2019 New York City Marathon – Week 4
For most of the week, I was in Athens, Greece, having arrived last Thursday. Even though I never found a trail or track, I completed a speed workout on Thursday. My return flight landed on Friday night and I ran long the next day!
Training Schedule
August 25th – August 31st
Sunday: Medium-long Run. 10-12 miles
Monday: Off
Tuesday: Medium-long Run. 10 miles
Wednesday: Recovery Run. 5 miles
Thursday: Lactate Threshold Run. 10 miles w/6 mile @ goal half marathon pace
Friday: Recovery Run. 5 miles
Saturday: Long Run. 18 miles
Total: 56-60 miles.
Notes. It was hard to find a good place to do an uninterrupted 6 mile stretch in Athens, so I changed Thursday’s workout to 5 x 1 mile.
Workouts
Medium-long Run. 10 miles [Log Details].
After consulting the Strava Global Heatmap, I decided to explore the area to the west of me. I set my destination to the Kaisariani Monastery, which Google Maps said was 2.5 miles away.
My pace was slow but I didn’t care – I ran 17 miles the day before. The first two miles were on an urban road. It was early enough that there weren’t many people outside on the sidewalk. At the top of the hill, I tried to find the road to the monastery but there was a gate with a police car and I didn’t dare approach. Google Maps wasn’t showing me a clear route. On the way back, I visited the Acropolis again. I probably stopped too often but the effort felt right. It was close to 90 degrees when I finished the run at around 11:30am.
Overall pace=10:11.
Lactate Threshold Run. 10 miles w/5 x 1 mile @ goal half marathon pace [Log Details].
Yesterday, I finally visited The Acropolis!
I decided to return to the area near the Kaisariani Monastery where I ran the other day because there was an uninterrupted one mile stretch that I could use to run intervals.
It felt nice out – 75 degrees – and my legs responded by turning over quickly. I didn’t worry too much about my paces because it’s been an odd week and the terrain was so inconsistent. But, my Garmin said the last mile repeat was a personal record!
After the run, I took a nap in an attempt to get my body closer to Washington, D.C. time. Between the speed and downhill grade, my piriformis was aggravated for the rest of the afternoon.
1 mile splits=7:48, 8:35, 7:21, 8:38, 7:17. Average=7:56.
Long Run. 17 miles [Log Details].
On Friday, I flew home from Athens. That night, I went to bed at around 11pm but only slept for about five hours.
The next morning, I woke up ready to really start training now that the trip that I knew would sabotage my training was out of the way! I wanted to get in some sub-9:00 miles, so I opted for “The Arlington Loop”. I was delayed getting out the door because my Garmin 645 wouldn’t find a GPS signal and I had to reset it. (The day before, it said I’d run 10:21 pace which seemed slow.)
The early miles on the Four Mile Run Trail were around 8:30 pace and felt easy. Heading north on the Mount Vernon Trail, I stopped at the water fountain near National Airport and started a Maurten gel.
Even though I was only away for nine days, I saw some new sights like signs near the Arlington Memorial Bridge about its history. I stopped at the water fountain next to Roosevelt Island and then made my way to the Custis Trail. After a water stop at Nelson Street, I finally started fading. But, I told myself, “You can slow down but you can’t stop!” I finished satisfied that my paces are starting to come down.
Overall pace=9:12.
Routes
Hazards. The sidewalks in Athens were terrible – composed of concrete tiles that were often cracked. I felt as though I had to watch every step.
(My Guide to Washington D.C. Area Running Routes)
Clothing
Travel. Here are some packing tips that kept me running during my week in Athens. (I only packed three sets of running clothes and one pair of shoes.)
- After each run, I washed the outfit with laundry detergent in the hotel sink and dried them in the shower. I also sprayed my shoes with deodorizer and stuck my Drysures into them.
- I wasn’t sure there would be a laundry line in the shower (there wasn’t) so I bought some cord from REI and made my own. I used binder clips as clothing pins.
- My shoes already had 200 miles on them, so I tossed them at the end of my stay, which freed up some space in my luggage for the return trip for souvenirs!
Media & Motivation
Podcasts. “Episode 203: Ole What’s Her Face (Desmond Dunham),” Pace the Nation. Shout-out at the 46:22 mark! I was in the Pacers Clarendon store a few weeks ago and chatted with the owner, who is one of the host. My happy hour streak came to an end but my New York City Marathon streak is going strong at 6. (I incorrectly tweeted 7 because I counted this year.)
Racing Schedule
Next race: 2019 Ragnar Sunset Washington DC on Saturday, September 21st.
(My Racing Schedule)
