2018 New York City Marathon – Week 4

Feeling more confident about my training paces, I left my heart rate monitor at home for most of my workouts.  A difficult career decision impacted my runs, sleep, and eating habits.

Training Schedule
July 22nd – July 28th

Sunday: Recovery Run. 5 miles + Weight Training.
Monday: Medium-long Run. 14 miles.
Tuesday: Recovery Run. 5 miles + Drills.
Wednesday: General Aerobic Run + Speed. 9 miles w/10 x 100m strides.
Thursday: Medium-long Run. 11 miles.
Friday: Weight Training.
Saturday: Long Run. 18 miles.

Mileage Total: ~62 Miles

Notes.  I did a few high knees on Tuesday as drills, and missed the weight training session on Friday.

Workout Details

Medium-long Run. 14 miles [Log Details]

Two days earlier, I ran a 15 miler, so the purpose of this workout was definitely running long when tired.  I ran north on George Mason Drive.  Thunder rumbled, lightening cracked, and then it started raining.  I picked up the pace on Washington Boulevard and ran 8:50 pace for the next 4 miles.  On the Mount Vernon Trail, I felt great after a water break at Roosevelt Island and started running harder than I should have.  At Humpback Bridge, I was supposed to pick up the pace again but I was spent.  Still, I ran 8:57 pace over the next 4 miles.

I exited at Crystal City and after a half mile or so, started my cool-down.

Overall pace=9:16.

General Aerobic Run + Speed. 9 miles w/10 x 100m strides [Log Details]

Feeling more confident with my training paces, I left the heart rate monitor at home.  I ran through the Clarendon and Ballston neighborhoods before hooking up with the Custis and W&OD trails.  At my water stop, another drenched runner and I exchanged complaints about the humidity.  During the final mile, I thought about a tough conversation I was going to have at work.  My emotions ran so high that I had to stop before hyperventilating!  I finished the run with strides but walked the recoveries.

Overall pace=8:58.

Medium-long Run. 11 miles [Log Details]

Waking up at 4am, I wondered if I would be too tired to run well.  I ran north to Clarendon, ignoring my pace and just running “easy”.  My goal was to reign in my pace early so I wouldn’t fade late.  Making my way to Rosslyn, I ran 8:30 pace over the next two miles, which were downhill.  On the Mount Vernon Trail, my Garmin buzzed that my pace was too slow but I was running strong and figured the signal was bad.

I felt great but ran conservatively until it was time to speed up again just before Humpback Bridge.

I kept pushing to stay around 9:00 pace until my cool-down, about 2 miles from home.

Overall pace=9:09.

Long Run. 18 miles [Log Details]

Between the increase in mileage and a tough week at work, I felt terrible during the early miles of the run.  I thought about giving up but switched to convincing myself that it was just mental.  “Just tell yourself you feel fine.”  I drank Gatorade freely from my handheld thinking the fluid would give me energy.  I made my way from the Four Mile Run Trail to the Mount Vernon.  I tried to get my pace down to 9:20 and it took some effort.  At Gravelly Point, I stopped to finish a Crank Sport e-Gel.  Normally, I don’t recognize other runners but for the second time this week, exchanged words with one at Roosevelt Island – this time about the broken water fountain at National Airport.  I crossed over to the Custis Trail and worked to get my pace closer to 9:00.  I stopped at the W&OD Trail, finished my second gel, and even got down to 8:25 pace on my way to Bluemont Park.

Overall pace=9:22.

Cross Training

Sunday’s weight training session was grueling!  I started with lateral pull-downs, seated cable rows, and upright rows.  I jogged on the treadmill for a few minutes to get my heart rate up, and then finished with stiff-legged dead-lifts, chest presses, tricep presses, dumbbell curls and shoulder presses.

Health

Sleep.  On Sunday and Monday nights, I took melatonin to get some sleep while mulling over a career decision.  My sleep was wrecked for the latter part of the week, though.

Weight.  Work stress led to some less than nutritious food choices (like potato chips and gummy bears for breakfast) but on Friday, my Garmin Index Scale recorded my body fat at 18.8% – the lowest reading I can remember.

Weather

The temperature stayed in the 70s in the morning.  It rained during my runs on Monday and Tuesday. In the days that followed, it was overcast and humid.

Racing Schedule

Future races.  I’m thinking about running the 2019 Tokyo Marathon.  I’d like to combine it with a trip to the Great Wall of China.

Next race: This week, I registered for the 2018 Navy Air Force Half Marathon on Sunday, September 16th. (My Complete Racing Schedule.)