Training Log - Week ending 4/6/2013

Sunday 3/31 - 3.55 miles @ 10:40 - Recovery run day after longest run of the year. Very slow.

Monday 4/1 - Rest day plus painful but helpful sports massage.

Tuesday 4/2 - 4.01 miles @ 10:30 - Slow but productive run

Wed 4/3 -60 minutes on the exercise bike

Thursday 4/4 - 4.15 miles @ 10:30- Trail running from work with hills

Friday 4/5 - Rest Day

Saturday 4/6 - 11.03 miles @ 12:03 - Trail run in the Fells, some foot pain during and after

Total Mileage -22.8 Miles
Less mileage, slower pace this week, but 100 miles in the last 4 weeks. Ended the week with some foot pain. 7 weeks to Pinelands.

Training Log - Week ending 3/30/2013

Sunday 3/24 - Telemark skiing at Cannon. New boots, binding problems, and watching Monica's nephew race cut down on the number of runs but I could still feel my legs.

Monday 3/25 - 5.1 miles @ 10:00 - Solo lunch run, wasn't planning on much but felt good enough to extend to 5. No watch or music, just me and the road.

Tuesday 3/26 -Rest day

Wed 3/27 -3.6 miles @ 10:00 - Hill repeats, my first time trying these at a hill near the office, 4 laps

Thursday 3/28 -Rest day

Friday 3/29 - 4.6 miles @ 10:38 - Legs felt like lead, but glad to have accomplished it

Saturday 3/30 -15.5 miles @ 12:46 - 2 laps of the Fells Reservoir trail, plus a little extra. That's 25K, just have to do that twice at Pinelands.

Total Mileage -28.8 Miles
Three weeks in a row of increased mileage. 8 weeks to Pinelands.

Training Log - Week ending 3/23/2013

Last week was a good training week, this week I managed to keep up the momentum. I'm pretty tired but I managed to crank out another long run, albeit a slow one.

Sunday 3/17 - 45 minutes of lifting and stretching at the gym

Monday 3/18 - 5.1 miles @ 9:37 - lunch run with Tery and Pete, then on my own. Pushed it to 5 miles instead of my planned 4.

Tuesday 3/19 - Road the stationary bike for 45 minutes

Wed 3/20 - 5 miles @ 10:19 - lunch run, pushed myself to run the full 5

Thursday 3/21 - rest day

Friday 3/22 - 3.7 miles @ 10:36 - Predawn run before podiatrists appointment

Saturday 3/23 - 13.1 miles @ 10:09 pace - Pretty decent run along the Charles, from home to the Museum of Science and back, plus a little extra to make it 13.1. Slight calf cramps at the end; have to keep an eye on that.

Total Mileage - 26.9 miles
Two solid weeks in a row, really ramping up the miles finally. 9 weeks out from Pinelands.

Training Log - Week ending 3/16/2013

Thought I'd write down the training log from last week. It was my first full week back and it was a big mileage week to ramp up.

Sunday 3/10 - 5.07 miles @ 9:55 pace - Squeezed in a run before dark thanks to Daylight Saving Time

Monday 3/11 - rest day

Tuesday 3/12 - 5.00 miles @ 10:00 pace - Early morning run from home, finished before sunrise

Wed 3/13 - 45 minutes on the stationary bike at the gym

Thursday 3/14 - 4.15 miles @ 9:40 pace - Another morning run but this time in daylight

Friday 3/15 - 30 minute on the stationary bike at the gym

Saturday 3/16 - 10 miles @ 12:15 pace - Long trail run in the Fells with Robyn and Max

Total Mileage - 24.22 miles
My longest week in a long time, 10 weeks out from Pinelands

10 in the Fells

The last time I ran 10 miles was almost exactly a year ago. My foot has been bothering me the past several months and we took a ski vacation in Europe in February so my training for the upcoming Pinelands 50K trail run has lagged behind schedule. I'm not going to be as well prepared as I hoped, but as long as I stay healthy I will make it to the starting line. I can't be sure what will happen after that but I'm concentrating on getting some good long runs in and staying healthy.

I met Robyn and Max at the Bellevue Pond parking area at the Fells on a cold but clear morning. The temperature was 32 degrees so we all had hats and gloves on. I was wearing my trail shoes with my new orthotics that the podiatrist gave me. I've been having pain in my left heel that seems related to my plantar fasciitis but x-rays also showed some heel spurs. The doctor assured me that everyone my age has some heel spurs but that it wouldn't explain the pain. He told me to stretch every day, take some Ibuprofen to get the inflammation under control, and wear the new orthodics. So far it's been pretty good and I was able to ramp up to over 20 miles this week. The highlight of my training plan was a long trail run in the Fells, and my hope was 8-10 but I was aware that I hadn't done a really long run for a long time.

We started at a pretty slow pace as we warmed up. Robyn has been working in India for a while so she hasn't been able to run much, and Max started running more recently and had a little foot pain, so our little trio had moderately low expectations. The snow was mostly gone but we encountered a bunch of wet and icy conditions that kept us on our toes. The loop is 7.5 miles and we kept a pretty steady pace between 11 and 13 minute miles. We kept on the easier footing with some occasional bits on the Skyline trail with more rocks. I felt pretty good as we got back to the cars but I had my mind set on 10 miles so I told them I was headed back out for a little more. Knowing Robyn's competitive nature it was like shooting fish in a barrel and she agreed to head back out. Poor Max didn't know what hit him.

The last 2.5 miles sucked, frankly. We were tired and chose a rough trail and nothing is fun when you're a slave to a GPS watch. We finally got to a trail with better footing and guessed at the point to turn around to ensure exactly 10.  Our mood improved dramatically as we turned around and our estimate was pretty much dead on. We had to run a hundred feet past the cars until the watch clicked over 10 miles and we were all happy to be done.

I had some discomfort in my foot but no pain. That in itself was a victory. To finish 10 trail miles was the first real indication that I might be able to do the 50K in May. It's still an uphill battle (pardon the pun) but I'm headed in the right direction.

Garmin track of the run

Jingle Bells and Commitment

At the 2011 Somerville Jingle Bell Run I ran with Brenda, and Monica was our cheer leading section and head photographer.  She enjoyed the experience so much that she said she wanted to train so she could run the race in 2012 - her goal after being out of running for a long time.  Not only did she achieve that goal of running the race this year (in a very fetching elf costume I might add) but she raced a summer 5K series and a 5 miler up in NH, plus has added training runs every week.  The run this year was just as much about being part of 5000 costumed crazies as it was about completing a task that was started a year earlier.  This year's race was great; we had good costumes (Monica in green, Dave in blue), got a great parking spot, ran a good race, and easily made it into Redbones for the free meal and beer after.  You can't ask for much more from a cold December Sunday with rain in the forecast.

I've been talking about my goals for a while, and one that has been on my list but that hadn't yet come into fruition was running a 50K before my 50th birthday.  My previous blog entry was about it and I talked about possible races I could enter.  On 12/12/12 a message came across my facebook wall about a special offer to save $12 on the entry fee and I bit.  A few keystrokes later and I'm officially registered for the Pineland Trail 50K.  It felt great to take a tangible step toward my goal and commit publicly.  The die is cast.

Figuring out how to combine my ski schedule this winter and work related travel with long training runs will present some interesting challenges, but goals aren't meant to be easy.  I'm working now to map out the training schedule and find a few kindred spirits to train with as I enter the new world of ultras.  Once more into the breach!

50/50 Split

This past weekend I heard that TARC was holding their Fells Trail Ultra (5 laps of the 8 mile Skyline Trail) and it's just a few miles from home so I figured I'd stop by.  Kristina was running and Ryan was going to be pacing her for some of the laps so I could visit, hang out and take a few photos.  I got there a few minutes after the start unfortunately so I wasn't going to see the runners for another hour.  Ryan and I chatted for a bit and I took a walk around some trails a bit, going gingerly on my sore ankle.  The falling snow made for some nice photography, as well as cold, wet running.  Eventually the runners started showing up and I started taking pictures, one of my favorite things.


All the runners looked like they were having fun despite the steady snow and cold temps. I waited for Kristina to arrive, smiling like always, and near the front of the pack.  I felt the need to stay and photograph the entire field, because that's what photographers do.  I really like trail running and I really like pushing myself, and observing the race made me more committed to my goal of running a 50K before my 50th birthday next year.  Right now I'm planning on the Pinelands Farm 50K up in Maine on Memorial Day weekend.  That should give me enough time after the end of ski season to get in some long runs and not miss too much skiing.  I'm thinking that the TARC Spring Classic would be the right tune up race as well, and I'd love to run a TARC event.

I'm not sure why I've latched onto the idea of a 50K for my 50th, but it's pretty firmly set in my brain.  It's not much more than a marathon distance, but there's something about being able to call myself an ultramarathoner that has great appeal.  It's the internal challenge, since at my pace I clearly don't care about time. The discipline, the self-control, the drive to work through pain and setbacks; those all have a strong pull as I approach a milestone birthday.  Yes, it's just a number but if  nothing else it give you pause to reflect and make plans.

So that's my plan; 50 by 50.  I'll be the first to admit it's not the best plan but it's mine and I'm sticking to it.  Unless the ski season is fantastic and I have no time to train, then I'll pick another 50K.