Fri 11/16 - PM 45 minutes easy

Out and back along the Norwottuck RT. Straight from work to Northampton ahead of tomorrow's kiddie meet.  I am very ready for the coaching season to be over. Time enough to squeeze in an easy jog thankfully. Calves somewhat sore after yesterday's workout but the left one much improved from where it was last night.

Thu 11/15 - PM 60 minutes incl. 5x(1000,200)

Revisiting the workout I first tried back in early October; cruise km, jog 200, 200 "fast", jog 200, repeat. Its structure is appealing to my sensibilities for sure. Five times through the cycle this time, as opposed to four back then when I was dealing with a super late start and the lingering effects of a head cold. Hoping to progress the pace on the kilos, not checking pace en route though so it was up to judging by feel. Speaking of which, felt a bit overextended on the second one which had me momentarily concerned about whether or not I'd have to cut the thing short. Perhaps still warming to the task or something as I was able to get it all done. Somewhat surprised to see the splits afterward as I didn't think the pace was dropping all that much from rep to rep. Recoveries remained relatively consistent. 200s also consistent, lack of turnover quite apparent even though this isn't the session for that really. Chilly but again no wind to speak of thankfully so I didn't have to get too bundled up. Calves still somewhat tweaked, esp. the left one which I noticed right away after the first rep. Further complicated things by straining it stepping on an unseen curb edge in the dark after the workout was done. It was throbbing after that.

3:34.2 53.8 37.5 54.8 - 6:00.3
3:33.2 54.0 38.3 56.3 - 6:01.9
3:26.2 55.2 37.0 54.5 - 5:52.8
3:24.1 53.2 37.2 53.7 - 5:48.2
3:20.9 55.3 36.4 48.1 - 5:40.5  last 100 18.1
8k total 29:23.6

Wed 11/14 - PM 45 minutes easy

Area 51. Less soreness in the legs today than yesterday, but another easy day definitely what was needed after a long day at work and feeling flat overall. Clear and cold, but wind slacked off after sunset which made it much more bearable.

Tue 11/13 - PM 70 minutes easy

Area 51. Dreaded DOMS struck both calves today, particularly the left one which was an unpleasant surprise. The up and down yesterday didn't help any of course. Made it a no-brainer to tread lightly and go slowly today. Took some time but eventually legs came around a bit. Rain passed through earlier in the afternoon, thankfully all done by the time I hit the trail. Much cooler than yesterday with the front having passed through.

Mon 11/12 - AM 50 minutes easy

Northfield Mountain. The perfect chaser after yesterday, gamboling up and down the ridge with a bunch of mostly overeager adolescents. Both high hamstrings feel sore and pinched, reminiscent of how they felt after the marathon last year. So creaky after sitting in the car for 2 hours I wasn't sure my legs would work, but the initial stiffness went away surprisingly soon after hobbling the first 100m or so. Jogged the race course, then a break, then 20+ minutes more. Took a long nap after lunch, very tired after all the driving the past two days.

Sun 11/11 - AM 85 minutes incl. half marathon

Not the effort I was anticipating months ago when I entered this race, figuring it would be the capstone of the fall racing season. Instead, it became a cynical exercise in road whoring, in that regard no different from all the other races I've done in the past few months. After running the somewhat hilly 10 miler in late July at the end of a day at work, I felt it was reasonable to think I could maintain a similar pace on the flatter layout of this race given a few months to train for it. Instead, the coaching schedule worked its pernicious magic on me and I toed the line worn down. Not that the fall sandbag tour helped any of course, or the lingering issue with right calf that had its anniversary today. Clicked off three 5:30s to start following the eventual winner. Knew that this pace felt too strenuous and that the underlying fatigue was already asserting itself, but persisted in the hope the guy might die worse than I would in the later stages. Started to lose contact after 4 miles, pace slowed to mid 5:40s through 8. At that point I was completely alone and moved into place-holding mode. Next three miles went in 18 minutes, with the calf starting to twinge soon after 10. This made me scale the pace back progressively over the last two miles in an effort to avoid any disasters. More than get it over with mode, this was truly running cooldown pace before reaching the line. By the last 200m I was jogging it in. No shame really but the missed opportunity was a bummer. Squaring the demands of the coaching schedule with training doesn't get any easier with age. Had I forced the issue and somehow avoided straining the calf again, the time wouldn't have been any faster than 1:15. Striking to see just how much I've regressed since the end of the summer. It'll be interesting to see how long it takes to recover from it.

Sat 11/10 - PM 35 minutes

Similar to yesterday's run in most aspects other than length. Tired as usual, early wakeup time for the kiddies' meet not helping in that regard.