 3/27. Probably lay off the bike after that and taper on down LOL. Heck I might even get a little of my speed back. I am about half a minute slower in each zone as compared to when I tested at the beginning of OS in OCT. Oh well feels good to run pain free! Enjoying the pain in my quads!
Okay Tim, breathing has resumed. I am feeling better. Thanks. Legs were tired from yesterdays 31km run in the rolling hills of Manotick just outside of OTown, so I was not sure how they were going to feel on the 3 x 15 in Z4 bike workout, so I looked ahead and saw that we also had a 2 x 15 in Z4 this week, so if the feels started to fall off I knew I could resort to that workout. I went into the workout deciding that I was going to stay at the bottom of the zone % because the legs were tired and I had a full 3 days worth of workouts before my next rest. I was pleasantly surprised. I managed 15min @ .96, .97, .95. Yahoo. Super is in the oven and I am getting ready for yoga flowwwwww (talk about breathing :-)
@Tim, it sounds like things are coming around for you with regards to your running after the lay off because of the knee and that you have a plan to get that mileage up for the marathon. Can't wait to see the progress as the weeks go by.
@ Jeff - when I switched to VO2 work, I moved my Sat run to Wed so that the shorter easier ride was on Sat before my long run and I changed my long runs to MP and kept all the other runs in the hack as is. Might be something to consider. Hope that legs come around.
Thats a good idea I think I will swap thurs ride for sat ride so sunday's long run will be after an easier ride.. I am dying. Still. And I only ran 10 all you guys are running 18's and 20's ? OS ends on 3/26 but my last long run/race is scheduled 3/26 I think I will skip thurs and sat rides altogether that week and just do my last FTP test on tues 3/22. Since I dont know the HIM plan that will be starting after that its hard to plan the bike from there until 4/18 but it wont be much I can tell you that.
Thx B. I was going to move my bike back 1 day to Wed/Fri/Sun and do my hack runs as Tues= VO2, Thur=Z2-4, Sat= long. Will try to keep some intensity in the long runs but Boston is really a "B" race for me and I just want to run whole thing and feel ok and stay healthy for IMC build. What do you think about my schedule? Figured easier to ride on tired legs than run the paces!
I think I've used the analogy before, but your training schedule is a lot like a game of tetris. Everything fits somewhere, but some pieces fit better than others. We all live, work, and play on different beats, so it's up to each of us to find our ideal solution. It's great to see that you guys/gals are all making it work and not falling into the trap of plan paralysis.
After 8 solid training days, I finally took a rest day. Yesterday's run was just under 18 miles on very tired legs. I was pretty honest with myself going into it, and was smart to keep the pace at MP for the first hour, and about 15 seconds slower for the second hour. My feet got soaked about 10 days ago while working outside, and I developed some stubborn subcute blisters that get a little bit worse with each run. They're deep in the sole of my foot, so there's not much I can do but give them time to recede between runs. Kind of a PITA, but certainly not a disaster.
My "off" days usually involve some sort of running, but today I had a dozen errands to run. Tomorrow will probably be another day off, meaning that I'll be doubling up on bike workouts later this week. I'm heading to Boston in the morning to meet up with some good people from my charity and work on a fundraising project. It's always inspiring to see ordinary people doing extraordinary work, so I'm hoping to pocket a little inspiration and bring it home. I doubt they'll mind.
Keep pounding that pavement (or snow, dirt, treadmill, etc).
Comments
You've got plenty of work ahead of you, Steve. Surely no need to stress over a missed run. Play safe and have fun.
I second the hatred of packing. I'm probably the world's best, but least efficient, packer. I can fit everything I need into the smallest possible space, but I'll spend 12 hours doing it. My biggest downfall is indecision. I already know what I should be taking for race day in Boston, but I'll still pack 5 different options. Same goes for racing tris. I have a standard race kit, but I still hang 3 different options in the closet the night before .... you know .... just in case I change my mind. And sometimes I do change my mind.
I'll probably try to squeeze in an 8-9 mile tempo run sometime today, and hopefully knock out most (if not all) of tomorrow's bike workout this evening. I'm looking at 20-21 miles on Sunday, so I'd rather beat up on my legs today in favor of recovery tomorrow - maybe I'll log some Z3 time on the trainer. I don't mind running Z2/Z3 on tired legs, but I can do a much greater proportion of Z3 and Z4 work with a bit of R&R.
As always, life may throw in the inevitable curveball. We're getting socked with snow - again. Get to work on my Z4 shoveling skills - again. My daughter finally got clear of her illness, but as most of you can imagine she kindly passed it on to my son. Looks like another weekend of long days and short nights. Trip to Boston next week will probably leave a couple of blanks on my training log .... but it's only March. Happy trails!
Do you carry it ‘just in case’ or do you do without? What did I forget? Do I really need it? Do I really need 3 of them? I know I forgot something… Why do I need that? Now what’s missing?
My packing for a camping trip usually starts 2 weeks before I go. I collect anything and everything I can think of that I might need, and then some. As the ‘go’ date gets closer I try to eliminate duplicates and unnecessary items till I get down to less than I want, but all that I need.
@ B – last night with all but a few little items, my pack weighed 26 lb (11.8 kg) without water, and only 2 days of food. Our trip leader had a friend do a food drop for us to save us from lugging 5 lb (2 kg) on our 2 longest days. Once I add 3 L of water and the last incidentals I expect my pack to weigh 26 + 7 + 0.5 = 33.5 lb (15.2 kg).
Current forecast for snow looks like 12” by tomorrow AM. We may have a heck of a time breaking trail unless there are others going our way, which is doubtful.
Run Strong my friends, run strong
Steve
8.5 miles of tempo for lunch, done as 2 miles each at Z1-Z4 (on the treadmill, of course). Felt amazingly strong, but the elation was interrupted by the sound of Taps ringing through the locker room. My feet have been pleading with me, and now I must concede. It's time to retire my absolute favorite pair of flats. They have provided unparalleled performance and comfort for over 2 years, but the soles are beyond repair - and I have the blisters to prove it.
I'm still contemplating whether or not to move my weekend ride to this evening (in full, or in part). I would love to have tomorrow free and clear, but I fear that 35' of FTP and 30' of Z3 might be overly ambitious considering this week's FTP test and last night's 2x20'. Like all scheduling decisions, I'll probably just shoot from the hip and see what happens.
Maybe I'll tip my hat to Steve and throw a 30-pound pack on my back for the weekend. That would make things interesting.
@ Steve - have a safe trip! My sympathies on the packing issues! I am a fast packer and pack way in advance. I'll be packed for Boston by 4/1
Last I wrote was Wed post ride with Tom Glynn. I ended up not sleeping enough Wed night and cancelled my Thurs am run and slept in. I proceeded to have a horrific work day and my mood and exaustion was huge by Thurs night. So I rested all day Thurs and today ran a peaceful run outdoors by a lake at a 9:00 pace with my girl Tanya!! It is a hilly roller of a path and we just chatted and solved the worlds problems! Best run in a long time. I feel much better! Plan to do bike intervals tonight and tomorrow then Couple's relay Sunday.
Doesn't it suck when you have a really bad day?!?? That was my Thurs. Glad that is over!!
CC
Sending some positive vibes to Jeff tomorrow on his bike. Got get ur done dude.
Happy training everyone.
CC
Off to coach the Cast Iron Group. We have about 10 from the local tri club doing IMLP. Can't wait to be able to cheer on the EN and OTC teams in July.
What say ye all?
Carrie Good for you sleeping in. Sleep is very important and you must have needed it. Good luck in the couples relay tomorrow! Can't wait to hear about it!
Brenda That is great you coach triathletes! I do some coaching too. i work at a running store. i teach running 101. I help new runners train for their first 5K race. Then in the summer I coach new triathletes to complete their first triathlons. it is fun! i love my job even though it doesn't pay well. Good luck with your run tomorrow!
Jane
Great job Jane. I just did my FTP test today and had a small bump in wattage but increased watts/kg from 3.9 to 4.4 mostly due to 10+ lb weight loss. Was hoping for more wattage but the hack is killing my legs for riding hard. I'm sure losing weight is hurting my fitness gains and recovery some too but I wanted to go into Boston near race weight to alleviate some of the pounding on my heel since I'm trying to resolve this plantar fasciitis. Anyway I'm about done losing weight and will start maintaining status quo and hopefully will get my run in order in the next month.
I hope everyone else has a great weekend and stays healthy. We are only about a month away from taper time gang!!!!!!!
I think the hard biking workouts are helping strengthen my legs for running. Or maybe it is the brick run after the bike session! anyway I am going to keep up all the bike workouts if I can through my Boston training.
Jane
Glad to hear your legs are stronger. Hoping the bike helps me there also. I had shock wave on my heel 4.5 weeks ago. Slowly improving. How did yours progress? Thx
Jane
@ Jeff - you rocked it out today on your test. Holly crap. Nice work my man. Very happy and proud of you. Now you get to do 120% of your NEW FTP for the VO2 stuff. Ouch!
I know that both you and Jane are going to try to keep the marathon hack runs as they are assigned and the bike workouts as they are, but you might find that you need to back off on the long runs. I seem to be able to do all the workouts as assigned except the long run. I keep the distance as given, but do a rolling hills course or hill repeats and keep the pace at MP to MP +15-30sec. With only 1 rest day a week I do get tired by the time I get to the rest day, but after I seem to be okay.
Keep up the good work everyone.
Wow, Boston! Sounds like a productive day across the board. Way to bump the FTP, Jeff. It's not easy on tired legs, and judging by my last 2-3 workouts, it doesn't get any easier. Enjoy the ride!
As Brenda said, now is an important time to start managing the individual runs in the hack. The long run (as prescribed) will require a fair amount of recovery, and one day off - followed by a solid ride early in the week - is not always going to be sufficient. Take what your body will give you, but don't beg for more. Boston is 7-8 weeks out, so you'll be well-served to work on staying sharp on the shorter days, and building bulk volume on the longer days (primarily Z2/Z3).
Today was a pseudo-bust for me. I had 90-100 minutes planned on the trainer with about 35 of those minutes at Z4. As I was wrapping up my first 15' interval and my rear tube blew out. So, I debated what to do. My legs were dragging, and going from FTP to a complete stop left them stinging. I contemplated calling it a day, but would at least pull my bike off the trainer and change the tube. Afterwards, I put my bike back on the trainer and decided to regroup and finish up later. This evening, my wife wanted to get the kids out of the house, so I jumped back on the bike and knocked out the remainder of the work. Had to break the Z4 work into 4 x 5' intervals, but got it all done with a full dose of 88-89% in between.
Between the crappy weather and 2 solid weeks of sick kids (i.e. sleepless nights), I'm starting to fade a bit. Tomorrow's long run will most likely be a Z2 fest, and may also drop back into the 14-15 mile range. I've got some positive things lined up this week (unrelated to training) so hopefully that plus an extra day with my feet up will give me a second wind. Keep up the good work everyone!
So many congrats to go around here on all you guys have accomplished: @Brenda on your killer bike yesterday and long run today!! "Energy left" is a good thing!! @Jane- Miss 200W!!! Very nice and a huge milestone. Happy for you. And 20 miler. GOOD LORD!! @ Justin- BLOWN tire on the trainer and still managed to get your workout in over the course of the day. Impressive. @ Jeff- Increased FT and 10 pound weight loss. I bow down!! Losing weight rocks. Makes everything feel better! Good for you on that. It is so hard to lose weight.
I had a helluva last 3 days before today. Crap Crap Crappy Thursday, Fatigued out on Friday with flat legs on my run and HORRIBLE trainer ride yesterday. I rode 2 hours on the trainer so I would not COOK myself on the group ride. Well good thing I stayed home as there were no watts to be had. WEIRD. Where did they go? So I rode at and around IM pace, some 80% but when trying for 100% it was brutal. Got in a few minutes here and there at 100% but that is it. So after my ride my right leg cramped in adductors and hurt me all day. I was a bit freaked out as we were racing the Couple's Relay today, each a 5K. I rolled the muscles out all over my body all day and PRAYED to not get injured racing today. I even considered pulling out of the race. Steve was cool with whatever I decided but it was a big team thing and we would be going anyway.
Needless to say I was fine today!!! PHEW. No pain in my leg when I woke up. I felt fine in the warm up. Ran easy for 2-3 miles.
We ran a 37:33 for 10K and won our 80-99 AG!!! Women run first and then the guys run. I was 5th across the line( 3rd from my team) and took 50 seconds off last year and ran 19:45. Steve ran 17:48. He was not himself today, running 47 seconds slower than last year. He has not been feeling good running lately. Kind of feeling sluggish. This is his first stand alone marathon and he thinks maybe the long miles are tough on him?
We call this our team competion: WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP!! Lots of smack talk leading up to the race. We were first team couple last year, this year we were 4th( 6th in the race). We lost by 40 seconds to our team's first team. The World Title leaves our house and moves on but we will be back to challenge the TITLE next year!!! A very fun morning indeed.
I am so grateful my body held up today. Hoping to find my missing WATTS soon
CC
I did my usual bike/run session today. I was also missing a few watts on the 12 minute intervals but was within range for the 6 minute one. The new power zones are tough! It was still a good workout. I felt great on the brick run. I did this after a 20 miler the day before. I can't believe I am doing this. My pace has dropped 30+ seconds per mile since Jan. in the same aerobic hr zone.
Wow. Sounds like everyone had an eventful weekend of training. Great job gang. See you in 7 weeks!
@ JB - how are you legs feeling?
LOL Breathe! Brenda Wanna trade legs? Its all good! OK so counting this weeks mileage of 2,5,2,5,1 and 10 , last weekends half mary I am up to 67 miles total in past 11-12 weeks. Yesterdays 10 was slow and my quads are cooked (first long run a day after EN bike wow what a wake up call). Anyway knee is good. I am looking at 7 weeks as plenty of time to get ready I have time to build my long run next few weeks from 14,16,18, and then the 20 miler on 3/27. Probably lay off the bike after that and taper on down LOL. Heck I might even get a little of my speed back. I am about half a minute slower in each zone as compared to when I tested at the beginning of OS in OCT. Oh well feels good to run pain free! Enjoying the pain in my quads!
ok back to breathing
@Tim, it sounds like things are coming around for you with regards to your running after the lay off because of the knee and that you have a plan to get that mileage up for the marathon. Can't wait to see the progress as the weeks go by.
@B My legs are quite tired along w/ my whole body! Glad you had a good ride! Nice numbers for post 31K run!!
Thats a good idea I think I will swap thurs ride for sat ride so sunday's long run will be after an easier ride.. I am dying. Still. And I only ran 10 all you guys are running 18's and 20's ? OS ends on 3/26 but my last long run/race is scheduled 3/26 I think I will skip thurs and sat rides altogether that week and just do my last FTP test on tues 3/22. Since I dont know the HIM plan that will be starting after that its hard to plan the bike from there until 4/18 but it wont be much I can tell you that.
Thx B. I was going to move my bike back 1 day to Wed/Fri/Sun and do my hack runs as Tues= VO2, Thur=Z2-4, Sat= long. Will try to keep some intensity in the long runs but Boston is really a "B" race for me and I just want to run whole thing and feel ok and stay healthy for IMC build. What do you think about my schedule? Figured easier to ride on tired legs than run the paces!
I think I've used the analogy before, but your training schedule is a lot like a game of tetris. Everything fits somewhere, but some pieces fit better than others. We all live, work, and play on different beats, so it's up to each of us to find our ideal solution. It's great to see that you guys/gals are all making it work and not falling into the trap of plan paralysis.
After 8 solid training days, I finally took a rest day. Yesterday's run was just under 18 miles on very tired legs. I was pretty honest with myself going into it, and was smart to keep the pace at MP for the first hour, and about 15 seconds slower for the second hour. My feet got soaked about 10 days ago while working outside, and I developed some stubborn subcute blisters that get a little bit worse with each run. They're deep in the sole of my foot, so there's not much I can do but give them time to recede between runs. Kind of a PITA, but certainly not a disaster.
My "off" days usually involve some sort of running, but today I had a dozen errands to run. Tomorrow will probably be another day off, meaning that I'll be doubling up on bike workouts later this week. I'm heading to Boston in the morning to meet up with some good people from my charity and work on a fundraising project. It's always inspiring to see ordinary people doing extraordinary work, so I'm hoping to pocket a little inspiration and bring it home. I doubt they'll mind.
Keep pounding that pavement (or snow, dirt, treadmill, etc).