Stephen

Boston IS coming and it's going to be awesome.

When was the last time you did intervals shorter than 1K? I find being flat can feel a lot like exhaustion and weariness.

It's really cool to see fitness develop over the course of a cycle, pretty amazing how quickly sometimes. Also, I'm a big fan of counting down to the taper instead of the race.... may have started doing that myself in the past week or two.

Good mentality. If you’re not enjoying it and it’s causing anxiety/stress then what’s the point? Doing marathons isn’t objectively better than any other distance, some people are just snobs and have over-glorified the distance. Run what you want the way you want and enjoy life.

Thanks and the feeling is mutual.

He is incredible. Also, i love that documentary. I still laugh every time at the part where Tadese realizes how important drinking water is for a marathon.

I rewatched Boston recently too... that was not nearly as motivating as Berlin was 🥶

Great month! Kudos to you on having the willpower to pull the plug and back off at the end of the month. Being patient is really hard sometimes but not being so gets all of us in trouble so often. Still lots of time until June, erring on the side of caution is very smart.

Well, I guess I've missed a few weeks... (I have no idea how to control the picture size) January 14-20 Monday 10.1 miles in 1:17 After the hard long run on the previous Saturday I was expecting my legs to feel like garbage, was pleasantly surprised after 3-4 miles to find my legs feeling good and stride was smooth. As I've been doing on all my easy days lately I ran by HR and made sure to keep my HR under 150. Happy with where my easy paces lately, starting to feel really fit. Tuesday 3.2 mile WU in 28:12 + 4.2 miles of 16 x 400 with 1:15 rests + 3 mile CD in 23:42 It was very cold at the start in the 20's, ran very easy to warm up for 3 miles followed by 4 strides to wake my legs up. Leg speed workouts are usually a bit tough for me because I dont keep up with turnover, especially during marathon training. Was happy to be able to consistently hit the 400's in the 81-84 second range with 1:!5 rests. At times I felt like I was dragging but was still hitting 5:30 pace so I kept going. The middle reps were a mental struggle when it still feels like you have forever to go but your legs arent really that tired yet. I was able to finish out strong with an 80 second last rep. I did a longer cooldown than usual of 3 miles to get some extra mileage on the day since there wasnt much for volume in the workout. Wednesday 8.4 miles in 1:10 Cold and very tired today. Didn't sleep much last night, work has been pretty crazy and I also was firing someone this morning so might have had some extra anxiety which kept me up. Thursday 10.1 miles in just under 1:20 Feeling better today but HRV score was pretty low so I kept it extra easy pace-wise. However, I ended up running a mile longer than I thought I would when I headed out. Normatec at the gym - 20 minutes Friday 3 mile WU in 23:34 + 8 mile Tempo in 49:06 + 2 mile CD in 15:45 A little chilly out today in the 30's and windy so over dressed for my warm up a bit to get... warmed up. Wore trainers and felt pretty good, changed into vaporflys and shed some clothing to be lighter for the tempo. I focused on starting out slower and being patient in the tempo before setting down into about HMP. I ran on rolling hills and progressed nicely. Was able to finish with a fast mile and still wasn't digging all that deep. Very happy with the effort, continuing to feel very strong and fit. Was tired after, not destroyed which is just right. Reflected in my log about how I used to hate and struggle at tempos and today felt great. Interesting I split 18:49 and 38:15 for 5K/10K respectively. Changed back into trainers and did a short cooldown. Saturday 8.1 miles in just under 1:05 Rainy and cold outside so I used the treadmill. Was probably a good thing since I always run super slow on the TM because I hate it. Watched tv and slogged through a decent recovery run. Legs felt good after sleeping in some recovery compression socks last night. Sunday 17.1 miles in 2:20 we had a winter storm roll through saturday night and the roads were not plowed and looked pretty dangerous. Slogged through an easy long run, ended up going a little shorter than I wanted but the time was about right so whatever, this sucked. 77.3 miles total for the week. 2 great workouts, a sub-par long run but good time on my feet and volume continues to build. January 21-27 Monday 9.3 miles in 1:18 A pipe burst at work and flooded my floor and a few below it so I ended up working from home and let my son stay home with me from daycare. This meant running on the TM and running easy. Wasn't too upset about it since it was a feels like close to 0 today. Tuesday 10.6 miles in 1:22 Eased into this run and progressed as I went, especially once I got past the ice stretches on the bike path. Felt good today but made sure I didn't do anything crazy before a workout tomorrow. Wednesday 3 mile WU in 22:01 + 10 x 800 w/ 1:30 rests + 3 mile CD in 24:22 Did this workout on the TM due to the ice, made it easy to run consistent paces on the reps. First 6 @ 5:33 pace, 7-9 @ 5:30 and last @ 5:27. Felt pretty good for most of it, started grinding on reps 8-9 and had to focus and push to hit the last. This was a great workout, the short reps were challenging. Probably could have gone shorter but would have been hurting pretty bad by the end. 45 minutes of strength work in the PM Thursday 7.6 miles in 1:02 very cold today and windy. My right foot was sore from either running on the TM, the strength work last night or both. Went a little short today because I was running slow and there was ice everywhere. Probably needed a short day anyways though so nothing to worry about. Friday 8.1 miles in 1:08 another feels like of 1 day so opted to be a baby and run on the TM. I rationalized it as helping to keep it a very easy day ahead of a big long run on Saturday. Heart rate was super low today, probably a result of getting to bed real early last night. Felt good. Saturday 21 miles in 2:23:08 (16 @ 90-95% MP) 3 miles to warm up followed by 16 continuous shooting for something in the 6:30-6:40 range. Legs were heavy to start so was ok easing into the steady state miles. Did this run on a big rolling hill section that has destroyed my legs on harder runs in past cycles and they handled it well. In the back half of the 16 workout I came upon some kind of training group that provided good motivation but also made me speed up a bit to catch and pass them a few times (oops). Last few miles were tough but nothing too crazy like having to go to the well. Great workout, wont have another of these for 3 weeks now. Sunday 10.37 miles in 1:21:40 Ran with a friend on his long run. He's training for a half so he was only doing 10 so I decided to go with him through some parks and on hills. HR was again very low on this run even at decent paces. 78.6 miles total for the week. Another two really good workouts this week, 4 weeks done and continuing to have a strong cycle. January 28- February 3 Monday 10.1 miles in 1:19 Very tired today from the big weekend of 31+ miles. Ran very easy by heart rate and didnt look at pace. Accumulated fatigue is here people, I am so tired. Marathon training. Tuesday 8.37 miles in 1:06 feels like of 0 outside and nasty headwinds, couldn't feel my legs. Felt pretty sluggish waking up this morning anyways so the cold temps encouraged me to go shorter today because I was miserable. Wednesday 3 mile WU in 24:41 + 4 x 2 miles w/ 1:30 rests + 2 mile CD in 17:34 Treadmill run, too cold / icy / windy outside to do a good workout. Typical TM warm up of 2 miles easy with 1:00 surges in the 3rd mile. Ran the first rep @ 5:55 pace, next two at 5:50 and split the last rep at 5:50 for 1 mile and 5:45 for the last. Felt really good during this whole workout, never had to push very hard to maintain pace and the short rests weren't an issue. Re-watched this past Berlin marathon where Kipchoge set the WR during the workout which provided good extra motivation. Great workout. Thursday 9.35 miles in 1:20:30 Easy run on the TM, it was too icy outside to get a good run in. Left knee started bothering me on this run from a very tight quad/IT band. Stretched it out briefly and finished then rolled the living sh*t out of it a few times the rest of the day. Was thinking it would be fine but always super paranoid about issues cropping up and staying during training. Friday 9.3 miles in just under 1:18 easy run on the TM before a doctor appointment and work. My left quad / IT band / whatever is still tight but knee is not bothering me anymore so rolling must be working. The ice/snow on the roads forcing me to run on the TM is probably a blessing in disguise right now because it's forcing me to run extra easy on the TM which helps with recovery for sure. My HRV has been all over the place this week so glad I have a lot of easy days before my next workout (next Wednesday). Saturday 16 miles in 1:59:26 Ran with a guy from out of town. Had some ice issues a few times but was able to cruise for the most part after my legs warmed up about 4-5 miles in. This guy is shooting for a sub-3 marathon but doesnt run much for milesage so his legs were far fresher than mine. He wanted to run the last few miles at his marathon pace (6:52) which I was fine with and then we ended up running a mile close to 6:00 pace (NOT his marathon pace) and I said F*** this I'm running easy. My legs were way too heavy to do that and I'm not sabotaging my training. This is why I hate running with other people too much. Sunday 8.1 miles in 1:02 Beautiful weather today, close to 50 degrees. Got to run in shorts and a light long sleeve shirt, which was amazing. Legs were a little heavy but felt pretty good overall. Got to focus on and clean up my stride mechanics which get a little wonky when I run too much on the TM. Ended up cruising along pretty well but kept an eye on HR to make sure I was staying in the easy zone. Forced myself to not go too long to recover. 1:00 strength work 74.6 miles total for the week. One very good workout and one missed as a result of moving my schedule around to account for the weather. Honestly, I dont know that I could have handled another session this week, even with it being a lighter fartlek. Keeping mileage high but getting more easy days in this week should help get ready for next Wednesday's 10 mile tempo. I am 1/3 through my cycle with 10 weeks to go until we toe the line in Hopkinton. Feeling very optimistic lately but we're still far enough out that I know it can turn quickly if I'm not careful. Thanks for reading, hopefully I'll do a better job of keeping up. Happy training.

Nice job on a top 5 finish! Good luck to your friend. Sub-3 at his age is legit!

I'm not sure, I think I like them but I'm also using regular compression socks and all the other rolling / fun stuff. I dont think they're not working which is the main reason I'm still using + convenience in our work gym. I just go down and bring my laptop and work while I sit there for 20-30 minutes.

I like the idea of racing at least once a month. I've got the first 5 or 6 months covered so far this year, maybe I'll go for the full 12 too.

I agree. I'm not sure I actually like doubles, they've always felt like something I should be doing if I want to keep getting faster. The flip side, is doubles definitely make you cross the line of feeling like you are always running to the point it becomes a chore. I think I've decided to maximize single runs and see where that takes me.

January 7 - January 13 Monday 8.1 miles in 1:03 - A very early morning run before work due to having a full work calendar of meetings today. Legs felt surprisingly good after the big workout on Saturday and LR on Sunday. Cruised around on the hills by our house and stretched out the legs with a moderate last mile. Tuesday 8.2 miles in 1:01 - Weirdly warm January day in the 60's, I was feeling good and had a frustrating meeting prior to running so ended up running slightly quicker than normal for an easy day. Luckily I didn't go that overboard and kept my HR in the 150's so nothing too strenuous before a workout on Wednesday. 20 minutes in the Normatec boots later in the day. Wednesday 3 mile WU in 23 + 6.9 in 0:45 + 2.2 CD in 0:17 - Big temp swing, winter is back. The plan was a 15 x 2:00 on / 1:00 off fartlek, the weather was less than ideal however. We had strong consistent winds around 18 mph with gusts up to 30. I strongly considered doing this on the TM but I hate doing workouts with quick changes of pace based on effort on TM. I opted to go outside and just run as hard as I could in the wind. The on segments were in the 5:50 - 6:15 range and the offs were in the low 7's for an average of 6:32 for 45 minutes. Not bad for the wind and doing this in trainers. Not as fast as I wanted but the effort was good. This workout is a lighter session after last weekend to make sure I keep recovering for the big long run this weekend. This allows me to work on some turnover and get some aerobic work in without being too taxing. skipped a strength session to go to a happy hour instead... not my proudest moment but sometimes you need to relax right? Doing strength work after a couple of beers didnt seem wise with the amount of balance work I include with the weights. 20 minutes in the Normatec boots later in the day. Thursday 9.35 miles in 1:12 - Ran very easy today by HR, only looked at pace at the mile splits. Kept my HR in the low 140's and was pleasantly surprised what the overall pace ended up being at the end because the effort felt like I was running a lot slower. 20 minutes in the Normatec boots later in the day. Friday 7.3 miles in 0:57 - Another easy run, legs were pretty tired today as per usual for the second day after a workout. I spent most of the day anxious about the forecasted snow overnight because I had a long workout planned Saturday morning and wanted to wear Vaporflys. If you read last week you know I've had traction issues in them before. 20 minutes in the Normatec boots later in the day. Saturday 20 miles in just under 2:16 w/ a goal of 15 miles at 90% MP - We got a decent amount of snow overnight but they had salted pretty well and it was more slushy than slippery except a few tricky spots. I got to wear an older pair of Vaporflys and took a bottle of maurten. I'm trying to work on taking in a whole bottle in 12 miles or less so I can dump the bottle sooner in a race. 90% of MP is right around 6:50 I think but I had 6:40 in my head and so I guess I ran faster than I should have initially and then progressed. However, the effort felt good and I was cruising around without forcing anything so I am not afraid that I overdid it. I had it in my head that I might close with a mile or two at MP if I was feeling really good so opted for a last mile at 6:15, which also felt relatively effortless considering it was mile 18. Easy 2 mile cool down to finish the day, felt workout tired but not destroyed. Very happy with the day, think I'm in a pretty good spot near the start of the cycle. This is a Canova special. The idea being you start doing long runs about 85-90% of MP and work on extending the distance and getting faster / closer to MP as the cycle progresses. The distance and pace are the two stressors, you should try to only increase one of the stressors at a time regularly. Sunday 8 miles in 1:03 - Easy run by the house on rolling hills. Legs were a little stiff initially, once I got warmed up I cruised around a bit smoother. Just a tiny bit of soreness, nothing crazy but I do expect to have the fatigue hit me tomorrow. Very good week 2 of training with 73 miles on all singles after a first week of 72. I've completed 5 very good workouts so far and felt like I was finally recovered from CIM this week. I'm currently debating whether to start doubling soon or just go all single runs this cycle since I typically feel better. I think I can reasonably get up to 90 miles on singles without killing myself so I might just go that route. Week 3 should allow me to get some pop back in my legs with a slightly lighter set of workouts. I have 16 x 400 on Tuesday, an 8 mile tempo on Friday and an Easy 20 on Sunday that I should have a friend to run some of it with. I tried to include some information about the what/why of each of the workouts I'm doing, let me know if there is anything else that would be helpful to include or any other feedback. Happy training all.

By 3-1/2 minutes!