2016 Dirty Love 10k Trail Race

This was the third time I did the Dirty Love 10k. Each year, the conditions have been different. This year, it was pretty damn cold (1:16). Two years ago, it was snowing the entire time (1:32). Three years ago, it was warmer and the trail was in decent condition (1:20).

Course: 6.2 miles, trail, 542 feet of elevation gain
→ A lot of elevation for Ohio!

Weather: 10-12 degrees, sunny, no wind
→ Lack of wind was KEY.

Conditions: ~4 inches of snow on the trail, mostly packed, with some icy areas, nothing too treacherous

Gear: Brooks PureFlow 2 with screws, Injinji socks, CEP compression sleeves, Nike tights with windproof panel, thin Brooks tank, Craft half-zip, Nike Flash jacket, Mizuno Breath Thermo gloves with Sugoi windmitts, Nike hat, Buff
→ I was slightly overdressed. A lighter half-zip or a lighter jacket would have been perfect. Craft half-zip is THE.SHIT.

Time: 1:16:23 (old course PR: 1:20:14), 12:19 pace
→ According to my Garmin, I ran 6.1 so my pace was 12:32.

Heart rate: 172 average, 189 max
→ I didn't look at my HR at all during the run. According to the data, I hit my max several times.

I've been doing heart rate training and really trying to stick with it for four of six weekly runs. That means I've been running really slowly most of the time with the aim of keeping my HR under 150. That gets a little tricky with the dog running (and group running), and I feel like I'm cheating some because I know the reason my HR ends up in range is because dogs stop and sniff and poop a lot.

Let's back up to Saturday. I got up early, ran 3.6 miles slowly on the treadmill, headed out to breakfast (one big pancake & bacon!) and then went to Aaron's dad's house to watch the Olympic Trials. Later we went out to dinner at Old Prague where I had weiner schnitzel and dumplings for dinner. I had two beers throughout the day and a Nuun before bed. I went to bed around 11.

Race morning: The alarm went off at 6:45 and I got up around 7 am. I ate some cereal with almond milk (corn and wheat Chex mix) and drank a caffeinated Nuun. We got on the road around 8, so we got to North Chagrin Reservation around 9. We had a half-hour to get our bibs, warm up and use the bathroom before the race start at 9:30. After our warmup -- the run to/from the shelter to get our bibs -- I settled on wearing the PureFlow 2s with screws. Good decision. About 20 minutes before the race start, I ate a lemonade Roctane.

The race itself: The way it starts -- run across a field into the woods, cross a bridge and head uphill -- really puts you in position for a while. I stayed toward the back, and although it was frustrating, it was probably a good decision. It didn't leave me gassed for the rest of the race. But it did leave me with an incredibly slow first mile.

It starts to spread out, but I still had trouble jockeying for position. I'm not very aggressive and tend to let others set the pace. By halfway, I was over that and ready to move on. I spent the first few miles with two other women ahead of me, seemingly running stronger than I. By the fifth mile or so, I passed them -- for good. I was solo for a decent amount of time, but whenever I came upon someone, I was able to pass. Perhaps this means I took it too easy, but it felt good to feel so strong and to pass so many people. I don't think I was passed in the last two miles at all, although in the last mile, I could hear someone on my tail. When I passed two other people, that made it difficult for that person to get to me; he/she never did.

Mile 1: 15:59
Mile 2: 12:42
Mile 3: 12:05
Mile 4: 11:43
Mile 5: 11:51
Mile 6: 11:14
Nubbin: 8:06 pace

So clearly I wasn't speedy! But it was still better than before. Afterward, I had hot chocolate and two cookies, and then Aaron and I hit Five Guys on the way home. Great morning. Great way to start Valentine's Day!

I am just amazed at how good I felt throughout the race. I think the heart rate training is working! I haven't been following a program, just kind of making up my own, but I think running four days at 150 or less and then doing workouts or races for the other two runs is working. This is encouraging me to stick with it even when I have to run (so much!) slower than my friends.

Weekly Plan

I didn't add my weekly plan to the recap post, so I'm going to think through the week right now. I want to be flexible, but still keep building mileage and staying on track with HR training. I would like to get back to around 33 miles for the week, so generally that looks like 5 miles Monday-Thursday and 13 over the weekend. It shouldn't be a problem to hit strength two or three times, and we'll dog-run as the weather sees fit.

• Monday: 45- to 60-minute HR run + strength + maintenance
• Tuesday: 45- to 60-minute dog run + maintenance
• Wednesday: 4-mile pub run (expected HR over aerobic limit) + maintenance
• Thursday: 45- to 60-minute HR run + strength + maintenance (could be just dog run + maintenance)
• Friday: rest
• Saturday: 30- to 45-minute HR run + strength + maintenance
• Sunday: 10-minute run (tentative plan: first half at 150 HR, second half at 160 HR) + maintenance // this might also be a mid-length trail run of 8 miles or so

"HR run" means keeping the heart rate under 150, but I'm thinking I'll let it go to 160 for my long runs. If I keep it under 150 for the first half and let it go to 160 for the second half, that should work okay (although I'll be dreadfully slow and make everyone wait way too long for me -- that's where HR training is really tricky). 

I'm also tracking my morning heart rate, and it seems that three beers results in a HR in the high 60s in the morning. I checked six mornings last week, and it averaged 65.5. I'm starting off well this week. I had two beers last night, and my HR was 59 this morning. That's a new low for me in the morning! (I just checked, and it's 56 right now.)

Training Recap - 02/01 through 02/07

It's February, so it's time for shit to get real. I'm still worried about my calf, but easy running and lots of maintenance should keep it in check. Big jump in mileage this week, although a lot of it was easy and/or dog running. I tried daily 10-minute strength sessions, and that doesn't work for me. After not doing anything on Friday's rest day, I just gave up. I'll go back to trying to do strength twice a week. No cross-training this week, and now that I'm running so very easy most of the time, I'm guessing XT won't happen.

6 runs in 6 days (4.5trail)
33+ miles
155 average heart rate, 179 max heart rate
65 average resting heart rate
4 strength (short sessions)
0 XT
5 maintenance (foam-rolling, stretching, Myrtl)

Sunday's trail run at Plateau Trail

Monday: 5.24 miles in 1 hour (11:27 pace, 146 avg HR) + 10-15 min of strength (lower) & maintenance
I headed home after work and just hopped on the treadmill for an hour, still doing that low HR thing. I watched some Buffy while running, and by the end, I had to drop the pace horrifyingly low to keep my HR from being too high. Trust the process, trust the process.

I'm aiming for at least 10 minutes of strength work per day, so Monday was lower body (squats, one-legged squats, Myrtls, etc.).

Tuesday: 5.25 miles (dog running, 143 avg HR) + 10-15 min of strength (core, upper) & maintenance
I took three dogs out: Minnie, Buddy and Carlita. All of them were easy-going joys! Young Minnie continues her recovery from surgery, Buddy is young and Carlita is older. <3

Wednesday: 5 miles (9:41 average w/ middle 3 at 9:10, 172 avg HR) + 10-15 min of strength (lower) & maintenance
Group run night! Except I decided to pick up the pace at the 2-mile turnaround so I ran 2 miles solo and then Aaron joined me for a cooldown mile. I ran my fastest mile of the year so far: 8:29. Max HR was 189. Felt pretty good.

Thursday: 4.25 miles (dog running, 146 avg HR) + 10 min of strength (upper)
Another dog running night! No one new, but two dogs who needed to go out. Bernice (my little project) and Karma are both in the back, and I think it's hard on them. They both pulled more than usual, so there must have been something in the air.

Friday: rest

Saturday: 9 miles (Hadd test, 1:45, 160 avg HR) + maintenance
See this post for details of the Hadd test, but a lot of this run was VERY slow because it was based on heart rate. I felt good, though, and I'm looking forward to repeating the workout in six weeks. Also it's kind of fun not worrying about pace at all, just going by HR.

Sunday: 4.5 miles (trail, 163 avg HR) + foam-rolling
Beautiful morning for a trail run! I felt pretty good too. There's something to this slow running.

Upcoming week:

Monday: 45-60 minutes easy + strength
Tuesday: dog running (may switch w/ Thursday)
Wednesday: 5-6 miles (speed)
Thursday: 45-60 minutes easy + strength (could always be dogs)
Friday: rest
Saturday: 3-4 miles easy
Sunday: 10k trail race

January Recap

(Oops - never finished this so I never published it.)

Given the weird calf issues and general out-of-shapeness, January turned out okay:

Walk/Run	Run	Avg Run	Runs	Trail	Dog
110.61	109.61	4.38	25	4	4

Fast Mile	Speed	Avg Pace	Time	per day
0:08:49	2	0:11:26	24:16:02	0:46:58

Races	Strength	Bike	Ellip	Rest
1*	6	2	2	4

I also started doing more heart rate training, so I'm not even going to really look at my overall pace. I've slowed WAY down (which is fine and to be expected), but it will be useful as HR training progresses, right?

I've also started tracking my average resting heart rate (first thing in the morning, before getting up). I only have four days in January, and the average was 64.5.

Heart Rate
Avg	Max	Rest	Aerobic	Too High
156	175	64.5	13	13

* The only race I did in January was the Dirty Snowflake Prediction Run where I finished third.

Hadd Test

I did my first Hadd test on Saturday morning. It's basically 5x2400 with 90 seconds rest at varying heart rates. I structured mine like this:

• 1.5 miles at 140 HR
• 1.5 miles at 150 HR
• 1.5 miles at 160 HR
• 1.5 miles at 170 HR
• 1.5 miles at 180 HR
• 1.5 miles cooldown

So 9 miles, which was the farthest I'd run in quite some time. My results:

• 9 miles in 1:45:17 at 11:42 pace
• 142 at 13:59 pace
• 151 at 13:21 pace
• 161 at 11:45 pace
• 171 at 10:15 pace
• 181 at 9:09 pace

Newton Gravity IV

The first two repeats were dreadfully slow. In the first one, I stopped to walk a lot. Second was better, although there were a couple of walk breaks. Third and fourth, I felt normal. Fifth, I felt like I was pushing some, but generally felt fine. I think I'm used to being at a higher heart rate.

There's not much to say right now as this is really a baseline result. Clearly my heart rate is too high, which indicates poor aerobic conditioning. I'm looking forward to repeating the test in six weeks to see if I've improved. 

Overall, I enjoyed the workout. It was pretty easy/very comfortable for much of the run, and I looked forward to pushing the pace on the last rep. I've since adjusted the workout on my watch because I had the target pace at the top of the intensity range. That meant even at 1 or 2 beats over, the watch was alerting me. I changed the alert so that now, for example, the range is 148 to 153 for a target 150 HR. That should work better. 

Nutrition notes: I did go out Friday night to a beer tasting and to a bar. I had soup, a taco and chips for dinner (along with a Diet Coke). Between the tasting and the bar, I probably had three pints. I went to bed around 11:30 and got up around 7:30, so decent night's sleep. I ate a bagel (half with butter and half with pb&j) and drank a cherry lime caffeinated Nuun before the run. It was around 30 and sunny for the run itself. I carried water and took a Roctane strawberry kiwi gel at 4.5 miles. 

Gear notes: I wore Saucony convertible gloves, Brooks ear warmer, Brooks Utopia tights, pink Nike top with kangaroo pocket, Injinji socks (of course), Newton Gravity IVs. Fourth and longest run in the Gravity IVs, and they're dirty AF. I think I like them, and I am totally bummed that my store isn't carrying Newtons anymore. 

Training Recap - 01/25 through 01/31

Last week of January! Because of everything going on this week, the goal was 6 runs for mileage in the mid 20s plus one strength session and lots of foam-rolling/stretching/Myrtls. I also planned to start heart rate training and to check my resting heart rate first thing in the morning. The initial plan is to keep my heart rate under 150 for every run except for the Wednesday group run (knowing that it's dark and I don't want to run alone). How did I do?

6 runs in 5 days (0 trail)
26+ miles
148 average heart rate, 166 max heart rate
1 strength
0 XT
4 maintenance (foam-rolling, stretching, Myrtl)
1 massage

Monday: 3.79 miles (11:52 pace, 150 avg HR) + strength + maintenance
Despite the nice 40+ temps and clear skies, I headed to the gym. Training by heart rate means everything takes way longer. I walked first and then started slowly jogging, and I still had to take a walk break or two to keep my heart rate under 150. Frustrating.

Tuesday: 4.95 miles (dog running, 147 avg HR) + maintenance
I ran three dogs: Minnie for almost two miles, Bernice for over two miles and Sandy for the remainder. Luckily the dogs like to take breaks, which made it easier to keep my heart rate under 150.

Wednesday: 5 miles (9:49 pace, 172 avg HR) + maintenance
I knew I'd be out of my heart rate zone for this run because I was running with the group. I didn't want to run solo! Despite the high HR, I felt fine. Calves were tight, but not painful.

Thursday: massage
I had hoped to get up and run easy before work, but sleep won out. I was tired. After work, I got a massage. I don't think I require as much work right now, so my next one is in 4 weeks. I may move to 6 weeks after that.

Friday: 5.07 miles (11:50 pace, 145 avg HR) + maintenance
             + 2.14 miles (11:41, 142 avg HR)
The benefit of the treadmill is that it's easier to watch my pace. I ran an hour before work while watching Gilmore Girls and just kept it nice and easy. After the first mile, I didn't change the speed on the TM, but I did hop off to grab a drink, which is why there are variations in the splits.

M1: 12:05, 136 HR
M2: 11:42, 144 HR
M3: 11:44, 146 HR
M4: 11:55, 148 HR
M5: 11:46, 149 HR
(.07: 11:45, 154 HR)

Since my HR didn't go over target until the very last bit, I guess the hour was just right. It'll be interesting to compare similar workouts. Also, my cadence is too slow on these slow, easy runs, so I need to work on that.

After work, I spent 2+ miles on the treadmill testing out my new Newton Gravity shoes.

Saturday: off (Pittsburgh)

Sunday: 5.16 miles (dog running, 141 avg HR)
When we got back from Pittsburgh, we headed over to the shelter. I actually ended up taking out the same three dogs as earlier in the week. My heart rate shot up over 190 when a loose dog charged me and Bernice, but I recovered quickly :)

Upcoming week:
It's time to get serious. I have done all I can to verify that I don't have a stress fracture, I'm doing lots of maintenance to keep the calves in check and I'm running mostly easy. It's time to build up the distance again so I can run all of my races! 27 to 32 miles with two strength-training sessions. I may have to start doing morning workouts to get in two strength. Ugh. All runs but Wednesday and Saturday should be under 150 HR; not sure how I'm going to handle Sunday's run because trail runs typically get my heart rate above target.

• Monday: 3- to 5-mile easy run or XT + strength
• Tuesday: 3- to 5-mile dog run or easy run
• Wednesday: 5-mile group run (maybe 5 miles w/ 3 at pace?) 
• Thursday: 3- to 5-mile dog run or easy run + strength
• Friday: rest (possibly move strength to here?)
• Saturday: 9-mile Hadd test (5x1.5M w/ 1.5M cooldown)
• Sunday: 4-mile trail run

Heart Rate Training

Because I finally got a heart rate monitor and I'm not trying to set any PRs this spring, this is the perfect time for heart rate training. (This spring is just about staying healthy so I can run ALL THE RACES.) I've done a bunch of reading and have come to some conclusions:

• Heart rate training takes tremendous patience.
• You need to ditch your ego.
• Easy runs are the bread and butter of most training plans. They served me well over the summer, although I probably ran them too fast, and there's no reason to ditch them. 
• My aerobic system isn't well-conditioned, and I've probably lost a lot since October.
• Maffetone and his method contains too much bullshit pseudo-science for me to take him seriously. "Carbohydrate intolerance" and "adrenal fatigue" are two phrases that raise red flags. The formula for your target heart rate is WAY too low (I'm 40, have asthma and take daily medications), and I can't see that it's really based on any real science. The upside to Maffetone is that you're not likely to get injured this way and you will build your aerobic system. You also won't be able to have any fun or do any group runs. 
• The Hadd method is more realistic and incorporates workouts. Two higher-HR runs/week sounds great to me. That gives me a trail run and a workout -- perfect! (My long runs might be an issue, but I'm not going to worry about that yet.)

Currently I'm running five to six days/week and slowly building up my mileage. (I'm also trying to do some regular strength-training and lots of maintenance work.) I'm keeping my heart rate at 150 for most runs (and I have no real reason for choosing that HR), but I will just let Wednesday group runs go as they go. I may move into workouts those nights (especially as we get more daylight) because the moderate pace probably isn't doing me any favors. 

I'm also looking at doing the test that Hadd describes in this PDF. My plan is to do it next week for a 9-miler (5x1.5miles at varying heart rates with a final 1.5 miles as a cooldown). Curious to see how that goes. 

Also, "Hadd" wasn't his real name. He was coach John Walsh who passed away a while back. He was an active contributor on LetsRun.com and seemed like a great guy who was very generous with his time and expertise. All of the info about his methods are online resources, often compiled by other internet users. I'm sad that I just discovered him, and he's no longer with us. 

Training Recap - 01/18 to 01/24

I feel like my training was better when I had a plan, when I recapped the week and previewed the next week. I'm winging the plan these days (training myself, if you will, ala Brad Hudson's Run Faster from the 5k to the Marathon), but maybe I should put some more thought into it. Recapping and planning the week ahead will help.

I also bought myself a wrist-based heart rate monitor (Mio Link) that connects to my Garmin or my phone/iPad, so that should be some fun data to track. I've just been using it to track my HR during runs/workouts, but I think I'm going to start checking it first thing in the morning for a while.

The plan going into the week was to bump up my mileage a bit (from low 20s to mid 20s) and to do two strength-training sessions and probably one cross-training. As my calf is feeling better and I am upping my mileage, I'm guessing XT will fall again. I need to keep up with the strength though. Only goal for the first half of the year is to stay injury-free -- any "fast" races are bonuses.

I ended up with 27+ miles and two strength-training sessions (admittedly, however, the second one was much weaker than the first). No cross-training.

Monday: 3.25 TM miles | 10:46, easy | 146 avg HR | full-body strength
Gear: Saucony Mirage 5
I ran 3 miles slowly and walked a quarter-mile to fully cool down. I followed that up with about 25 minutes strength-training. I didn't do as much ab work as I should have, but I did stretch and foam-roll a bit; I also did my Myrtls.

Tuesday: 5 TM miles | 10:31, speed | 162 avg HR, 188 max
Gear: Saucony Kinvara 5, calf sleeves
Because of my cranky calf, I am easing into speed workouts. I warmed up for a mile, ran two miles at half-marathon pace (9:03), ran moderate for a quarter-mile (10:00), ran a quarter-mile "fast" (8:00), walked until my HR dropped, jogged until I hit 4.5 miles and then walked until I hit 5. I followed that up with some stretching, but I skipped my Myrtls and don't think I did any foam-rolling. I iced my calf while having a beer.

Wednesday: 4 miles | 10:08, pub run | 169 avg HR, 186 max
Gear: Saucony RunShield Kinvara 5, calf sleeves
Monthly pub run! We were a little group of four among the big group, and we just ran pretty easy (although my max heart rate indicates otherwise). I foam-rolled my legs when I got home, and they felt better.

Thursday: 4 miles | dog running | 150 avg HR, 174 max | strength
Gear: Saucony RunShield Kinvara 5, right calf sleeve
I had THE BEST dogs Thursday night. I started with Karma, a cattle dog/terrier mix, who is gentle and responsive. We easily ran 2 miles, and I only cut it short because of the cold. She got something (maybe salt?) in her back paw and had no problem with me removing it. Very sweet. Stops, pees and sniffs some. I followed up Karma with Minnie who is another mix. They say shepherd and Shiba Inu. Her ears look like a Corgis - so cute. She recently had surgery so she's on a strict exercise regimen and I was happy to help. She needed 20-25 minutes so we did another 2 miles. She likes to hold the leash. I followed up with about 20 minutes of at-home strength-training (lunges, pushups, etc.).

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 5 miles | trail | 12:36 pace | 169 avg HR, 185 max
Gear: Saucony Peregrine 5, calf sleeves
A group of us met Saturday morning to check out a new trail. Honestly I didn't feel great. I didn't drink a lot Friday night, but I also didn't eat a lot, nor did I drink enough water. We parked at the Wetmore trailhead, but crossed the street to do part of the Langes trail, finishing up on the Wetmore. Good loop that we can easily add on more mileage. My right calf felt mostly okay, and I stretched, rolled and did my Myrtls afterward.

Sunday: 6 miles | 10:19, easy | 164 avg HR, 175 max
Gear: Saucony RunShield Kinvara 5, calf sleeves
We met at the Towpath for six easy miles. I lagged behind the group some to keep my heart rate down. (Why is it always so high?! Starting to do more research.) I felt better than Saturday though.It was really cold initially, but it did warm up by the end. My right calf bothered me a little afterward, but nothing bed. Stretching seemed to help, although I did not do enough.

Upcoming week:
Things are tricky this week. I have a massage Thursday, and we're going to Pittsburgh for the weekend. I need to be a grown-up and get shit done despite other activities. Aiming for mid20s again, but realistically only one strength session. I should be able to fit in some ab work maybe, and at least foam-rolling uses my upper body!

• Monday: 3-6 miles - if at the gym, I'll add speed, strength and XT; if not, I'll do some at-home stuff while foam-rolling, stretching and Myrtling
• Tuesday: dog running so 3-5 miles with foam-rolling, stretching and Myrtling later
• Wednesday: group run so 5-6 miles probably, hopefully I'll at least Myrtl
• Thursday: 3 miles, easy (before work) + massage after work
• Friday: 6 miles, before work, hopefully I'll at least Myrtl and do some foam-rolling before going to work
• Saturday: rest
• Sunday: 3-5 miles, easy (or maybe trail in my neighborhood) plus foam-rolling, stretching and Myrtling

Thursday, Friday & Sunday are going to be the issue! I should probably try to front-load mileage as much as I can.

Dirty Snowflake Prediction Run

On Saturday, Jan. 16, I did the Dirty Snowflake Prediction Run for the fourth time -- and this time, I got it right! The premise is that you predict how long it will take you to run the race and then you run blind (without a watch/phone/timing device). The goal is to predict your time as closely as possible. I predicted 42:23 and came in 42:21 -- pretty damn good! But first and second places were 1 second and decided by a fraction.

The week before, there was a preview run, which I did. I think that really helped even though course conditions were slightly different. It's roughly 4 miles (more like 3.75) and starts at the Ledges. You do the Ledges trail and the Pine Grove trail, and it's pretty runnable. The Ledges are harder to run because it's rockier, narrow and busier as it's the beginning of the race.

When we did the preview run, it was threatening rain, but luckily we missed most of that. It was pretty pleasant to run actually. When we finished, it started raining harder and the temps were dropping so we got lucky there. I ran that run around an 11;20 pace. For the race, it was a little colder (20s) and I knew there was some ice, but it shouldn't be too bad. I figured the ice would make up for the "race adrenaline" so I'd probably run around the same time, maybe a touch faster. So that's what I predicted.

2012 race: 52:15
2013 race: 46:25
2014 race (major course change due to ice so not comparable): 37:59
2016 race: 42:21

The only problem with a prediction run is that you have to wait until everyone finishes for awards. After I checked my time, I knew I would probably place so I had to stick around. We were in the Ledges shelter, so that was helpful. There was ramen and coffee so it wasn't too cold while we waited. "We" is just me and one friend because no one else could do the race or was interested. I was glad he was there to keep me company. (He even filmed me accepting my medal. And by the way, big props to the race director for getting my name right!)

I really like this race. 4ish miles is a nice length, it's friendly for beginners and walkers, there's an indoor place to hang out and it's not super-expensive. I am loving being on the trails more even if it's not so good on my calf. I just need to strengthen everything more so I can be healthy for the Salt Fork race at the end of April.

2016 Races

I have a bunch of races coming up. While I would love to see some PRs, I want to be injury-free. So everything, as far as a training plan, is in flux. I'm registered for a lot, and I need to be healthy by April. For the HMs, sub-2:10 would be okay, right?

• Jan. 16 - Dirty Snowflake Prediction Run (4 miles, trails)
• Jan. 24 - Winter Buckeye Trail Half Marathon ---- dropped out b/c of calf
• Feb. 14 - Dirty Love 10k Trail Run
• Feb. 27 - Chili Bowl 5k ---- not registered, won't do if I don't think I can PR
• March 6 - Shamrock 15k
• April 10 - Athens Half Marathon
• April 24 - Glass City Half Marathon
• April 30 - Salt Fork Spring Challenge (10.4 miles, trails) ---- need to beat my 2015 time!
• May 15 - Cleveland Half Marathon
• June 5 - Great Breweries 25k (Belgium!)

2016 and time to log stuff again.

Recap of November, December and the first half of January: Mileage dipped to 20, got back up to 30, settled in the mid 20s where I am while now. Ran most days, nothing too far. Handful of strength sessions. More trail runs. Right calf pain came back in December, possibly worse than June's pain, so I made an appointment with an ortho and a massage therapist.

It took a while to get into the ortho so in the meantime I made an appointment with a massage therapist at a place with more of a clinical bent. He listened to me, worked with me on some stretches and worked the hell out of my calves ("Your left calf doesn't bother you? I'm surprised.). We didn't even get to my back or upper body. I immediately scheduled a second appointment, which I've already had. I see him again next week.

At the beginning of January, I had my appointment with the ortho. After much talking, prodding and X-Rays, it's probably not a stress fracture (fibula, the smaller calf bone), although it's possible I had one earlier. No MRI at this time as they are expensive and insurance is picky about covering them,

Upping the mileage with more trails is probably causing the inflammation (peroneal tendons). On that same leg, I also appear to have a minor patella alta, which means that the patella is riding high. For me, that's likely because my quad is tight and pulling it up. That also might be affecting my gait and my push-off and causing the pain in my calf. 

The ortho was not cheap and I am not rich. We are going with an "as-needed" relationship where I hopefully do not have to go back. If I wanted to be more aggressive, I would be in a boot, scheduling physical therapy and signing up for a new gym membership with a pool. Instead I am backing off running some, integrating more strength and stretching and cutting some of the trail running. And also seeing the massage therapist once every 3 to 4 weeks.

The therapist wants me to warm up my calves better before running and then to stretch them after, which I've been doing. The ortho wants me to focus on nutrition (but not lose weight!), stretching and strengthening. (She also mentioned some crazy stuff about the female athlete triad.)

Managing this body is going to take more time than actually running! 

Training Recap - 11/16 through 11/22

Oh look - the last training log I started.

Monday: 4 miles, 42 minutes, NB 1400
Target: 30 minutes, easy

I met a friend for a dark run on the Bike & Hike. It was fine, although I wished I'd worn my light gloves. I didn't feel good, nor did I feel bad. I note that I really need to get my running back on track. It's the 16th and I hit 50 miles for the month (will I even hit a hundred?).

Tuesday: 3.5 miles, dog running, 55 minutes, Newton Fate
Target: off, XT or 30 minutes, easy

I had my sweet Puggle Penny again and then a cocker named Andy. Both are from puppy mills, very sweet and joggers, not runners. I should probably not hang out with Penny anymore seeing as how she climbed into my lap and I nearly took her home.

Wednesday: 5.75 miles, 56;30, Newton Distance
Target: cruise intervals for ~8-mile workout (6x1k + 3x200m strides)

We skipped the pub run so we could get home earlier and get stuff done before going to Asheville this weekend. Because of the unpredictable weather, we ended up running in Kent. It was fine, and I finished well. I am disappointed that I continue to not follow the plan and wonder if I should just ditch the idea altogether.

Sidenote: My Garmin has been giving me fits. It's just over 2 years old, and the charging contacts are really pitted. I've been working with Garmin Support, which sent me a new charger back in May. That didn't fix the problem. I'm still limping the watch along (replacement options are disappointing: another 610 for $99, which is fine, or 20% off another watch, but not the 230, 235 or 630, which is a shitty option). The upside is that I finally got my Timex Ironman OneGPS+ watch that I won a while back. I'll do a full review/comparison, but early indications are that it's not going to work for me long term (no accelerometer, have to do workouts ON THE WATCH, touchscreen doesn't work with gloves).

Training Recap - 11/09 through 11/15

I want to make these recaps more useful for me, so I'm going take a more analytical view of the week's training. Here we go!

What went well: My effort was on point this week. I had a little health issue and skipped my Tuesday run, and I think that was fine. Between the hill workout and the 5k, I did try to accomplish something. I'm also pleased with two dog runs!

What I can improve on: I need to do a better job preparing for a workout, and I also need to be more IN the range rather than on the low end of the range. I also need to balance the dog running better (more minutes and lower mileage are fine, they just need to be balanced by solid runs).

Daily Recap:
5 runs
21+ miles (target 24-28)
242 minutes (target 240-275)
0 strength
3 Myrtl

Monday: 4 miles, 56 minutes, dog running + Myrtl (Newton Fate)
Target: 30 minutes, easy
I ran two dogs Monday night: 1.65 miles with Danny who wasn't much of a runner and 2.35 miles with Herman who could be a great runner but is easily distracted right now. A yellow lab mix, Danny is a little portly and also very intent on marking EVERYTHING. Herman is a young Boxer with energy in spades. He's also super-sweet and knows how to sit.

Tuesday: unplanned rest
Target: 30 minutes, easy or XT (optional)
No one needs the details here, but it was fine for me to skip this run. Bummer though. Officially moved my hill workout to Wednesday.

Wednesday: 5.4 miles, 49:57, Saucony Kinvara 5 + Myrtl
Target: hill run (warmup, 6-8 repeats, cooldown)
The intent was to do a warmup then do six to eight repeats of a hill that would take me 60-75 seconds to run up (recover equal distance) and then do my cooldown. Well, where we ended up running initially seemed perfect, but the hill (a bridge actually) took me around 30 seconds to run. So I ended up doing 10 or 12 repeats of that hill (pretty quickly - the last one was at a 6-minute pace... of course it was only for like a tenth of a mile!). The cooldown was done with the group and was faster than ideal, but since I didn't actually perform the workout as designed, I had plenty left.

TL;DR: Didn't do workout as designed, but the effort was solid. Good first attempt.

Thursday: 2.5 miles, 48 minutes, dog running, Newton Fate
Target: 30 minutes, easy or XT (optional)
Good thing this was optional because I didn't really get "running" dogs Thursday! (This is where the optional runs/lower mileage of McMillan fits in well right now. If I'm going to follow Hansons again at a later date, my dog runs will have to be on days where I double.)

Friday: 6.1 miles, 60 minutes, New Balance 1400 + Myrtl
Target: 60-75 minutes, easy (usually my rest day, but wanted to save that for Saturday)
First run in my new shoes! It was super-windy and the middle miles were right into it.

Saturday: rest

Sunday: Hot Chocolate 5k, 28:11, Newton Distance III
Target: 5k race
I ran under a friend's bib, and she was corralled way farther back than I would have been. (We were BEHIND the 13-minute pacer, for example.) The race was crowded, tons of walkers (walking several abreast), people holding hands, etc. I am confident that I ran faster than a 9:05 pace, and I had a great kick. After a late bedtime and a terrible night's sleep, I'm happy with it.

2016

Well, that escalated quickly.

Not really, but I did win a free entry to the Glass City Half Marathon in Toledo. It's two weeks after Athens and two weeks before Cleveland -- and likely my best chance to PR in the first part of the year.

Aaron's first comment: "Looks like you'll have two sub-1:55s before May."

I don't know about that, but it does relieve pressure for Cleveland. Or does it apply more pressure? Or do I just run and enjoy all of the experiences? We'll see.

Tentative 2016 now:

January: Dirty Snowflake 4-mile prediction run
February: Dirty Love 10k trail race
March: Shamrock 15k
April: Athens Half Marathon & Glass City Half Marathon
May: Cleveland Half Marathon

McMillan Running

As I mentioned earlier, I'm doing a McMillan plan to get me through November and December, and then I'll decide what I'm doing for next year. The structure is fine for me and I can continue running six days a week. The plan actually has more off days, but they're off, crosstraining or easy. Since I'm accustomed to six days/week and I'm doing the dog running, I want to stay there.

The biggest difference, however, is that the plans is based on minutes rather than miles. It's a strange mindset. It's especially useful for easy runs, but I'm finding it more difficult to slow down when I'm running my minutes. I'm hoping that will shake out.

One thing I like about McMillan -- and running less mileage -- is that I can run my easy and long runs a little faster than I did while following Hansons. A lot of my easy runs end up around a 10-minute pace, which is a little fast for Hansons but within the range for McMillan. I haven't done any speedwork yet, so I don't know how the McMillan paces will work for me then.

On Hansons, all of my speedwork was done using a wide range (5k to 10k pace), and I'll be honest: I mostly floated around my 10k pace, which is around 8:45. Because I changed plans after the scheduled speedwork this week, I won't be doing any until next week (I think it's hills). And that's fine: I have a trail race on Saturday. I'm also doing the Hot Chocolate 5k next Sunday, so that's going to mix up my training a little bit.

October Recap

So October was all over the place! I had a peak week, tapered, raced and recovered. I also started dog running weekly.

• 27 activities
• 131.24 miles in 24:17:02 (11:06 pace, which is great considering the walking and dog running; pace was 10:21 if you take those out)
• 5 dog runs
• 5 walks
• 19 Myrtl routine
• 2 strength
• 8 rest days
• 4 trail runs
• 2 races (Munroe Falls, Columbus HM)
• 2 speed sessions (5x1M, 3-mile time trial)
• Highest mileage week: 49 miles
• Lowest mileage week: 13 miles

I'm also well on track to hit 1500 miles for 2015.

Training Recap - 10/26 through 11/01

Week 2 without a plan, enjoying running shorter right now. Initially I kept up with the Myrtls, but other strengthening fell by the wayside. I ran just over 26 miles, which is perfect.

Monday: 4 miles on trails, 11:05 pace, Saucony Kinvara 5 + Myrtl + Core
Is it possible that I'm still not recovered from that 18-week training and the half-marathon? I guess so. On Saturday's run, I felt like the effort was too high for the temps and the pace, and I felt similarly Monday night. Usually when I do this loop, I run for an hour and do whatever within that hour. I decided to cut it short when I hit 4 near the trailhead. Effort seemed too high for what I was running.

Afterward, I made sure to do my Myrtl exercises and some planks, and I'm calling that core work. Baby steps.

Tuesday: 3 miles dog running! Saucony Zealot (blue) + Myrtl
I took out a lovely little 3-year-old Pomeranian/Sheltie mix on Tuesday night. We covered just over 3 miles in 40 minutes. While there were plenty of stops (he pooped three times and peed more than that), we were going at a nice clip. He's a sweet dog who kept looking back for me, likes to jump and spin and really just wants to hang out. It was fun. Later that night, I did my Myrtls and some light stretching.

Wednesday: 5 miles, 10:08 pace, Saucony Kinvara 5 + Myrtl
I really am going to be sad when these 5s are done. Wednesday group run was an easy-paced 5-miler. I'm still feeling tired. Negative-split the first and second half, but the third mile (with the turnaround) ruined a complete negative split (and at 10:22, is what put the pace over 10).

Thursday: birthday! 3 miles, 8:53 pace, Newton Distance III + Myrtl
We had dinner plans, so I only had time for a few miles. As I was running, I decided to consider this as a time trial in preparation for Home Run for the Homeless. Negative splits (9:12, 8:57, 8:29). I know I just posted about a plan for Home Run, but I'm looking at a very structured 2016 and I'm thinking less structure might be better. The idea is to push the pace weekly on a short 3-miler.

Also, these are a new pair of Distance IIIs. They're 8.5s and they're perfect. I loved my old pair, but they were just slightly too small.

Friday: rest
I thought about doing something, but we need to get the house ready for visitors. Plus, Fridays off are my jam.

Saturday: 8 miles, 9:57 pace, Saucony Kinvara 5
I ran by feel and eased into the run. I backed off and let my friends run ahead because I didn't want to be faster than a 10-minute pace. Second half done without looking at my watch was faster than the first, so that's always nice. Finished strong

Sunday: 3.1 miles, dog running with Tag, Saucony Zealot blue
Gorgeous fall day so after I got done with work (baby fair), Aaron and I headed to the shelter to get in a few miles. I had Tag who was pretty great. Sweet and energetic. I think these Zealots are getting close to retirement.

Upcoming week:
Not sure what the plan is going to be. I'm roughly following a McMillan intermediate maintenance plan until half-marathon training starts up again in January. In the early part of the maintenance plan, the runs are all easy; then we move into a couple of workouts per week. I, however, would still like to include a hard 3-miler each week to test progress, although Saturday's race might be my effort run for the week.

McMillan is a mindshift since the plan uses minutes instead of mileage, and obviously I think in terms of miles (I'd like to hit 30 miles this week.) I'm going to give it a shot, though. I joined the McMillan RunClub to test it out. The plans are nice, and there looks to be a really strong community establishing. (That would have been really helpful with Hansons; they should add something like that.) The weather looks good this week, so I don't expect I'll make it back to the gym even with it being dark after work. In any case, back to six days a week!

• Monday: run 50-60 minutes
• Tuesday: run 40-60 minutes
• Wednesday: run 60-75 minutes (group run)
• Thursday: run 40-60 minutes (dog run)
• Friday: rest
• Saturday: Munroe Falls Trail Race (4.4 miles)
  -->should be long run, 90-105 minutes
• Sunday: run 50-60 minutes

Home Run for the Homeless

I've run the Home Run for the Homeless every year since 2010. This Thanksgiving race is the only fundraiser for Gennesaret, which is a nonprofit that provides shelter and food for the homeless. It's well-run with plenty of food afterward. Even though it's small, there are tons of kids (fast ones, college runners) and plenty of fasties show up so there's no placing in my age group here. For example, last year was my best time, and I finished 16 out of 76 in my age group.

In 2010, it was my second official race (about a month after my first 5k, which also benefited the homeless), and it's hilarious to look back at my race recap. I remember that it was raining and that Aaron and I were sincerely concerned that they might cancel the run or hardly anyone would be there.

The challenging 4-mile course runs mostly through Glendale Cemetery in Akron. My watch always measures a little short, and with the few hundred feet of elevation gain and the rain/cold that always accompanies the race, I need the extra time to make my pace kook better :)

My official history of the Home Run for the Homeless:

• 2010: 43:28, 10:52 pace
• 2011: 39:46, 9:57 pace
• 2012: 39:17, 10:21 pace - There was a course change that year and they measured the course at 3.8. Oddly enough I just noticed that my watch time - 38:32 for 3.9 miles - is way different from my official time, which was 39:17. Also I don't remember why I had such a bad race that year. 
• 2013: 36:48, 9:25 pace
• 2014: 35:11, 8:47 pace

Compare that to my watch times (don't have data for 2010):

So there's been real improvement over the past five years, and I'm really hoping to continue that. I can't have plateaued yet! I've taken the two weeks after the Columbus half very easy, so I should be ready for some speedwork next week. Tentative plan for the three weeks before the race is to run six days a week, not too long, mostly easy, with one or two speed workouts thrown in weekly. For speed, I won't be doing any of the Hansons stuff, at least not the length. I'm thinking 6 miles with 5x800s, tempo miles and 6x400s. Before the Home Run for the Homeless, there's also another Munroe Falls trail race, so that will be like an effort run. So something like this:

• Week of 11/02: 30 miles with 5x800s (7:52) and a trail race
• Week of 11/09: 35 miles with 6 miles (4m at 8:54) and 8-mile long run
• Week of 11/16: 34 miles with 6x400s (7:52) and 7-mile long run with 5m at 8:51
• Week of 11/23: race week! short, easy runs then race on Thursday

What's next?

I'm floating along with no plan right now, and while unstructured running is perfectly fine, it's also a little worrisome for me. I don't want to lose the gains I've made, but I do want to rest and recover before going into 2016.

2016 races planned:

• Shamrock 15k in March (goal: course PR so under 1:28/9:26, but ideally closer to 9:00)
• Athens Half-Marathon in April (goal: sub-2/9:09)
• Cleveland Half-Marathon in May (goal: sub-1:55/8:46)

If you do the math on another 18-week training cycle, that would have me start training either December (Athens) or January (Cleveland). I just don't know about another 18-week cycle that long, through winter.

And then there's the fact that Athens is an easier race than Cleveland (but it's a month earlier and given winter, it seems more likely that I could PR later).

In more short-term talk, I've been considering doing a 5k to see where I am speed-wise, but the last couple of runs haven't left me convinced that I can get close to PRing. I don't know if it's lack of confidence or real fatigue, but I'm hesitant to do it, lest I get depressed. I have the Home Run for the Homeless, which is a hilly 4-miler that will give me a good idea of where I am too.

In any case, I am hoping to hit 20 miles this week and then back up to 30 next. The plan is to stick around 30 until I hop back into a training plan. Perhaps I should do shorter cycles. Like find a February race (Dirty Love 10k perhaps - difficult trail run) and just train for it, then make a plan for Shamrock and so on.

Hmmm... Kinda liking that idea. And I also like that typing this out helped me come up with a plan. I think I'm going to write a plan for Home Run and go from there.

Training Recap - 10/19 through 10/25

This was a recovery week, so there really wasn't much going on. I have the Home Run for the Homeless 4-mile race on Thanksgiving, and I would like to do well on it. For that to happen, I need to recover this week (and probably next).

(I also have the second Munroe Falls trail race on Nov. 7, and I hope I will do better than the first one since I didn't push too hard then.)

• Mileage: 13
• Strength: 1
• Stretching/Myrtl: 5

Monday: rest
I skipped the Myrtl routine after the race (and the shakeout run, I think), but when I got home from Columbus, I made sure to do some stretching, Myrtl routine and legs up the wall.

Tuesday: rest
It was weird not packing my backpack for a post-work run! I went home and made dinner (and did some meal prep as well). I also did some stretching, rolling and the Myrtl routine. My calves are still tight, and there is a pretty good knot in my left calf.

Wednesday: 3.65 miles, 10:22 pace, Saucony Mirage
First run back! If it hadn't been a pub run night, I would have waited until Thursday. Luckily I found some company to take it easy with me. It was a really nice night to run, so I'm glad I was able to get outside. My calves were super-tight, so I skipped the 5-mile route. Calves loosened up, and the giant knot seems to be gone.

Also of note: I wore my new Saucony Mirage 5 for the first time. I envision this being more of a long-run shoe, but I wanted to test it out. I don't normally run with any stability so I was a little apprehensive. It's a lightweight guidance shoe with a 4mm drop, and the posting didn't bother me at all. So far, so good.

Thursday: 2.15 miles running dogs, Saucony Zealot (blue)
We took out two 10-month-old bulldog mix puppies, so "running" is subjective. It was definitely a jog/walk, which was perfect for me. (Calves generally felt okay, but my hips are still tight.) We wore those adorable pups out though! I can't imagine they'll be at the shelter for too long. When we left, one of these was meeting a family, so hopefully that worked out!

Friday: 2.15-mile lunchtime walk, Saucony Triumph
It was mid-50s and sunny, so I figured a lunchtime walk was in order. My right calf/lower hamstring was pulling, which nixed any thoughts of trying to run fast this weekend.

Saturday: 5.1 miles, 10:23 pace, Saucony Mirage + strength (!!!)
I slept in, which was glorious. It would have been a nice morning to join my friends for a trail run, but a) I wanted to sleep in and b) I didn't want to run fast. 5-ish miles around the neighborhood in some very light run followed by stretching and some actual strength work. Maybe I'll get back to it.

Sunday: rest
Another morning to sleep in! I shouldn't get used to this.

Upcoming week:
No plans, although I would like to get the mileage to around 20. I'm looking at a 5k on Saturday morning just to see how my legs move. I would also like to get in a strength session or two. Even a short one is better than nothing, right?

• Monday: easy run + strength
• Tuesday: dog running (maybe strength here if I didn't Monday)
• Wednesday: group run
• Thursday: off (but I could probably fit in a quick strength session)
• Friday: easy run 
• Saturday: easy run or 5k
• Sunday: off