Training 12/20 to 12/26

12/20 Monday: 8 miles in 60 minutes

Treadmill running at work.

12/21 Tuesday: AM: 10 miles in 70 minutes PM: 5 miles in 40 minutes

AM: Rattlesnake Hill loop. Had some solid middle miles where I was moving pretty good (6:20-6:30 pace) and the pace felt easy. It was nice to feel strong on a run.

PM: Treadmill running at work.

12/22 Wednesday: AM: 12.5 miles in 91 minutes PM: 4.5 miles in 33 minutes

AM: Running with Heather over to the Bradford section of town.

PM: Easy running in the snow! Felt good.

12/23 Thursday: 10 miles in 73 minutes

Easy running with Jim Johnson and Heather. Ran out to the Crystal Lake area and back. Felt pretty good.

12/24 Friday: 11.5 miles in 81 minutes

Ran he first 4.5 miles with Heather out to Crystal Lake. I continued on to get in a few more miles. I did 6 x 20 second strides during the last couple miles of the run.

12/25 Saturday: 8 miles in 63 minutes

Merry Christmas! Easy running with Heather out to Crystal Lake and back. It was nice and quiet out there today.

12/26 Sunday: 13 miles in 93 minutes

BU Mini meet today. Did 3+ miles of warm up, raced 3k in 8:47, ran 5 miles, raced 1 miles in 4:36, warmed down about 2 miles. I ran a 3k PR (old PR was 8:56) today!!! Very pleased with the results today. Results

Heather also made her indoor 3k debut running about 10:40! Results for the third heat are very wrong.

Total Miles: 82.5 miles

Very solid week of running with some great results at the end of the week to keep me motivated. Putting in the work = results!

Training 12/13 to 12/19

12/13 Monday: OFF

Work got out of control today and I was in no mood for the treadmill after work. Plus I am still sick, another day off might help.

12/14 Tuesday: 10 miles in 70 minutes

Rattlesnake Hill Loop. Felt pretty good running wise and a bit better health wise, but I still have this nasty dry cough that is killing me. Did 6 x 20 second strides towards the end of the run.

12/15 Wednesday: 12 miles in 86 minutes

Treadmill running at home after work. Was feeling pretty good and cranked it down to around 6 minute pace for a few miles. With about 30 seconds left in my run disaster struck....I heard a loud crack and then on my next foot fall I felt like I was falling through the treadmill. I totally blew out the deck of the treadmill. Not a good time of year to have this happen....got to get it fixed right away.

12/16 Thursday AM: 10 miles in 73 minutes PM: 5 miles in 40 minutes

AM: Ran with Heather this morning. It was a bit chilly out there!

PM: Treadmill running at the gym at work

12/17 Friday: 8 miles in 61 minutes

Easy running along the Shawsheen river trails. Actually felt pretty slow and heavy today. I just didn't feel good running today.

12/18 Saturday: 10.5 miles in 73 minutes

BU Mini meet today. Did a little more than three miles of warm up. Raced 3k in 8:58, ran another three miles, raced 1 mile in 4:37, then did another 1.5 miles cool down. I will write a brief race report later! Results

12/19 Sunday: 15 miles in 106 minutes

Nice day to be outside for a run. Felt pretty good for most of the run.

Total Miles: 70.5

A solid week of running, with a nice double track effort on Saturday, and even a day off.

Training 12/6 to 12/12

12/6 Monday: 8 miles in 59 minutes

Ran the trails along the Shawsheen River. Feeling a bit better today, the sore throat has eased, but now my nose is running like crazy. I hope this thing is on its way out of my system!

12/7 Tuesday: 6 miles in 46 minutes

Treadmill running. There was no way I was going outside while still feeling sick.

12/8 Wednesday: AM: 9 miles in 62 minutes PM: 5 miles in 40 minutes

AM: Run around the Concord NH area while my truck was serviced at Grappone Toyota. Felt pretty good today, still stuffed up, but not feeling bad. The run also went really good. I finished up the run with some miles in the low sixes.

PM: Easy treadmill running at home. Finally a good day of running!

12/9 Thursday: AM: 8.5 miles in 61 minutes PM: 4.5 miles in 36 minutes

AM: Running along the Shawsheen River trails up to the High School track.

PM: Easy treadmill running at home.

12/10 Friday: OFF

Work got crazy and I had no time to get in a run today. Still not feeling well either. It is taking me forever to get rid f this cold.

12/11 Saturday: 6 miles in 46 minutes

Easy running on the treadmill.

12/12 Sunday: 13 miles in 97 minutes

Cold and wet rub outside today. Ran with Heather over to the Bradford area of town. Felt pretty slow and heavy today. Still fighting this cold, I don't feel awful, but still have a nagging cough.

Total Miles: 60

Jay Carisella Track and Field Invite

On Saturday December 4th I made my way down to Boston for the Jay Carisella Track and Field Invite at the Reggie Lewis Center. I had been looking forward to this race for a while and was thinking I would have a good shot at my PR (15:28) after some great training followed by a couple lighter weeks. Of course on Friday I started feeling like I might be getting sick, by Saturday morning I knew I was getting sick. But I was still thinking I might be able to put in a good race. After a 3 mile run out side I went back inside and hit the track for some more easy running. Once they called the 5k I found out I was in the second heat, seeded 4th. During the first heat I did some strides on the infield and took some pictures of the first heat.

Nate Jenkins and Ruben Sanca

Justin Fyffe

Patrick Rich (in Red)

Then it was go time! We got lined up and off we went. Everyone shot off the line and I was buried in the field of about 22-23 guys. The good news was I was on the rail, but I was boxed in so bad it was ridiculous. I spent the first mile just trying to be calm, hold my position and stay close to a solid pace. But I just felt like I was holding back a lot and kept having to slow up to avoid running over guys in front of me. I hit the mile in 5:02, not awful, but I wanted to be about 7 seconds quicker. Finally I got to the outside and started making my way towards the front. Over the next mile I picked people off every lap and I was finally running a pace that felt closer to my goal pace. By about the two mile mark I had made my way all the way up to 2nd place and I had gone through the two mile mark in 9:57 (4:55 mile). Now I was all alone in 2nd place and 1st place was a ways ahead and there was little chance I was going to catch him. At this point my legs actually felt OK, the bad news was I starting to have trouble getting air in as my congestion started catching up to me. I did my best to try to hold a solid pace, but my pace was slowing a bit. About half way through the third mile a guy caught up to me and passed me. I tucked in behind him a let him lead me around the track for the next four laps, passing 3 miles in 15:07 (5:10 mile) I then kicked it in for the finish passing the guy in front of me finishing second in my heat in 15:42. Not great, but it could have been a lot worse. I ended up 17th overall in the 5k out of 63 guys.

After the 5k heats finished I headed out for a nice cool down with some of the CMS guys including Justin Fyffe, Patrick Rich, and Jeff Goupil. It was nice to get out and get in a bit of running with those guys. Sounds like I may be seeing more of those guys at some of the up coming indoor meets.

Results

Training 11/29 to 12/5

11/29 Monday: 8 miles in 60 minutes

Easy running along the Shawsheen River trails. Did 6 x 20 second strides towards the end of the run. Felt good today!

11/30 Tuesday: 8 miles in 61 minutes

Ran with Heather out to Crystal Lake and back. Night run under headlamps.

12/1 Wednesday: OFF

A day off to relax and rest.

12/2 Thursday: 6 miles in 45 minutes

Easy running along the Shawsheen River trails.

12/3 Friday: 4 miles in 32 minutes

Easy running. Not feeling so good, I think I am getting sick.

12/4 Saturday: 10 miles in 66 minutes

Ran 5k at the Jay Carisella Track and Field Invite. Warmed up 4 miles, raced 5k in 15:42, warmed down 3 miles. I didn't feel all that good for the race, I knew I was getting sick, felt way worse later Saturday night. I will post a race report soon!

12/5 Sunday: OFF

Sick. Lower legs are in rough shape too. That what I get for wearing spikes. No way I am running today. I am feeling pretty crappy and I need to get healthy.

Total Miles: 36 miles

The plan was for another low week and then a good race. The plan did not include getting sick and running a pretty bad race. Nothing I can do about getting sick, but I need to get healthy quick. Time to start putting in the work for next year!