Sunday, February 1, 2009

Phase 3: week 4 of 5

The sanctity of the running log must be respected.

Yes, I could have fudged one of my runs this week for an extra half-mile to hit 100 - but, I wouldn't have felt good about it. So, why didn't I just add an extra half-mile on the run today? Well - I was going to do that, but I was running late - Kendra and I were supposed to be somewhere at 11am today. We eventually decided not to go and I almost went back outside to run that half-mile - but, I didn't feel like going out in the cold with my legs burning, and more importantly I decided that I didn't want to be a completely anal runner by going out for a few blocks just to hit a "target". So, I ended up with 99.5 miles this week.

The important thing is that I made it through a very challenging week with only some slightly sore legs as a result. The next two weeks will be less mileage - but, I'm anticipating that the race next week at the rolling XC course at Derwood, MD will test my legs. The race is the national USATF championships. At least three Olympians will be running the rolling 2k loop in our same race. The main goal will to not be lapped - beyond that we hope to place well as a team. My guess is that my pace will be somewhere in the neighborhood of the tempo runs I've been doing (~5:30 per mile). The race will be 6 laps of the 2k course for 12k or ~7.44 miles.

The exciting thing is that our fearless leader Ryan set us up with a Saucony sponsorship - meaning that we scored a full uniform, XC spikes, and trainers. Pretty awesome. Even if we don't run fast we'll be stylin.

Last Week
Monday morning: 4 miles
Monday evening: 7.5 miles
Tuesday morning: 12 miles 4X2 mi (11:06;10:49;11:00;11:01)
Tuesday evening: 4 miles
Wednesday: 14 miles
Thursday: 9 miles 10X100
Friday morning: 11 miles hills
Friday evening: 6.5 miles
Saturday: 10 miles
Sunday: 21.5 miles
Total: 99.5 miles

This Week
Monday morning: 4 miles
Monday evening: 7.5 miles
Tuesday morning: 12 mi 2 mi easy 4X1mi T pace 1 min rest 1 mi easy 3X1 mi T pace 1 min rest 2 mi easy
Tuesday evening: 4 miles
Wednesday: 13 miles
Thursday: 6.5 miles 8X100
Friday: 4 miles
Saturday: 11.5 miles XC championships ~3:25 per k
Sunday: 17 miles
Total: 79.5 miles

3 comments:

RM said...

Shoot, my bad. Definitely my fault with the multiple bathroom breaks and slow pace. I felt terrible today, just a little stomach bug or something.

Anyway you should totally go out and run another half mile.

alyssa said...

"Even if we don't run fast we'll be stylin."

I like the attitude and think that should be a tshirt. It goes hand in hand with my own personal running motto:
It's not about how good you feel, it's about how good you look.

Ben said...

not at all ryan - like i said - it's not a big deal - it's only a number.

alyssa - that's funny - it reminds me of my teammate in college, Jorge, who used to always say to other guys during workouts and races, "look good, feel good." You can't always control how you feel, but you can control how you look and sometimes it makes you feel better.

Speaking of that - Ryan, I think you and I (and anyone else who doesn't need to be presentable) should let our facial hair grow this week. Playoff beards (or an ugly patchy mess in my case) always work.