Weekly Log 5-13-13 to 5-19-13

My legs are feeling pretty heavy beginning this week.  I'll keep the intensity a little low until they feel stronger - hopefully on Wednesday.  I'd like to do some sort of workout that day.  My other idea for the week is to do a long run on Friday.  Technically it's national bike to work day, but I'd rather run (although there was a run to work day back in April - who knew?).  I've been plotting my route, which may be more fun than actually running it.  I've got a 23ish mile course that utilizes a few non-paved roads: a powerline near my house, two dirt roads in Exeter, a couple of  trails in Exeter, Ryan Park trails in NK, and a hidden rail bed trail in NK.  I minimized the time spent on busier roads to just a mile plus on Rte 138 and Rte 2 each (I was able to skip Rte 91).  I'm still working on the logistics, but hopefully putting this up on the blog will force me to see it through. 

Monday: 10 miles - NK roads alone.  Tired legs and I was just looking for a flat and easy run.  I mixed it up by exploring neighborhood side roads off of Fletcher Road rather than the usual courses.  It was rather chilly with the temperature in the 50's and windy.  Total time: 1:13:18. 



Tuesday: 10 miles - Wickford roads (4M) and Ryan Park trails (6M) alone.  I wanted to check out a couple of ideas I had for the possible run to work on Friday.  Mike G had scolded me a long time ago for not knowing about the old rail trail that I could more directly connect to Ryan Park.  I ran from the office and found the trail, which was pretty cool.  There are side trails running in both directions into the woods, but I didn't explore them today, not that they can go very far.  I popped out onto Rte 1 and then crossed into another neighborhood to gain direct access to Ryan.  Mission accomplished, and I was in the park in under 2 miles.  My energy was pretty low going into the run and my legs were still fatigued, so I stuck with the wider flat paths.  First I headed directly to the Lafayette parking lot (about 3.25 miles) to again check the distance.  I then ran through the field to Oak Hill Rd, but decided the trails were more fun than heading back on the roads (duh! - not sure why I even considered it).  At this point, my energy improved and I was feeling great.  The sun was pushing through the clouds and warming things up.  I continued with my easy pace (7:30ish), mixing things up a little on the way back, but still sticking to the easier terrain.  I then ran different roads back to the office (the usual way).  Total time: 1:14:36. 



Wednesday: 10 miles - 13x200 workout on roads with fast recoveries alone.  Another workout that totals 5K and that I stole from KT on Strava.  I programmed the workout into my watch and headed to Quonset.  The wind was pretty strong out of the SW, so I ran accordingly.  After a 2.5 mile warm up heading west on the bike path (18:48), I then began the intervals along the nearby flat open roads.  My watch doesn't show lap time, so my only clue is the lap pace it shows.  I was not on target for most of them, but there is definitely a lag with the GPS, and when I uploaded the data my paces were faster than what I thought.  I was hoping to average 35 and 49 for the recoveries.  I was able to be faster on most of the intervals and my average recovery was 50, although I was anywhere from 47-53 (they were slower near the end).  The total 5K time ended up being 17:31 - to borrow a phrase from Mac the Knight - Boom!  Pumped about this workout.  I know it was wind aided, but it was GPS hampered, and on roads not the track.  Results: 32/34/35/34/33/32/34/33/33/33/35/35/35

I ran a rather long cool down by circling Calf Pasture Point at a very slow pace (especially on the beach).  My watch won't show total distance if I'm running a workout, so I was trying to guess how far I need to go to get 10 miles.  I only ran 9.7 but was too tired to run another .3.  Total time: 1:11:37. 

Thursday: 8 miles - Big River trails solo.  Eighty degrees and sunny today.  I parked at Greasy Joe's and ran a nice easy loop.  My right leg (hamstring) is particularly sore post workout, but nothing I'm worried about.  The woods were quiet except for the deer I scared up (I was scared too when I heard a loud snort before ID'ing what creature made the noise).  At the end I ran into another runner and we chatted for a while.  Total time: 1:07:11.  Still planning on running to work in the morning.  Might be a sufferfest on tired legs or just slow.  We'll see. 





Friday: 23+ miles - Run to Work.  Mostly paved roads, but with some dirt roads and trails mixed in.  Scenic route on a picture perfect morning.  I was worried about the lingering soreness in my legs, but by the time I was 16 miles in, I started to feel pretty darn good.  Total time: 2:57.  GPS 23.2 miles.  Tempted to call it more. 

Powerline near my house

Overlook on North Road in Shannock

Sugar Maple tunnel on Beaver River Rd

Richmond International Airport

dirt roads of Exeter

Saturday: 0 - too busy and resting made sense.

Sunday: 12 miles - Burlingame north trails alone in the early afternoon. A little exploration and some good hills.  I left right after lunch as I knew it was going to rain soon.  I began by running Burdickville Road down to parking lot near the train tracks.  I ran the two trails in this section of Burlingame and also ran up a couple of the powerline hills (osprey nests on/near both).  I then ran back up the road and entered the usual "north" side of the state park.  My plan was to run the River Trail hill and Ledge Trail.  I did both at a good pace, but it felt pretty easy.  I kept my pace aggressive for the duration of the fun, first on the wide double track to Buckeye Brook Rd, and then again on the single track.  I was happy to get a hilly run in, and happy that they didn't feel hard today.  Total time: 1:29:22. 






Overall: Great week with the hard speed workout Wed, long run Fri, and hilly run Sun.  I even took a day off.  I'm itching to race....

Weekly Total: 73 miles
Last Week: 60 miles
Year to Date: 1162 miles