Thu 5/11 - AM 80 minutes incl. 2x6k

Lincoln. After making it through last night's glorified strides in one piece I went through with a threshold workout not much more than 12 hours later. The overall distance I wanted to cover was understood in advance, how many reps and how long each one would be was up in the air. In the end the relatively relaxed pace at the outset got me thinking I could go with just two reps of six laps apiece. Six minute recovery between them. Pace was controlled, with the first rep going 3:55-4:01 per lap and the second rep laps ranging from 3:52-3:56. Calf held together until the fifth lap of the second rep when I noticed twinges on uneven ground. Held enough back that I wouldn't do any kind of massive damage to it. Warmer than the past few days but still windy and as the morning progressed the clouds of course showed up.

Wed 5/10 - PM 70 minutes incl. 12x200

Feeling a bit more spry and the calf is seeming to improve by the day, as such I tested out running on the track for the first time in a long time. Untimed glorified strides which felt reasonably smooth, with 200m recoveries. Got a little ahead of myself on the last one when I squeezed it down a bit too much the last 50 and felt the beginnings of a twinge in the calf. Made time for post-run stretching and rolling despite all manner of competing interests.

Tue 5/9 - 70 minutes easy

Rail bed to South Acton, back via Levittown. Hoping I'd feel a little better than I actually did, irrational optimism in hindsight. Still recovering from Sunday's big day. Weather still gross, any time the sun peeks out it generates immediate cloud cover which coalesces and swallows up the sky.

Mon 5/8 - PM 60 minutes very easy

Took it easy after yesterday. Also took forever to get started, what with running errands after work for the upcoming trip. Gloomy overcast and chilly conditions returned.

Sun 5/7 - AM 100 minutes incl. 5x2 minutes

Lincoln woods. An actual long run for the first time in a long time, albeit with breaks aplenty. Leg was holding up well enough to the effort of the first hour and so I decided to try some timed pickups on the CCCHS ballfields, 2 minutes on with 30 second breaks. Felt a bit of gathering tightness in the calf on the final rep but other than that I made it through in one piece and even made it back to the parking lot from there. Not a run I would have thought possible a week or two ago. Warm and windy conditions.

5/1-5/6 more jogging mostly

After the insults heaped upon the calf over the weekend I would have been well served to take a break of some sort. Instead it was very light jogging no more than an hour for the next few days. Gradually built in intensity by week's end although only after starting out quite slowly and waiting for things to loosen up. Feeling better than I would have thought by Friday. Longest run over this period was maybe 70 minutes or so. Reinstituted some form of regular stretching, including calf stretching breaks within runs but more importantly after runs and before bed.

Sun 4/30 - 55 minutes incl. 5k road race

The back half of what would have been an ill-advised double under ideal conditions, never mind dragging a jacked up calf around. Originally I was led to believe this race was going to come off the previous weekend, and so signed up for the half marathon yesterday. Then I come to find out it's today instead of last Sunday. With a comp entry and years of positive experience with the race I wasn't going to pass it up regardless. After dragging my leg through an hour and a half of abuse yesterday I was extremely doubtful I'd be able to run at anything faster than a jog today. Calf very tender, but while warming up I realized I could favor it differently than yesterday by running more on my heel. Not a long-term strategy but it got me through the day. To my surprise, the two people ahead of me and the one behind last year didn't return. The goal originally was to cop top old fart but this turn of events made me realize I had a crack at the top three. Clear after 800m that I would need to beat four teenagers to cop third. Took until a bit after halfway to reel in the last of them, from there I figured I would pull away with relative ease on the uphill stretch to start the final mile. This was not the case as my ability to run uphill was still compromised. What followed was an increasingly desperate run to the line as the most talented of the teenage crew tried to line me up at the end. Forced to kick it in much harder than I ever would have liked, hoping that the leg would stay together and not seize up on me in the final quarter mile. Wound up holding him off by a second and winning an extra $35 for it. Worth it I'm sure. Interestingly enough the pace was quite even throughout even with the undulations of the course. Cooldown was a slow crawl of course. Much cooler than yesterday with a steady breeze.

Sat 4/29 - AM 90 minutes, road half marathon

Foolhardy in the extreme, hopefully no long term damage. Signed up for this race months ago, with the intervening calf injury not even a consideration. A less stubborn person would have conceded the day. Felt the first twinge in the calf before reaching the three minute mark, from there on it was an exercise in favoring and not going any faster than the already frayed calf would allow. Which wasn't fast at all, 6:30 pace on a hot morning was the best I could manage. Course was basically flat but what small bumps there were required a laughably short stride and slowing to a fast crawl. What became even more of a concern than the calf was the related hot foot I developed from favoring the calf, ball of right foot was on fire for the last five miles. Took 30 second walking breaks at the 11 and 12 mile marks for a moment's relief from that. Shoes not the issue here as I've worn them on plenty of long runs, definitely from favoring the calf. Despite the folly of going through with the race in the first place, the complete lack of competition meant I was able to accomplish what I had originally intended regardless.

Fri 4/28 - PM 35 minutes very easy

Slow putter to the outskirts of Area 51.