Track Time!

Ed -

I'm excited.

This week I'm wrapping up my "rest phase" which began back on August 4th right after my silver medal 800 at the State Games of America.  Since then I dropped my runs to three times a week keeping them at a moderate pace to keep my endurance at a good level, but not doing anything intense running-wise.  I also hit the gym three times a week to add some muscle doing a chest day, back day and leg day.  I had dropped to only 135 pounds or so by the end of track season so I really needed to do something about that.

I now weigh 147 so I'm not all that impressed with how much I've gained.  Mental note has been made and I'll make some serious diet alterations next year to go along with the weights.  I'd like to have about 10 more pounds on me at this stage.

The last couple of weeks I've actually gone to the track to do some 1 mile intervals and long ladders, but kept them at a comfortably hard pace.  Those were interspersed with Tempo Runs of 3 miles inside 7 mile runs.  Once a week I also did a sprint workout after an easy 5 mile run.  Those sprints augmented the squats and deadlifts I was doing to build raw strength in my legs.  Doing them on semi-fatigued legs increased the benefit of that work.  All that combined to form a six week cycle designed to improve my VO2 Max (stamina) and prep me for the more serious speed work.

From here I should be able to handle extra reps of fast 200's through 800's right out of the gate.

My first speed workout of last year wasn't until the 2nd week of December and it was a 4 x 800.  I was really happy with that workout and they went 3:07, 3:03, 3:00 and 2:55.  I didn't write it down but I'm pretty sure I was doing those with two minutes passive rest between each rep.  This year I should get 5 out at close to 3 minutes flat.  After that I'll be moving around through interval and ladder workouts to build speed and stamina.  I will also be keeping one long run each weekend that will include fartlek and be done as either a progression run or fast finish.  That will keep my overall endurance at a high level.

There are two other pieces to the weeks ahead.

First, I'll keep a Tempo Run of three miles in there during my midweek 7 mile run.  I was lacking that last year and I think it cost me time in the Mile and 1500.  After that run I will do my 100 meter strides/sprints.  I did those last year and saw some serious gains in my ability to kick at the end of a race.  That last 200 meters in the 800 of the State Games will stick in my mind for a loooooonnng time.  I want that feeling again and again.

The second piece is an addition to last year.  I'm keeping one day a week in the gym doing a combination of chest, back and squats.  I finish that time in the gym with three sets of skips in the gym.  Starting tomorrow I'll be wearing my 10 pound weight vest to do those.  I believe this once a week workout will help my race times by simply keeping my full body strength at a much higher level than it was at last year.

Having a plan gets me worked up anyways, but the fact that I feel as good as I do right now and running faster on my "moderate" runs than last year by a pretty good clip is a real bonus.  Last year at this time my runs were pretty consistently done at 7:50 pace or higher and now I'm running below 7:40.  Just yesterday I wrapped up a 10 mile fartlek run at 7:29 pace.  So far so good.  Now it's time to see if my 400's will be faster than last years'.

That's the other part of coming out of the rest phase that has me pumped.  I'm hungry for running fast again.  The rest phase is designed to rest the runner mentally and emotionally as well as physically.  And right now I feel like I've been holding back the last month or so.  I want to run HARD.  I want to leave myself gasping for breath, dropping to my hands and knees and puking at the corner of the Midlothian Middle School track.

I am chomping at the bit, baby.

State Games of America Recap

What a weekend!

The State Games of America were held up in Hershey, PA this past week and I had qualified for them in the Commonwealth Games of Virginia in both the 1500 and the 800.  It’s a national competition and I was going to get to run against some really fast folks again.  The last time I did that was in March in Landover, MD and I actually didn’t finish last which was a pleasant surprise.  These races turned out to be more like pleasant shocks!

To start things off since the events were pretty close to my blogging and running cohort, Bobbo, I got to see him and a bunch of friends during the weekend.  Bob and his much lovelier half put on a cookout on Saturday afternoon that was just wonderful.  Hanging out with some of the great folks in the Breakfast Club Runners is just terrific because they’re all just so cool.  Borderline psychotic, definitely neurotic and somewhat demented, you know . . . they’re Runners.  Listening to them talk about running Ultras, competing in CrossFit games, and fantastic training stories.  Great food and fun.  Plus I got to meet more of them this time around and make new friends.

Bobbo saving a village while running a race on his way to pick up food for the cookout.

 

My events were going off Sunday, so I checked out a little early and drove back to the hotel to get some sleep, but instead kept waking up every hour or so thinking about splits.  I had gone online and looked through the competitors and saw that there were only 6 guys showing up in my age group.  Even though every one of them was faster than me I was happy that I could lock up the Top 10 finish I was hoping for coming into the meet.  There must’ve been 15 guys in the 800 but since that wasn’t a real focus for me I didn’t bother looking to see if I was faster than any of those guys.  A quick glance told me there were some that looked to be slower, but you never know what times somebody uses when they register for a meet.

The reduced crowd of racers was due mainly because there had been two other Masters National meets in the last several weeks in different parts of the country.  Some people had obviously gone to Kansas and not here to Pennsylvania.  Still, they were sub-5 guys and I had just run that frustrating 5:16 two weeks ago.  I just wanted to run a smart race and do as well as I could.

The weather was perfect Sunday morning.  Sunny but cool.  And the track was fantastic: a big stadium with 8 lanes of high quality racing surface.  Bob even came out to watch along with Mel and Kim.  So very cool of them to make the long drive down, and I really didn’t want to disappoint them for making the effort.  We sat up in the bleachers and I talked about my goals for my splits and we enjoyed the other events and competitors.

While we sat, and then as I began my warm up, the wind began to pick up.  At first it wasn’t too bad and just seemed to be gusty, but as I ran back and forth on the back stretch with a couple of the other 1500 runners it became a pretty steady, and very stiff, breeze.  Came in sort of diagonally and down the home stretch.  The closer it got to race time for us the worse it got.  Everybody started saying things like, “kiss any PR hopes goodbye” and “going to be a tactical race now.”  I went up and got my spikes and went back down to the track to try a couple of 50m strides into the wind.  Whoa.  I was going to need to find someone to draft behind.  Which is what everyone else was thinking, too.

They ran three heats of the 1500 and I was in the second one where they were able to get all of the 50 to 54’s and 55 to 59’s in the same heat.  I recognized a couple of the guys from March, but not all of them.  “Doesn’t matter,” I told myself “just don’t go out faster than 60 seconds the first 300.”  I had my splits down to run a 5 flat, but knew the wind was going to make things rough, so I just wanted to make sure I didn’t go out too fast or burn myself up running into the wind each lap.

The gun sounded and we took off at a very comfortable pace for me.  Several guys pulled ahead, but not all of them.  I was running fourth and falling back, but I didn’t want to rush up to catch third and draft behind him.  I knew that would pull me through the first lap too quickly, so I kept my pace steady hoping that someone would come around me.  They didn’t.  If anything they were drafting on me, but I couldn’t really tell how close they were and I wasn’t going to look.  Screw it.  Show me what you got wind.

It was blowing hard.  I looked at my watch at the 200m mark and was right on 40 seconds which was exactly where I wanted to be.  I pushed a little up the straight and crossed the finish line in 60 seconds.  Dead on my goal pace and I didn’t feel too beat up from that headwind.  However, I did have three laps to go and I wasn’t near any of the front three anymore.  I shook that off and just tried to hold my pace for another lap before trying to push it a little in the Go Zone.  That’s the third quarter of any race.  The time where lots of time is usually lost, so I push it a little then to keep on track.

That's my legs back in fourth place with 1 and half to go.

 

I came around with two to go and had fallen off pace a little seeing 2:24 on my watch.  I hadn’t pushed into the wind this time but thought I maintained the same speed.  Nope.  That wind was brutal.  I still felt pretty fresh so I surged some after I got out of the headwind in the first turn and relaxed some down the back stretch using the tailwind to carry me without expending too much energy.  I was still all alone in fourth as I hit the stretch again and took the wind full in the face.  This time I knew I was slowed up but was surprised to see how slow when I crossed with one to go and saw 3:53.  The goal was to be at 3:40 and I had just accelerated some but was still backing up!

My pacing had paid off , though, and I felt pretty good so I pushed down the back straight and my friend C.L. who was running in the next heat yelled at me that the guy in front of me was fading.  “Get your head up!” He yelled.  “You can get that guy! Go! Go!”  I looked up and saw that his form was crumbling and knew C.L. was right.  I rolled up steadily so I was pushing hard with 200 to go.  I caught him in the turn and passed him easily. 

Coming out of the last turn with only 125 to go and way back in third place.

 

I kept my head up and saw the second place guy struggling with the wind in the beginning of the straight and I knew I was about to get hit with it, too.  My heart and lungs were screaming at me, but my legs weren’t rubbery yet.  I leaned through the turn then forward into the wind drifting slightly wide as I closed on the guy in front of me.  I wanted to just give in, but saw him struggling and then realized I could beat him to the line.

I pumped my arms and pushed off the ground with each stride, and slowly, very slowly, got to him and moved into second! 

Got him!

 

Those last 20 meters seemed to take forever, because now my legs were rubber and I was beginning to do the Skeleton Dance, but I was past him and across the line in 5:12. 

Held him off to the end.

 

I could not believe I had just gotten 2^nd in this meet!  I was just shaking my head and smiling as I made my way across the track and over to the bleachers to everybody and they were all smiles, too.  Here I had thought I was going to get 6th, maybe 5^th and I had locked up a Silver medal in a national competition.

Bob, Mel and Kim went to get something to eat and I threw on my warmups and laid down on the bleachers to rest for about 15 minutes.  After that I would need to start warming up for the 800.  I drank some Gatorade and downed some Gu to help minimize the leg cramps that always seemed to come up during the first lap of any 800 I run after racing a 1500.  Plenty of fluids, keep my legs up, stretch and use the Stick to roll out the knots in my calves; that routine has helped out a lot from the first couple of times I did these doubles.

As I began my warmup I started talking with the guy who beat me in the 1500.  His name is Steve and he’s a very accomplished runner.  He just came off another sub-3 hour Marathon in the winter and has been working to get his speed back for races like the 1500 and 800.  He was a little disappointed in his 1500 but the wind was just terrible.  He ran a 5:05.  Normally he’s well below 5 minutes.  He didn’t seem to know many of the guys in the 800 either, but we knew that a bunch of them didn’t run in the 1500.   “I’m going to tuck in behind somebody this time,”  He said.  “Ditto,” I replied.

We both figured that we would settle in and let some folks get up ahead of us and then draft around for the first lap.  I didn’t really let on that I pretty much knew I would be at the back of the pack anyways.  He just assumed that since I finished second in the 1500 I would be up there with him in this race, too.

He and I ended up next to each other on the starting line on the two inside lanes and I said I’d give anyone outside the room to slide in front of me; him included.  He politely declined to have me draft off of him and we laughed a bit as the starter called us to the line.  When the gun sounded I took a couple of quick strides and then settled into about the same pace I run for the 1500, and in this crowd I figured that had to be way too slow for any of them to put up with.  However, Steve sat on my shoulder and when we came out of the first turn no one was moving by us.

“What?” Steve said looking over his shoulder.

“Come on guys,” I mumbled because I really did not want to lead this group through that headwind and I was doing everything I thought I could to make them want to pass me.   “They’re not coming,” Steve said as we entered the turn and into that rotten wind.  I was stuck being the leader even though I was going so slow.  Steve stepped out to my side and said, “it wouldn’t be right for me to draft you.”

“No, you’re fine,” I replied.

You know it’s a slow pace in an 800 if anyone does anything more than grunt, and here we were talking to each other.

We got to the bell lap right on 1:21 and then Steve sort of bolted out in front.  I felt really good and accelerated as well, but by the end of that turn he had 20 meters on me easy.  He looked strong down the back stretch and was moving away from me even though I was accelerating, too.  Once again, C.L. was there on the infield encouraging me on.

“Keep your eyes on his back!  At 200 to go, GO!!”

I was breathing hard, but that slow first lap left me with a lot in my legs and I knew I could turn a fast 200.  I got to that line and leaned into the turn driving hard.  I kept my head up and tried to look like a sprinter, running tall and loose.  As I came into the straight and that headwind Steve was still ahead of me but he looked back and I closed on him a little. I knew right then that I had more speed in me and also that this was going to hurt when I finished.  But I wanted this finish.  I did all that I could to get up on my toes and move into full on sprint mode as he looked back again.  70 some meters to go and I was giving it everything I had and getting even closer.  It was right after that I realized he was struggling and I could get him.

I gritted my teeth and tried to push everything I had into my arms and legs, but kept my form together so I wouldn’t lose anything there.  Even with all the effort I felt very strong and knew I was fast even with the wind pushing against me.  As I passed Steve he let out a groan and I pushed onto and through the line pumping my fist in the air.

I had not won a race since my Junior year in high school and here I just won one in a national competition!

I staggered forward and bent over begging for air to get in me and for my legs not to fold up.  Even though my stomach was in a knot I was grinning and trying not to cry.

 

Yep, that's the moment right there.

“YOU!” I heard Steve rasp, “Ran a hell of a race. (pant) I couldn’t hold you off.  (pant) Nice kick. (gasp) Geez.”  We shook hands and I turned and saw Bob, Mel and Kim down by the fence all ready.  So, so very cool to have them there!

I have to admit that later I was a little disappointed when another guy in my age group in the second heat beat my time, but medaling again with a kick that no one else on the track could handle, was just miraculous to me.   Crossing that finish line first wasn’t anything I had dreamed of or imagined.  And the fact that it did actually happen still amazes me.

I came to this meeting with the hopes of doing a little better than I did at Indoor Nationals, and left with two Silver Medals.

Yeah.

I’m still smiling.

 

Adjusting

Ed -

I’ve found that being focused on a particular goal demands a paradox.  In order for the plan to work one has to be persistent and patient, while being ready to quickly adjust when the need arises.  The trick is to know which way to go when doubts surface.

I had doubts galore this past weekend during the Commonwealth Games in Roanoke.

As usual, the 1500 race was held before the 800 and its the distance I’m really focused on at this point, so I do all I can to cover those 3 ¾ laps as quickly as possible.  The goal for Sunday was to break five minutes and I was confident I could because I ran that 5:01 back on June 22^nd.  I’ve had a full month of additional training since then and my workouts showed that I was getting faster on the top end.  However, the plan I had been following really dropped off of the longer runs.  This seems to be normal in the track world; the closer you get to your peak race, the more speed and race specific training you do.  I trusted the plan even though I found in my last long run that I couldn’t do a 10 mile Progression Run with a Fast Finish the way I had been able to the month before.

Originally I chalked that up to the heat, humidity and being back on the hills of Midlothian as opposed to the flat course in Manteo.  All logical things that would slow me up, but I think the real issue is that I’ve sacrificed some endurance.

While my 1500 wasn’t terrible (I ran a 5:16) it was nowhere near where I thought I would be and I definitely did not feel the way I thought I would.  There were some events that I’m sure didn’t help my run.  First off it was incredibly hot and humid.  I warmed up as usual, running about a mile at 8:30 to 8:45 pace, then some 100m strides.  I did three of those strides and while I was keeping them very relaxed and telling myself to hold back I was hitting 18’s.  That’s two seconds faster than my goal pace of 20 seconds so that made me feel pretty good even though I felt a little drained by the heat.

The second problem actually occurred earlier in the week.  I strained my left foot in a workout and it was threatening to keep me from racing.  I had taken some ibuprofen and smeared two coats of Blue Emu on it before the race, so I was able to keep the pain down enough that it wasn’t going to ruin things for me, but it still hurt.

Then the real “flow stopper” happened as we stepped to the line to start.  Lightning.  We were all leaning forward with our fingers on our watches when they told us to stand up and issued a half hour delay.  Half an hour is my normal warm up period!  I went and sat down for about 15 minutes and had some Gatorade, then got back up and started jogging to stay loose.  Two more 100m strides and they called for 15 more minutes.

What a pain.

I’m sure that took something out of me, but I still didn’t expect what I got in the race.

The first 300 meters was a tad ahead of pace as usual, but not bad.  A friend of mine, C.L., was helping me out by pacing with me since he was going to run the 1500, 400, 800 and 200 as a workout that day.  I guess when you’re 32 and fast as all get out you can do that.  He and I crossed the line in 56 seconds and started into the second lap.  I wanted to come across the line again right at 2:20 to make sure I wasn’t  pushing too hard the first half of the race, but when I slowed just a bit and came out of the first turn I began to feel a little winded.  Keeping up with C.L. became work.  By the time I got to the start/finish line we was a good 5 meters ahead of me and my watched had me at 2:23.  I was already fading with two laps to go.

This is the point that Greg McMillan calls the “Go Zone.”  The third quarter of any race and the object is to pick up the intensity just a little bit and attack the race now.  Not blow it all out, but move up because this is the lap where time can really be gained or lost.  I pushed through the first turn and just couldn’t draw anything out.

I was done.

I came across with one lap to go at 3:51 and the goal was to hit 3:40.  Still, I surged the first turn again, relaxed in the back stretch, tried to accelerate through the final turn then did all I could do in the final straight.  In June I was at the bell lap at 3:46 and finished with a 1:15 400.  On Sunday I tacked on a miserable 1:25 to that 3:51 mark.

Something was definitely not right.

There was another short delay during all the 400 heats, the races between the 15 and the 8, so this year there was plenty of rest before my second race.  Normally, there’s less than an hour so that race was always hard and slow, but a good workout.  With the bad 1500 in my mind I didn’t have any confidence at all in the 800 but figured I’d just do what I could do.

The shorter distance made it a completely different race.

The first lap felt very comfortable just like in the 1500 and I took the first 400 in 1:17.  One guy had taken a very large lead and C.L. had just come around me before we completed that first lap.  Since I felt comfortable I decided to try and go with C.L. and strangely enough I did fairly well.  We matched strides all the way down the back stretch and by the time we got to the final turn I knew we were going to catch the leader.  He was standing straight up.  A clear sign.

I'm betting I did that just after the halfway point in my first race.

I pushed hard and gained a couple of strides on C.L. but then he looked over his shoulder at me and I knew he had much more to give.  I saw him lean a bit and then simply run away from me.   Still, I sprinted past the original leader to finish about 3 seconds back for 2^nd place in 2:30.  Not a bad race and a second lap of 1:14 told me that I definitely have the speed I want, but the endurance or stamina was missing.

Perhaps it was the warm up, cool down, warm up routine and the fact that I ran about two miles before that 1500, but I’ve hashed it around in my head a lot and I think I have to make an adjustment this week.  The plan actually has an incredible workout the Wednesday before the State Games of America in two weeks, but there wasn’t enough distance in this week’s work.  So I’m adding it.

I’m not going crazy or bailing on the plan, but I need to get some of that stamina back in my lungs in time.  Plus, I reviewed my training for the week before my June race and discovered that I had missed my Monday workout leaving me almost 5 fewer miles than the week before this past race.  I’m going to repeat that “mistake” because it obviously left me with fresher legs.

Having a plan is critical to reaching a goal, but I believe it’s just as critical to track and react to results along the way.

Of course the proof will be in the race on August 4^th, but fast or not, I’ll do my best, pay attention to what goes on so I can keep on learning and have a great time competing.

Putting Purpose in your Run

I have really come to love my training schedule.

I love reading it over to plan ahead.  I love going through the workouts in advance and calculating my splits then writing them out.  I love keying in my results into my spreadsheet and comparing them to past results then processing exactly how I felt physically during them and tweek the plan to adjust for something I feel I'm missing.  On top of all that I love reading about coaches and athletes; how they approach the same workouts I'm using, how they overcome the same challenges I face, why they do what they do, and of course I love reading about their results.  Incredible endurance, amazing kicks and blazing top end speed.

That paragraph was awful, but I'm gushing.

I just love this!

I also love that every single workout and run has a purpose.  There is some specific focus or objective, because it is one more step in the right direction on my path.  I'm sure some people wouldn't like having that sort of mind set, and I get that.  Depends on what you want out of running.  But when there is a specific goal in mind, then everything should be aimed at reaching that goal.  Otherwise, you're just wasting time.  Everything I read from great coaches and athletes, as well as great businessmen or anyone else at the top of their field, repeats this point.

There has to be Purpose.  A reason to do what you're doing.

What started out as a sort of fantasy and tangible example of some things I always say about getting the most out of life, has turned into a real passion.  And that passion is delivering all the things I had hoped it would in the beginning.  It's become my Purpose.

First of all is the fact it's made me stronger and faster.  I still flash back on a regular basis to when I was sick.  I know that can get kind of old to hear, but I'm not going to forget it.  I'm reminded of various aspects of that time of my life almost daily.  When I ache I'm reminded of how whatever I feel right now is nothing compared to the pain I felt the first days after surgery and the months around the end of my radiation treatments.  I was triple dosing on the pain meds and still not getting relief.  Whenever I lean in and drive through a turn on the track I'm reminded of how exhausted I would get just walking up a flight of stairs.  And, of course, every time I hear of someone else who's been diagnosed with cancer I'm reminded of how lucky I've been and that I need to be there in some way for them like people were for me.

Those memories are always placed against where I am now, and where I am now is someplace I had only hoped to be.  5:01 in the 1500 and sure of myself that I can break five minutes.  Ranked 30th in the country last year in my age group for the 800 was a total shock.  That part I hadn't even dreamed about.  Racing in a national championship had never crossed my mind, but I've gotten to do it.  My running has given me strength and speed that surprises and thrills me all the time.

Secondly, because I've seeing such gains from my focus and planning on training, I'm doing the same things in work and in life.  I'm looking at something that I want to accomplish, and then working backwards with a plan.  Then, each and every day, I'm working that plan.  Some things have been in place for awhile, and others I've just embarked on.  Either way I know that I have a far better chance of reaching my goals by approaching them with purpose.

Lastly, and probably most important of all of this, is what I hear from various people I've crossed paths with since I set out on this mini-quest.  People are inspired by it.  They tell me about how they've begun running, or have decided they want to see how fast they can get.  A few have asked for help and I'm having a blast working with them to set new PR's.  I get excited knowing that, if we plan right, and the work gets done, they're going to experience the same thrilling emotions I have when they finish that race and look at they're watch.  It's so incredible.

Yesterday I read something in an article in Running Times about the best advice elite athletes have gotten from coaches over the years, and one of them was by Aaron Braun.  This guy ran 10,000 meters in 27:41.  Wow, that's fast.  His college coach told him to "run for something greater than yourself."  His point being that if you're only running for yourself, you may back off in that final lap because you know you'll just race again another time.  But if there's something outside of you that is your focus, you're more likely to push on.

I've found that to be so true.  And not just for an individual race.  It's the same for every single workout.  I push hard the last rep, the last hill, or the last mile and sometimes do "just one more" because there's something greater than me at stake.

People are watching and wanting to see good results.  It inspires them, motivates them to do better as well.

I've had Purpose in my running from the beginning of all this, but it's transformed into something else.  Other people are trying harder, exercising more, living better and smiling more often.  I want to help them along even if it's just a little thing like a random post on facebook that makes them say, "wow, that's fast" and wonder if they could do something like that.

Put Purpose in your running and you will.

Race Day!

I just love races.  I get all amped up and nervous days before just like when I was a kid.  It’s a whole bag of jumbled feelings in my stomach.  Confident anticipation wrapped up in a layer of doubt, wrapped in fear of the pain that’s going to come, wrapped in gratitude for having the chance to race.  I guess those things make your adrenal glands pump, because I can feel them pumping!

This weekend was my first race of the Outdoor Track season and would be my first crack at the 1500 since I totally hosed up my last one.  As a reminder,  last July I had gotten some decent training weeks in after recovering from some broken ribs, so I felt like I could beat the 5:16 I had run the month before.  I set my sights on something close to 5:00 even though all of my training really told me that 5:10 would’ve been a bit of a stretch.  Then I pulled a rookie mistake and went out way too fast, because I just felt so good.  I should’ve hit my first 400 meters in about 1:20 or so, but instead came around at 1:12.  About a lap later I was overdosing on lactic acid and fell all apart.  Finished in 5:24. Stupid mistake.  And one that gets made by many, many runners.

This year I’ve trained a lot smarter, avoided barrel rolling a golf cart, and knew I was faster than last year.  I had also learned my lesson and started doing my longer training runs the way the best coaches tell us to do them.

Start slower than your goal pace.  Then accelerate throughout the run.

It’s amazing how well that works, and I’ve been preaching it as a tactic ever since.

So for this race I was confident I could get down around 5:00 and with a little luck maybe break into the fours which is my “big goal” for this year.  To hit 5 minutes I need to average 1:20 per 400 meters.  My training paces and my workouts were telling me I could do that, although I wasn't quite sure how I was going to feel putting almost four of those back to back.  Still, I knew my goal pace and I wasn’t going to blow that up in the first lap this year.

Because of my nerves I must’ve written down my splits three different times and I spent the entire day before the meet running the race through my head and saying, “20 seconds at the first turn, 40 coming out to the straight, 60 seconds at the finish line with 3 to go, then 1:20 at the next turn.  Don’t go under 1:20 unless the first 100 was a little fast.”  After that I was just going to look at every 200 meters to make sure I was staying on pace.  2:20 at the 700 meter with two laps to go.  Then 3:00 flat, and 3:40 with one lap to go.  If I could hold on to that pace I’d be right at 5 minutes flat.  I had no idea what I’d feel like at that moment, but I told myself that no matter what when I hit the turn with one to go I was going to surge for 50 meters at least to get a good start on that last 400.  Had to do it.  No excuses.

Friday night I took one last look at my training plan from McMillan Running and decided to check out the articles they suggested about mentally preparing for a race.  One proved particularly helpful and it was about handling the “No Go Zone.”  That’s the third quarter of every race no matter the distance and it’s where runners drop the ball out of fear all the time.  We used to call the third lap in the Mile “Bizzarro World” because it was just the weirdest, disrupting thing.  You’ve all felt it, too, in 5K's up to Marathons.  It’s the moment you realize you’ve hit “only” the half-way point and you’re already feeling tired.  You’re not going to make it at this pace, so you’d better conserve a little to finish strong.  Bingo.  Precious seconds of race time tick away.

I re-read the article, committed pieces to memory so I could tell myself what to do when my body started telling me to “conserve” a little.

When I had warmed up, put on my racing spikes and stepped up to the line with my finger on my watch I was ready to roll.  I was nervous, but focusing hard on the plan and hoping to see sub-5 at the end of it.

We all took off as the gun sounded and two guys kind of jumped out.  The strides I had just done as warm ups were done at my race pace, so I knew I was a little fast but not much.  I dropped into third and sort of felt like I was coasting as we went by the first 100 right at 18 seconds.  We rounded the turn and the first place guy began to stretch it out, but my pace felt right so I stuck to the guy in front of me.  We got to the first 200 right on 40 seconds and heard the “three to go” call dead on 60 seconds.  We had slowed a little but I was right on pace and felt like I was barely making an effort at that point.   And that pace held nicely as I hit the next split perfectly at 1:40.  I was kind of excited that I was feeling so good and had this big guy in front of me to take the headwind that was coming up on the home stretch part of the track, but then he started to really slow down.  I began to step around him, but thought I’d give him the next 100 meters and take advantage of the draft.

We hit the line at 2:27.  Suddenly I was behind pace by 7 freaking seconds!  I jumped to the outside and moved around him.  Here I was in Bizzarro World, beginning to breathe a little hard and I HAD to accelerate.  After that last, slow 200 just holding onto my goal pace was going to feel very fast.  I followed the suggestions in that article and once I felt like I was back on pace I focused on just holding the cadence.  It took a little more effort as described, but not much more.  I hit the next turn at 3:06 or 7 which meant I was hitting the pace just right, but my shot at 5 flat was going away quick.  I decided to start pushing a little even though I had 600 more meters to go.  This time by when they guy shouted, “one to go!” I found I had only gained one measly second and I was at 3:46.  As planned I surged my way into the turn and immediately felt the rising tide of fatigue kicking in.  It’s funny how I’m beginning to actually feel the lactic acid build up in my muscles.

Because it’s running and you’re breathing so hard it feels differently than say, when you’re doing pushups to the point of failure.  In pushups you kind of click along at an even pace for a whole bunch then all of a sudden you just can’t pop up like you had been and you realize you’ve got maybe 5 more reps in you and the last couple are going to take forever or not even happen.  With all the oxygen deprivation going on it comes on a little subtler with running, but keeps accelerating getting worse and worse.  I swear it gets “louder” the longer I try to keep pushing at that point.  It’s like I can’t hear as much around me or even see as well because everything in me is focusing down on the pain instead of out on the track.

Well surging into that turn I felt my thighs really heat up, my stomach tighten and my arms get heavy.  I stopped accelerating, but didn’t slow down.  I tried to just hold the faster pace until I got to the last turn and focused on gulping down air deep; imagining my back and stomach flaring out to get as much oxygen as possible into my body so my muscles would have something besides themselves to burn up.  I didn’t look at my watch with 200 to go, because I was just hurting too much and besides, what was I going to learn about at that point?  It was hard enough just see the lanes ahead of me and the next split was the one that really mattered.

That last 100 was hard work.  That’s all it was.  Painful, exhausting but somehow still fast feeling.  I didn’t really get rubber legged until the last few strides but I was home then, so it didn’t matter.

I stopped my watch as I leaned across the line and stumbled up a few strides to get out of the way of the other runners coming in.  I was thinking my last lap had to be faster than 1:20 when I looked down and saw 5:01.

 

 

Damn.  So close!

But even while I was gasping and trying not to hork just then, I realized that made my last 400 a 1:15! Now that’s better than I was expecting and I knew it was because I had not gone out too fast.  Of course I did go way too slow at that one point in the first half of the race, but think about how that pans out.  If I had hit the 1100 meter mark at 3:40 as planned I would only have had to run a 1:21 to get the exact same time I just got by gutting out that 1:15.  I could’ve run a 1:19 and broken 5 minutes!  Of course I know that means I would have run a faster 1100 by six seconds, but those six seconds probably wouldn’t have made me feel that much different.  I would have put out the same effort in my final lap, struggled just as much, and probably would’ve been a little slower.  But I COULD’VE been slower and still wound up with a faster final time.

It’s all about pace and splits.  And of course the training.

Over the next couple of months I’ll continue to focus on those Lactate Turners which will push off that exhaustion feeling another 50 to 100 meters or so, and I know I’ll get down under that 5 minute mark and achieve something I thought was just a target to shoot for, not something I would really ever do.

Watching it Work

Prepare to get your Geek on.

Over the last couple of years I've put in a ton of work and not all of it was actually running.  If I went back and added up the hours I'm betting I've spent more time reading, studying, planning and evaluating than I have running.  A lot more.  Having kept my spreadsheets, logs and copious notes I can happily say that it is paying off nicely.  Very nicely.

Since I've experienced some great gains (went from a 5:38 1500 meters to a 5:16 in just two seasons) I'm inspired to do even more.  To learn more, push more and maybe actually reach my stretch goal of breaking 5 minutes in the mile.  But the more I train, and the more I read; the more I find out stuff I didn't know.  Thankfully, each time I learn something I immediately see how it's going to help me get faster.

This past week I went out and paid for a customized training plan from McMillan Running.  You've heard me talk about Greg McMillan and his calculator (check out his site here).  I've been using the calculator for a couple of years now along with the workout suggestions, and the price of a customized plan was very reasonable, so I bought one to get me through the State Games of America in early August.

Since I've been dishing out advice and stories I thought I'd share a nuance Greg explains for the workout I did this morning.  The difference between a Speed Workout and Cruise Intervals.

Both of these workouts involve intervals, and look very similar on the surface.  However, they train you for two very different things, both of which you need to race fast.

I've done a number of Speed Workouts where I run 5 or 6 800's at a fast pace with about the same amount of rest as there is running.  1 to 1 ratio is what Bart Yasso recommends for marathoners when doing this workout.  I tended to run an 800, then walk a little bit and jog a 400.  Then I would stand still for a few seconds to get me to 3 minutes of rest or so, then go hard again.  Last week I did 5 x 800's and they were all around 2:46 with the last two faster.  My legs would just burn earlier and earlier in the reps until I was just completely rubber legging it down the last 50 meters in my last rep.  Super hard feeling workout.

In Cruise Intervals like this morning, I ran 6 x 800's only they were all over 3:00 on purpose.  Specifically, I ran 3:02, 3:06, 3:05, 3:04, 3:03, 2:59.  The object is to make them "comfortably hard" but make each one a tad faster than the one before it.  I sort of blew the first one, because I wasn't paying as much attention to my splits and went out a little fast.  So these are decidedly slower than my Speed Workouts, but not a ton different.  The next difference was the rest.  I walked maybe 25 to 50 meters after each rep, then jogged to finish out 200m.  Without stopping I rolled right into the next rep.  The effect is that my breathing and heart rate, never really came down like it does during a Speed Workout.  I was still panting as I began each rep.

Now instead of my legs burning as I was finishing each 800, it was my lungs and heart.  I was just gasping the last couple of times and right after the last rep, which I pushed to the 2:59, I had those sudden dry heaves.  That was the only time I stood still during the workout and it was only for a second or two during each heave.  I had to keep jogging to finish the workout.

To top it all off, Greg had me doing 3 x 200's and those are supposed to be at my goal race pace for my 1500.  The goal is 5 flat, so that's 40 second 200's.  Even though I was super winded, my legs felt great so I wound up doing those in 36, 35, and 33 seconds.  Once again there was no standing still and only a 200 meter jog between each.

Two similar workouts that train two different things.  The Speed Workout is designed to work my legs and develop strength and speed.  The Cruise Intervals workout is designed to increase my VO2 max which is basically how efficiently my body processes oxygen for energy.  Instead of so much muscle development, this develops the cardiovascular system.  It makes it easier to run faster longer.

Combining these two types of workouts means I will get faster, and it will feel easier.  They feed each other.

The 200's at the end help me develop the ability to kick even when fatigued as well as make me mentally tougher under those stressful moments of finishing a race like the 1500.

Having done both types of these workouts I can tell you they feel completely different, so I know they're doing what they're supposed to do.

If you're looking to improve your pace, even for a Marathon, combining these types of workouts will make a huge difference in your race times.

Happy Running!

 

Ramblings

So I'm back from a great vacation, haven't written anything here for awhile and tonight I still don't have much of a plan for what to write tonight.

...and when did the lack of a plan ever stop me?

During my trip up to New Hampshire I got in a couple of decent runs and discovered another cool aspect of being a runner.  The network that appears just by being out there and running.

About a year or so ago now, I was doing a group run in the Outer Banks with some of my fellow Outer Banks Running Club members and we had someone join us while she was on vacation.  Sharon had found the through facebook and put in a dozen or so miles with us if I remember that right.  I learned that she was from New Hampshire and had done all sorts of tri's, marathons and ultras including a 200 mile relay race.  My wife and I had gone to New Hampshire for our honeymoon so I mentioned our trip up Mt. Washington and how amazing the wind and weather was up there.  Sharon said they have a road race there every year that's about 8 miles in length with an elevation gain of about 4000 feet.  The t-shirts say, "There's only one hill."

New England understatement.

Well, Sharon and I friended on facebook, so when this trip came up I got some great tips on a place to run while I was up in Attitash.  Very cool of her.  And I met her because of running.

And as for running in New England:  The first morning there I did an 8 mile run and it was only 36 degrees out.  Four days later I got up to run and it was 82.  Yeesh.... Glad I packed a bunch of stuff.

Plus I guess you have to carry bear repellent if you're ever going to run trails.  We went out for a walk and weren't 100 feet away from the condos and I saw this

 

And in case you can't see it, my footprint is in the top left corner of that picture.  Apparently the bear was heavier than me by a good bit.  What do you do if you came across a 250 pound bear while running?  Keep running?  I don't want to find out what works and what doesn't.

 

 At any rate the week allowed me some rest and recovery by taking 7 days off from intense stuff and I'm ready to get back to it.  I read almost all of Greg McMillan's new book, You (Only Faster), and it's really motivated me.  I've got my first of three track meets coming up on June 22nd where I'll be running the 1500 and the 800, with the focus on the 1500.  The third meet is on August 4th not too far from Bob's neck of the woods, in Hershey, PA and I'm really looking forward to that one since it's supposed to be a pretty big event.

 

With the extra inspiration running through my head I started looking at the indoor meets I could and put on my schedule the Indoor Nationals which are in Boston in March, and the Outdoor Nationals that will be in Winston-Salem, NC next July.  Those will be my target times to peak and we'll see if I can find a little more speed.  Speaking of that while looking for meets to run I came across the facebook page for last year's Indoor Nationals and they had thousands of pictures!  It only took 11 hours of digging, but I found a few of me.  I jest, they were in order by the day so it was easy to find the M45 800, but I would have dug none the less.

 

Here's the start with me scared to death and standing next to Khalid Mulazim and a dozen other ridiculously fast people:

 



So cool that my daughter was there to yell, "yay dad!" when the stadium went silent after they announced my name and where I was from.  That's her with the two phones taking pictures!

And then there's this one of me actually running.

It was a total rush to be out there running as fast as I could, and I can't wait to get back to it!

It's Always Something

This morning was my speed work day, so I was back on the track behind the Middle School.

This time of year is becoming my favorite because the temperature is just fantastic, about 46 degrees today, and the sun isn't up when I step outside around 5:40am, but rises quickly during my workout.  The awakening of the sky and world around me is a pretty special thing and another wonderful gift given to me by running.  Another is just the little things that happen during those peaceful, quiet times in the day that most people miss because they're simply still in bed.

Just about every week on the track I see this guy who comes there to walk his two dogs.  Normally, he moves off when I show up or encourages them to stay to the outside, but he only has to talk to one to keep him from running along with me.  That one's a big, yellow lab that just loves to run near me without chasing me.  He'll pull right up along side and a lane away and just run along looking up at me and panting like it's a great game.  The other dog always stays near the man and when I got the chance one day I asked him why the black, older dog stuck so close to him all the time.

"She's blind," he said.

"But she walks around away from you sometimes," I said, "and goes off in the infield some."

He told me that she likes the track because she can feel the edges really well and has learned that it's smooth and there's nothing in the way.  She always stays where she can hear him walk and he pointed out that she always stood still whenever I approached because my footsteps threw her off some.  She did come up and let me pet her while we talked, which was cool.  Such a sweet thing.

They were there again this morning arriving as I was finishing my first 800.  The big, yellow one barked hello, but sat when his dad told him to stay.  They strolled around the outside of the track as I continued my workout and was joined by a young guy I had never met before.

I lined up on the opposite corner of where I was starting and finishing, and watching him warm up I could see he was serious about his running.  Plus, he was blazing fast in his warm up striders.

On my third 800 I started my watch and lunged forward then midway through that first turn I noticed a baby bird hop right into the center of lane one.  I stepped inside to avoid it and looked across the track to see the new guy trucking along beginning whatever workout he was going to do.  I tried to telepathically tell him to watch for the bird, but figured it would be tough to miss it.  I looked over my shoulder when I thought he might be near the bird and he seemed to move on by without noticing it and I just kept pushing to try and hold my pace which I had done pretty well the first two reps.  2:53 both times.

I rounded the turn for lap two and the bird was still there, being harassed by a parent bird.  I guess it was trying to get it to move back out of the open, but because I showed up the thing went into camouflage mode: It scrunched down a little bit and held very still.  I moved inside again and ran by.  Huffing pretty good now and my thighs were beginning to feel hot.  I finished up at 2:54 and walked around the first turn to begin my rest lap.  And the baby bird looked up at me then abruptly looked away and scrunched down again.  But no movement.  By now both parent birds were flying back and forth out of the trees to squawk at the baby and swoop at me to keep me moving away.

Sort of motivational actually.

The new guy was apparently doing a pyramid because after his 400 he turned an 800 keeping pretty much on the same pace as me, but gaining a little ground.

I lined up again for rep number four of five and looked out at the turn to see the baby bird still parked there.  This time I moved around the outside because one of the parents was taking up the rest of lane 1.  I knew I only had two reps to go so it was time to pick it up some, and I finished that one in 2:51.  A couple of starts and stops trying to catch my breath and not heave and there was the bird again.  Just sitting there ignoring it's parents.

Typical.

I watched as new guy finished up a 1200 and he didn't look like he was trying at all.

One to go.  Fast, boy.  Fast.

I paced the first 400 right where I had hit the other first laps, about 1:25, then did my best to hold on until the final turn and 200 to go.  Usually in it's in here that I start to talk to myself about how this is what the end of the 1500 is going to feel like, and that I'll be pushing towards a PR so I better not quit on it.  I began to fall apart that last 100, but I just pushed hard and did everything I could to accelerate.  Pumping my hands, striding long and fast.  I finished up and looked at my watch.  2:47.  Nice!!

And then I just doubled over and gagged a couple of times.  Very nice.

I had to look at my spreadsheet before I realized that was my best 800 workout ever.  Such a cool thing to figure out after sitting around eating breakfast and wondering why I couldn't do it the pace the McMillan Calculator had set.  Ummmm...that turned out to be the pace I printed off after assuming I could run a 4:55 mile.  Apparently I'm not quite there yet.

Anyways, after recovering from the dry heaves I walked over to the baby bird, picked it up and moved quickly to the woods dodging one of its parents that was doing it's best to dive bomb me and get me to leave its baby alone.  I got to the spot where the bigger birds kept flying and figured it was near the nest.  I put the bird down and moved back over across the track.

Good deed for the day.

New guy flew by just then and gave me the runner head nod.

I started my cool down run home, but stopped to introduce myself and meet the new guy, who is now Scott.

We talked the workouts for a moment and then he said, "can I offer some advice?"

"Sure!"  I always want to learn.

"When you were finishing that last rep your speed was good, but you started to heel strike bad.  Over striding."

I nodded.  I knew I did that when I was tired and going slow, but didn't know I did that when running fast at the end.  Makes sense though.

He asked me, "Have you ever tried running barefoot?"

"Yes, and dude, I just gave that advice to a friend.  I guess I need to get back to it."

"It really helps straighten out over striding in your sprints."

I told him thanks and trotted off up the hill and back to my house planning to run barefoot for a mile, and some striders on Sunday.

It's always something...

Racing Over Your Head

I knew when I signed up for the Masters Indoor Nationals that I would be facing some really good competition.  Last year I ran in a Regional meet up in Delaware and got third in my age group in the mile, but there were only four people in it that day.  I ran a 5:52 in the mile and the first two guys ran just about 5 flat!  That opened my eyes some so this year I decided to just enter the 800 since I really wasn't ready for that distance back then.

Yesterday as I walked into the Prince George's Sports and Learning Complex up in Landover, MD I realized my eyes hadn't been opened at all.

After parking my car I met a guy getting out of his car and he was quite obviously a distance runner.  Just had that look along with the shoes and warm ups.  He said, "Hi," and commented about how far the walk was going to be to the complex.  He'd been here the day before to check it out since one of his races was today, the 4x800 relay.

"You run the 800?" I asked, "that's what I'm running."

"What age group?" he asked me.

"45 to 49."

"Hey, I've got the world record for that age group!"

Sal Allah meets Ed!

I had just met "Salli" Allah.  This guy ran a 1:54 back when he was 46.  He's now over 65 and his team was going for the world record in the 4 x 800 later in the day.  He turned in a 2:21.  Holycow.

And the world record holders, American record holders, national champions, world champions and even several medalists from the Olympics, just kept coming.  Turns out this is one of the biggest meets in the country and its open to international competitors to make it even tougher!  Sheesh.

Earlier in the week I had gotten to see my seeding and the times of the other entrants in my race and age group.  You know what happens when you sign up for a National Championship meet, you've only barely broken into the top 50 in your event and 16 guys sign up for the same race?

You're getting 17th.

And I knew that was where I was winding up.  I did not belong at this meet.

That feeling was confirmed when Sal and I walked in the door.  He showed me where the packet pick-up was and I said I wanted to poke my head into the field house and see the place.

Wow.  I'm running here...

 

 

The facility is huge and crowded with people moving around all over the place.  Very exciting and a rush to be in, but overwhelming when I thought about the fact I had to get down there and run in front of everyone and get last.  I got the shivers...

 

I got my packet, bought my shirt and then hunted around to find my teammates and coaches.  I found Keith Witherspoon just about to start his 60 meter race.  Keith went to UVA and is always ranked in the top 10 in the country in his age groups in the long jump, triple jump and the 60 indoors.  He's over 60 and still a serious beast.

 

I mean look at the back on that guy!

 

He got second in the 60 and in the triple jump this year, and coached me as well.  He told me that "some guys will have the race of their lives," while poking me in the chest, "and other guys will fall apart," as he spread his arms out like that's what will happen to everyone else.

 

I watched  a couple of other members of our team compete then headed up to Annapolis to watch my niece in a softball game and then spend the night at my mom and step-dad's place.

 

The whole night I was running my workouts through my head thinking that best I could hope for was a 2:30.  And I didn't know how I could do that with my fastest 400 in a workout being a 1:13.  I had done all the stuff that I had read about and added the sprint work that Spoon and Kaestner got me into to move up my top end speed, but I wasn't feeling confident.  I knew I could beat a 2:38, no problem, but I was beginning to tell myself that I'd be happy with a 2:34.

 

When I got to the meet and was warming up I saw several people I had met at other races over the last couple of years, shook hands and said "good luck" as I kept picturing myself staying with the back of the pack as long as I could.  And while I was talking to myself Remus Medley gave me a head nod so I went over to say, "hey."  I met him once just a couple of years ago at a meet in Richmond so I reminded him of that and we shook hands.  He is in the M40 group and is a sub-5 miler and runs the 800 close to 2 flat.

 

He asked what I thought I could do and I told him my guess and a little about my workouts, but he said, "you ran a 1:13 as your last rep in a 10 x 400? How much rest?"

 

"About 90 seconds."

 

"And your last hard workout?"

 

"A 5 x 400 with three to four minutes rest and the last two being 1:15's."

 

"You'll do a 2:30.  Got to.  Your workouts say so."

 

He was so matter of fact and confident about it, that I thought that McMillan workout plan must be dead on because it said the same thing.  I felt better.

 

Turns out only 13 guys showed up for the event, and in looking at the field it was the 12 fastest and me.

 

When they called us to the track I got to line up next to a guy named Khalid Mulazim.  They introduced him listing off his national championships and age group records in the 400 and whatnot.  All I knew was that he was this 6'2" 190 pound superhero looking guy.  This is him from the web.

 

 

Yeah.  There are pictures of him on the web.

 

So I look up at this monster, stick out my hand and say, "good luck and have fun!"

 

"This is just for fun," he said seriously then smiled, "I've never run this event before."

 

I didn't feel any better since he could run the 400 in 50 seconds flat.

 

They gave us our instructions and called us to the line.  I felt remarkably calm.  I told myself to just relax the first 100 and fall in with the back of the pack.  Don't burn it up in the first lap.  Just stay close.

 

The gun sounded and away we went.  And, DAMN did the front guys go.  I got left back immediately and then had to accelerate just to stay up, but I caught myself and slowed my chase so I would just stay with the last two or three guys in front of me.  We came to the end of the first lap and the big clock (they have a big clock like the meets on TV because this a big meet like the ones on TV) and it just clicked to 35 as I passed it.  I felt good and kept my breathing slow and deep as I stayed with only two guys ahead of me now, thinking that my first 200 in my fastest 400 workouts were 36's and that 10 x 200 workout I was only doing 34's and those felt hard!

 

But that one didn't feel hard.  I cruised around and watched the clock as I finished the first 400 and it was on 1:09 as I got to it, clicking to 1:10 just out of the corner of my eye.

 

Now I was scared.

 

I felt okay.  A little winded, but that was 5 seconds faster than it should have been.  I was scared I wasn't going to be able to put two 1:15's back to back and here I just did the first one in 1:10.  Stupid.

 

Except that I was breathing well and my legs weren't burning yet.  I was okay.  Slowing some, but okay.  My fear had me slow down in the third 200 but so did the guys ahead of me.  They weren't getting any further ahead and then all of a sudden I saw the guy right in front of me pogo stick off the track as he pulled his hamstring.  I felt bad for the guy, but had to make up some room between me and the next one ahead of me, so I started to push some as we got to the bell lap.

 

That's a very cool moment hearing that bell and knowing there's only one to go.

 

I pushed a little and felt my legs respond.  My lungs were good, but I was breathing hard now.  Still, I kept trying to accelerate and I began closing on the guy.

 

We got to the beginning of the last turn and he had four or five strides on me.

 

I dropped my hands and thought, "take off!"  and my legs said, "Okay!"

 

I closed on the guy so fast I had to move out to the second lane to go by.  Even with the extra distance I knew I had come on so fast he was not going to be able to get me back.  As I passed him I drifted halfway into the first lane again so he'd have to go wide if wanted by, but he wasn't coming and I was closing on the guy ahead of me.

 

I kept expecting to feel that tightness in my stomach when I'm gonna hork from exertion, but it wasn't there.  My training was right and I was ready for this race.

 

I looked to the left as I drove hard across the finish line and saw that 2:24.

 

I couldn't believe it!

 

Friends got pictures near the finish, though they were blurry, and then my daughter took a picture of the board.

 



 

The Kick

 

The Finish  (left him!)

 

The Time

 

 





When I got to the bleachers Spoon and Kaestner were saying, "we told you! we told you!"  And they had.

 

I still got absolutely crushed by the leaders of this race, it was won in 2:02, but my confidence in how the sprint work had helped me out was soaring.  I had just cut 16 seconds off of my fastest 800 from last year, and it turned out that time just placed me in the Top 25 in Masters Rankings for the 2013 Indoor Season!  There are still a couple of meets in different parts of the country going on so I might get pushed out, but for today I'm ranked 23rd.  Big Smile!!

 

I feel like I can still improve on that and get in there with "the big boys" if I can figure out how to balance the rest and work stuff.  But it's getting clearer.  Sprint and weights once a week, one long run per week, one tempo run per week.  Now to see if I can do an additional speed workout and still get enough rest in there to recover and keep making gains.

 

Regardless.  I can't wait to keep working at it!