January 2017 Running Challenge

MNLittleFinn wrote: »

So, decided to change my goal. Some context. I decided to stop having my Aunt coach me. She's nice and all, but only having 1 week of training at a time was driving me crazy, because I like to see the full arch of training and how things fit. Then I began looking at training plans.

This led me to making a "to hell with it" decision, and I'm actually BUYING a custom training plan. The plan will be 20 weeks, which means it will start the last week of this month/first week of next month. On the questionnaire I filled out, I used my 4 week average of 36 for the weekly mileage question. This is a little lower than I could do, but is still decent for me, using 12 miles as my long run distance.

Long story short, the rest of January, until the end, is less structured for me, so I'm going to try to maintain that 36mpw average for the next 4 weeks which will give me a total of 144 miles for the month, plus whatever I run on the last 2 days of the month, when I begin my plan.

New goal: Stay healthy (colds not counting) so I can begin "real" marathon training at the end of the month, with a nominal mileage goal of 140 miles.

That's a good plan. When you start your structured training program, you will have a very solid base of 36 miles per week.

MobyCarp wrote: »

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That's a good plan. When you start your structured training program, you will have a very solid base of 36 miles per week.

Thanks. I needed to hear that.

MobyCarp wrote: »

To be fair, the age group in local races got a lot less competitive after I turned 60.

I fully endorse this ...... as an LV60 I do soooooo well with age category results

Jan: 45 miles running.





1st: 3.88 miles, Park Run - MTD 3.88
2nd: 5 miles, Wk11:D2 C210k - MTD 8.88

1/1: Masters Runners 10-Minute Strength Circuit
1/2: 4 miles

4 of 50

Played around on some random hills around home. Nice to have this day off of work to enjoy a leisurely run in the daylight.

January Running Totals (miles)
1/1 – 10.39 warmup, 7.5 mile race, cool down
1/2 – 2.12 easy cross country

January total to date – 12.51

Nominal Challenge Goal – 225 miles
Real Goals: Train toward Boston, working 3 Freezeroo races plus Winter Warrior Half into the training plan. Avoid injury.

Today's notes – The original plan was to take today as a rest day. But yesterday I noticed that the grass was mostly clear of snow, and the forecast for this morning was temperatures just above freezing, with showers starting this afternoon. I decided it was a good morning to go do my first run in spikes, my new Saucony Kilkennys (pictures from after running):




These were the first Saucony cross country spikes I found in my size after running Club Nationals in Florida last month. They aren't very aggressive, as spikes go. Note that they have only 4 spikes on the shoe, as opposed to 6 or 7 for more aggressive models. They shipped with quarter inch spikes, which I installed after I received them. I also bought some 3/8 inch spikes, but I reasoned that since I've never run in spikes it would be a good idea to start out less aggressive.

Late this morning I took the spikes and drove to Genesee Valley Park, where the club had some cross country practice sessions earlier this year. (I missed most of them because I was injured.) As predicted, most of the snow was gone from the grass:





I changed from my Kinvaras, which I wore to drive, into the Kilkennys, and went out to run around the section the club had used for cross country practice. I noticed right away how light the Kilkennys are; going from the Kinvaras to the Kilkennys was like going from Peregrines to Kinvaras. The Kilkennys don't say, but they felt like zero drop. There was amazing tactile feedback from the ground. I could easily tell by feel the difference between frozen ground, unfrozen ground, and the in between stuff with frozen clumps. I did not slip at all crossing the snowy and icy patches.

Ran around the section looking for different terrain to run on. Ran some flat grass, some inclines, under some trees where there are roots, over some cutesy rolls of terrain far too small to be called hills, and got used to the shoes. The traction is better than I've had for grass before; I wonder how good it would be if I'd got 6-spike Carreras and used 3/8 inch spikes? I made a point to run across asphalt trails a couple times to get a feel for what the spikes did when they hit asphalt.

It was a good run to break in the shoes and become accustomed to running in lightweight spikes. Ended up with 2.12 miles by Garmin in 17:03, for an average pace of 8:02 per mile; but it was just a warmup. At the ambient temperature, I didn't work up a sweat. My friend Jim would say, "hardly worth washing the tights." (Yes, ladies, I put the tights into the laundry afterward anyway.)

I could have kept going for another 2 or 3 miles, but I stopped because this was supposed to be a rest day, I got done what I wanted to do in the 2 miles I ran, and at that point it still felt just about like a rest day.

2017 races:
January 1, 2017 Freezeroo #2 (Resolution Run 7.5 mile) (Mendon, NY) Finished in 50:45
January 7, 2017 Winter Warrior Half Marathon (Gates, NY)
January 14, 2017 Freezeroo #3 (Pineway Ponds Park 5 mile) (Spencerport, NY)
January 28, 2017 Freezeroo #4 (Hearnish 5 mile) (Victor, NY)
February 4, 2017 USATF Cross Country National Championship 8K (Bend, OR)
February 11, 2017 Freezeroo #5 (Valentines Run "In Memory of Tom Brannon" 8 Mile) (Greece, NY)
February 25, 2017 Freezeroo #6 (White House Challenge 10K) (Webster, NY)
April 17, 2017 Boston Marathon (Hopkinton, MA)

@stoshew71 the Hound Dog half is going to be big this year, they have already doubled their registration from years past. That dog running was the best think to happen to Elkmont's Cross Country/T&F team, who the race benefits. They raised enough money in this race for equipment, their XC team didn't have to pay any fees to run this year and runners who made State in T&F had their costs to go to Gulf Shores paid for...I love a good cause.

I completely feel off the wagon in December (except that I ate very few sweets!), but it's time to focus on that marathon training plan!

I'm shooting for 45 miles in January. My 2017 goal is 400 miles.

@OSUbuckeye906 I love Brooks so I love them! Sorry about your Buckeyes this weekend. My cousin is an Ohio State grad and I went to visit him while he was going to school there, what a great campus. I love getting new running gear woohoo!