Training Log: Week 2 continued again

Wednesday 11/14 Intervals: Warm up 13 minutes, 7 x 1 max effort, 2 recovery, cool down 13 minutes

This is a FIRST key run #1 for weeks and 2, with one extra interval thrown in for good measure. It was cold and windy today, truly unpleasant. This is one of those days of suffering that you put in the bank so that when the big day comes, you don't suffer quite so much.

Pace seemed good, though, and it was a solid workout.

Training log: Week 2, continued

Tuesday 11/13 Cross Training: Tempo+ Ride 16.4 miles

I hustled home a bit early today to get on the bike. It was warm enough to ride outside today (about 60F), and I managed to squeeze in around 45 minutes of riding before I ran out of daylight.

There was a steady wind out of the South/Southwest, which was mostly crosswind on this particular route. It made my planned tempo ride just a bit more challenging. I averaged about 19.6 mph for the 16.4 miles with maybe 5 minutes of warmup beforehand.

This time of year, daylight fades fast. The sun was setting by 5:15. There are many reasons to be off the road by that time if you are a cyclist, one of which I was reminded of on today's ride: deer. I had a near miss when a dear crossed a scant few feet in front of me. He was close enough that I felt warmth as he ran by.

The sound of hooves on the pavement was a first too, as usually when I see deer crossing the road I am in a car. I was on my guard because I had heard another deer crashing through the brush a few seconds before, but this one passed so close in front of me that I wouldn't have had a chance to avoid him in any case. Lucky break.

Training log: Week 2 begins

Sunday 11/11 Long Run: 10 miles in 1:25:08 (8:31/mi)

First run with the new shoes, and they were great. Stable and no break-in period needed. Boy, shoes have come a long way.

The 10 mile route is pretty exact. We mapped it out yesterday in the car and it also intersects with my 10k route that I run frequently.

My 10 mile pace is a bit quicker than I had thought, but I am not too worried about it because I stayed below tempo the whole time, according to the "talk test." I felt really good too, and had plenty of reserve in the tank when I finished.

I'm sore again, but mostly in the quads and calves. I figured that I haven't run 10 miles all at once in twenty years, so a bit of soreness is to be expected!

Training log: Week 1 continues

Thursday 11/8 - Rest Day
Friday 11/9 - Cross Train 60 minutes: Hard Intervals on the Trainer
Spin 10, 2(5 x 2 Max Effort, 2 Tempo) w Spin 5 after each set

Training log: Week 1 begins!

I officially started training this week. Here's what I've done so far:

Sunday 11/4 Long Run: 9 miles in 75 minutes
Monday 11/5 Rest
Tuesday 11/6 Xtrain: 45 minutes on bike (trainer) resistance workout
Wednesday 11/7 Tempo Run: 2 warmup, 2 Tempo, 2 cooldown

My long run pace was a little faster than FIRST recommends, but I hadn't looked at the plan at that point. In general, I felt fine and didn't feel like I was pushing too hard. I hurt on Monday, but it was muscle pain for the most part and quite appropriate given the distance.

My Tuesday bike workout was a resistance session. This particular one was (in minutes) spin for 5, push a big gear for 15, spin 5, push big gear 15, spin 5.

Wednesday run felt fine; I had some trouble making myself take it easy on the first two miles, but was happy to slow down for the last two. :)