Fri 12/16 - PM 70 minutes incl. timed pickups

Return of both the Levittown loop and the 10-8-6-4-2-1 minute workout with 5-4-3-2 minute recoveries. I had forgotten how much I enjoy doing this workout. The streets of the warren are a perfect area for it. First three reps felt under control, extended myself a bit more for the shorter ones after that. Right thigh held up okay early on, got fatigued near the end which was no surprise. Had doubts during the day about my ability to do any kind of workout after a less than restful night of sleep. Lately I've been waking up in the wee hours for no reason I can tell and falling back to sleep has been difficult at best. Still on the warm side but with gusty winds. I ended up overdressing again.

Thu 12/15 - PM 45 minutes easy

Area 51 with hill drills on White Pond, back via Summerhill. A chore thanks to feeling more tired than expected plus right leg still not quite there although it felt better than yesterday. Unusual warmth continues, today with rain showers and gusty SW winds all day. Made for a rather dreary experience.

Wed 12/14 - PM 85 minutes easy

Area 51. Dragging the right leg much of the way thanks to the adductor being quite stuck. Did some work on it after 40 minutes or so which helped to a degree. Still definitely feeling it from yesterday. Started out a bit too quick for the type of recovery run I was looking for, felt better after reeling in the pace after the break. Similar conditions to last night only a few degrees warmer. Overall the mild November has given way to a mild December.

Tue 12/13 - PM 60 minutes incl. 15x200, 400

Took a bit of a risk trying to do any kind of track work so soon after Sunday's leg issues. Happily, made it through in one piece, although it became increasingly clear as things progressed that the right adductor is mildly strained right now. Settled on what is fast becoming a comfortably familiar quasi-leg prep session with rotating 300-200-100m recovery jogs between 200 reps. Compared to previous iterations this one was noticeably slower, although it didn't feel that way at the time. Reps went by mostly in the 39-40 range, with the last two sets mostly just under 39. Final 400 in just over 78. 300 jogs avg. 87, 200 jogs avg. 59, 100 jogs avg. 32. Total time 26:10. While the chilly conditions required more clothing this time than the last time I did this just after Labor Day, it was mildly disappointing to see the slower numbers. Especially when the overall time then was just over 24 minutes with noticeably faster recoveries (80-55-28 vs. 87-59-32). Then again given where I was 48 hours ago I'm glad I was able to complete the thing in one piece and feeling relaxed and under control throughout. No wind to speak of.

Mon 12/12 - PM 55 minutes

Area 51 to White Pond Road, hill drills there, then back via Summerhill. After yesterday's dismaying shutdown of the right hammie, this run went as well as I could have hoped. Some stiffness at first in the right adductor but I was able to do the run at a decent pace without the tightness developing. Calf was fine for the drills, after last week's aggravation I think the worst is behind me. Getting back to doing some of the post-run exercises I had let slip will help.

Sun 12/11 - AM 60 minutes incl. 5k road race

Not a good time, literally or figuratively. Feeling fairly spry on the warmup and the first half of the race, under control and not having any undue issues with the calf apart from a tweak when I stepped in a small pothole. However, the larger problem surfaced in the second half of the race as the right high hammie got tighter and tighter. I was planning on cruising it in the last mile once I saw that a gap had been established, however with the leg stiffening up it was more of a forced deceleration (to 6:00 pace from 5:20) than a controlled one. The area stiffened up even more immediately after finishing and made the cooldown a half-limping crawl. I'm doubtful that the damage was done totally during yesterday's run in the woods, as that run was so slow. More of an accumulated thing. The fitness train won't be leaving the station until/unless I get the calf and core issues dealt with. Far more optimistic about the former than the latter right now. Clear conditions, breezy but not overly windy with temps just above average. Overall a nice day to be outside.

Sat 12/10 - AM 90 minutes easy

Walden woods. Feeling tired and flat throughout, never got going. Cut the planned route short, which would have taken 1:45 at least at the pace I found myself running. I had hoped to do some strides on the track towards the end but it just wasn't happening. No stress placed on the calf at least. More frustrating was how locked up both high hammies were. Felt like utter garbage, and the resultant reduced range of motion had an affect on the pace of course. Hopefully just from running on uneven terrain, it's hard to tell though. Temps a bit above average but with enough wind to make it uncomfortable in the open.