It's all relative

PM: 10.4 miles back in Florida.

AM: 10.1 miles

PM: 6.6 miles, 4.6 fast on the treadmill with inclines sandwiched in- 5:10 average on the flat stuff.  Good workout.

PM: 8.55 miles

PM: 5.5 miles, a ton of striders, and then a 1 mile challenge.  It's been forever since I've done a 1-mile race.  Nice to see I still have some speed in me.  4:28.  I might try again at the end of March for the Chasco Mile race.  I don't think I have the speed at this age for 4:19, but blowing up in a mile race isn't a big deal.

AM: 10.2 miles- long warmup and striders, directly into a treadmill tempo at the end, then gym work, followed by a 1-mile slog home.

Workout was a 25-minute, 5-mile tempo @5:00/mile. 

25 minutes later my heartrate was still 7-10 beats below max, and I felt I could have held on a couple more miles which is encouraging.  My perceived effort was probably an 8.5/10.  I had been thinking about this workout since yesterday and certainly wanted to do it at a 2.0 incline on the treadmill, but I just didn't have the cajones to do it from the start so I set it at 1.0 incline.  With a mile and a half to go, I upped the incline to 2.0.

In hindsight, I realize I had the capability to leave it at 2.0 incline the entire time, but- not shockingly- hindsight is 20/15.  Next time I will not be so easy on myself- growth only comes with failure and uncomfortability.

PM: 6 miles

PM: 10.6 miles

AM: 10.5 miles with the group, 3 of them fast helping people pace- was around marathon pace effort.  

PM: 11.7 total with 4 miles at the end of hill sprints @5:50-5:00/mile & recoveries of 7:30/mile.  2.2 total miles of hill effort, although it seemed longer.

~~~~~~~~

I will be very sore tomorrow, but it had to get done.  Now I am getting close and my confidence is about as high as it has ever been for the 5k.  My plan is as follows...

1/9 Sprints/Striders 

1/11 Weedon Island for a 5k workout/tempo... then if I'm feeling good I'll go hit the gym to do a workout afterwards, but I might just mail that in depending on my morning effort.

1/12 Long run to prep for February- unavoidable 18-20 miles @ medium pace.  Yuck.  Maybe I should just run 2 hours here and call it whenever the time hits.  That would be the best idea.  I can then do a short run later on to hit mileage.

1/14 300s or maybe 400s @1:08-1:09 with 1:15 rest.  (maybe 600s @1:43-1:45 with 1:45 rest?)

1/16 Hill work on the treadmill (OTF?)

1/18 Weedon Island is a possibility, but I am wondering if I should just hit up Clermont and use that as my 3k workout/trial effort.  This may be okay, since I won't be tapering yet, so I won't have any illogical thoughts.  This would be a nice opportunity to run the clay loop too.

1/21 200s workout.  12x200 @30 seconds with 2:00 jog recoveries or rest.  Best to do this in trainers I think.  

1/22-1/24 taper- 6, 5, 3 (w/ 10-15 striders), 2 miles (w/ light striders)

1/25 Race day- Go HAM.  I almost want to do a light run in the AM.  10 minutes would be ideal.  It seemed to work out last year okay, minus the bee stings.

PM: 10.5 miles

PM: 10.5 miles, finishing with 0.5 miles of striders.

PM: 7.5 miles

AM: Weedon Island Parkrun (WIP) 5k.  16:12, although at the last minute I did decide I felt like trying for the record again.  I suppose out of habit of trying.  Came through 4k on pace to tie it, but just did not have it.  Mindset is everything I suppose.  I was able to coerce a couple of friends out of the woodwork to join me at the event, so it was nice to see them attend.  I really don't understand why more don't attend the parkrun- it's literally free.

I'm split on shooting up to Clermont next weekend.  I theoretically should just get some decent mileage in and stick to WIP on Saturday.  I think that's the most logical thing with the race season starting the next weekend.  However, wasting the only normal-weather month in Florida is just such a shame.... we'll see I guess.

AM: solo 24.6 miles, 3 of them fast during a fartlek at the end of the run, then a little gym work.  Planned on only 18-20, but I got a little carried away I guess.

PM: 10.5 miles

AM: 10.4 miles.  1 of them was fast-ish/marathon pace.

PM: 8.15 miles, 3 of them fast with John.  16x300 with 100m true recoveries (walk/easy jog). 

Splits- Set one- 51, 50, 50, 50, 49, Set two- 51, 49, 49, 49, 49, Set three- 50, 49, 48, 48, 49, 49

The workout was relatively easy.  I gave effort, but never reached the bottom.  Mentally, these short intervals are not even a factor.  

In Florida news: it's hot and humid again.  On January 15th.  Global warming is starting to affect not just climate, but weather now too.  Oh now that's fun.  Isn't that fun?  That's fun.

PM: 10.4 miles

PM: 10.4 miles.  Still not recovered from Saturday.  A mile of striders @90-95%.

PM: 5 miles

AM: 11 miles, striders & Weedon Island Parkrun 5k.  15:53.

PM: 5 miles

PM: 15.2 miles

AM: 5.7 miles

PM: 5.1 miles

AM: 9.1 miles with two fast doing a workout with 200s.  Workout was two sets of 8x200 with 200 jogs in between, 16 total.  Goal was to run them at 5k reach goal pace and have it feel easy.  Averaged 36 seconds on them all.  Fortunately, I can say even running in my trainers this workout felt wicked easy.  There were also six of us running and staying grouped together, so it did make it a bit more fun.  This afternoon I think I am going to repeat the workout, but now on the other side of the spectrum- 30-32 average for every interval and try to cap each set with a 28-29.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PM: 7.4 total miles, 2 of them fast.  Same workout as the AM, just different focus/effort.  I went hard this afternoon with full jog recoveries.  2 sets of 8x200 with 600 between the sets and 200 jogs with Jeremy and John.  Still ran in my trainers.

Splits- 30, 31, 30, 30, 30, 31, 31, 29..... 31, 30, 31, 30, 30, 31, 31, 30

This does bode well for this Saturday confidence-wise.  The 36-second ones this morning felt wicked easy.  The 30/31-second ones this afternoon felt hard, but I never reached deep, and I went right into a recovery jog each time.  Now it is just up to the intangibles.  The speedwork suggests I can do it.  The anaerobic capacity is built enough.  My biggest mistake has been not continously hitting those workout paces but only getting a couple of workouts to pace.  At least I'm not kidding myself, I do have a shot at 14:59.  Confidence-wise, I'm 15:15 shape.  Fitness-wise I'm 14:55 shape.  Mindset-wise, it's just which version of myself shows up that day.  Likelihood of blowing up if my mindset is there?  Quite high.  Fortunately, I can't imagine falling any slower than 15:45 or so even if I completely fall apart, which is still pretty respectable- but I will not be happy!

I did ask four guys individually to help me pace a 4:48 mile (or as much as they could!) of it, but so far 3 of the 4 told me they couldn't for various reasons.  I'd much rather rely on them and just flow.  But I guess my mindset now has to be to focus on my watch and try to relax.

PM: 5 miles

PM: 4.5 miles

PM: 2 miles

AM: 2 miles total, 0.5 of striders

PM: 1.55 mile warmup, 0.5 striders, then the Belleair Sunset 5k

Weather was in the mid 60s, not bad humidity (70-80%), not super windy (10-12mph).  Really was happy it turned out so nice.  

15:12 gun time, 15:11 chip time.  4:45 through mile 1, 9:37 through mile 2 with the three hard 90 degree turns and the 180 turn around, but then fell apart mile 3.  Second place was John in 17:30.

I was super pumped for getting sub 15.  I failed, but I know I can do it.  I want a do-over (:

Splits- 4:45, 4:52, 5:07, 0:27

AM: 11.2 miles

PM: 5.1 miles

AM: 10 miles

PM: 5 miles & the gym.

AM: 8.7 miles

PM: 7.7 miles, 3 of them fast.  Workout was 1600, 1200, 800, 800, 400 @ descending paces, but nothing formal.  My legs are a bit beat up and mentally I wasn't all in, but I am happy I did it.  Might take tomorrow off.

No running today.

So I have three races this weekend: a 10k, followed by a 5k, and then a half marathon the next day. 

I am planning on taking the 10k serious.  I should absolutely obliterate my 10k PR.  Obliterate.  That's good news.  The bad news?  RJ, who is in the same shape as me, is likely to not show up (but is signed up!), which would steal a lot of my motivation.  If I'm going to race someone, I want it to be him.  He will bring out the best effort in me and it will really be the perfect opportunity to really push myself beyond what I think I'm capable of.  He's the man.

Then, for the 5k, I think it is worth it to treat it like a workout, and aim for anything sub 16:00.  I think that will be great training for the 15k at Gasparilla.  

For the half on Sunday- I'm not sure. Goin hard would be a bit foolish.  I have enough weeks to recover for Gasparilla, sure, but I just don't see the benefit- I wouldn't be recovered enough from the races on Saturday to have a great workout, and it seems like a recipe for injury more than weighing a benefit.  Similarly, there is $0 on the line here, and $2,000 on the line at Gasparilla. I guess that I'm shooting to just pace with the second place guy in this half and then just race them hard the last mile or two and try to win.... but I wouldn't be surprised if I run stupid and go all out.

What's hiding in the back of my mind?  The course records.  The 10k is doable- 32:54 (5:17/mile).  The half marathon is questionably doable- 1:12:33 (5:32/mile).  The 5k is a yikes- 15:15 (4:55/mile).  I have to take at least one of those down, so it makes sense to topple the 10k one- it's the easiest by a ton and still leaves me opportunities in the other races if something goes awry.  

PM: 4.3 miles with 0.5 mi of striders

No running.  Unintentional, but it was just rainy and I got home late, so it seemed silly to head out there for a 2 miler.

Two races ran today, the BDR Safety Harbor 10k followed an hour later by the 5k.  The plan was to shoot for a time goal on the first one, and then race the leader in the second one, and hopefully conserve some energy for the half marathon tomorrow.

Race 1: The 10k.  The weather was very rainy, 60 degrees, and fortunately no wind.  Didn't really matter, I'm always game for weather hiccup and it's not like I'd be the only one feeling it- definitely had to wear the hat though, so thank goodness I had a backup one in the car.  I was straight up PUMPED when I saw RJ toeing the line after my warmup.  I knew he'd be in excellent shape, so it was highly motivating. 

The gun went off and I slipped into the lead within 50 meters and the footfalls were gone by the first half of a mile.  I just relaxed into my form and stayed there.  There are times when you wax and wane in and out of 'flow', but this was just one of those races where I was in that mindset until mile 5.  It really felt beautiful.  The finish was a hard effort, but still didn't unleash a sprint.  I don't know what's my deal with that- I've been practicing it, yet can't seem to find the motivation to drop it down when it comes time.  Anyway, very happy with the result, the insane PR from 34:31 down to this, and lastly the coveted course record on definitely a non-course record day!

Splits- 1st 5k- 15:59, 2nd 5k- 15:45

Me-31:44, RJ- 32:52, 3rd- 33:47, 4th- 34:14, 5th- 34:42

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Race 2- the 5k  Finished in 15:29 in 1st overall.  This was supposed to be the easy leg of the three races.  Wow was I wrong.  I was not expecting anyone to show up!  Only once in the past 8 years of this race has anyone gone under 16:20, and that was the course record- so I figured after the 10k, I had this in the bag given I just ran two sub 16s in a row and negative split the second one.  I almost got the karma I deserved.  I'm a bit ashamed by both my complacency and disrespect, but we all have to grow sometime- even us old guys.

Anyway, to the race.  The gun goes off and one kid shoots off like a bullet- I don't know what it is about 5ks, but I seriously think people must believe they are actually 400m sprints or something.  I'll never understand it.  Running in jeans?  Sprinting in a sweatshirt?  Wearing a poop emoji outfit careening through the rain?  Doesn't matter- there they go, galavanting away full throttle.  The 5k really brings such an odd crowd of runners out.

I pass the young gentlman shortly there after as he gasps for breath, and I roll through the first half mile at 5:00/mile pace.  But there are footsteps behind me.  Okay.  I run the next half mile at 4:52/mile pace- and there are still footsteps.  Not good.  Particularly because I am out in front, so I am the one being read.  Options... stay at this pace?  That's all I have in my tank if I do that and my cards are laying out on the table for everyone to see.  Slow it down gradually and see if I can slow him as well?  Check.  I roll through the halfway mark at a 4:59/mile pace- and I still heard them.  Same distance, same pattern and turnover.  We've got a race it seems.  By the mile 2 marker I had slowed the pace to 5:04/mile.  This turned out to be a good idea, since he was letting me slow and not evening it out, nor trying to pass me.  Fortunately, I recovered a bit by this point, so I kept it there for the turnaround and maybe another quarter mile and then hammered the last half mile to the mile 3 marker.  I felt him close, so I had to look over the shoulder a couple of times coasting to the finish, but I just held a 10 second cushion to the finish!  What a fun race.  Can't wait to do it again tomorrow- half marathon time.  I won't go into it tomorrow expecting anything.  Whoever shows up, shows up.  If I get beat, they will be better than me.  Period.  

Splits- 4:57, 5:04, 4:59, 0:29

Me- 15:29, 2nd- 15:39, 3rd- 16:26, 4th- 16:45

BDR Safety Harbor Half Marathon

Wow.  The best weather I've ever had for a race.  Low 50s, crisp air, minimal humidity, light breeze, and cloud cover.  Unbelievable.  If it wasn't for yesterday, I'd have been over the moon as to what I could achieve.  You don't understand- the chances of weather like this in Florida are quite literally 1 in 100 and only occur in January/February.  

Goal- to stay with the leaders and then race them hard the last 2 miles.  However, with the weather I had changed my mindset to shooting for a sub 1:12 (really anything under my previous PR of 1:12:33 I would have been happy.)  Even on tired legs, I thought this would be pretty doable.

The course- brand new and recertified, so I guess I retire the previous course with the course record.  This one was much more challenging however.  Multiple hillier sections and two passes over a highway bridge as well as an odd boardwalk section made it an uneven effort.  I found myself having to pay attention a lot more than yesterday, where both courses are pancakes.  Still, the hills are nothing compared to other races in my honest opinion, so I'm just being a whiny Floridian.

The race: Immediately I was out in front with no one contending.  I felt sore from the two races yesterday, but the pace felt so easy that I just decided to find a state of flow and lock in.  Even splits didn't matter to me,  anything under 5:29/mile was cool in my book.  

I absolutely was loving it.  By the mile 3 turnaround I was able to see I had a full minute lead, so I was just cruising and enjoying it.  Lots of smiling and thanking volunteers/spectators.  It was cool to feel that in control.

At the halfway point, I knew 1:12 was a done deal, so I changed my thought process into sub 1:11.  I knew a negative split would need to be in order, but I hadn't pushed at all yet, and maintaining/speeding up was still manageable.

The new hill/bridge/boardwalk section was tough, but I had plenty in the tank.  I maintained the pace through this section which was a bit surprising and with about 1.5 miles left I thought it was time to start pushing.  I knew I was on pace for about a 1:11:00 flat, so I really wanted to drop it under that mark.  How cool- a 1:10 half marathon?!  I never would have dreamed it nine years ago.  I certainly wouldn't have a day after hard racing. 

I was gliding and felt smooth.  I even watched a couple of videos from spectators and friends, and it's funny- it looks almost as if I am running slow.  Obviously that's not slow, but it looked like (in the video) I should be trying a lot harder!  I guess that's not conducive to good racing- relaxing is- but it was just surprising to see second hand.

I crossed the finish line/tape and couldn't help but smile!  Not only was I fortunate enough to take 1st overall, but I did it in all 3 races, racked up 2 Personal records, 2 course records, and just an overall sense of accomplishment I cannot truly describe.  I don't think it hit me yet.  These aren't huge races or anything- 2,000 people max- but it's still pretty cool.  Sometimes, you just know something will be a memory forever, and this is definitely going to be.  No one can take this weekend away from me- the one nice thing about the internet I suppose.  And most importantly, I was in the moment so often this weekend that it was truly exhilerating.  

Splits- 5:25, 5:26, 5:23, 5:19, 5:27, 5:24, 5:28, 5:25, 5:27, 5:26, 5:22, 5:21, 5:17, 0:24

PM: 5 miles

AM: 9.4 miles

PM: 7.6 miles.  Wanted 10 miles, however I am just so incredibly sore.  Pace was 9:02/mile.

No running

PM: 10.1 miles and the gym.  Also did 0.5 worth of striders to get things moving again.  

PM: 10.2 miles

AM: 8 miles then 5.1 more at the gym, then a workout.

AM: 20.5 miles, most with Elia pacing him on the St. Pete marathon.  I can't really call them fast, but about 10 were in the 6:40-6:50 range.  Really liked trying to help him, even though I failed overall.

Hit my 5 year anniversary on this blog, which is kind of cool.  Amazing to think I wasn't even running anything over 5 miles really back then, and now a 5-mile day feels like a recovery.  I still remember bringing a gel on my first "long run" with Drew thinking it was needed.  Heh.  I must say I'm happy to have developed this habit of posting on here, although I'm not sure it will continue much longer.  I definitely appreciate how I went from a hobby walk-out-the-door-and-run-whatever-distance to.... Well, actually, I'm pretty much still that way.  At least now I've found some consistency in my workouts, mileage, and effort.  I just never vibed with the "running plan" thing.  The moment it's written down what I have to do, I just have lost all interest within the next moment.  Weird.  Cheers to winging it!

PM: 10.1 miles

AM: 9.6 miles.  Felt awful.  Not sure about the PM run.  I'm in a weird spot eleven days out of my next set of races (Gasparilla).  I feel like a full mileage week is ideal, but I know the literature kind of says it is meaningless.  The double at Gasparilla is the real deal, and I need to be ready to race.  No times, just race.  I wonder if the triple-race- weekend a week ago will help my fitness at all.  I hope it does.  Three weeks is pretty close to being far enough out to show progression.  I entered this morning expecting to run a workout, but I felt sore in a lot of places.  Maybe I'll try again this afternoon, but my guess is I'll bail after the warmup with John.

I really want Gasparilla to be something special.

PM: 6.1 miles

No running.  Still feeling a bit broken from BDR.

No running.  

PM: 7.1 miles. 

AM: 5k parkrun at Weedon island.  Ran a 15:54, felt pretty good.  I still feel some tension in my upper legs, so I will just have to manage the discomfort.

AM: 13.2 miles with Steve on the bridges.

PM: 10.1 miles

AM: 10.1 miles

PM: 5.3 miles

PM: 4.3 miles

PM: 2 miles

PM: 2.1 miles

Gasparilla 15k Race Report 

Pretty great weather for Florida.  50 degrees, very windy, but no humidity.  My goals were a sub 48, first place local, and top five overall.  I really was not feeling great since the BDR three race weekend, missed a ton of running, and had a terrible diet since then, but I still wanted to go for it.  Those three races really did a number on my body, but there's just a lot at stake in this race with the locals only prize money, so I had to give a great effort.  RJ was the guy I was worried about- even though I was over a minute ahead of him in the 10k three weeks ago, I have definitely taken only steps back since then.  I was worried to say the least.

the race!  Gun fires, and per usual, I'm 20th after the first quarter mile.  Going 5:08/mile pace.  Unreal.  It's always so unnerving, since this race is relatively competitive.  By the half mile mark I was top 10, and by mile one I was seventh- RJ still behind me.  I was second place local at this point, and the other guy in front of me was also at BDR three weeks ago... so unless he's been taking PEDs, he was going to start reeling eventually.  I clicked off the miles, nailing the first 5k in 15:57.  
 

The next 5k was very smooth.  I went through the halfway mat 24 seconds up on RJ, and had moved comfortably into fourth place.  I felt confident, strong, and really thought I had it.  RJ looked strong, but I knew if I could keep this pace, he'd have to run an incredible split to catch me in the last 5k.  I came through the second 5k in 15:57, with RJ about 30 seconds back.

Then the wind came.  I honestly thought it was at our side/perpendicular to us.  Wow was I wrong!  I upped the effort, and yikes- the splits are just awful.  RJ was definitely closing.  The volunteers and other runners went from cheering me on to catch the third place guy who was 30 seconds ahead, to yelling at RJ that he should push harder to catch me!  I couldn't really figure out what changed- I was still feeling pretty good, I just couldn't will my legs back to that 5:08 pace per mile.  The struggle was on.  This was a race.  My mindset switched to focusing on keeping a buffer between RJ and I with 1.5 miles to go.  At this point we reached his racing team's tent and they went WILD.  To be honest, their cheering and bullhorn reinvigorated my efforts.  I didn't want him to gain ANYTHING through this section on me.  I knew it was a tactical spot.  $2,000.00 was on the line here.  The lead was 10 seconds.

 The lead was the same with about a mile to go, and I was focused.  My goal time was out the window, but I wanted this.  It wasn't the money, it was just the title.  I wanted the top local spot.  I likely will never have a chance to win it again.  Okay, and maybe a little of it is the money...  With a half mile to go I was managing a 7 second lead or so I thought, but then Celia saw me and said "30 yards behind you!" How!?  I was definitely back down to an adult pace at this point- just over 5 minutes per mile for this final mile on average but he was still gaining?!  
 

A quarter mile to go, I stayed strong.  My stride was feeling quick, but smooth and I decided to push a bit early.  Not sprint, just a push.  After 30 seconds of that, I took a look back and I felt the distance was about 10 seconds now.  I took a couple of looks back during the final stretch, making sure to keep the distance the same.  I was waiting for a final sprint, and saving, but I didn't have to use it, thankfully.  I pulled through the finish in 49:03, with RJ rolling through a mere nine seconds later.  Final 5k a 17:09.

1st- 45:34, 2nd- 47:25, 3rd- 48:31, Me- 49:03, RJ-49:12, 6th 50:48, 7th- 50:55, 8th-50:57, 9th- 51:00, 10th-51:16

First half split- 23:51, second half split- 25:12

Final thoughts.  Although I'm writing this after knowing what happened tomorrow in Sunday's half marathon, I made a pact here to spend some time getting healthier, working on my diet, and lowering my weight.  I need some time off running, and my body really felt at the brink of injury after today.  That being said, both my potential injuries and time off will have to wait!  There is the potential of more prize money tomorrow!  I never learn, do I...

Gasparilla Distance Classic Half Marathon Race Report

Weather/Goals

Conditions were almost perfect, so I was pumped.  Still very windy, but I'd take this any day over heat and humidity.  About 10 degrees warmer than yesterday, so it was easy to get to that start line.  Despite racing yesterday hard and long, my goals today were still pretty serious- a 1:09:50, a top 2 in prize money, and a top 5 overall.  This is NOT the race I am ever going to be fast enough to be in the top 5 for real, but with the Olympic trials literally a week away, they forego offering the real professional prize money so it was a possibility.  Also, they only offer local money- since all the pros are racing the OTQ marathon this Saturday, so I only had to worry about local talent.  Works for me!  

I was feeling VERY beat up from yesterday's 15k race.  My warmup was atrocious, and my body was hurting.  I couldn't even manage proper striders without feeling pains.  I just said, 'forget it' and walked to the starting line.  I hoped my body would survive without any large damage, but I was already a bit gimpy so I had some definite uncertainty.  I hoped the pain hopefully go away after a mile or two once my brain release some endorphins.

The race

The pre race was fun!  I knew a ton of people, so I was chatting away until the gun went off.  As soon as it did, I jumped right out there in the beginning and was in third place right behind the top two guys with another pair of runners at my side.  Usually I can just ease into running these long distances, but now that I am running these faster paces, I can't just throw away 30 seconds just to feel more comfortable so I was checking my watch pretty obsessively.  Miles 2 and 3... I don't know what I was thinking.  Those couple of seconds matter and 5:16s aren’t exactly slow, particularly the day after a 15k where I gave a hard effort.  Oh well, I felt great.  First 5k was a 16:28 or so.

Miles 4 and 5 I finally got my head under me, but it was too late.  By the midpoint, I still felt in control, but I knew I wasn't going to get it, not with a headwind on the return journey.  I was barely at pace with the wind at my back!  Halfway split was 34:57, and I was firmly in third place, 27 seconds back of 2nd and 49 seconds off the leader.  I did not pay any attention to if there was anyone behind me, but I never heard footsteps the entire race.

The second half of the race started off promising- I was under pace entering mile 10 and felt fully in control, but man, that wind must have been really aiding me.  I literally just finished the turn-around and it was like a proverbial wall.  My effort increased dramatically, yet the pace was a 30 second swing in a mere mile!  Unbelievable.  I still felt strong, I still felt fast, it just wasn't there.  Just like yesterday, I hit the ‘split’ after mile 9 and was looking down at the pace and didn’t believe what it was telling me- I thought it was wrong.  Nope.  Slogged through that mile in 5:45.  I was really upset seeing that 5:45 on my watch, and quickly refused to accept those paces.  I dipped back down to 5:30 and sped back up from there, which was nice to see.  

The finish line crept up quickly.  I was stalking the second place guy, but never really closed the gap I developed from mile 3 to mile 5.  I had rescinded my effort until about 30 seconds from the line and saw I had a shot at getting under 1:11 again- second time in two weeks!  I sped up my effort and lengthened my stride, but literally missed it by a second. 

Results-  1^st- 1:09:20, 2^nd- 1:10:24, Me- 1:11:00

Splits- 5:23, 5:16, 5:16, 5:29, 5:29, 5:19, 5:25, 5:24, 5:15, 5:45, 5:30, 5:28, 5:26, 0:26

Some extremely selfish afterthoughts 

I finished 3^rd overall at gasparilla!  I am still in awe of my luck.  Also I was 1^st local, the proud owner of another $2,000 in prize money, Meb Keflezighi signed my plaque at the awards, and over the course of 2 days of running, I was fortunate enough to take in $4,000 in prize money.  Some important points: A) the local running scene is very weak if a runner like me is winning, I realize this.  B) Top 3 is amazing, but this never would happen in a normal year- ever- the announcer multiple times even commented on how slow our times and splits were compared to last year- I mean, we tried our best- lol!  C) I did miss my goal handily of getting under 1:10.  But you know what- D) For 120 minutes of running, I averaged $33.33 per minute or $0.55 per second.  That’s crazy.  I did something I loved and someone effectively paid me to do it!  These race directors for Gasparilla are not only generous, but they may be the only ones offering such a gracious prize to local runners anywhere here in the southeast.  I don’t deserve that money, but when they mail the check, you better believe I will accept it! 

So that’s it!  That’s my race season.  I do have Boston in April, but I am just destroyed and need to take this recovery seriously.  I will reassess in a couple weeks, but I am just going to shoot to re-qualify as of now with a 2:55.

No running.  Feel broken.  My body is a mess right now.

AM: 5.1 miles "running" or whatever that was I just did.  Yikes.

PM: 6.35 miles with Steve and his daughter.  

No running.

No running.  Not sure if I am healed, but I would like to get back into it, so we'll try tomorrow.

PM: 8.1 miles.  Sucked.

AM: 10.1 total miles, 5k fast at Weedon Island parkrun.  15:57 for the 5k.  Felt awful.  I should not have done it, but I wanted to try and keep my fitness high.  Oh well.  

AM: 20.2 miles

AM: 11.1 miles

AM: 10.2 miles

PM: 11 miles total, 3 fast on the treadmill.

PM: 11.1 miles 

AM: 8.1 miles

PM: 5.3 miles

PM: 10 miles

AM: 10 miles and then the Weedon island parkrun 5k. Ran a 15:54. Felt super easy, and the weather was on point.

Late AM: gym and 3 more miles.

PM: 20.1 miles at effort.  I think this might only be my second PM 20+ miler ever.  Finished after 10pm.  It was a nice change running at night as I just felt so much looser.  I went into this run with no expectations, so it was nice just to roll through 20 miles on a random run.  I suppose I always try to go long on Sundays, so it might just be out of habit.

PM: 11 miles

AM: 12.5 miles at the track, 3 of them faster, marathon-ish pace, maybe half marathon pace.  Probably didn't accomplish anything on my end, but it did help the other runners pace themselves.

PM: 10 miles, 2.5 fast.  1x10:00 at 5:00/mile pace, then some hill repeats at a steep incline.  Also did some gym work.

PM: 11.1 miles

Well, it is not looking good for the Boston Marathon.  Although I definitely do not expect to make it to the starting line in peak fitness, I did expect to be decent, and I CERTAINLY expected to have a terrific time.  With the NYC half being cancelled, the governor of MA declaring a state emergency, and a overall pretty hysterical set of humans who do not understand how transmission works, I am afraid they may just do elites only so their consecutive streak stays intact. 

How annoying would that be?  I do not even think I'd go watch them run, but would probably stay inside and watch on TV or a bar somewhere in Boston.  The irony is, I could probably go catch a Red Sox game with 37,000+ people after they cancel a race of 35,000 people.  I understand there is a huge 500,000 person crowd watching, but just tell them to stay home, and let the runners go.  We know the risks.  The incredibly minute risks.  

I guess option two would be to find some random nothing marathon somewhere and run that.  There is also option three of knocking out that 100-miler which would definitely be easier than a hard marathon.  My only concern on that is- there has to be a pretty strong contingent of ultra runners that just run to 104.8 miles just to complete the fourth marathon of the run, right?  Half (if not more) are walking a lot of the time anyway, so what's another 4.8 mile stroll?

PM: Boston marathon was cancelled, so I decided to get out some much needed frustrations on the running end of my life.  Ran a pretty decent treadmill workout.  3.5 miles on the treadmill at 5:00/mile straight, then right into a 30 second recovery followed by 6 intervals of hills on 10.0 incline at 90-95% effort, with 30 second active running recoveries at low incline.  It.  Felt.  AWESOME.  But then again, I was seriously motivated today.  

Motivation is a tricky animal.  Self-motivation is even more flighty.  Extrinsic motivation at least sticks for a couple of days, but that intrinsic motivation, man, is it hard to re-focus that energy correctly.  It really boils down to discipline.  Today I was going to skip my run completely (after hearing about Boston being cancelled.)  I went and bought a pizza, didn't run after work, and drove all the way home- just to find myself putting on my run clothes.  Then checking the gym.  Then putting on my shoes... and out the door I went.

Discipline is such an interesting beast.  But not gonna lie, definitely went home and ate half of that extra large pizza.  At least it felt earned!

PM: 9 miles

Noon: 10 miles

AM: 20.1 glorious miles on Croom trails with Steve.  Worth the drive.

AM: 10 miles

AM: 10 miles at the track.  4:00minute repeats at effort.  Then a good cool down with some fun people.

PM: 7.3 miles, with a workout.  10x400 with ascending rests starting at 10 seconds.  Averaged a 1:12-1:13, but was really ready for it to be over at the end.  Super hot and humid... Florida is baaaack.

AM: 10.1 miles.  They flew by today.

AM: 10.5 miles.  A big increase in the number of people outside exercising the last couple days, which is nice to see.  Of course, we were all keeping a healthy distance from one another.  Everyone seems positive, which makes it invigorating.

PM: 7 miles with 5k worth of bridges/hills at effort.

AM: 10 miles.  Heading to Croom again tomorrow, hopefully with a couple of people.  I love running out there.  I have no reason to be running this much, but I truly just enjoy it.  Tomorrow will be fun.  There will be five of us, so should be pretty easy to socially distance.  I think you can be smart about this and still find ways to enjoy time with others, so hopefully no one on this blog is hoping to chastise me.

Conversely, I think I will still keep in mind my own goals for training.  I still have two obvious milestones to work towards- a sub 15-minute 5k on a certified course, and a sub 1:10 half on a certified course.  I think the sub 1:10 is obviously easier to do, I just don't have a race to do it on!  I mean, I almost did it twice in February, with each instance having run 15k hard literally less than 24 hours prior to the attempts.  Really, a much lower goal is in the cards.  Now, the sub 15-minute 5k is a bit more confusing as to how I will achieve the goal solo.  I really need to be decisive, purposeful, and honest with my workouts if it's to be done.  

My marathon goal of 2:24 is another story.  Boston's date is definitely questionable.  The course is also already challenging- now add in high temperatures, humidity, and having to train in Florida garbage all summer and I think a 2:29 is the best I could hope for even if conditions are relatively favorable.  A 5:40 is ten times easier than a 5:30.  That one might be a throwaway marathon.  Just run it, enjoy it, and whatever happens, happens.  Similarly, it's a bit crazy to think the race will even occur given the current climate in racing.  

~~~~~~~~~~~

All that being said, all of that is on hold, so the only logical thing to do is to run a bunch of miles, build a nice base, and become a better, more efficient runner.

AM: 20 miles in croom with Brian, Sarah, Steven, and Jeremie.  Had a great time.  I wish I could run there every week.  First time I've ran two 20-milers in a week since training for my ultra.  

AM: 12 miles with Jeremy, Chris, Stephen, and John.

PM: 6 miles

AM: 10.2 miles

PM: 7.5 miles

AM: 11.2 miles at the track.  800, 1200, 1600, 1200, 800 at effort.  I really just tried to keep it under 5:30/mile pace for the first half and then would speed up on the last 200 or 400m of the interval.  It wasn't so easy today with the recent heavy mileage, but that's a bit expected. No splits on this workout, just enjoying the process.

PM: 9.1 miles at the track again.  6x800 with long 400 recovery jogs.  Kept it all right around or under 5:00/mile pace.  Splits- 2:34, 2:31, 2:31, 2:26, 2:26, 2:28.  After this morning I am happy to see these results.  

AM: 10 miles.  Was planning on this being my day off, but I needed a stress reliever.

AM: 10.1 miles

PM: 8.1 miles, 3 fast with Jeremy, John, and Steve over the bridges/hills.  Recovered down the opposite sides and just repeated it until we got to three miles of hard efforts.

AM: 8.6 miles

AM: Had to run again just to get to triple digits.  What a terrific run!  Ran with Alan.  By the time we finished, there were just a refreshing number of people out and exercising.  Although we kept our distance as did they, everyone was super friendly.  

Really is an odd dichotomy of personalities at the moment with this virus.  I can't imagine what it would be like to be one of the ones with a super anxious mindset- that seems entirely too stressful.  I suppose I never feel the need to be that overtly in control though, so that's a fortunate diffuser.

AM: Amazing run at Holloway Park in Lakeland.  It's a (mostly) exclusive-use cross country course that is regular manicured for the specific purpose of running!  It was my first time ever on the course, but it was definitely enjoyable.  The pace was slow, but it was worth it to hang/chat with the group of guys I was able to get out there.  Steve, Elia, Brian, John, Jeremy, and Chris all made the long trek and socially distanced themselves far enough away to make it a fun experience.  I wanted 20 miles, but I am supposed to have a down-mileage week, so I stopped  when everyone else did.  I think 70-80 this week should be good enough.

Noon: 8.8 miles

AM: 12.15 total miles at track. 1600, 1200, 800, 400, 4x200 with 400 recoveries between the long intervals, and 200 recoveries for the short intervals.  Splits- 5:20, 3:46, 2:24, 1:07, :35, :31, :31, :31.  

PM: 7.25 total miles at track with Steven and John.  Ran 6x800 with 200 super slow recovery jogs in between.  Splits- 2:31, 2:27, 2:27, 2:28, 2:27, 2:28.  

Day off.

PM: 12 miles, with 3 miles worth of hills/bridges at effort.

PM: 10 miles

PM: 1.2 miles recovery 

PM: 13.3 miles with a hard 3-miler in there at effort/goal marathon pace.

AM: 12 miles

PM: 8.9 miles

AM: 12 miles, 4.5 fast at effort.  Workout was 6x4:00, with 2:00 recoveries.

PM: 8 miles, 2.5 fast on hills with John.  5:20/mile pace on the hills.

AM: 10.2 miles

PM: 13 miles, 3 miles worth of hills at effort with Jeremy, Steve, & John.

AM: 10 miles.  85 degrees, but I felt fantastic for some reason.

PM: 5.1 miles.

AM: 7.5 miles 

AM: So I woke up this morning before my alarm, turned it off, and skipped my long run.  Very unlike me.  Worth.  It.

PM: Decided to work all day, and then felt like going for a run around 3pm.  Incredibly humid and hot- 91 degrees, almost full humidity, but fortunately windy.  The run turned into my long run, which was both good and bad.  Good: Got a 20-miler out of they way as planned, and ran it quick enough to benefit from it.  Bad: Turns out, I need to plan out some water along my route a little better.  The fountains are either turned off or too far in between, so I had one water opportunity at mile 12-13, and that was it for water until I finished.  Good: Although I had no water/nutrition, this is a great sign for working towards ultra-marathon goals.  Not that I won't have water/nutrition, but I will have similar mental anguish along the run.  Bad: this is pretty foolish for Florida.  91 degrees, believe it or not, is hot for Florida.  It's usually a humidity issue down here, not a dual heat and humidity issue.  This run could have easily gone downhill.  Good: It didn't, and I blasted it solo on some nice gently rolling hills and clicked along the miles.  

PM: 10 miles

AM: Intervals on the road.  4x6:00 intervals with 3 minute recoveries, 11.3 total miles.   (12)

PM: 8x100 and then 6x800 intervals on the trail.  Pretty challenging on dirt and tight turns, but it did make them a lot more fun!  11.4 total miles.  Ran with Steve & John.

PM: 10 miles. Is Florida literally the only state not in the 40s/50s or lower right now? What is wrong with this place? Kill me.

Late PM: 6 miles

PM: 12.2 miles, 3.5 fast of hill intervals.  

AM: 10.1 miles

PM: 20 miles.

AM: 20.1 miles.  Mental.  Fortitude.

 Two straight twenty-milers about 14 hours apart after a decent mileage week.  Unreal.  I'm surprised at myself, I didn't think I'd truly go through with it when I decided about it in my head a week ago.  Had one 2-minute stop for water and a gel, just like yesterday, however today, John and Jeremy joined for 11 miles of the journey which sincerely helped.

I am considering taking a day off tomorrow...

PM: 5.5 miles.  I don't know, I just thought about how I wish I was running my marathon today even though it was rightfully cancelled and knew I had to at least go run a jaunt somewhere.  I'm disappointed.  The weather was ideal, my fitness was great, and it had all the makings of a pretty epic PR day.  

AM: 10 miles

PM: 9.7 miles, 3 at effort, but certainly not fast!

Tomorrow will be an off day for real.

Day off!  

PM: 10 miles, 3 of them hill intervals.  Taking days off makes me feel so sore.

PM: 10 miles

PM: 10 miles

AM: 50k on the undulating Croom trails, solo.  I really should have waited a day to try this, as the weather Monday is/was much better.  Entirely too hot and humid for a solo session like this.  I had two drop locations, one at the halfway (miles 9 and 24)along the loop, and one at the start/finish (miles 16 and 31), and did two 15-mile loops with a 1+ mile run from my car to the back side of the trails.  

I thought I had prepared my drop stations well, but I definitely did not.  I made it through 24 miles just fine, and then I tripped over a root going up a hill, and did a nice roll.  It wasn't a huge deal, but I was now incredibly more aware of how my body was truly feeling.  Things stopped clicking along, and I felt every step from there forward.  The last 7+ miles were excruciating mentally.  

I love Croom, and I am disappointed in my lack of mental fortitude.  I walked a bit in those last couple of miles, and that's just... not like me.  To quit like that.  I felt sick, dehydrated, tired, and beat up at the end getting in my car.  Heading back to my primary drop station, someone had stolen my cooler too, so that put a damper on things.  

Oh well.  No one ever said running a trail 50k was easy.  I guess I just thought I was more durable than that.  One fall and all of a sudden mentally I was toast?  Come on now.  My ego is a bit bruised.

No running.

AM: 3 fast miles of alternating 600s and 1000s (eight total intervals.  10.1 total miles.

PM: 7.3 total miles, 3 fast of alternating miles and 800s (six total intervals.)  

Felt surprisingly good, considering Sunday's mess.  

PM: 9 miles.  Tried a new location with Steve- did not like it too much.  It was just too much repeptition.

PM: 9 miles back and forth over the hills and bridges to get some semblance of hills with the group.

(My 2nd annual) Cinco de "Mile" Beer mile Race Report!  (Semi-virtual race)

So this year was a bit different.  I was back to defend my beer mile title and keep the green jacket that the winner gets for the year.  I had gotten a local group of six runners together to compete with the virtual group on a zoom live conference.  Overall, there were probably about 75 total runners, and 100 total counting walkers.  As far as the jacket was concerned, the second place guy was with me running the same course as me, so at least if someone beat me in another location, I would probably doubt their success.  I'm pretty confident in my beer miling, even though it is only once a year.

The course was wicked easy.  We went to the now abandoned Clearwater Mall and set up an easy quarter mile loop around a crunch fitness and parking lot and puts cones at the four corners to turn at, but the course pretty much formed itself with the building, curbs, medians, and gate.  This really helped.  The actual beer mile for the "Cinco de mile" is a nightmare with pedestrians, cars, and a confusing course, so this was a cakewalk.

Fortunately, we were allowed to choose ANY beer we wanted this year.  Michelob Ultra it was.  I'm not a fool.  If someone is letting me pick, I'm going with the world's easiest drinking fuel.  At 4.2%, 100 calories, and a watery taste, this was the perfect choice.  The guys in my group made some odd decisions- Elia even drank black & tans- now that's crazy.

We set up a table, opened the five beers up in rows for each contestant, and jogged the course so everyone knew what was up.  The rules are pretty simple: drink a full 12-oz beer, hold it upside down over your head to show it is empty, toss it in the trash, run a quarter mile, and repeat for a total of four times.  Then at the end, you finish with a final 12-oz beer, giving you a total of five drinks and one mile to complete the challenge.

Elia, Jeremy, John, Jeremie, Brian, and myself got ready to go until it was time to start.  We had about 7 of our friends who were watching at the fence a bit away from us.  A brief "cheers" and off we drank!  Brian was the first one finished, and I struggled mightily, which was surprising.  I can usually drink the first one in seconds, but I needed to breath twice during the first one.  I was second out of the block followed by John, then Elia, then Jeremy and Jeremie.  Brian was a crazy man through lap one.  He had finished the first 200m in about 29 seconds flat and had actually gained on me.  Fortunately, I caught him before the end of the lap and was first to beer #2.  I finished before everyone on this one and took off.  This was my fastest lap by far.  63 seconds, and I was feeling pretty good.  I knew the next one is usually the hardest, but #3 went down easy.  The next lap was pretty quick, but I decided to slow myself to have more breath when it was time to down #4.  I hit #4 and struggled a bit drinking it, taking a lot of time to get it down and taking a breath every three gulps or so.  I had quite a big lead and was off on my final quarter before Brian (second) and John (third) came in to the table.  By the time I returned, Elia and Jeremy were still finishing their fourth one while I was starting my final drink!  With a huge lead, they set off on their last lap while I finished up my last one, just over six minutes in 6:04.  This was the fastest 5-beer beer mile I've ever done.  They're a bit more challenging than the normal 4-beer ones.  

Anyway, it was a ton of fun, and a nice way to break up these past two months, that's for certain!

PM: 5 miles

AM: 16.1 miles cruisin'

PM: 10.1 miles quick.  Felt great.

AM: 10 miles, 4x1 mile repeats with 3:00 recoveries.

PM: 10 miles, 3x1 mile repeats with extended recoveries waiting for the other to finish.  Still not ready to flip the "ON" switch with speed, but I am feeling close to changing gears.

I think I have shelved the 100-miler.  We'll see.

AM: 8.5 miles

PM: 5.2 miles

AM: 6.6 miles

PM: 9.6 miles, 3 fast doing a hill workout.

AM: 8.3 miles

PM: 5.2 miles

Noon: 10.5 miles including a mile of striders. Why did I decide to run at noon on a really hot, humid, sunny day? Well that's simple. I'm a moron.

No running.

No running.  No real reason, just... didn't feel like it.

AM: 10 miles, 4 fast doing timed intervals.

PM: 10 miles, 3 fast using the trails. 6x800 with long 3:00 recovery jogs.  I actually gave a good effort today.  I suppose it's time to start focusing on splits.  2:43, 2:39, 2:38, 2:39, 2:39, 2:41

PM: 10 miles

PM: 10 miles, 3 fast uphill/bridge, with recoveries down the other side.

PM: 10 miles

No running

AM: 20 miles.  Good group today- about 10 of us.  Made it feel like old times!  Really enjoyed it.   

AM: 10 miles

PM: 6 miles with Jeremie

AM: 10 miles, 4.5 fast doing timed intervals.  3x8:00, with 4:00 recoveries.  Big group for such an early session- about 16 of us.

PM: 10.2 miles, 3 fast.  3x1mile at 5:30-5:40ish pace on the trails.  I worked hard, but the speed just isn't there.  The mileage definitely doesn't help (yet!).  6 of us there, 4 stayed in our group.

AM: 10 miles

PM: 10 miles

Late PM: 6 miles

PM: 11.3 total miles, 3 fast doing hills at effort with Jeremy, John, and Steve.  Steve moved to Tennessee, so it was nice to see him recently!  Florida was balmy and about a thousand degrees today, so that was a nice change.  

AM: 10 miles

AM: run with Elia, Steve, and Brian.  Mile of striders at the end.  Had an absolute blast today!  Definitely a slow pace, but that's okay.  

On a second note, my mileage was a bit unreal this week, but I feel fine.  I suppose the doubles- now that I've done a full cycle of them last year, and have started them again now more recently- are really the way to go at least for marathon training.  The body just feels better than it does with the single run, even though it's more mileage overall.  I know Kipchoge does the 15k followed by a 10k, so I am trying to style it similar to that.  I just would like to work in the Saturday or Sunday progressive run that he does too. I'm a bit apprehensive, as that'll increase the likelihood of injury, but I suppose there's no better time than an era of zero races to just go for it.

I guess we'll see how next week pans out before I get ahead of myself.  
 

SOTD: nah, just playin', Eugene!  :)

AM: 20 miles, most with Steve, John, and Jeremy.

AM: 10 miles

PM: 6 miles

AM: Kind of a fun workout. 3 sets, first set was 6x1:00, second set was 6x1:00, but the third set was 2x1:00, 2x0:50, 2x0:40, 2x0:30, 2x0:20, 2x0:10 all with half rests. Was kind of like a slightly monolithic version of suicides.

Entertaining.

PM: 11 miles with Jeremy, John, and Steve. Workout on the trail: 12x400. Medium-hard effort.

PM: 14.2 miles.

AM: 6 miles, deathly slow.  I did not want to run at all.  Usually, by mile two, I'm into it somewhat, but today I just was not having it.  

PM: 12.1 miles, 3.5 hard up the bridges.  Ran with Marina, Elia, Jeremy, and John.  Felt much better than this morning.

AM: 6 miles

PM: 10.1 miles

AM: 11 miles with Elia and Brian (with a nice cameo from Mike!)

Super disappointed about the Boston Marathon.  I suppose I knew it would be cancelled, however I did have some semblance of hope.  I don't know what to move my focus to, but I do think I will take next week relatively light on then mileage.  I guess base building is the go-to focus for everyone around me, but what the heck?  That's no fun.  It's too hot/humid to do a time trial here, so I can't really even move the focus to something like that.  I did just join Stava, so maybe I can go run some segments.

AM: 14 miles, 8 of us running, so I went more than the planned 10 just to stay with people.  Going to be an easy week for running.

PM: 3 miles

AM: 9.2 miles, 4 fast of intervals- 6/5/4/3/2/1-minute intervals.  

PM: 9 miles, 3 fast doing 800s on the trail.

PM: 5.3 miles, 1 fast with two segment crowns and a couple of striders afterwards to get to 1 hard mile.

PM: 9 miles, most with John.  I went after three segments today, a 200m sprint, a 1.5 mile tempo, and a 0.6 mile VO2 effort.  The last one was the most challenging.  I took out the 200m sprint twice by two seconds each time- I wasn't quite sure where it started, and being so short, a couple of seconds could make a difference.  The long one was easy, I dropped it by about 1:40 total, and it covers part of the third one I was attempting.  The third one- I'm 99% sure was done by a guy on a bicycle, but it seemed fun to try to take it out while running.  I dropped it by about 15 seconds.  I was shocked I got that one so easily.  The pace I needed was like a 4:36/mile avg pace, but I launched two incredibly fast quarter miles (63 followed by a 64) before dying at the end.  John tried to help me at the end of that one, but I was pretty pooped and rolled in on fumes.

Needless to say, I've found a new hobby for the moment at least.  I truly am a bit irrationaly peeved by the cyclists' times on these segments however.  3:20 mile average for 3/4 of a mile?  Okay, Hicham El Guerrouj.  I have avoided running some of the segments my friends own, at least for now.  I think it would be fun if we filled up the screen or at least tried to, in our city.

In any event, I've found something to do that feeds my competitive side.  Thanks Joe!

PM: 8.6 miles, and another segment crown.

AM: 10.6 miles

PM: 1.3 jaunt

AM: 15 miles, with three mile-long segments crowns, a half a mile of striders during our long run.  I shouldn't really count two of those segment crowns, as I just went fast enough to place 1st.  Ran with Brian., whom I also tried to pace to the crowns (for him) but GPS is a bit disappointing when it comes to separating the minutae of seconds & distances when runners go together.

I was trying to today, but I think during our next group run, we will break up the segments and try to get a bunch until we've covered each town.  We shall see if anyone buys in.  Either way, I think I'm going to keep the segment shenanigans going.

AM: 10.3 miles and a 1-mile segment for another 👑. I do admit I'm mailing some of these in, but top spot is top spot.

PM: 6 miles, 1.5 quick to get another crown.

AM: 10.3 miles, did two of the intervals, but wasn't feeling it.

PM: 6 miles

AM: 11 miles

PM:  8 miles, 3 fast doing intervals and segments.  Six more crowns... I messed up on doing/finding two others, unfortunately.

AM: 10.7 miles

PM: 6 miles

PM: 10 miles

AM: 17.1 miles with Brian and John, 3 fast miles fiddling with some Strava segments. Our group got 4 of the six we were aiming for. I missed one by a single second, and the other one it says we ran the wrong route, which is bogus. My only thought is we ran it hard the wrong direction, and jogged it back in the direction we should have gone.

Funniest part was John careening through a main intersection at the finish of his 0.40mi segment... I guess he thought it needed to be longer!

AM: 11 miles with Anthony, didn't feel like running today.

AM: 10 miles

PM: 6.3 miles

AM: 11.4 miles, 3 of them fast, alternating 1200s and 400s (three sets).

PM: 6 miles

PM: 10.5 miles.  Approximate, as my watch didn't start for about a half mile.

AM: 6 miles

PM: 10.5 miles, 3 fast doing bridges.

AM: 6 miles

AM: 21 miles and some segments with Brian.

AM: 14 miles with Anthony 

PM: 10 miles

AM: 10.2 miles

PM: 8 miles, 3 fast.

PM: 7 miles

AM: 13 miles, 3 fast

PM: 5 miles

PM: 5 miles, 1 fast.

No running

AM: 15 miles at effort.  

AM: 12 miles

PM: 6 miles

AM: 10 miles, 3 fast.

PM: 6 miles, 3 fast.

PM: 10 miles, did not feel well and heart rate is elevated.  I contracted the virus, which is depressing.  I guess we'll see how bad it is, though.

PM: 6 miles with John, 2.5 of hills

Felt absolutely awful.  Breathing is tough, I gave some good efforts, but the heart rate was just off the charts.  I shouldn't say that.  It's the blood pressure.  I literally am hearing the heart in my skull.

This was the worst day.  I have soreness ALL over.  I felt better after my triple races in February than I did today.  I will have to monitor this better.  

No running.  Feel so bad.

No running.  Heart rate is a mess, breathing is a mess.  Corona virus is in full effect today.  This is now day four of symptoms.

AM: 17.2 miles.  I barely made it.  This was an abysmal run.  

AM: 11 miles, felt better.

AM: 9.1 miles 

PM: 5.3 miles

Felt awful in the morning, and worse in the afternoon- didn't think it was possible to feel this bad.

PM: 6 miles

AM: 5 miles

PM: 6.1 miles, 3 fast of hills

AM: 10 miles

PM: 4 miles

AM: 6.1 miles

PM: 10.1 miles

PM: 6.2 miles

Late PM: 6.1 miles

As it stands, I am not fully recovered, but I can run at least.  I felt like I could run through it, but now that just feels stupid to have done last week.  My heart is/was so frantically, and the soreness was just... awful.  

AM: 5.1 miles.

PM: 7 miles.

Today is a bad day.  I am sore all over again, and I feel broken.  This is affecting me in the oddest ways.  My running is taking such a hit.  I wanted ten this morning, but no chance.

Awful day.  Probably putting up a goose egg.  I feel so uncomfortable.

AM: 11 miles

PM 6 miles

PM: 6.5 miles.  Watch was dead.

AM: 12.1 miles

AM: 16.1 miles

Felt like garbage.

AM: 6 miles

No running.

Really did not feel well.

PM: 10 miles

Felt absolutely rejuvenated.  This virus is ridiculous.  A couple times a week I feel like death, and then all of a sudden the sky opens up.  I don't understand this at all.

AM: 11.3 miles

PM: 6.3 miles, even did hill intervals quite hard effort-wise.

Again, felt rejuvenated, although the weather was terrific (for Florida).  80s, still humid, but rainy.  I know it sounds still awful, but it was really ideal.

The virus is really intermittent lately for me.  I'm well outside the infectious window, but it isn't going away.  The months prior to this it seemed like breathing would be the challenge, but the challenge for me is vascular.  My blood, my muscles, the pressure... It just won't go away.  The last two days have been great, but it honestly feels like this is just never going to go stop.  I'm really disappointed.  I know I'm a healthy individual, so I guess I just never figured it would do this.  At least to me.  Naive to say the least.  

What it means for my fitness, I have no idea.  It's residual nature is just enraging.  Even if there were races currently, I don't think I'd even participate.  I wouldn't even touch a Parkrun.  It will eventually go away, but these waves are unnerving.  

PM: 10 miles. I must've walked four times and sat down twice. Afterwards I was incredibly sore- everywhere. I am really not dealing with this positively. At least I have control over that aspect.

No running, the nightmare continues.

AM: 15 miles at a garbage pace.

No running.  Feeling it.

No running.  Feeling it.

PM: 9.1 mile slog.

PM: 7.1 miles with John, 2.5 miles "fast" which is hilarious to write right now, but I did give effort which is all that matters anyway.

PM: 6.4 mile slog.

AM: 18.1 miles.  Tough.

AM: 15 miles

PM: 6.1 miles

AM: 8.1 miles slow

PM: 9.1 miles, 3 at effort

AM: 10 miles

AM: 10.6 miles

Really felt sore, so I bailed on the afternoon workout.  I'm just going to start calling these myocarditis days...

PM: 5.5 miles

AM: 7.2 miles

AM: 11 miles

PM: 4 miles

Late PM: 6.2 miles

AM: 8.6 miles, 1 at effort

PM: 6 miles, 3 at effort

AM: 8.1 miles

PM: 5.4 miles

Late PM: 7 miles, 2.5 fast

AM: 7 miles

PM: 5.3 miles

PM: 6.1 miles

No running.  Another one of those days... at least it was a huge frequency this time in between.  

AM: 10 miles

PM: 5.5 miles

AM: 9 miles, 2 at effort

PM: 6.2 miles, 2.5 at effort.  Fell apart on the last one, so I won't count it as effort.

PM: 10.1 miles

AM: 5.1 miles

PM: 7.1 miles, with 3 at effort on the bridges

PM: 10.4 miles

AM: 10 miles

AM: 17.2 miles, 7 at effort chasing some segments.  Was able to get ten today, which is a record for me.  Had to drive to three locations although, unfortunately.

AM: 6.2 miles

AM: 10 miles, 3 at effort helping Dylan.

Today I felt... normal.  Sunday I felt normal.  Last Thursday's workout I felt normal.  Hopefully, it's just going to get better from here.  I am just a bit out of shape, which is not an issue- I can fix that.  The real tell-tale will be this afternoon.  I'm planning a short one, expecting it to be an issue, so hopefully I'm pleasantly surprised.

PM: 5.2 miles total, 2 miles fast.  Spoke a bit too soon.  Feel it coming on again.  Afternoon workout was probably a mistake.

Oh yeah, definitely a mistake.

Not good.

Trifecta.

Felt like I could've gotten out for a couple, but thought it was a poor idea.

AM: 13 miles total, 5x1mile with equal recoveries using the bridges.

5:31, 5:40, 5:34, 5:44, 5:45

53 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

50 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

45 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

50 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

45 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

45 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

60 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

50 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

60 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

60 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

60 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

70 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

50 miles about this week.  Workouts on Tuesday/Thursday.

PM: 4 miles