2019 Boston Marathon – Week 8
I fell short of 5K-10K pace during my interval workout on Monday. A “polar vortex” moved across the region mid-week and I moved workouts around to accommodate the snow and frigid temperatures. On Saturday, I decided not to be a “soft person” and ran outside again.
Training Schedule
January 27th – February 2nd
Sunday: Easy Run. 6 miles
Monday: Interval Run. 3x1600m @ 5K-10K pace w/600m recovery jog
Tuesday: Rest or Cross-Train
Wednesday: Tempo Run. 9 miles w/7 miles @ goal marathon pace
Thursday: Easy Run. 6 miles
Friday: Easy Run. 10 miles
Saturday: Easy Run. 10 miles
Total: ~49 Miles
Notes. With news of a snow storm moving in on Tuesday night, I moved one of my late week easy runs to that day anticipating bad trail conditions on Wednesday.
Workouts
Interval Run. 3x1600m @ 5K-10K pace w/600m recovery jog [Log Details].
I started the workout when I reached the Four Mile Run Trail. The first repetition went well. The second was a real struggle and I walked the recovery. I wondered, “Is 7:25 pace too fast?” I responded, “No”. I just ran the 2018 Fairfax Four Miler at that pace. I thought maybe I wasn’t recovered from Saturday’s long run. After all, my Garmin‘s recovery advisor suggest three days of recovery after that run. I wanted to quit during the last repetition – in fact, I didn’t even want to start it! It was slow but not a total blow-up. During the cool-down, I told myself this is how cumulative fatigue works but deep inside I wondered if I’m just getting slower.
1600m paces=7:20, 7:27, 7:38. Average=7:28.
Tempo Run. 9 miles w/7 miles @ goal marathon pace [Log Details].
A “polar vortex” moved across the region so I ran this workout on the treadmill. Two weeks ago when I ran this workout on the treadmill, I ran by heart rate. It was a good workout but I felt it may have been a little too easy. Last week, I managed 7:47 pace on the road. I decided to keep the treadmill between 7.5 (8:00) and 7.7 (7:48).
After a short warm-up, I started the workout with the treadmill at 7.5 (8:00 pace). It felt so comfortable that after 32 minutes, I increased the setting to 7.7 (7:48 pace). The faster pace felt a little hard but I held it. After the workout, I felt confident that I should aim for something like 8:00 pace for the 2019 Boston Marathon.
56:00 distance (by Garmin)=6.97. Average pace=8:03. Interestingly, my Garmin reported a slower pace at 7.7 (7:59) than it did for 7.5 (8:09).
Medium Run. 14 miles [Log Details].
When I woke up, the temperature outside was in the mid-20s. I decided to run on the treadmill but on the walk to the gym, it didn’t feel so bad outside so I returned home and got dressed for a run on the roads. “There’s no such thing as bad weather, just soft people”, right? (Bill Bowerman, pressuring runners to run in terrible conditions since the 1960s.)
In the early miles, I actually felt a little overdressed in a jacket, thermal long-sleeve shirt, thick tights and both gloves and mittens for my hands. I listened to the two hours in my 2019 Boston Marathon playlist that covered the distance from Framingham, Massachusetts to through Heartbreak Hill.
I didn’t have a goal pace in mind because I wasn’t sure how icy the running surfaces would be. Over the course of the run, my overall pace didn’t vary very much – 8:40 to 9:00. My effort felt so easy that I ran by the water fountains on the Custis Trail and at Roosevelt Island on the Mount Vernon Trail.
After the run, my Garmin’s recovery advisory suggested just over a day’s rest, so I felt very confident that this run was truly “easy”.
Overall pace=8:59.
Health
Sleep. I slept about seven hours each night – a little more on Tuesday knowing I’d have a delayed start to the workday on Wednesday due to the snow storm.
Allergies. I had an allergic reaction to a lotion I purchased recently and developed a rash all over my body. Sweating made my skin sting, so every workout this week was slightly miserable. The lotion smells amazing, though, so I might try to build a tolerance to it.
Weather
The temperature steadily dropped through Wednesday when a “polar vortex” moved across the region bringing frigid temperatures and some snow. It rose above freezing again on Saturday.
Routes
Trails. “County Plans Detour on Four Mile Run Trail Near Sewage Plant,” ArlNow. Once again, my favorite running trail for doing speed work will be disrupted. This article wasn’t very clear on when and how the trail will be diverted but I’ll make other plans for the next few weeks.
Gear
Headphones. Bose SoundSport Free Wireless Headphones. It seems just when I write a positive review of wireless headphones, I have problems with them. I dropped the right ear bud after my easy run on Sunday and now it’s not working. I’m back to the FRESHeBUDS Wireless Earbuds I got for in a Runner’s World Box.
Media & Motivation
Podcasts. “Episode 110: The Science of Recovery with Christine Aschwanden and Alex Hutchinson,” Running Rogue. This is a good discussion but if you’re short on time, the short answer is to focus on the basics, like sleep, before looking at supplements and gadgets. There’s also a pretty substantive discussion on hydration.
Music. “Ready to Go“, Tomcraft & Republica. I continued working on my 2019 Boston Marathon playlist this week. This will be my song when I crest Heartbreak Hill.
(My “Songs of the Week” on Spotify)
Motivation.
[dropshadowbox align=”center” effect=”raised” width=”800px” height=”” background_color=”#ffffff” border_width=”4″ border_color=”#f4d83f” rounded_corners=”false” outside_shadow=”false” ] “Hard work. Dedication.” – Dolvett Quince [/dropshadowbox]
I’ve been doing a lot of treadmill running lately. It’s taken a lot of dedication to overcome the boredom.
Racing Schedule
Next race: 2019 Rock n Roll DC Half Marathon on Saturday, March 9th.
(My Racing Schedule)
