Peaks and Valleys

So July was hot. I hear that altitude does wonders for your aerobic capacity, but 90%+ humidity will certainly get you fit. I was able to complete two solid weeks of training around 25 miles (weeks 18 & 19) to kick off July, including a 30 mile 7 day stretch. I told you about the 6x700m session in my previous posting, and I also completed two fartleks in those weeks, consisting of 9 and 8 3on/1off cycles at AT & EZ paces. 

Week 20 (16th-22nd), the heat was pretty horrid and I opted to go on some bike rides instead, inspired by the Tour de France, though I was still able to log 22 miles, including a couple fast finish (AT pace) easy runs. Week 21 (23rd-29th) was less forgiving. I started it off with a bang, doing 5 x :35 hills @ 5k effort, followed by another 6x700m session, this time averaging 3:21 off only 60 seconds of rest, finishing with a couple 100m strides @ :22. I felt really good during it all but the next day my calves started getting tight, and the leg soreness lingered for a few days. The final two days of the week, I went on a trip with some visiting family and just rested. 

While I'd love for every day and week to be great and show a rise in ability, it's important for me to understand that I won't feel 100% every day and some weeks will reflect that. I only logged 16 miles, and most of it came via that big workout. But yesterday, feeling recovered, I took a fitness test for the DMV and ran a :44 300m and a 9:58 1.5 mile, both marks faster than I predicted for myself. And this morning, my 3.8 mile easy run felt just fine, no soreness or labored breathing. 

In both backing off the intensity of these workout sessions and weathering these peaks and valleys that come through training, I can grind my way to some personal bests this Fall. 

Structured

While it is said that things with more structure are more sound, structure is quite interesting to experience. I recovered from my cold after a few more days and gingerly returned to running on the days before my trip to DC, and even managed to get some runs in while on the trip. The purpose for the trip, a structured interview with Customs & Border Protection, was a success and allowed me to enjoy a couple days in our nations' capital before spending a night in Raleigh with some friends on the town.

This is where another form of structure has been developed, in my training. That Sunday, while Damarius enjoyed 3 sets of 3x300m @ 800m pace, I attacked my first workout. Modeled after the workout seen here, Badger Workout, I did a mile warm up, a two mile tempo @ 17:00 w/ 3:00 rest, a one mile tempo @ 7:40 w/ 2:00 rest, 5 x 300m @ 75 w/ minute rest, and then a mile warm down. I needed a rest day that Monday, but since then I've gone on at least a 35~ minute run each day. I say at least because I've also put in a 55~ minute long run, a 45~ minute medium long run, and a 6x700m session averaging 7:37 pace w/ 1:30 rest, and a combined 1.5 miles of warm up and down. In addition to the structured base training, I've also started doing push ups and pull ups most days, and am attempting to progress through Coach Jay Johnson's General Strength & Mobility routines, seen here Jay Johnson's GSM.

The structured approach is (roughly) this: a long run of 20% of the total weekly mileage, 10% of the work faster than easy but slower than 2 hour race pace, and 10% of the work below 2 hour race pace. This allows for the necessary aerobic development and prevents over-training. Over the past week I've run 30 miles, so after a few weeks, I'll increase the total up to 35 and continue building a base for fall races.

Post Collegiate Racing

Word on the street is that I am my friend Damarius' track coach, and by word on the street I mean this blog. Here's a link to some training we did in the Fall of 2013: August, September, and October. I've been giving him workouts since the beginning of Spring but I recently decided it would be a good idea to share them with you. I've backlogged everything major he did in June and will share it here with you, and going forward will provide periodical updates.

1) 4x800m @ 3:12 w/2:00 rest. 4x400m @ 1:18 w/1:30 rest. 4x200m @ :33 w/:60 rest. 4x100m @ :14 w/:60 rest.

2) Pre-meet: 300m/200m/100m @ :60/:35/:15 w/1:30 rest. Meet: 11.6 100m and 52.4 400m.

3) 2 sets of 4x200m @ 32 w/1:30 rest, 3:00 between sets.

4) 6x600m @ 2:20-2:10 w/1:30 rest. 5:00 rest. 6x200m @ 33-30 w/1:30 rest.

5) 2:08 800m.

6) 5x300m @ :49 w/1:30 rest. 5:00 rest. 3x150m @ :20 w/2:00 rest.

7) Wednesday: 51.6 400m. 12:04 3000m tempo. Saturday: 20:05 5000m.

8) 3 sets of 3x300m @ :50 w/1:15 rest and 5:00 between sets.

9) 2x300m @ 42 & 40 w/6:00 rest

He opened up his season on May 20th with a 24-low 200m and a 2:13 800m. The following week he ran a 53-mid 400m. In his only mile of the season, he ran 4:58. Every week he has stepped on the track, he has run a seasons best, and considering all his personal bests are from more than 6 years ago now, I think he's had a great summer so far. However, the goals are still the 50 second and 2 minute barriers. Hopefully I can help him get closer to those before the next time I provide a training and racing update.

Pros and Cons of Getting Out

I have a cold, so the rest continues while I struggle to breathe and avoid to unbearable North Carolina heat. While I'm used to it being hot here, the abrupt jump to 100 degree weather is quite baffling. Anyhow, last week's medical exam went well, outside of a test the hospital failed to administer. Thankfully Laurinburg is just a short drive from here. A week from now, I'll be headed to Washington, D.C. for my Border Patrol oral hiring board, that will not be a short drive.

On Thursday, I was supposed to have a fitness test and interview for a correctional officer position with the state. But I got lost in Raleigh for 40 minutes, and my heart rate was through the roof and I wasn't allowed to take the test. While I'm sure it was elevated, they used a battery operated cuff to check it, and if you aren't aware, they are extremely inaccurate. Oh well, I will reschedule. The weekend just started earlier than planned. I got to hang out Thursday evening with my cousin and his wife in Chapel Hill, got to have drinks with my friends late into the night in downtown Raleigh, and got up early on Saturday for a road trip to the mountains. We made our way to Gorges State Park and hiked into the Pisgah National Forest, where we saw Rainbow Falls and dived into it from a ledge 20 feet up. Pro tip, make sure your friend can swim before doing such things, because mine tried to drown on me, NOT GOOD. But it was a fun weekend with family & friends.

By the end of the trip, my calf was completely healed, which left me excited to restart my training. However, this cold decided to hang out with me for a few days. So it looks like I'll have taken 2 weeks off before I can restart. Remember there are worse things than resting on minor injuries and through colds, no use burying myself beneath a worse injury or letting the sickness drag on and further affect my lungs.

So there you have it, pros and cons of getting out. You might have a great time, or your friend might try to drown and you'll get sick.

The Joy of Racing, the Agony of Resting

I last spoke to you through this medium in the midst of Week 11, right after logging three straight 19 mile weeks. I now come to you after logging 23, 27, and 28 miles the last three weeks. After racing three times, on two days, over the span of five days. And after taking four days off now due to a minor calf strain. First, let's address that 150% bump in mileage. I simply went from running 3.8 miles five days a week, to running 4.22/4.45 six days a week. While that's roughly a 15-20% increase in daily mileage, it isn't that big of a jump when you aren't running high mileage, my body handled it really well.

Here is the exciting part. I returned to racing for the first time in three years with a 2.9 mile road race, called the Columbus County Farmer's Market 5k in Whiteville. I went in with the goal of running 7:20 pace and finishing in the Top 10. I came with 2nd place off 7:16 pace, moving up from 4th to 2nd in the final mile. I followed that up four days later with a return to the track after 6 years away. I raced a mile and a 800m at an all-comers meet in Chapel Hill. The goals there were to run under 6:40 and 3:00. Luckily, there was about an hour between those two races. Unluckily, me and my friend only got there five minutes before my mile race. My warm up consisted of a one lap jog, and a 100m sprint from the bathroom. I didn't have time to change out of my trainers. I still ran 6:29. Yeah, I know. I recovered from that effort, got into my racing shoes, and rocked a 2:47 800m. Safe to say I'm in much better shape than I thought.

Okay so about this calf strain, I had a pre-employment fitness exam for the Border Patrol last week, and afterwards I came home to run 5 miles and do a few strides. For one of them, I had a neighbor join me before he started shooting hoops, and it turned into a sprint. Didn't feel anything then, but it was a bit sore that night. Ran the following morning, did my strides, and from there on my calf has been pretty useless. It's starting to come around, which is good because I have a pre-employment medical exam tomorrow, and another fitness test in three days. Once it has cleared up, I'll be able to return to logging mileage, continuing that patient buildup I mentioned in 'Brick by Brick'. This complete down week allows for a bit of extra recovery after 13 weeks, or 3 months of consistent mileage. None of that fitness building was in vain, as now I'm at a new level for when I "begin again" next week.

Brick by Brick

I've run a lot of miles since I last posted about training. I gained a lot of fitness, lost some of it, and am now somewhere between not fit and really fit. My last training post came in July, after I had been using the Flotrack running logs for the previous month. In April through June of 2014, I probably averaged about 15 miles a week. In July, my weekly totals were 15, 17, 18, and 12. In August, 17, 17, 14, and 19. In September, 10, 19, 26, and 17. In October, 23, 30, 30, 33, and 26. In November, 40, 27, 26, and 27. With an 11 and a 13 in December. Then I took a break because my legs were way past beat up. Then I continued the break because it was the holiday season. Then my Mom passed away and there just wasn't any joy to be found in running for a while. Then I wanted to start back but felt ashamed I had stopped. But now I'm in the middle of my 11th week of running again. Weeks 2 and 3 were cut short due to a wisdom tooth extraction, but in the other 9, I've managed to get in 17, 14, 16, 19, 17, 19, 19, and 19 miles. I've increased my daily run length by nearly 2 miles now, but I went from 7 days of running to 5 days because of hectic travel and injury concerns.

Looking back on last years cycle, I am amazed to see I ran in the 30s several times and even managed a week of 40, but there was a no progressive build up to those totals, which I believe sacrificed my ability to maintain health. This time, I hope to be more conservative in my build up to peak mileage. One difference in this cycle from the last is that I am only doing easy running, as opposed to intermittent workouts like last year. I've also reduced the number of strides I do after a run, and not added in a long run yet, but I do surge up a 250m hill a couple times a week, as well as do a couple strides up the steepest 100m section.

While I didn't have many interval workouts last year, I have a few I want to try again once I end my base phase. First, I did a 4 x Mile session, averaging 7:27 with 2:15 rest, in mid-October. In early November, I did 12 x 700m averaging 3:13 (7:24 pace) off 65 seconds rest, and felt very strong, though it did make me very sore.

I look forward to posting more regularly about my training from here on out!

On Loss

I'm going to skip the part where I reintroduce myself to you and fully explain my absence from the digital writing scene. We all know where that post leads. (hint: To a subsequent reintroduction and explanation of further absence.)

Rather, I'm going to talk about what it's like, for me, to miss someone who is truly gone. On January 14th, my mother passed away at the age of 57. While she had been varying levels of sick since 2004, her death shocked me. She had gone in to the emergency room for a painful albeit non-life threatening condition on January 5th, when they discovered the toxin levels in her liver were high. On January 6th, she underwent her third liver stent placement, which was successful. I sat with her in post-op and later in her room until they delivered her dinner, at which point I kissed her on the forehead and told her I loved her, and she told me she loved me too.

Those were the last words my Mom spoke to me, and the last time I saw her awake. The following day, while I stayed home to clean up the house for her return, she became increasingly incoherent. Despite a blood transfusion that night, she was worse on Wednesday morning when my Dad went up, and they had to move her to the IR, where she was placed in a coma, one that she would not wake up from.

I spent countless hours by the Mom's side over the course of the following week. But I can't quite picture her in that state, a mental block I'm glad I have. I don't want to remember her like that. When I think of my Mom, I think of all the television we watched together, the walks around the yard admiring nature, the adventures in Lumberton. Those are pleasant memories, ones that brings a smile to my face. This is part of missing someone, missing the shared experiences and happy moments. But it is not all that you miss.

Most painfully, you miss the future moments you could have had. Things you wish you could say, things you have to learn to do alone, moments where you desperately want that person with you. Luckily, these are usually in passing or else I'd be tortured on a daily basis just doing the dishes or watching crime dramas. While I certainly wept when she passed away and I wept when we buried her, I haven't since. Nothing has brought me to that level of sadness, as each day has been equally bad as the previous one. However, I do think that there will be monumental days in my life in which her absence will bring me to tears. When I get married, and when I have my children, I will surely be a wreck, as I promised my Mom I would make her an integral part of those events unlike my older brother.

I wanted to share this with you simply to get it out of me. I don't expect any of these feelings and thoughts to be shocking, but as someone who had never experienced the loss of a loved one before, I was unaware how I would react. And for those of you who have and continue to support me through this new chapter in my life, I can not thank you enough, you have been invaluable to me.