Week of September 26, 2011

This was an up and down week. Things are still going day by day, even minute by minute. I'll have some runs where I'll go from thinking "my season is over" to "I'm back!" (luckily, usually in that order) in the span of a few miles. Unfortunately, I still haven't been able to get 100% healthy. Though the back seems to be pretty good at this point, my left lower-leg stabilizers have been giving me a lot of trouble, and I haven't been able to run without a hitch at high speeds. This resulted in two frustratingly slow and painful workouts on Tuesday and Friday. At this point, I've been struggling to get healthy for 7 weeks and there are now 7 weeks to Nationals. I still have faith in my aerobic fitness, but I hope to be able to start running fast soon or else there won't be much use for it.

Lunes, 26 Septiembre, 2011 – 8am: Easy run with Kyle down to Baronian and then out towards Harvard and back. A bit quicker than I would have liked since it was not a shakeout for him. Luckily he kept going when I turned back. Total ~40min for 5M+.

3pm: Ran to Gantcher and then with Sam, Jerzy, et al out Broadway to Charlestown. Ran a loop up Bunker Hill and through Charlestown and then came back through East Somerville. Very slow, nice conversational easy run. Felt pretty good. Was planning to do strides on the grass, but right HF was really sore, so I didn’t. Total run was 1’24’50 for 11M.

5pm: After run, did the upper-body work. 3 sets of [8x Horizontal Pushups, 10x Pushups, to fail (20) Dips, to fail (~4) Pull-ups].

Martes, 27 Septiembre, 2011 – 8am: Light core at home, 20’00.

1:30pm – Rough workout today. I was running 8x800m on a grass loop and was supposed to be 2'3L to 2'2h. I ran the first one in 2'38 and it felt more like 2'28. From there, I think all of the rest were about 2'40-41. My turnover actually felt all right, but my gait still just felt weird. I just couldn't make myself go any faster. It was pretty frustrating to be running 800s at what should be half marathon pace and have the 2'2x that I want to be running seem impossibly far away. It's certainly better than not running at all, but I guess I expected that even without any workouts I'd still be able to run 5'00 pace. I feel like this workout would have been so easy in August or even July and I hadn't done any real speed-work then. I mean, I closed that 5km race sub 5'00 and that was in the middle of a 100+ mile week of travel... Now, it feels like running any sub-5 mile would be a serious challenge.

Anyways, after the workout I ran back to gantch and then over to the fields. I did full foot drills on the turf and then 6x strides barefoot. These actually felt pretty decent and were a lot better than the ones I did at the end of last week. Finished cool down after. Total ~12M.

5pm: Ice bath and then Murner abs with the team.

Miercoles, 28 Septiembre, 2011 – Very stiff this morning. Did core (25’00) before breakfast.

2pm: Warmed up with 20’00 on bike, moderate effort.

2:20pm: Ran around fields before practice since I had to leave early for Rosh Hashana services. After, came back to Gantch and ran with Sam, Connor, Brosh, et al on Spy Pond. Nice and easy run back to Gantch and then ran home to shower and change quickly. Total 14M in about 1’40.

jueves, 29 de septiembre de 2011 – Shana Tova! Happy New Year!

8:30am: Stiff this morning, but better than the last couple days. Walked over to Gantch after breakfast and did 45 minutes of cross training. Started out on elliptical but it was bugging my calve a bit, so switched to the bike. Felt good and got a good effort in. Total XT45’00.

2:30pm – warmed up with 20’00 on the stationary bike before practice. Calve and hip feeling pretty good.

3pm: Ran from Gantch with Kyle and big group to Short No Hill. Drizzle as we left which turned to pouring rain for about 5 or 10 minutes at the beginning of the run. We were running pretty slowly at first and then Kyle and I broke away going up the big hill and were going a bit quicker. We were going pretty well on the bike path on the way back. I felt quite good. Stride was much more open and relaxed, not so short and choppy. Last 5M were at about 6’20 pace. Tacked on a bit to round it up to 11M in 75’25 (6’51 avg). Finished up with some drills and fast feet in gantch instead of strides.

4:30pm: Upper body Lift in the gym. Same as last week. Pull ups are still hard.

7:30pm: Core at home (25’00 with 5’00 plank).

Viernes, 30 Septiembre, 2011 – 11am: 15 minutes on bike to warm up calve then 4M warm up on C-Loop to track. Drills, 4x 100m with 100m jog, felt okay but still wasn’t landing well on the left calve. Still, felt smoother than Tuesday. Workout was 6x800m, 4x400m with 90-120sec jog rest. First one felt all right in 2’33 (76.x, 76.x), but after that it just went downhill. I could tell I was limping and just getting no power from the left leg. Times got worse and worse, 2’33, 2’37, 2’38, 2’39, 2’43. Ethan called it after that because I was limping too badly. Really frustrating to feel like I have the fitness but just can’t RUN. Short cooldown on foot and then bike, icing, stretching after.

4pm: 90’00 on stationary bike at moderate pace. Stretching, icing after.

Sabado, 1 Octubre, 2011 – 9am: 70’00 on stationary bike at moderate intensity, last 5’00 hard. Stretching, icing after.

6:30pm – Working all afternoon. Headed over to Gantch after dinner to pool run. Felt good but got kicked out because they were closing at 7pm. Oops… Jogged home and felt all right.

Domingo, 2 Octubre, 2011 – 10am: Jogged down to Baronian for long run. Cool, temps only in the 50s. Ran with big group out towards the river. Felt really bad for first mile or so, limping pretty badly. Stopped in Davis square to stretch out left calve. Felt a lot better after, but everyone had run ahead, so ran the rest solo. Thought I was going to have to turn back at Davis, so pretty glad to finish the run. Breast Cancer walk on the river, so very slow on the Boston side as I had to dodge between people. Much better by the end. Last 5km 19’02. Total 1’46’02 for 15M (7’04 avg). Stretching/rolling/icing after.

4pm: Some work and a quick power nap before heading over to Gantch. 35’00 on the stationary bike at mod intensity. After, ran 3M on treadmill so I could watch form and stop if limping. Didn’t feel great first couple minutes, but stopped to stretch calve and better after. Last mile in about 6’00 cut down.

Weekly Total: 94 Miles in 9 Runs.

Week of September 19, 2011

A much better week. Feeling better, but mechanically not perfect yet at high speed. Still, a good step in the right direction.

Lunes, 19 Septiembre, 2011 – 7:30am: Easy shakeout on grass, first 2M with Sam, then solo. A bit stiff, but not bad for first thing in the morning. Total 40’50 for 5M+.

3pm: Easy-day run with Brosh, Sam, and Peter Lewis. Ran menotomy from Gantcher to fields and around to round up. Very easy, comfy, conversational pace. Fun run. Felt good. Right hip a bit tight at end, but not too bad. Longer than I’d planned, but felt fine and no hitch again. Quote of the run, from a group of~14 year old girls “Nice short-shorts! Can I rub your Penis??” Total 11M+ in 83’00

5pm: Light lift (upper body). 3 sets of [8x Horizontal Pushups, 10x Pushups, to fail (16-20) Dips, to fail (~4) Pull-ups]. Wow arms felt weak…

Martes, 20 Septiembre, 2011 – 7:30am: Easy shake out with Sam from Chet. Ran lakes and then finished on the grass. Felt fine. Total 5M++ in 41’00.

8:30am: Back PT at home.

3pm: Ran from Gantcher with the guys to Fresh Pond for an easy, unstructured 30’00 tempo. Stopped to use the potty and change into flats once there, a few drills and we were off. Ran with Matt, Kyle, Connor, Shap, Ben, and Jerzy. Felt really easy for first lap (2.5M), talking and stuff the whole time. Ran 14’21 (5’45 pace). After that, decided to pick up the effort a bit since Ethan had said to get a good effort. Ran pretty hard for about a mile by myself and then got swallowed back up by the group and felt pretty dead the last 5 or 8’. Still negative split, but was losing ground at the end. The 30’00 covered about 5.35M (5’36 average), but felt harder than it should have. Still, given where I was last Tuesday, this is a big step in the right direction. Cool down back to Tufts 3M. 11M+ total for the afternoon.

7:30pm – Core at home, 25’00 with 5’00 plank.

Miercoles, 21 Septiembre, 2011 – AM: Rest

2:30pm: 1M easy run to Gantch as warm up and then did some drills with the trainer before running. Felt pretty good. Ran with Kyle, Connor, and Ben on Smoot. A bit longer than I’d planned, but felt good for the most part. They picked it up the last 3M or so, and I hung back a bit, but not too bad, still under 7’00 pace probably. Smoot was 12M+ in 1’22’45 (6’50 pace), so about 1’30 total for 13M.

8pm: Light core at home, about 20’00.

Jueves, 22 Septiembre, 2011 – AM: Felt stiff this morning, so decided against a shakeout.

3pm: Jogged over to Gantch and headed off in a big group to do an up-tempo. Felt good and was running at the front with Nick but we missed a turn and I fell off the back of the group as I tried to catch back up. Very frustrating as I felt I could have run with them fine if I had just been in the pack, but I couldn’t get myself to work back in. Ran back to campus and ran on the fields before doing 6x barefoot strides on the grass. Felt pretty awkward, first strides I’d done in a while. A bit more on the fields and then back to Gantch for abs/lift. Total 10M++ in 70’06.

4:30pm: Team abs and lift – felt pretty easy, but right hip flexor is still pretty sore, so that was a bit rough. Lift was same exercises as Monday but at a slower rhythm. Felt fine.

Viernes, 23 Septiembre, 2011 – 7:30am: Back PT at home.

8am: Good core session. 27’00 with plank and side planks.

10:30am: Ran easy down to fields and then did foot drills barefoot on the turf and then 8x diagonal strides on the turf field. Felt pretty awkward still, but getting better. Cooled down on the grass and then around C-Loop. Total 6M+ in 47’03.

12:30pm: Appointment with Dr. Tim again. Some good ART on the hips/calves, back.

3pm: Ran to the fells with Ben and Matt. Felt okay until we got there, then the terrain really irritated my back and hips. Ran really slow in the fells, but felt better once out. Finished with some extra on the fields. Lots of stretching, rolling, and then ice bath after. Total 63’00 for 9M.

Sabado, 24 Septiembre, 2011 – 9:30am: Woke up at 7am to have some breakfast before driving over to Franklin park for a workout. 3M+ warm up, felt a bit tired. Some light drills and strides but didn’t have much time as we had to finish before Codfish started. Workout was 1-minute on, drop a flag, jog for 45 seconds, return to flagged spot and repeat. Thus, the total “on” time would be 8km of work. I was originally supposed to run with Luke, McGlock, and Benji, but I didn’t have that today. I felt like mechanically I could run much faster than I was running, but aerobically I was recovering very quickly. Ended up at the back of the pack, but still running close to 5’00 pace for the “on” sections. I think I was fairly consistent, but hard to tell. Felt like I could have kept going for a while longer, just couldn’t make my legs turn over any faster. A bit frustrating to be running at the back. Total was 24’39 for 8km(-) of work, since I was trying to catch up with the pack on a few of the rest cycles. Not too bad, though. I guess it’s a good starting point. 3M cooldown with the team and then watched Codfish. 11M++ total.

5pm: Very short, easy shakeout with Sam on the grass. About 20’00 total.

Domingo, 25 Septiembre, 2011 – Long run Sunday! Woke up around 8am after a fun night with Sylvia and Aaron Someroff and had a bit of breakfast before jogging to down Baronian. Ran with Kyle at first out to the Charles, quickly separated from rest of pack. Brian caught up to us on the river and we were going pretty fast until about the science museum bridge. We ran into a bunch of charity walkers there, so had to slow down. Kyle turned off at Mass Ave, so I continued on solo. Tacked on a few miles out and back past Harvard to make it a bit longer and then timed the last 5km in 19’06 (6’08 pace). Felt pretty good, but a bit tired from the hard first hour or so. Also got really nasty chafing, no fun. Total run 17.2M in 1’51’16 (6’28 avg).

Splits: 8.1M: 52’ (6’27 avg)

12M: 1’19 (6’36 avg)

14.1M: 1’32 (6’32 avg)

17.2M: 1’51’16 (6’28 avg)

7pm: Core, 25’00 with 5’00 plank and side.

Weekly Total: 100 Miles in 10 runs

Week of 9/5/2011 and 9/12/2011

I've been a bit busy and haven't had a chance to post the last two weeks. Unfortunately, they were pretty terrible, until this past weekend. I was struggling a lot with my back and hip pain, which appeared to have been an alignment problem in my SI joint. I saw a chiropractor this past Friday and since then have been feeling great. I did my first (pretty slow and easy) workout on Saturday and then had a solid long run on Sunday. I've been feeling good since then, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'm on the other side of this injury.

Now, I just need to get my legs back under me and get used to running fast with the boys again. Our team's first race was this past weekend and we had an amazing showing, putting 4 guys in the top 10 against some good schools, with 5 guys between 25'05 and 25'45. I can't wait to get in there with them. It's a pretty special year.

Anyways, I'll be using this week to build and get used to some lighter workouts and strides and then hopefully be back in the mix as normal with the varsity guys by next week. Ethan has the top 10 or 12 sitting out Codfish at Franklin Park this weekend, so my first race won't be until Open New Englands at Franklin Park on October 8. I feel like this gives me plenty of time to get back in the saddle. Still 8 weeks to Nationals.

Lunes, 5 Septiembre, 2011 – 8am: Slept for a long time last night, woke up naturally around 7:30am. Did core around 8am for 25’00.

11am: Had height/weight this morning for NCAA. Still below the BMI cutoff despite pounding water this morning (119lb, 5’8”), which is surprising because this is actually heavier than I usually am… Anyways, took morning off and did a bit more core with some of the team before lunch.

4:30pm – 5M easy shakeout on fields, barefoot. Back/ right hip still not perfect.

Martes, 6 Septiembre, 2011 – 7:30am: Non-optional day-off from Ethan. Got up early and biked over to Gantcher and did a bit of XT on the stationary bike 50’00 on the “hills” setting. Pretty good effort. Didn’t bother the back/hip at all. Better this morning.

3:30pm – Mandatory day-off. Just core with the guys, lots of stretching, rolling.

Miercoles, 7 Septiembre, 2011 – AM: Rest

3pm: Ran about 2M on treadmill and then around gantch. Back/hip still sore but getting better. 80 minutes on elliptical after at moderate intensity.

Jueves, 8 Septiembre, 2011 – 8am: Back better this morning, 25’ core session.

3pm: Team core. Lots of planks. Fun.

3:30pm. Ran outside towards the river with Matt and Kyle. Got dropped after about a mile. No limping, but still pretty painful. Slow, but longer than I thought once mapped, so not as bad as I thought. Total 7M in 50’40. After, lots of rolling/stretching and about 10’00 cooldown on bike.

Viernes, 9 Septiembre, 2011 – 10:30am – Ran down to Alumni fields and ran around the perimeter. Felt pretty stiff at first but had a really good moment about 25’ in when my body seemed to just “remember” how to run. Form felt a lot more smooth and felt like I was running, not jogging, for the first time in a while. Felt good. Ran to Gantch, back to Chet to grab my ID and then to Dewick. Total ~40’00 for 5M+.

3pm: Ran 30’00 solo before meeting up with the dudes. Ran another 30’00 or so with them as they warmed up for Kenyan run. Felt pretty sore at the end.

8pm: 25’00 of core. Felt good.

Sabado, 10 Septiembre, 2011 – 9am: Back a bit sore this morning. Biked to Gantcher and then did 60’00 on elliptical. Pretty boring, but good effort.

10:30am: A bit of core on the grass with the guys while watching the women’s time trial.

3pm: Ran solo from Chetwynd to Long Lakes. Felt decent. First 2M in about 13’30 and then ran progressive once at long lakes. Started around 6’45 and went down to about 6’00 pace by end. Pretty good effort. 3M pretty slow after at about 7’00 pace back to campus and on grass to get to 10M++ in 70’02 (5M of LL in ~32’30).

Domingo, 11 Septiembre, 2011 – 10am: Woke up around 7am, had a bit of breakfast (2 bananas with manjar and a plum), took some advil and did work until heading over to Baronian. Longish run with the guys. Ran with Matt, Luke, Sam, Connor, and some freshmen to the river. Much better long run than last week. Started out very slow (7’30+ pace) and then brought it down to probably about 6’40 pace on the river. Stride felt pretty smooth for about an hour. Back started to bug me a lot at that point and I slowed down a bit, but not too bad. Total run 1’39’04 for 14M+ (7’00 pace).

7pm: Core, 25’00 session.

Weekly Total: 51 Miles in 8 runs

Lunes, 12 Septiembre, 2011 – 8am: A bit stiff this morning, but still better. Biked over to Gantcher and did 35’00 on the elliptical. Moderate effort. Bike back.

12pm: Easy run from Chet down to alumni fields and around 4 big laps on grass and back (5.25M). Felt good. Total 39’00 (7’26 pace).

3pm: Easy run with Luke, Sam, Scott, and Ben on slut bias. Felt good, a bit stiff at end, but better still improving day to day. Very slow, easy pace. Total 67’05 for 9M (7’27 avg).

8pm: Core session 25’00.

Martes, 13 Septiembre, 2011 – 8am: Woke up feeling good. Did light core because planning to workout this afternoon ~15’00.

10:30am: 30’00 on elliptical. Felt good. Back/hip felt very good afterwards.

3pm: Really bad afternoon. Felt really stiff/awkward. Jogged to Gantcher and then over to fields on rt 16 to watch workout, but was in a lot of pain. Very frustrating. Walked back to Chet and then biked back to Gantcher. Stretched and rolled a bunch there.

8pm: Felt a bit better, jogged over to Gantch and a big lap of Alumni fields and then met up with Liam to do some aqua jogging. In the pool for about 30’00. Last 5’00 pretty hard. Better than nothing, but not where I want to be…

Miercoles, 14 Septiembre, 2011 – 12pm: Went and saw the trainer. Did about an hour worth of supervised stretching and PT exercises, focusing on hips and low back.

3pm: Ran out towards fells with big group. Felt fine until got into the fells where uneven ground really bugged my SI. Turned around and came back and tacked some on around roads. After, did 50’00 on stationary bike pretty hard. Total about 95’00 with about 6M run.

Jueves, 15 Septiembre, 2011 – 8am: Back/hip exercises. 3 sets of 15 bridges, side leg lifts, clam shells, and stretching.

10:30am – 5M+ easy around campus in ~40’00. Felt pretty decent.

2:30pm – Back PT exercises with resistance bands/weights.

3pm: team abs, about 10’00, not too hard.

3:30pm – ran with Murner out to ex-harvard and back with an extra loop around campus. Felt quite good. No limping/hitch. Total 53’14 for 7M++.

4:45pm – After run, stationary biked for 30’00 to get total time up to 80’00 for the afternoon and 2’00 for the day. Pretty good effort.

Viernes, 16 Septiembre, 2011 – 7:30am – Back PT exercises at home.

8am: 6M- easy in 41’45. First morning trying to run without advil pre-run. Pretty stiff and slow.

10:30am: Appointment with Dr. Tim at Tufts. Got some massage/loosening and then chiro adjustment of the SI/hip. Felt immediate relief! Much better walking around.

2:30pm: 40’00 on stationary bike, good intensity, before heading out to run.

3:15pm: Ran on C-Loop with Matt and Ben and then on the fields with Ben and Jerzy. Felt pretty good. No limp until last lap or so on the grass, so stopped there. Total 41’32 for 6M.

Sabado, 17 Septiembre, 2011 – 8am: Back PT exercises at home.

8:30am: 6M very easy on Alumni fields in 45’05. Second morning of running without advil before the run. Pretty stiff, but no limping.

1:30pm: At Bowdoin for Bowdoin Invitational 8k. 3M+ warm up, a couple drills, strides, and then work out. Ran with Jerzy and Brosh on the course for 8km of fartlek. Pattern was 3 sets of 3-2-1 on with half rest and 2’00 rest between sets. Felt really good! Strides felt smooth. Running felt smooth. No hitch at all. Felt a bit awkward to be running fast again, but hopefully that’s just because I haven’t run fast in a while. Still, feeling cautiously optimistic. Total including rest was 8km in ~29’30. After, did about 30’00 cooldown barefoot on grass to watch the girls race and then on the super nice turf field! Really good day – team killed it out there, with Matty taking the overall. Great day. Total 11M++ for the afternoon.

8:30pm – Back PT exercises at home

Domingo, 18 Septiembre, 2011 – 8am: Back PT exercises at home.

8:30am: 25’ of core with plank/side plank at end.

10am: Long run from Baronian with a big group out to Jamaica Pond. Another really great run! First 12M or so were very easy with group. I stuck in the pack mostly because I didn’t know where we were going. Nice run, though, with a good portion on packed dirt trails on the way back to the river. Once we got to the river, I picked it up and ran hard-long-run effort for the last 4M+. I felt very good – smooth and relaxed. Felt more like I felt in mid-August than I have in a long time. Ran the last 5km back to campus in 17’47 (5’43 pace) feeling smooth. Total run 1’49’12 for 16M (6’35 pace). Not bad given that we were running over 7’00 pace for probably 10M. Very good run and good day!

7pm: Back PT at home.

Weekly Total: 83 Miles in 11 runs

Week of August 29, 2011

Lunes, 29 Agosto, 2011 – 11am: 30’ core session with 5’00 plank. Felt pretty good.

2pm: 3M easy with Mr. C around 8’00 pace and then quicker solo 9M. Felt a lot better than yesterday. Much smoother and more energy. Probably still dealing with lingering fever yesterday. Total 12M in 1’24’10.

9pm: 4M++ shakeout from Chetwynd after moving in the last of my stuff. A bit stiffer in the back/hip, but still better than it has been. Hope to be moving back to normal. Total 34’08 for 4M++.

Martes, 30 Agosto, 2011 – AM: Still feeling a bit sick, stiff. Just rest.

2PM: Light core to warm up the back. 20’ total.

3pm: Terrible workout. Warm-up 4M solo and then with the guys. Afterwards, ran weird 6M loop on bike path around Arlington. Ran first 800m in ~2’40 and it felt super hard. Got dropped going up the hill around spy pond and came through 2M+ in 11’40 (5’44 pace from map). Running solo by then and just ran moderate for a couple miles. Guys caught up to me on the way back and I ran the last two miles back a bit harder, not sure of pace. Pretty awful overall. Cooldown back to campus and around. Total 13M.

Miercoles, 31 Agosto, 2011 – AM: Back stiff, but better than yesterday. Played it safe and no double today. Did nice long core session in the late morning, though. Felt solid.

4pm: After a nice meeting with the coaches and then Connor and then a nice introductory meeting with everyone (new frosh included), we headed out for our first run as a whole team. I ran with Brosh, Jerzy, and Dan on Long Res which got lost and turned into far (fire?) tower. Hip/back felt really good except on rocky footing on the longer downhills. Bunch of downed trees from the storm. Brosh and I ran longer, going back around C-Loop to tack on another few miles. Everyone was gone when we got back, so I ran back to chet with a few laps around the field to round up. Total was ~15M in 1’45’26.

Jueves, 1 Septiembre, 2011 – 10am: Back better this morning but still stiff. Woke up at 8, breakfast, and then stretched/rolled before a very easy 5M shakeout on Lakes/C-Loop. Felt pretty stiff at first. Stopped to stretch at bridge and felt better after.

3pm: Team abs – pretty easy but painful on the hard track. Lots of scraped up backs.

3:30pm: Ran with Jerzy, Matt, Sam, and some freshmen. Two bridges back through prospect hill with just Jerzy. Felt better again. Hip/back didn’t bug me at all during run. Some bad #2 cramps at the end, stopped in Anderson. Tried to do a couple strides but those felt pretty painful so didn’t push it today. Getting back worked on tomorrow, feeling cautiously optimistic. Total 10M+ in 73’10.

Viernes, 2 Septiembre, 2011 – 10am: Back better than yesterday, again. Jogged down to track and then ran an easy 30 minutes with Connor, Jerzy, and Brosh barefoot on the grass. Felt nice to be on the grass. Total 5M+ in 42’00

12pm: Appointment with Sam Peck (http://www.soarbody.com/) in Somerville. Great guy, very knowledgeable and helpful. Really dug deep into my legs and back, pretty sore afterwards.

3pm: Easy run on Mid res with the team to fields. Right hip was really tight interestingly enough, took it pretty easy. Sam said not to do anything intense, so I laid off the strides today. Total 9M+ in 67’28.

Sabado, 3 Septiembre, 2011 – 10am: Out in Grafton for Alumni 5k. Did warm up with team but felt really sore/stiff from massage yesterday. No race, just ran a bunch extra with Andrea. Jogged around during the race to watch and then cooled down 4M with the team. Felt quite good by cool down. Total ~10M in 70-80’.

3pm: Core, 25’00 with 5’00 plank.

5pm: Shakeout down to track and then barefoot on fields with Jerzy, Erik, and Rags. Total 43’12 for 5M++.

Domingo, 4 Septiembre, 2011 – 8:30am – woke up early at 7am to try to give my back time to warm up. Did 25’00 of core to try and warm up. Felt good.

9:30am – Pretty disappointing long run. Warmed up for 30 minutes solo and then a quick meeting before heading out. Felt decent for first 30-40 minutes of the run, but still not great. After that got really hot/dehydrated and back/hip started acting up. Slowed down a lot and got some water. Finished with Nick. Total 17M+ in 2’02’22. Time for a down week.

Weekly Total: 105 Miles in 11 runs. Tough week, frustrating that the back/hip isn't getting better as quickly as I want. I will take a real down week this coming week so I can hopefully put this behind me and get back to solid training.

Summer Training in Review

Monday, 6/20/2011 to Wednesday, 8/31/2011 (73 days)

Total Mileage: 1090M in 123 runs (14.9M/day average)

Days at altitude (7,000’-20,000’; most at ~9,500’): 68

Days under 10M: 3

Mode: 15.01 (double)

Longest Run: 22M

Highest 7 day total: 124M in 12 runs (sea level), 122 M in 13 runs (Altitude)

This was a pretty big summer for me. I had a great “off” period between 5/30 and 6/20 (about 3 weeks), where I was able to pursue my love for the outdoors through hiking and climbing in the Andes of Peru. I built up pretty quickly, running mostly on dirt and grass at 7,000’  above sea level in Arequipa, Peru. I did a few fartleks, but mostly was doing moderate running, picking it up when I felt good and taking it easy when I was tired. Some days I would finish my regular training runs under 6’00 pace for the last few miles, which was pretty good given the altitude.

From Arequipa, I moved to the higher elevation of Cusco, where I suffered a brief stomach bug, and then down to Pisaq (9,500’), where I would make my home for the majority of the trip. Pisaq was a great place to train; there were ample dirt roads, few cars or dogs, great food, and few distractions. Even during Strive when I was quite busy, I found my training going really well in Pisaq. This was also when I started to plateau my mileage at around 110-120 miles per week.

After a few big weeks in Pisaq, I traveled to Quito for a few days and then back to the States. My first week back in the states was a rough transition, but once I caught up on sleep from the travel, I felt great. I ran the hardest run of the base block on 8/14/2011, a hard “uptempo” run on my hilly 20M loop in Concord. I’ve done this near the end of each base phase for the last few seasons. I ran 2’04 last summer, 2’00 in the winter, and this year ran 1’57 (5’51 pace). I was hoping to run under 2’00’00 (6’00 pace), so this was quite a good run for me.

Since then, I’ve been running in Concord and Somerville, either by myself or with the team. Things were going well until I strained my back moving furniture about two weeks ago. It’s been frustratingly slow to heal, but hasn’t hampered training too much and does seem to be improving.

Now, September has arrived and it’s a time for transitions: the calm of the summer to the chaos of the start of classes, the routine mileage of base phase to new speed in strength phase. The next few weeks will be the introduction of some faster running, with less of an emphasis on mileage. We have our first race at Bowdoin a week from Saturday, but our first competitive race isn’t until mid-October at Open New Englands. Plenty of time.

I’m excited to see what the team can do this year. A ton of people have put in awesome summers and I really can’t wait to see us all in a race together. Base phase is just the beginning, though. The road to Oshkosh starts now. 

Week of August 22, 2011

Lunes, 22 Agosto, 2011 – 7am: 5M very slow and painful. Started out with Mr. C for first half. Back very sore, felt it every step. Not fun. No time.

12pm – Half hour of work from Andrew Southcott in Concord. Really helped loosen up the hip/lower back. Felt a lot better after.

4pm – Core, 20 minute session, felt good.

6pm – Ran to track and then long res with Brunk and Adam. Hip/back felt a lot better. Was able to run much more normally. Rolled left ankle a bit in the fells, but not too bad. Comfy pace. First run feeling decent for the majority in a while. Total 1’21’31 for 11M+.

Martes, 23 Agosto, 2011 – 9:30am: 5M+ from Concord Center. Ran out Concord Lumber trail and then loop around Great Meadows. Back/hip was pretty sore first mile, but much better after that. Total 40’16 for 5.4M.

5pm – Core session about 25’. I’ve felt better on my runs where I’ve done core beforehand. Maybe it helps loosen up the back? Who knows…

6pm – Ran to track and then easy first few miles with Cliff and Rags to Harvard. Ran across the river to Harvard track and met up with Jwal and CSU folks. Did a few easy laps and then drills/strides with them. Ran back after via Oxford St. Total 73’18 for 10M+.

Miercoles, 24 Agosto, 2011 – 10am: Ran with Kyle from Chetwynd to Long Lakes. 4M warm up with drills and strides. 5M tempo after. Pretty consistent, felt okay. Hip/back still a bit tight. Total 27’06 for 5M. 2M cool down for 11M total.

Splits:

3.5M warmup

Strides/drills

5M Tempo

5’27

5’28 (10’55)

5’27 (16’22)

5’18 (21’40)

5’27 (27’06)

7pm: Drove to Luke’s for TUXC camp and then ran easy 5M shakeout with the guys. Really tight from the drive, so pretty sore at first. Total 39’07 for 5M++.

Jueves, 25 Agosto, 2011 – 10am: Ran with guys on Quaker Hill loop from Luke’s. Felt really good for first 40 minutes or so, then big hill and my quads locked up a bit. Really hilly run. Also really rainy by the end. Still, pretty fun and nice to run with folks. Tacked on a mile with Brosh et al. Total 1’29’00 for 12M+.

5:30pm – About 30’00 on stationary bike while watching TV. After, ran with Sam, Connor, et al easy from Luke’s out/back on road. Back/hip felt pretty bad the whole time. Not too great. Total 39’00 for 5M.

Viernes, 26 Agosto, 2011 – 9am: Drove from Luke’s to bike path. Felt really shitty when I woke up, but much better once we started running. 3M warm up and then right into fartlek with no strides or drills. Ran 4’ on, 2’30 off for 6 sets. Felt really good for first 4 or 5 sets but got really bad blisters on my blisters on my arches. Hurt really badly the last rep and lost the pack. Definitely could have stayed with pack (Connor, Ben, Matt, Liam) – back/hip felt great, but blisters were brutal. Mad blood coming out of my shoes. Worst blisters I’ve had in a long time. Couldn’t cool down. 6M+ of work in about 36’30. “on” was 5’35 down to 5’15-20ish. Total 10M.

6pm: Easy shakeout from Luke’s with the guys. Felt a lot better. Nice and easy. Total 40’36 for 5M+.

6:45pm – Core with Jerzy and Connor by the pool. Some different stuff, felt nice.

Sabado, 27 Agosto, 2011 - 7am: Ran from Luke's solo to start and then easy with Sam for last 5M. Pretty comfy pace, very hilly as usual. Total 1'52 for 16M.

PM - off - drove to NH to see my cousin Elyse Andrews (Elyse Schwartz, now?) get married!

Domingo, 28 Agosto, 2011 - AM – off. Very sick last night, high fever and up most of the night sweating and being sick. No fun. Food poisoning? Who knows… Slept as late as I could. Hurricane Irene here anyways, so I wasn’t going outside anyways.

5pm – Pathetically slow long run. First mile in 9’00. After that still was running like 7’30 pace. Jesus… Back really sore and stiff, blisters on feet really painful. Yikes. Even the Mona Lisa is falling apart… Total 18M in 2’12’40.

Weekly Total: 113 Miles in 12 Runs

Week of August 15, 2011

Lunes, 15 Agosto, 2011 - 8:30am - In Hartford for Blink 182 with Chris last night. Woke up a bit tired and sore and did a VERY easy 6M out and back. Almost all on grass on nice wide side of street. Total 49'59 for 6M.

5pm - Core, good session ~25'00

6pm - Rainy run on shitstorm with Brunk and Brosh. Gross run. Calves still pretty sore from yesterday. ~65F and rainy/windy. Not too fun. Total 78'27 for 10M+++

Martes, 16 Agosto, 2011 - 9am: 5M+ very easy again. Calves still sore, better by end. Total 40'55.

7pm: Ran late since I was picking up my bed and had doctor's appointments all afternoon. Ran from Chetwynd out to the river and then over to the Harvard to see if I could catch the CSU guys. They were there and finishing up their workout, so I ran around while they finished and then ran around with them for a bit easy while they cooled down. After, ran back via mass ave and ran into Nick Welch and his girlfriend, so I tacked on a bit with them. Good to see him and catch up. Anyways, that made it a bit longer than I'd planned, so by the time I got back to Tufts I was at 1'40. I was running about 6'40 pace at the beginning by myself and a bit slower with the CSU'ers and then with Nick, so I'd say it was about 14M or a bit more. Total: 1'40'01.

Miercoles, 17 Agosto, 2011 - 8:30am - 5M+ easy from chet around fields. Tripped on road and landed hard on right knee and elbows and hands. Ow. Felt okay after a minute and jogged it out. Total 40'26 for 5M+.

3:30pm – Core, about 30’00 with 5’00 plank at end.

6pm – Ran with Kyle from Chetwynd. Out to the river and then Fartlek (7 on, 4 off) along the river. Warm up was quick, 6’23 pace for a bit less than 4M to the river. Then ran from Harvard bridge to BU bridge (1.35M) during first “on” which was 7’00 at 5’11 pace. Felt quick, but not that fast. 4’00 rest felt ample, next two “on” sections were similar effort but didn’t get exact distance. Kyle wasn’t feeling hot after 3, so we jogged for about 10 minutes to marathon sports to get water, then did one more “on” section on mass ave. This one was from Marathon to Cameron ave which was 1.33M, 5’15 pace for 7’00. From there we cooled down about 10 minutes back to Chet. The time for the first 3 on/off sections was 31’00 for 5.32M (5’49 average). The total time including warm up and cooldown was 78’04 for 12.4M.

Splits:

3.8M: 24’16 (6’23 pace)

Work 1: 5.32M in 31’00 (5’49 average)

Total: 78’04 for 12.4M (6’18 average)

First “on” 1.35M: 7’00 (5’11 pace)

Last “on” 1.33M: 7’00 (5’15 pace)

Jueves, 8 Agosto, 2011 – 9:30am – Core, sin correr. Descansa, todavía poquito dolorosa la rodilla derecha. Mejor que anoche.

4:30pm – Lots of hauling furniture all day. I think I pulled my back a bit because it got real sore by the end of my run. Dropped off in Arlington on the way home and ran back from there. Mucho calor – 94F cuando salí y muy humido. Corrí por el bike path a Lexington y después a Battle rd a Miriam’s Corner. Desde allá a great meadows y Concord Lumber, a CA a Emerson, y regresé por Harrington. La rodilla no me molestaba tanto, pero la espalda era mala los últimos millas. Total 16.7M in 1’47’18 (6’25 average).

viernes, 19 de agosto de 2011 – 9:00am: Woke up and had breakfast before taking some advil. Back still quite sore. Waited an hour or so and then went out and jogged 5M+ very slow, sin reloj. Surprisingly decent on the run given how sore the back was when I woke up.

5:00pm – Mrs. V broke her hand so ran from Concord. 86F, very humid. Started out muy lento otra vez. Ran around Great meadows then ir y vuelta on minute man. Still felt the back, but getting better (I hope). Total 10M in 72’10.

Sabado, 20 Agosto, 2011 – 8am: Very easy morning run. First 3M with Mr. C muy despacio. Solo, after for 2M+. Back still sore but getting better. No time. 5M total.

2pm: Core with 3’00 plank total about 25’00.

4:30pm – At Tufts, ran with Brosh on real 10 from Chetwynd. Felt much better than the last couple runs. Humid and 86F. Nice to have company, though. Total run 11.7M in 1’23’26

Domingo, 21 Agosto, 2011 – 8am: Woke up with very sore back. Ran from Tufts to home in west Concord. Started out with Brosh and Kyle very slow for first 40'00 or so, then solo until meeting up with Jon et al. at the Minuteman parking lot. Ran with them for 4M or so and then turned off after the cemetery to head home. Last 40'00 solo through town and then home. Ended up a bit longer than I had planned, must've mapped it wrong last night. Back still not great, but not terrible. Slowest long run I've done in a while because of the slow start and the slow miles with the CSU gang. Total 2'36'44 for 22M (7'06 pace).

PM – rest

Weekly Total: 121 Miles in 12 Runs

Back To Reality: Summer Training

It's been a while since I last updated this blog - before Strive took over my life (in a fantastic way!) Working with Strive was an amazing experience for me. The kids were awesome - very cooperative and open to the new culture and environment. I also became great friends with my co-workers, Nic and Sylvia. Given that there were only three of us on the staff, we were quite lucky to all work out so well. Kudos to Strive for hiring three very compatible, awesome leaders! It was a sad day when we boarded all 17 of (what seemed like) our children onto their flights home, and even sadder when I then had to say "adios" to Nic and Sylvia. All the best to them in their respective pursuits and hopefully I'll see them again next summer!

I've now made my way back to Boston with a quick detour through Quito to visit my abuelita, Marialelly, and the city that I call my second home. Since coming back, I've spent my first week stateside going to doctor's appointments, seeing some friends, and beginning to move my things into my off campus house for the school year. Despite some initial culture shock upon my return, it's nice to be surrounded by family, friends, and familiar places. Still, I miss South America terribly and have already started to think about when I'll be back (hopefully muy pronto).

With the inevitable advent of school, classes, problem sets, and exams, this blog will return to what it was before the summer: a public place to share my training with whoever is interested. Like I've said before, I'm not a coach and don't think people should necessarily take what I do and try to adopt it themselves. My training is something that I take seriously and which I've built up over the course of many years. That said, I'm happy to try my best to answer any questions, certainly about my own training if not about your own. Mostly, I'd like this to simply be a place to read about what a collegiate runner does, both on a day to day basis and in long term development.

Thanks for reading! I hope you've enjoyed the little slices of my adventures that I tried to share.

Without further ado, here are the last 8 weeks of training. These were mostly typed up on my ipod, so pardon the brevity:

Monday, June 20, 2011 - 6 miles in 40:14 sea level – Huacachina

Tuesday, June 21, 2011 - AM: Huacachina 7M+
PM: Huacachina 6M+ Sea level

Wednesday, June 22, 2011 – AM: 11M in 77’34 in Arequipa.

PM: 4M por la ciudad in 30’15

Thursday, June 23, 2011 - - AM: 5M+ in 39:40
PM: 11M in 78:16

Friday, June 24, 2011 AM 7M EZ
PM 6.5 hours hiking in canyon del colca... very strenuous

Saturday, June 25, 2011 AM 10M very slow in canyon
PM 8 hrs hiking, very strenuous

Sunday, June 26, 2011 - AM Hike up from Canyon

PM: 5M EZ around city

Weekly Total: 72 Miles in 10 runs

Monday, June 27, 2011

AM: 5M+ EZ in 40:08 with strength work
PM: 5M+++ EZ in 42:24

Tuesday, June 28, 2011 6:30AM: 4M+ EZ 32:02

2:30pm: 2M+ warmup to park, drills, strides, 5x (1 lap on-1 lap off) by feel. 1 lap = 1185m

Splits:
4´00 (5´26 pace)
4´33 (6´11 pace)
4´00 (5´26 pace)
4´36 (6´15 pace)
3´58 (5´24 pace)
4´37 (6´16 pace)
3´59 (5´25 pace)
4´39 (6´19 pace)
3´58 (5´24 pace)
4´22 (5´56 pace)

Total was 11.85km in 42´47 (5´49 pace average). Felt much better than expected.

1M cooldown easy.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011 - 8am: 14M+ out-back on road to airport. Out, climb 600´ was over 7´00 pace, back descend 600´ was around 6´20 pace. finished with loop around city. Total 1´38´39 for 14.4M (6´51 average)

pm: lots of walking around city, rest.

Thursday, June 30, 2011 - 8am: 5M+ in 38:00 (around 7´10 pace)
4pm: 5M+ in 38:49 (under 7´00 pace) with full drills + 8x good 20 sec strides on grass rolling terrain

Friday, 1 Julio, 2011 - 9am: 10M progression run out-back on road to airport.

Out (up 550´): 4.85M in 35´42 (7´21 pace)
Back (down 550´): 4.85M in 29´15 (6´02 pace). Last mile 5´38, flat.
Cooldown: 2´09
Total: 1´07´07 for 10M (6´41 avg)

Saturday, 2 Julio, 2011 - 8am: 6M+ in 44´02
4pm: 4M very easy with Lincoln in 33´04 + core

Domingo, 3 Julio, 2011 - 9am: Long run with Jaime on bike. Nice route way up into the hills surrounding the city and then back. Wore garmin to know distance. Most miles around 6´20-40. A few much slower because steep climbing (7´35 mile 7, climb 300´). Started at 7800´, max of 8400´.

Total run 2´15´05 for 20.4M (6´36 average)

Garmin map here
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=4621253

Weekly Total: 88 Miles in 11 runs

Lunes, 4 Julio, 2011 - 8am 6m++ in 47'56

4pm 7m in 49'23 plus strength drills and core

Nb: in cusco today at11,000 ft. Felt a lot tougher than 8000!

Martes, 5 julio, 2011 - Am. In pisaq 9000'. Really bad run. Mal estomego bad diarrhea. Ok for a bit but then really bad chafing. Not a fun run. Nice route though on dirt road tho. Total 1'24'56 for 11M.

Pm. Back in cuz 11,000'. Stomach better but chafing still awful. 4M ez in 34'19. Bought some gasoline after. Hopefully will help tomorrow.

Miercoles, 6 Julio, 2011 - Still stomach problems. Really bad all day. Stayed in Cusco instead of going to Pisaq. Bad diarrhea all day. Had to stop while running several times because of bad cramps and poo. Not fun.

8AM: 6M very slow
3PM: 4M very slow

Jueves, 7 Julio, 2011 -8am: In Cusco still, 5M+ around the city in 40 minutos. Sentido mejor con el estomago.

3pm: En Pisaq. 8M ir-vuelta. Todavia enfermo. Sentía bien por 30 min, pero muy mal estomago despues. Mas diarea cuando regresé. No estaba divertido. Total 8M(+?) en 63 minutos.

Viernes, 8 Julio, 2011 - 8AM: 10M out-back on calle de tierra. Pocito cansado, pero mejor cuando regresé. Total 69´12. No problemas con el tummy.

PM - Core, rest

Sabado, 9 Julio, 2011 - 8am: 10M+ in 70´50 out and back on calle de tierra cerca el rio. 4x form drills after + strides. Felt good again. No problemas con estomago.

4pm: 5M++ in 39´55, mismo calle. Mucho calor.

Domingo, 10 Julio, 2011 - 8:30AM - 20M+ in 2´19´08 Pisaq a Calca (2900m). Pocito cansado, pero sin problemas del estomago! Necesitaba parar y tomar pocito de powerade casi 1´50. Mejor despues.

Weekly Total: 96 Miles in 12 runs

Lunes, 11 Julio, 2011 - 8am - 5M++ in 41´01
4pm - 10M in 69´10 with 6x strength exercise, core.

Martes, 12 Julio, 2011 - 8am - 4M shakeout in 30´19
3pm - 2M warm up, drills, 4x strides, fartlek: 5 min on, 5 min off for 50 minutes. First 3M covered in 17´44, last 5M in 29´59. Total 47´43 for 8M of work. 2M cooldown. Total 12M overall. 16M for the day.

Miercoles, 13 Julio 2011 - 8am - 15M+ progressive in 1´40´45. First 7M in 49´0x last 8M+ in 51´4x.

4pm - 5M+ shakeout in 40´15

5pm – core

Jueves, 14 Julio, 2011 - 8am: 5M++ EZ in 41´12
3pm: 10M progressive moderate in 65´26. First 5M in 33´48, second 5M in 31´38.

Viernes, 15 Julio, 2011 - 8am: Prog long run in Pisaq. First 9M in 61´30, next 4M in 24´50, last 5M in 30´39. Total 1´57´01 for 18M (6´30 avg)

Sabado, 16 Julio, 2011 - 8am - Very easy run around Lima with Sylvia and Alex. Got a bit lost after running down to beach. Slow pace, nice recovery. Ugly city. I hate Lima.

Total 82´00 for 10M

Domingo, 17 Julio, 2011 - Am. Core early. Travel Lima to cusco to pisaq

4pm. Longer single solo on trail. 13M in 1'26'52

Weekly Total: 107 Miles in 11 runs

Lunes, 18 Julio, 2011 - AM. 5M+ w Sylvia easy in 41'55
PM. 10M+ in 73'30 first15 min very easy with kids

Martes, 19 Julio, 2011 - Am. 5M+ with chicas in 41'09
Pm. 2m++ warm up. Drills. Strides. Fartlek 5x mile on half off. Total 43'43 for 12km. 2M+ cooldown.

Miercoles, 20 Julio, 2011 - Am. 6m++ easy with girls in 50'58
Pm. 14M mod in1'32'02

Jueves, 21 Julio, 2011 - AM: 6M++ with Sandy in 50´00
PM: First 20´00 fast with Sandy, then 30´00 with Sylvia easier, then solo at end. After, did full drills and then 6x long hard strides, feeling very good. 60 to 70 seconds jog between each. Total 79´52 for 11M++

Viernes, 22 Julio, 2011 - 7:30am 5M+ with Sandy easy in 40´30
3pm 10M+, first 50´00 pretty good pace with Adam, last 20´00 solo, then drills and 2 long good strides. Total 69´58 for 10M+

Sabado, 23 Julio, 2011 - 645am. 20M long run. First 40 ez w Sylvia then solo then last hour with Adam good pace. Fast last mile or two. Very good run. Some bowel trouble first hour but better after pooping. Felt very strong at end. Total 2'11'44

Domingo, 24 Julio, 2011 - 630am. 10M first solo then last 10km quicker w Aaron around 41'00. Total 68'00
5pm. Ez w nic 4M+ in 32'19

Weekly Total: 118 Miles in 13 runs

Lunes, 25 Julio, 2011 - 630am. 5M+ w girls in 40'00. Core after.

3pm. Firs hour mod w adam. Drills then workout with sandie. 3 sets of 200 200 400. 3 min rest bw 2s 5 min bw sets. 200 s about 36 400 s about 84 down to 82. Long cooldown after w nic and Sylvia 35 min. Total 14+.

Martes, 26 Julio, 2011 - 630am. 5M+ w marina Troy Oshkosh in about 41'00. Core after.

530pm. 8M fast downhill to start from cuz. Took km splits on rd around 3'25 for most. Last 5k in 17'10. Total fast section was 9km in 30'40. Slow cool down after. Fell down and scraped up knees in dark. Ow. Total 54'35

Miercoles, 27 Julio, 2011 - 630am 5M+ in 40´04
230pm 14M in 1´35 progressive, last 10.5M at about 6´30 pace. Fast finish. Total 1´35´18. After did 4x200m with 2´00 jog in 34 down to 30. Total run

Jueves, 28 Julio, 2011 - 6:30AM 5M+ EZ with Marina and Nic. Total 42´04. Core after.

2:30pm - First 50´00 with Aaron moderate pace. Solo after that and then fartlek with Adam. 5 min hard, 5 min easy. Hard was quite hard. 4 sets total, last one solo. Short cooldown after with kids. Total 1´43´45.

Viernes, 29 Julio, 2011 -7:30am 10M+ with the boys. First 25´00 solo then with group for rest. Finished quick with Aaron around 6'20s. Total 78'35.

9am: Hike up to Pisaq ruins, about 3 hrs total.

3pm: Worked out with Sandie. 2M warm up, a few drills, no strides. 10x200m at her pace. All were consistent 36.x-37.x, 2'00 jog rest. Felt a bit tired after hike but still comfy. After, did 2x400m in 70, 71 with 3'00 rest and 3x200m in 30, 31, 30. Didn't quite have the turnover today. Short cooldown for 5M++

Sabado, 30 Julio, 2011 - 8am: Run to Calca point to point with Aaron, Adam, Isao, Sandy. Slow start then chased down Aaron at the end when group split up, about 6'30 pace last few miles. Total 2'01'48 for 17M

6:30pm: Core before dinner

Domingo, 31 Julio, 2011 - 5:30am: Very early run with Aaron, 7M+ in 51'04.

1:30pm: In Cusco - 8M solo in 55'17

Weekly Total: 118 Miles in 13 runs

Lunes, 1 Agosto, 2011 - 8am: 10M in Cuz solo in 73´30
5pm: Traveled to Ollanta and then easy run in afternoon. Very slow first 20´00 with girls and then solo a bit quicker. Total 43´ for 5M+. After, did long core session.

Martes, 2 Agosto, 2011 - 8am: In Ollanta, first 60' solo then 30' very easy with girls. Total 1'33'40 for 12M.
3:30pm: In Aguas Calientes (6600'), First 20' with Emily then solo, total 45'09 for 5M+.

Miercoles, 3 Agosto, 2011 - 5:30am: Still in Aguas Calientes. 7M+ solo. First 30' out and back on rd to Machu Picchu, then on turf field, barefoot. 10x barefoot strides with jog back ~45 sec rest, felt great! Total 50'20.
1pm: Had to sprint down road from MP to Aguas so we wouldn't miss our train.
5pm: Easy run with Sylvia around CUZ (11,300'), no time ~5M.
6pm: Core before dinner

Jueves, 4 Agosto, 2011 - 6:15am. Took kids to CUZ track (11,300') because fun sponge said the streets (with sidewalks) were too dangerous. Did some pickups on the track and 45' or so of comfortable moderate running. After, ran back to hotel with JP and then tacked on to round it up. Total 71'11 for 10M.
PM: Travel to Lima, late night seeing kids off.

Viernes, 5 Agosto, 2011 - 10am: Very tired, ~1 hr of sleep last night. Got to Quito (9,300') this morning. 10M prog run in Parque Carolina. 2.5M laps were: 15'24, 15'10, 14'09 = 44'43 for 7.5M (5'57 avg). Cooldown back to casita. Total 65'25 for 10M. Felt surprisingly good given how tired I was.

5pm: 5M+ with Sylvie 39'55. Long Core session after.

Sabado, 6 Agosto, 2011 - 8am: 5M+ with Sylvia in Parque. 41'25

11am: Hiked to summit of Rucu Pichincha (15,696'). Good hike, about 3.5 hrs round trip including lunch break. Nice fun scrambling at the end.

5pm: 11M+ late, first back from the Mariscal then to parque 2 laps. Total 77'58 for 11M+.

Domingo, 7 Agosto, 2011 - 730am. 20M+ in 2'14'42. Around park then on amazonas for 13M then park again. Around 4'00 to 4'05 pace on road. Felt tired last 3M.

330pm. Hike to cotopaxi Refugio. Very heavy pack and very windy

Weekly Total: 106 Miles in 12 runs

Lunes, 8 Agosto, 2011 - 1am. Cotopaxi summit bid. Got to 5400m and had to turn back because of 100mph winds and dust storm. Bummer.

1130am. 6M mod in 42'29

4pm. 10M ++ in 69'44. 5M around parque Carolina in 31'40

Martes, 9 Agosto, 2011 - 530am. Last run in Quito :( early to get mileage in before long frustrating travel day. Felt ok but tired.

Miercoles, 10 Agosto, 2011 - *Back in Concord at Sea level * 10:30am: Got in at 4am last night, so slept late. Ran 8.5M loop from home in 57 minutes, tired.

4:00pm. Easy run from home. 5.5M in 37'55.

Jueves, 11 Agosto, 2011 - 8am: 4M very easy with Mr C, NT.

5:30pm: 4M warm up, drills, strides. Hot (80F at race time). Ran CIGNA 5k in Manchester. No expectations, just wanted to try something a bit quicker. Went out very conservative in 5'16, which felt very comfortable. Picked it up from there and ran 5'08 uphill then 4'59 rolling for 16'04 overall. Felt good picking it up, probably could have run a lot faster if I'd gone out harder, but good experience. Ran into Andrea who ran well. Cooldown after about 3M.

Viernes, 12 Agosto, 2011 - 9am: Easy 5M+ with Sam. First run at Tufts. Lakes with Sam and then solo loop around campus. Total 40'47 for 5.5M.

5pm: Good core session before run.

5'30pm: First 30' solo then to track to meet group. 10M+ a bit quicker on spot pond. Progressive, probably 6'00-15 pace by the end. Felt good. Total 1'39'42 for 15M+

Sabado, 13 Agosto, 2011 - 9am: 10M+++ with Connor, Brosh, Erik. Mid res and then fields. Nice and comfy. Total 75'17. Core on fields after.

4:30pm: 5.6M in 38'32 (6'52 pace) solo at home. Felt very easy.

Domingo, 14 Agosto, 2011 - 6:45am: Long run in the rain with Mr. C on bike. Raining pretty hard for the first 30-40 minutes then drizzle, then just overcast. Felt good. First mile was 5'50, then cooled it down for the next 6M. Came through 7M in 41'37 (5'57 pace), then started to pick it up. Goal was sub 2'00'00 for 20.1M loop, so needed a 78'23 half marathon at that point. Pretty fast for the next 5M or so through Lincoln and sudbury, ~5'40 pace. Slowed down a bit on the back hills, but still sub 6'00 pace. Came through 15M in 1'28'22, felt confident about sub 2 hrs. Felt a bit tired last 3M but pushed hard up last big hill right before 18M (1'45'45). Last mile hard uphill back to the house in 5'22. Total 1'57'42 for 20.1 (5'51 pace overall average). Big PR for the course (previous best was 2'01'14). Felt great. Able to stay on my mid-forefoot for first 8-12M but calves were really shot after that. Still a great run and feeling much smoother.

Splits:
7M: 41'37 (5'57 pace)
8.1M: 47'53 (6'16 1.1M - 5'41 pace)
11.1M: 64'59 (17'05 for 3M - 5'41 pace)
15M: 1'28'22 (23'22 for 3.9M - 5'59 pace)
18M: 1'45'45 (17'23 for 3M - 5'47 pace)
19.1M: 1'52'19 (6'33 for 1.1M - 5'57 pace)
20.1M: 1'57'42 (5'22 for 1M)

PM: Rest, Blink 182 with Chris.

Weekly Total: 112 Miles in 12 runs