Fri 1/17 - PM 55 minutes easy

Rockland Ave to Levittown to Silver Hill, then back to Levittown. Hitting the dirt roads of northern Maynard. Should have maybe worn a headlamp for some of it as I couldn't see a thing in the absence of any streetlights or the moon which hadn't risen yet. Another easy effort although a bit quicker than yesterday's thankfully. Feeling like energy levels are nosing their way up at least a little bit. Hopefully. Calf has settled down a bit if only because I've done nothing to aggravate it by jogging slowly for three days now. Not even pickups on the way in. High temps during the day still above freezing, although that pattern looks to be ending soon.

Thu 1/16 - PM 75 minutes easy

Area 51. The "long run" of the week. Against my better judgment, ventured back to the trails in hopes that the warm spell had made a significant dent in the snow and ice that I encountered on my last visit. While far from perfect, it was improved enough for me to stick it out. In fact there were some stretches that were completely clear along with others that were still frozen over. A mixed bag to be sure. Pace was dawdling at best, verging on very easy esp. near the end. Still laboring under the weight of unnecessary fatigue, not nearly out of the hole I found myself in earlier this week. Doubtful if I'll be in the clear by Sunday, getting more rest would help though. To that end, went to bed a bit earlier but had to skip stretching and core to do it.

Wed 1/15 - PM 45 minutes easy

Rockland Ave to Levittown. Got started early enough to enjoy the last of the daylight, enough to take a side excursion on the trail between Rockland and Mockingbird. Also made possible by the continued unseasonably warm temps the past few days. While I took it slow enough that it never became an issue, the underlying fatigue is still firmly entrenched.

Tue 1/14 - PM 45 minutes incl. 300,800

Lo and behold, I've dug myself a hole. Unable to complete what was a fairly inadvisable workout to begin with, 300-800-800-400-300 all theoretically at mile pace or faster. With not that much recovery either. I was more concerned about the stubbornly stuck right calf going in, and while it was stiff at first warming up eventually it felt loose enough to do something of quality. However even during the drills I  noticed I was dragging a bit, but wasn't expecting the palpable feeling of fatigue that set in after the first rep done in a pedestrian 56 seconds or so. Head throbbing, labored breathing sort of fatigue. It became clear halfway through the first 800 that I wouldn't be finishing the workout and subsequently lost interest. The effort required to churn out those 36-38 second laps was far far too much. I can only hope the overbaked feeling is from overextending myself in terms of lack of sleep, as the training load hasn't been overwhelming of late. Remains to be seen how much can be pulled back before Sunday's race. Ugh.

Mon 1/13 - PM 40 minutes easy

Edge of Area 51. A step or two above a shakeout. Would have gone a bit longer but I had to wait over 30 minutes in the doctor's office for my scheduled appt., such a treat. Right calf continues to be stuck to an annoying degree. The work shoes may be contributing to this. While the more open areas are pretty much snow-free, the sheltered spots haven't changed a lot from Saturday morning i.e. still packed snow and ice and still a slog to get through. I was hoping for better but the sun isn't strong enough right now to penetrate even with all the rain and warmer temps of late.

Sun 1/12 - PM 50 minutes easy

Winter Road to Longfellow loop via Tiger Drive. Not feeling up for anything more than a relatively short jog after a leisurely walk in the morning followed by the drive home from the hinterlands of NH. Right calf felt like crap, worked on the trigger point just below knee after the run and it seemed to help release much of the tension, if only temporarily. The unseasonably warm temps combined with yesterday's downpours have eliminated a shocking amount of the snowpack, in fact half the MHS track is clear at the moment. Yesterday morning it was entirely covered in ice.

Sat 1/11 - AM 60 minutes very easy

Area 51. Treacherous footing on many of the roads and sidewalks as the warming trend is still in the early stages when I headed out and there was sheer ice everywhere. Obnoxious and frustrating to say the least. In fact the packed snow of the patrol road trail, while a slog, was much preferable which is saying something. Happy to finish without falling or straining anything.