Running Log

Coming off a new baby born ~ 2 weeks ago and a slightly injured achilles' tendon(itis?). I rested and didn't run for 6 days straight.

This was my first run back. Ran at 8:45 pace.

Tuesday is my interval day at the local college track.

Ran 1 mile w/u at about 10:00 pace.

Ran two 1000's at 4:00. Actual pace was 4:03 and 4:01. The plan was to run 4-5 repeats, but my achilles' tendon was really hurting.

Ran 1 mile c/d at 10:00 pace.

Biked 7 miles with the toddler in the trailer.

With my achilles' tendon hurting, I think I'll bike as many miles as I can to take the place of those easy miles.

~35 min bike ride as warm-up.

-Then 800 run w/u. 2.5 miles at 7:00 threshold pace for 17:30 mins. Most 400 splits were at 1:45 or below. My achilles actually didn't hurt me much, and I felt really good stamina-wise for the most part.

-800 c/d run and then 15 easy bike home.

rest

rest.

Ran 5.1 miles at 8:28 Easy pace.

Biked 3.5 miles as w/u. Biked 2.5 miles c/d.

Easy 4.3 miles on hilly roads. No watch. Pace was around 9 min/mile.

Ran 1/2 mile w/u. Ran 2 1/2 miles in 3:45 and 3:20. Ran 1/2 mile c/d.

Ran at 5:30 am. Muscles were sore. Wanted to run a bit more but didn't have time. Can't run this afternoon so I wanted to fit it in somehow.

Ran a LT/ threshold/tempo run in the PM (which one is it?). Ran 1.1 miles at easy 8:30 pace for 10 mins. Then ran 1.5 miles at just slower than threshold pace,7:14/mile. Then ran 1 mile home at easy pace.

3.5 miles in the early AM. 33 mins total , which included super slow first half mile and last mile and w/u drills. Pace was around 8:30 for 3 miles. 

Have a race tomorrow in Chicago. It's my first race since the triathlon in August. Hoping for a 20:00 time in the 5K. I'm ran a ~21:00 5k in that tri, so I figure I should be about a minute faster. My legs are feeling sore from not running when I went back to work and had crazy weeks, and my Achilles still hurts. I guess we'll see what happens. 

Ran the race today. Official time was 21:03, I had 21:01 on my watch. This is a big race, so the start was really slow, even though I was in the first corral. It felt like 9:00 min mile pace for the first 1/4 mile or so. For example, the race started at 7:00 but I didn't cross the start line til 45 seconds after that. I had to do a lot of dodging and darting to find open lanes and get to pace. 

mile 1: 7:09

mile 2: 6:48

mile 3: I swear my watch said 5:45, but I don't think that was correct. Either I messed up the split, the mile marker was wrong, or I misread my watch as I glanced at it. 

Official mile pace was 6:47, so I think that third mile should actually be around 6:27 or so. 

The course has an uphill start, then on Lower Wacker, which is a horrible dark place but sheltered from the wind/cold. Rather big hill ending the third mile . 

Overall, I was hoping to run faster, but I'll take  it and move on. 

Ran 3.1 miles at 5:30 am. Total time was 28:xx.

Ran first 1/2 mile at 10:00 pace, then the rest at goal 8:45-9:00 easy pace.

Achilles tendon was flaring for first 1/2 mile but settled down as I warmed up.

Ran 6.1 miles at easy pace today. Total time of just over 52 mins. Ran to Concordia, ran a mile on the track, then down to Chicago and back on the same route.

Miles: 8:47, 8:32, 8:24, 8:35, 8:45, 9:00 last mile with drills.

Legs/endurance felt good. I think I ran this route in June about 10 minutes slower. Didn't make it out but once this week for early morning runs before work, so I'm glad I got up at 6am before the kids.

Ran 4 miles in just over 33 mins. Tried to do a progression run. Started at easy pace for mile 1, a bit faster for mile 2, thought I was pushing it for mile 3 but wasn't going as fast as I thought. So I ran the last 1/2 mile faster before coasting in for the last 1/2 mile with drills/pick-ups.

Miles: 8:40, 8:25, 7:50, 8:23.

Again, achilles was twinging for first 1/2 mile but disappated after that.
 

Ran 2 miles at easy pace in 18:00. Ran at 5:30am and it was super cold. Body was stiff to start but warmed up ever so slightly. 

No run today. Cold (feels like 0 deg.). 

Did a quick 15 min hiit workout in the basement. 

Did a threshold run this morning.

Ran 1 mile at easy 8:45 pace. Then did 2.5 miles at threshold pace (~7:10 pace). Ran .5 easy to end.

Threshold miles: mile 1 7:09, mile 2 7:07, last .5 mile in 3:32.

Super cold (windchill at ~5 deg) and my legs never warmed up, so I'm happy I hit my threshold splits.

Ran 7 miles in 1:02 at easy ~9:00 min pace. AP 8:55. Ran to Concordia track, then to Chicago Ave, back to track and then home. 

Mile splits: 9:20 (w/ drills), 8:54, 8:30, next two around 9:00, 8:24, 8:40. Tried to push it a tiny bit the last 2 miles. 

Ran 4.5 miles in just under 35 minutes. 7:45 AP. Ran to Concordia, did .5 mile on the track, then home.

Progression run: started at 8:30 pace, tried to drop down to under 7 min for last full mile.

Mile splits: 8:20, 7:50, 7:05, 6:55, last 1/2 mile in 4:27 w/ drills.

The run felt really good, especially after 7 miles (my longest run in months) yesterday. It felt fast in the last 2 miles, but it felt like I could have sustained it for even longer.

I need a race to look forward to. Unfortunately, there aren't many December races in Chicago.

Ran 3 easy miles in 26:30. 8:49 AP.

Mile splits: 8:54, 8:51, 8:43.

Ran 1 mile at school with kids for the Turkey Trot. Super slow at 13 mins to help the stragglers. After school ran 1.2 miles just to fit something in. Ran that in 7:15 pace

Ran for 30 minutes. I'm at the FIL's house so I don't know the exact distance, but it felt like about 9 min pace. It was snowing and there was about an inch of snow in some places. 

Ran about 7.9 miles in 1:09:14. 8:45 AP. The run was tough because of snow on the ground. I had to run either on unshoveled sidewalks or on the side of the road in 1-2 inches of snow. I'd hop on the clear-but-wet road when cars weren't around, then hop back to the shoulder when they came by. All in all, I was thinking of just doing 4, but I was happy that I pushed through and did almost 8. That's my longest run in the last, oh, 6 years.

I didn't know the exact mile markers since I'm at my FIL's house, but here's the splits of what I considered the mile markers: 9:08, 9:04, 9:03, 5:11 (.66 mile), 5:14 (.66 mile), 8:34, 9:40, 8:39. At this point I thought I had run 8 miles, but my pace/time told me I hadn't. So I ran a bit farther (and uphill) and back for another .5 mile in 4:19.

Ran 5.1 miles in 40:57. 8:02 AP. Ran 2 miles easy to Concordia track. I tried to run the next two miles, one of which was on the track, at 5k race pace (6:45), but I failed. My legs weren't responding too well and my determination to hit my marks wasn't strong today. This is probably due to my long run yesterday. 

Mile splits: 8:40, 8:20, 6:57, 6:47, 8:45. 

Looking at this week in terms of the big picture, it was the most I've run Sunday-Sunday in a long time. I hit somewhere around 25 miles in 8 days with Thanksgiving and long car rides thrown in there. I'm finding it easier and easier to find the motivation to get out the door and run, and as my fitness improves I'm finding it easier and easier to knock out 3-6 mile runs. It feels good. 

Ran 3 miles at easy pace in 27:07. AP 9:02. It was in the teens, I didn't want to get it of bed, and my legs definitely felt dead and creaky and old-man-ish. And did I mention it was cold? It was cold. 

I didn't check my mile splits, but the last one was in 9:07, so the first two were just under 9.  

Ran 3.1 miles in 25:08. 8: AP. I ran 1 mile at easy pace, then 1.3 miles as a fartlek, I guess, 1 block hard/1 block easy. Then finished .8 miles at easy pace.

Mike splits: 8:48, 7:50 (1.3 miles), 8:03 (.8 miles). 

Ran 3 miles in about 24 minutes. ~8:00 AP. I couldn't find my watch, so I went off feel. Ran 1 mile at easy pace, 1.25 miles at threshold pace, then .75 easy to finish.

Splits (by feel): 8:30, 7:10 pace (for 1.25 mi), 8:30 pace (for .75).

Ran 9 miles (or 8.88?) in 1:15:20. 8:30 AP. Ran to Concordia and down/back to Chicago Ave for 3, then 3 miles on the track. Then did return trip for final 3: to Chicago, Concordia, and home.

For some reason, mile 2 on my normal route *always* seems short. I use google pedometer to map it out and I swear I know the mile markers. But no matter what, mile 2 comes in like 30 seconds shorter. I cannot figure it out. Mile 1 and 9 had some drills in them.

Mile Splits: 8:58, 7:20, 7:50, 8:20, 8:30, 8:40, 8:40, 8:30, 9:00.

Longest run since high school!

Ran 3.1 miles at easy pace in 27:52. 8:59 AP. My legs felt heavy after my long run yesterday.

This will be a recovery week for me after 3 weeks of build-up and 2-3 hard days per week. I'll probably run 3 miles at easy pace on S, M, T, and Th, and I'll run ~7-8 on Saturday. That will be about 19 miles for the week, down from 20 and 23 over the last 2 weeks. I assume no one else reads this, but in case anyone does, what do you do for your recovery weeks?

Ran 3 miles in 27:32. 9:10 AP.

Mile splits: 9:55, ?, 8:58.

I felt creaky and stiff for a while. Didn't warm up the legs til mile 2. Yikes, that first mile was slow.

Ran 3 miles in 27:46. 9:15 AP. Yikes, another slow run. My first half mile was a...blistering.... 5:00. My legs are just so creaky if I run early in the morning. My form is like that of a 90 yo man. 

Oh well, I got out of bed to run before work, so that's a win in my book. 

Mile splits: 9:36, 9:25, 8:45. 

Ran 3 miles in 26:47. AP 8:55. Ran to Harlem Ave. My legs felt a little better today - a little less creaky. 

Mile splits: 9:14 (with drills), 9:05, 8:28 (with drills and pick-ups). 

Ran 7.1 miles in 1:00:58 at easy pace. 8:35 AP. Ran to Concordia, down to Chicago Ave , then did 2 miles at the track, and back home. 

Mile splits: 8:35, 8:05, 8:30, 8:25, 8:35, 8:35, 8:58 (w/ drills and pick-ups)

I felt a little sluggish from too little sleep and a rough work week. 

This ended my recovery week. Next week's goal is to hit 23-24 miles, with 1 tempo run and a long run of 9 miles. 

Ran 5.1 miles in 43:32. Ran 2 miles at easy pace, 2 miles at marathon pace, and 1 mile at easy pace. 

Mile splits: 9:25, 8:30, :30 shakeout, 7:50, :30 shakeout, 7:55, 8:17. Then drills and strides to cool down. 

Ran 4 miles in 36:04. 9:01 AP. Ran to Concordia track and home.

Mile Splits: 17:52 (first 2), 8:58, 9:06 (with drills and strides)

Legs felt suuuuper heavy and dead. I only got 5 hours of sleep last night, and I used my old Asics for a quick change. Ug...

Ran 2.5 miles in 19:22. 7:45 AP. This was a tempo run, but I only had about 20 minutes. So I ran for 5:20 at easy pace (about .7 miles). Then I ran at threshold pace for about 12-13 minutes. Goal pace was about 7:10/mile, and I think I ran about 7:00-7:10 pace, speeding up a bit at end. The good part is I felt like I could have kept that pace for another 10 minutes. 

All in all, not a bad workout for only 20 mins. 

Ran ~5.1 miles in 46:23. Ran the first 3 miles at exactly 9:00 mile pace. Family is in town, so I couldn't get out for my long run today. I'll try to hit 9 or 10 miles tomorrow. 

Ran 10 miles in 1:26. 8:36 AP. Ran to Concordia, Chicago Ave, 2 miles on the track, over to Forest, back to track for 2 miles, then home.

Mile Splits: 8:47 (w/drills), 8:22, 8:40, 8:25, 8:40, 9:40 (I think I measured this mile wrong), 8:25, 8:30, 8:25, 8:40 (w/drills and strides)

This is my longest run to date. My legs definitely felt tired of the pounding after mile 6. I didn't ever feel the immediate urge to just stop, which I'm happy about it, but it did feel a bit like "when will this be over?" That said, I put in a decent effort on my last two miles and ran them fairly quick. The last mile would have been in at 8:20 without doing the drills/skips/high-knees.

I also noticed that running on the track is both good and bad. It's good because I can see my splits every 1/4 mile and I end up running those miles faster. The bad part is that during those 4 miles, I got really bored, even with other people out running and kids playing football on the field. I'll use this for future planning. I also forgot to buy some Gu for this long run. I used some on my previous two long runs of 8 and 9 miles and it seemed to help, if only psychologically.

Ran 3 miles in 26:20. It was cold, rainy, and cold, but my legs felt decent considering my long run yesterday. This is promising.

Mile splits: 8:40, 8:40, 8:52. AP 8:47.

Ran 6.25 miles and did cruise intervals. Ran a 2+ mile warmup in 19 mins to the track. Did drills and strides. Then did 3x1200 at threshold, 5:15 pace. I hit 5:11, 5:13, 5:13. Then I did some sprints up the bleachers (8). And then 2 mile cool down in about 18 mins. 

The sun was out, it was 45 deg, and I wasn't pressed for time, so it felt great! 

Ran 6 miles in 49:03. 8:10 AP. These were very hilly miles, with multiple 75 ft. climbs. I started slow and picked it up on the way back. I stopped at the biggest hill on the way back, caught my breath, and sprinted the minute up. Did that again. 

These mile marker aren't accurate, but here's where I checked my watch: 9:07, 8:47, 8:30, 8:30, 7:57, 8:31. 

Ran 5.1 easy miles in 44:56. 8:49 AP. Ran to Concordia, mile on the track, then back home. 

Mile splits: 8:49, 8:29, 8:30, 8:58, 9:17 (with drills and strides) 

My left calf is tweaking a bit from my hilly run yesterday. It didn't really bother me on the run today, but I definitely feel it. I got a foam roller for Xmas, so I'll try to roll it out tonight. 

Ran 3 easy miles in 29:07. This run was early in the morning and cold. No really, windshield was -1. My calf was hurting too. It warmed up moderately, but I could barely even walk getting out of bed. All in all, this was my slowest run ever. 

Mile splits: 10:17, 9:29 , 9:20

I hate winter. 

Did a short 30-minute bike workout on my new bike trainer. I used a youtube video to guide the workout. This was my first time ever doing this. I know biking and running aren't really comparable, at least in terms of a mileage translation, but I still want to log that I did something aerobic today.