April 2016 Running Challenge

@mobycarp- I had to laugh at your comment that you paid the PT to learn what the hip abductor is. I still don’t know, but prefer to remain in the dark.

@ceciliaslater - - love that story! How cute!

@shanaber - Love that article! You have to love her daughter too. Amazing women. My favorite part was her comment after she finished her first 5K:
“Good Lord, I thought that race was never going to end, but afterwards I felt free,” Ms. Keeling recalled. “I just threw off all of the bad memories, the aggravation, the stress.”


4/1- 5.1 miles in the rain
4/2 - rest/travel day
4/3 - 34 miles on bike
4/4 - 5.1 miles (intervals)
4/5 - 5.1 miles - intervals (although slower than yesterday)
4/6 - 22 miles on bike + Strength training
4/7 - 4.2 miles - slow and steady
4/8 - strength training
4/9 - 34 miles on bike
4/10 - 50 miles on bike
4/11 - 5.1 miles - recovery run from all the biking + strength training
4/12 - 4.2 miles
4/13 - rest day (biking rained out).
4/14 - 4.8 miles
4/15 - sick day
4/16 - 4.2 very slow miles (feeling better)
4/17 - 35 miles on bike
4/18 - 5 miles (intervals)
4/19 - strength training
4/20 - 4 miles + 24 mile bike ride
4/21 - 5 miles
4/22 - strength training
4/23 - 34 miles on bike
4/24 - 50 miles on bike
4/25 - 3.9 miles - recovery run
4/26 - 5.2 miles - intervals! Or Fartleks.
4/27 - 4.2 miles + biking tonight (assuming no rain).

4/1- Rest
4/2- 6.23 miles
4/3- 4.01 miles
4/4- Rest
4/5- 4.02 miles
4/6- Rest
4/7- 4.02 Miles
4/8- Rest
4/9- 6.24 Miles
4/10- 4.01 Miles
4/11- Rest
4/12- 4.14 Miles
4/13- 2.2 Miles (first Wednesday Run)
4/14- 4.13 Miles
4/15- Much needed Rest
4/16- 8.2
4/16- 1.4 <- Second little jog, with wife
4/17- Rest <- made myself rest
4/18- Rest <- Normal scheduled Rest day
4/19- 4.1
4/20- Rest<- Part of cut back/heal up
4/21- 4.28 Miles
4/22- 2.0<- Wife’s second run!
4/23- 6.3
4/24- Rest <- took a day after pushing on my 10K TT yesterday.
4/25-Rest
4/26-5.1
4/27- 3

Totals: 73.44/60

Notes on today's run. I was feeling kind of blah this morning. Training plan calls for rest or 30-45 minutes of cross training or running for today, so I decided to do an easy 3 mile run. Averaged around 11:30/mile for a nice easy pace. Sinuses were really acting up though, so my HR was higher than I would have wanted it to be. Apparently my garmin, which I wear almost 24/7 actually started registering the run last night, as my "start time" is 11:37 last night, when I know I was sleeping. That made for some funky looking data graphs. Other than that, not a bad Wednesday run, in between my longer 5 mile runs on Tuesday and Wednesday. Same schedule next week, then starting some speed work the following week.

@kristinegift - you will do great! You are right, race day will be a whole different atmosphere! And you got your paper done?
@MNLittleFinn - what on Earth? Crazy Garmin!

@louubelle16 - I have to wonder if the slower marathon runners tended to do more running on the treadmill, which they likely would not have logged in Strava. I agree that 18mpw at peak marathon training seems incredibly low for someone finishing in under 5 hours.

@MobyCarp so kind, your thoughts are really touching my hurt , I'm actually in the ex-runners heaven

I see that the decision I took to stop posting how many miles I run to avoid reading stupid judgemental comments was the right one

louubelle16 wrote: »

I've just read an article on a UK newspaper website which analysed the training patterns 12-weeks pre-race of those who ran the London Marathon last year. When reading it, some of their stats really surprised me:

Some of that weekly mileage seems really low to me, especially for the 4-5hours. I pretty much do that much now over 3 runs but I know a marathon would destroy my body. I don't think I'd make it round! Or so I thought, but maybe that shows I'm wrong and underestimate my body? And according to that and my training plan, my marathon next year should be about 3 hours, which it absolutely will not! Or maybe it will? I'm now confused, the theory doesn't seem to match reality, according to this?

I guess I was just generally surprised to see what people really do and how they perform. Now I don't know what to think about my training...

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/the-running-blog/2016/apr/21/sub-3-marathon-data-strava-london

Someone who is generally low-mileage (30 miles per week or so) might get down to 15 miles or so on a taper, maybe. At each level, those look like about half the normal training miles I would expect to see.

And I agree with @ceciliaslater that maybe they had more treadmill miles.

I am so slow, my half time is barely sub-3 hours! And I was running about 30 miles per week leading up to that point--about 6 hours per week running. I wouldn't have wanted to run a marathon on that...but then again, I'm sure it would take me at least 6 hours to do so.

---

I went out to run today, but it was raining. So I went back inside. I felt like the Witch of the West and was quite concerned about melting. Tomorrow I go with my friend to chemo, so I likely won't run then, either. But Friday I think I'll do a leg-shake-out and Saturday is a (newly added) race to close out April. It's been a good month, with higher mileage than I anticipated. I only have half of May to run (surgery May 13, with at least a week off) so I think my miles will be much lower, but I'm so excited about the summer and training for a bunch of fall races!

4/1...5.0 @ 12:00 on the TM (4.0 @ 11:15 and 1.0 walking)
4/2....3.1 @ 11:45 through the neighborhood. My ankle hurt the first mile or so, especially on the uphill bits--downhill isn't too bad
4/3...Rest day
4/4...4.6 @ 11:32 on the rail trail and neighborhood streets
4/5...2.8 @ 11:50 on the TM--that's 2.3 (just to make it even!) @ 11:15 and .5 at a walk, plus strength training
4/6...Rest day, but I got to go help out at my son's RunFit club. Next time I'm wearing my own running shoes so I can chase him with a sharp stick so he doesn't walk so much! (That was a joke...don't call CPS or Jeff Galloway...)
4/7...7.0 @ 11:25 on the TM (This was really 6.25 at 11:05 and .75 walking to cool down)
4/8...2.0 @ 12:06 (just had a short time to run while the kids were at gym)
4/9...Unintended rest day. I got dressed to run...that counts for something, right? LOL
4/10...4.6 @ 13:39 with the slow poke pup. We ran about 3 miles in the 12:00 neighborhood and walked the rest. Well, I walked. He sniffed and did...doggy stuff.
4/11...3.0 @ 12:00 ish on the basement beheamoth. The kiddos were home sick from school so I was grounded, too.
4/12...2.25 @ 12:00 on the treadmill and strength training
4/13...6.2 @ 12:34 on the rail trail and neighborhood streets
4/14...Rest Day
4/15...4.75 @ 11:56 on the park trail. I decided to try running with earbuds so I couldn't hear my phone telling me how fast I was going. I settled in to a nice easy pace, but I didn't hold back either. This is the pace I love to run, and it was remarkably consistent, with splits of 11:55, 11:46, 12:03, 11:51 and 12:00.
4/16-17 I've been a slug with a terrible head cold, so no running.
4/18...5.0 @ 12:23 My first run in the heat...I was wilting by mile 4. The funny thing is that I looked at last year's run for today and lo and behold, I told myself then that I should remember water and sunscreen. Some people never learn!
4/19...3.5 @ 13:16 Ugh. I started out with the dog and then had to bring him back home because he just wouldn't get with the program. And then I was just sluggish with breathing troubles (oh, Spring, you are lovely but sneezy!!) It's probably good for me to just do a nice, easy run, but I was still a little disappointed.
4/20...4.75 @ 12:06 on the park trail. I'll be honest and say that I'm surprised my time was this slow--it felt like I was flying. It was a really nice run, though, and the weather was perfect. I think I was smiling the whole time.
4/21...Rest Day. I took my daughter to Temple University to visit with lots of walking...and food trucks!
4/22...3.5 @ a super easy 12:38 on the Perkiomen Trail--it was a wonderful run
4/23...6.25 @ 11:57 on the lake trail and roads for the Healthy Strides Community 10K
4/24...Rest Day
4/25...4.75 @ at an easy 12:23 on a new-to-me lake trail.
4/26...3.0 @ 12:40 (2 running, 1 walking) on the treadmill at the gym, and strength training
4/27-28 Rest Days
4/29...
4/30...

Completed races:
1/18 MLK 8K, Burke, VA 56:14
2/22 Princess Half, Orlando FL, 2:49:33
4/23 Healthy Strides Community 10K, Burke, VA 1:14:29

Upcoming races:
4/30 Run for the Children 8K, Fairfax, VA
5/21 RunFitKidz 5K, Springfield, VA
6/12 Celebrate Fairfax 5K, Fairfax, VA
7/4 Freedom 5K, Fairfax VA
9/5 Great American 5K, Fairfax, VA
Either Hemlock Half or Divas Half in September
10/30 MCM 10K, Washington, DC
11/6 The Parks 10K, Washington, DC
11/19 Potomac River Half, Carderock, MD

Today was a very hilly 10 mile mid-week long run. I intended to keep my effort down a bit and managed to have a great run right at the effort I was targeting, and even at a slightly faster than expected pace.

4/1 - Rest
4/2 - 14 miles
4/3 - 5 miles
4/4 - 5 miles
4/5 - 5 miles
4/6 - 8 miles
4/7 - 5 miles
4/8 - Rest
4/9 - 13.1 miles
4/10 - 5 miles
4/11 - 5 miles
4/12 - 5 miles
4/13 - 8.3 miles
4/14 - 5 miles
4/15 - Rest
4/16 - 13.3 miles
4/17 - 5 miles
4/18 - 4 miles
4/19 - 4 miles
4/20 - 4 miles
4/21 - 4 miles
4/22 - Rest
4/23 - 13.1 miles (or 12.5???)
4/24 - Rest
4/25 - 6 miles
4/26 - 6 miles
4/27 - 10 miles

152.8/160 miles



Upcoming races:
4/9 - Rock the Parkway half marathon (Kansas City, MO) 2:30:17.6 new PR
4/16 - Garmin Wickedly Fast half marathon (Olathe, KS) 2:28:39.52 new PR
4/23 - Heroes for Hope half marathon (North Kansas City, MO) 2:19:14 new PR
5/1 - Buffalo Bell Stampede half marathon (Leavenworth, KS)
5/14 - Running with the Cows half marathon (Bucyrus, KS)
6/2 - Hospital Hill 5k 7pm PRE-RUN (Kansas City, MO)
6/3 - Hospital Hill half marathon 7am RE-RUN (Kansas City, MO)
9/25 - Broadway Bridge half marathon (Kansas City, MO)
10/15 - Kansas City Marathon 26.2 (Kansas City, MO)
11/5 - Jenks half marathon (Jenks, OK)
11/6 - Kansas half marathon (Lawrence, KS)
11/12 - Longview half marathon (Kansas City, MO)
11/13 - Gobbler Grind half marathon (Overland Park, KS)
11/19 - White River half marathon (Cotter, AR)
11/20 - Pilgrim Pacer half marathon (Lenexa, KS)