Biggest Accomplishment:
Finishing my first marathon at Houston in January. I missed Boston by 41s, based on the standards back then + the 1 min grace period. Training went about as well as I could've hoped, using the SmartCoach Runner's World plan but going at whatever paces felt natural to me. I missed the BQ mostly due to race execution mistakes: 1) Taking an extra porta potty break right before the race start, making it impossible for me to join my corral and causing me to get stuck behind slower racers for the first part of the race, 2) making up the lost time by the 13 mile mark, when I should've tried to even out the effort.
Most Painful Run (and most animals):
After a couple of days of stomach issues (from the food or ice in Mexico) and not being able to keep whatever I was drinking or eating in me for long, I did a long run while I was visiting Princeton. Had to use the bathroom, but I didn't have one, so I just... endured. I saw some animals, though.
Funnest Bucket List Check:
Trying the water pit on the Steeplechase course at last.
Coolest Running Destiation:
Buenos Aires, Argentina, at the Ecological Preserve.
Highest Altitude Run:
1.65 mi in Toluca, Mexico.
And the highlights from my Mid-year report still hold.
TRAINING TRENDS
3-wk Moving Average of Weekly Total Mileage:
- Weekly mileage was initially high because Jan 1, 2011 was right before my taper started for the January 30th Houston Marathon.
- After the marathon, I felt unable to really do any long runs. I averaged about 15 mpw until I signed up for the Albany Marathon (Mar 3, 2012) and started the training program. I did 19 LRs for the year and only managed about 1 per month during that 15mpw downtime.
- So far, training is going well for Albany.
- I had to use a moving average because the free training log I got from Publix last year at the Country Music HM has weeks starting on Sunday, rather than Monday, making the weekly totals very variable, since people often shift runs from Saturday to Sunday or vice versa.
Stats:Number of Each Kind of Workout:
- Base workouts... includes progression runs.
- Tempo... where I try to go at a hard effort during a training run. When I first started getting more serious about running in early 2009, I would race every single workout and hurt my knees that way. Now, I save those super hard efforts for races and take it 85% most of the time.
- Races are self-explanatory... everything from 5Ks to 1 marathon.
- Long Runs... I generally count anything above 10 miles as a LR, but even sub-10 may count if it was LR effort for me at the time.
- Intervals were mostly done on the treadmill, since that's what's available, but I do love the track.
- Hills were done on the treadmill, since that's controllable, safe, and easily accessible.
- XT was usually, if not always, a bike in the gym.
- Strength is my weekly-ish 1-hr strength session. Most of it's body-weight, although I use resitance bands, a step, and dumbells for a couple of the exercises. When I don't do the PT, I can feel it because my knees start hurting.
Percentage of Miles Done with Each Kind of Workout:
I was suprised to see how it turned out during the Mid-Year Review. It's actually kind of perfect. I would've thought that I was messing up Daniels' Runing Formulas's suggested percentages due to my overall low mileage, but it actually worked out without me trying to hit anything in particular. Intervals were about 10%. I think the suggested LR% is 25%, so I was pretty close. I don't remember any of the others off the top of my head, and I don't have the book with me right now.
Total Mileage
882.8 miles = 2.4 miles per day.
- I didn't reach my goal of 1000 miles for the year, for the second year in a row, but that's okay. I do what I can time-wise and safety-wise.
Total Time Spent Running
4 days, 21 hrs, 29 min, 59 sec = 19.3 min per day.
Total Time Spent Cross-Training (strength + bike, mostly)
2 days, 18 hrs, 39 min, 30 sec = 10.95 min per day.
Total Time Spent Working Out per day
19.3 min running + 10.95 min cross-training = 30.3 min per day
Not unreasonable, huh?
Recovery = Stretching, Foam Rolling, Self-Massaging, Icing, Compression Socks
- I stared making note of each time I did one of the above, although I started some of them during the year, so I don't have accurate full-year stats. I hope to have these stats next year, though.
- Eye-balling it, I wear compression socks 4 days a week at work, and I stretch every other day. I rarely do the other activities.
Weekly Comments:
In my log, there's a place where I make a weekly remark.
Here they are...
1. Good start to the year. Foot is still recovering but has survived. At last, hard part over and now taper.
2. Haven’t been hitting mileage targets perfectly in last month, but it’s okay and for the best. Foot better.
3. Only soy and dairy this week, and more oatmeal. Strange sleep, though hip better after naps. Probably feel more tired than I should 1 week out.
4. Playing it safe. Let the hip rest and stretch. Maybe more worn out than I should be in week of race.
5. Too bad a/b the BQ, but I’m a marathoner! Recovered surprisingly quickly. Excited for training again and my next attempt.
6. Getting back into running. Though we’ll have to see how stress/sleep/exercise time goes next two weeks in Buenos Aires.
7. Whew, Buenos Aires. Marathon week again.
8. Dunno if I’ll go for BQ in May or if I’ll relax and focus on 5Ks/10Ks
9. 5K PR – ready to do even better next time!
10. Sleep-deprived week.
11. Just keep fit, enjoy shorter races, improve if I can.
12. Not optimal fueling and stress level.
13. No run in Buenos Aires, but ok – needed to sleep and focus on final sprint of work. Fuel content okay, though portions and timing not ideal, probably.
14. Surprising result in Half Marathon for fun – guess marathon helps overcome low training, hot weather, and extra pound.
15. Tough recovering from an all-nighter.
16. Maybe I can be more consistent, ramp it up. My legs want to run now.
17. 5K PR, but still 45s to take off. Practice more sprinting and hills – enjoyed first hill session.
18. Get back into it. Tough w/ work and social commitments.
19. Need a marathon to train for. Need to start building a base.
20. Knees a bit poundy @ end of week, maybe due to sprints. Tired? Overtrained by end of week after overexcited the first half of the week?
21. Altitude training!
22. Princeton = running heaven. Nice workouts despite tummy issues.
23. Will need to get used to schedule w/ roommate.
24. Feeling “off” this week. First heat acclimatization run outdoors.
25. Getting over knee issues w/ more quad strength that somehow weakened recently. Left heel pain persists but dealing w/ it.
26. Working a lot. Running through plantar fasciitis.
27. Plantar fasciitis moved up a little towards toes, knot/swelling now. Decided on March marathon.
28. LR = soreness, building back up, I hope. Signed up for Spinx Half.
29. Week 1 of gym – Liked Spin and Pump, did a bit of plyos.
30. Intense plyos this week. Only craved protein and carbs this week – only 3 servings of fruit/veg daily.
31. Just getting more fitness volume. Plyos tougher to manage this week. Tummy stiff and anti-veggie, over-eat at night, too?
32. Good to race again (exciting). Feared immune system down from draining work but ok by end of week.
33. Needed to rest plantar after last week’s race, though reaction to run on Friday worries me. Go btwn full and hungry w/ mealtimes at restaurants during travel.
34. About 5 hrs sleep per night all week. So tired by end of week. Decent workouts past 2 weeks, I guess, given the conditions. Plantar did better with more support, vs. using the Kinvaras.
35. Could run more after 6ish weeks of less mileage, more bike.
36. Plantar flared (swollen). Pressure at work.
37. Epic workweek – somehow survived on little sleep.
38. Started Insanity, so more workouts. Pretty good.
39. Lack of sleep at its limit this week.
40. Decent HM (hilly), so endurance really coming back. Good practice for Spinx.
41. Decent training despite travel, tummy issues, altitude because made time, know schedule and best practices. Same with food.
42. Altitude issues, tummy issues a bit, mentally pooped by end of week. Stress fractury, too?
43. Got over inflammation and had a decent race, but I want to get over plateau.
44. More sleep this week at least. Probably need the rest.
45. Thought I might be getting burned out at first, but Camp Croft race was really fun (though hard).
46. First week of marathon training, though already in good shape.
47. Home: decent track workout, LR cut short due to body.
48. Week of redemption.
49. 1st cycle down, training going well.
50. Insanity after long break = soreness. Training going well.
51. Yeah, easy LRs. No speedwork, though.
52. 2nd cycle done!
Thoughts...
- New things I tried this year, that I haven't mentioned yet: 1) 1 month gym membership was nice. I enjoyed the spin bike a lot, since the recumbent bike I normally use makes my right butt hurt after 45 minutes, but the gym was too far away and isn't very economical. 2) Insanity DVDs - nice, although it's probably best used in moderate doses, like 1/wk.
- Work keeps me very busy, and I don't always get the sleep I should get.
- I think I'm getting better at managing working out and eating right while traveling. I was abroad maybe 9weeks this year. It's still hard, but I'm learning.
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