Massive Workout Fail

Goal:
2x3mile with 2 min rest @ 600-550

Actual:
3 mile warmup
1.25 mile in 608 pace
1 mile in 600 pace
4x400m in 80
10 miles total

Because I was sick (or allergic to all this damn pollen) this whole week, it resulted in lots of missed morning runs.  This morning was no exception, so I opted for a workout at McAlpine in the early evening with Garrett biking alongside.  I was completely unprepared for the 86 degree heat, with air heavy not only with moisture but also pollen.   I headed into the workout with the intention of just running at what felt "hard" and not looking at splits.

With the sun beating down on my pale, abino-ish skin, I set off for a hard pace at the start line of the XC course.  As I passed the 800m mark, I opted to run on the paved portion, so I turned on the bridge.  A woman happened to be sitting on the bridge with her dog on a leash.  As I cruised by, the dog jumped out and bit my hip.  I didn't stop, but Garrett yelled from the bike, "Did he get you..." and I pulled up my shorts to check.  Sure enough, I had bloody mark on my leg, albeit small.  I was so pissed that I didn't stop to check if her dog had rabies shots.  I just kept going but then I was so flustered I didn't want to go anymore, so I stopped after 1.25 miles.  There isn't much to report about the rest of the workout, except that I tried to run hard for some other portions and ultimately decided to end it with some 400m repeats on the course.

In hindsight, I wish I had just scrapped a workout for this week and just focused on resting and recovering.  I learned that if I'm sick, I need to listen to my body and just run easy as opposed to plowing through workouts that will just make me feel less confident in my fitness.

3x2 Mile at McAlpine

Goal:
3x2 Mile at 545-600 Pace with 2:00 Jog Rest


Actual:
3.1 miles warmup in 23:40
11:44 (5:59, 5:45) (2:00 rest)
11:34 (5:47, 5:47) (2:15 rest)
11:34 (5:53, 5:41)
1.6 miles cool down in 13:20


Well this workout definitely went better than the last time I ran this back in June.  As this was my most important run for this week, I really wanted to run within the specified times.  With the company of Spada and David Willis, I was able to keep my head up and finish up strong despite finishing behind the boys.  While I'm sure Spada appreciates the view of me from behind, he had nothing to look ahead towards as he finished "first" in this workout.  


With Jay Holder back in town to get hitched, he joined a whole crew of us at McAlpine - Aaron, David, Carolyn, Mike Kahn, Spada, Billy, and more that I didn't see in the dark.  At the 400m mark by Old Bell, we approached what appeared to be a dead body.  Don't panic.  It was just Billy Shue pulling a prank even though he has strep throat which he could have acquired from running the Warrior Dash...


We enjoyed a nice warmup to the 3 mile mark and then began our workout.  The course would be to the 4 mile mark, out-and-back, for the first interval.  Then we'd run onto the course and skip the hill for the 2nd.  For the third, we ran around the lake and back to Old Bell so that someone could pull a Spada and jump immediately into his car.  David originally had mile repeats but decided that running with Spada and I would be a lot cooler.  Turns out he ran exceptionally well. Expect some fast times out of him this fall!


Spada likes to let me lead the way for most of these workouts during the beginning.  Then about halfway through our workout, he bursts ahead and I get left in the dust.  It actually is quite a good partnership because it motivates me not to fall apart and forces me to employ mental tactics.  On the first one we were all together and it didn't feel easy.  


The second one I lead the way until Spada made a move at 1 mile to make a sizable gap on me.  I struggled to hang on but somehow still managed to finish with an even split.


The last split I really struggled in the first mile as Spada and David both pulled away from me in the first 400m.  I was on the verge of crumbling apart, both mentally and physically, when I suddenly had a change of heart.  What this really means is that I started cursing at myself and telling myself to stop feeling sorry for myself.  I was able to finish my last mile as one of the fastest of the day which is always a good feeling, even if you feel like crap in the process.  


The key takeaway from this work out is that I am very lucky to have people to run with, to be injury free for an extended period of time, and to have the opportunity to exercise in this beautiful weather.  I really have no excuse to crumble apart mentally.  Whenever I start feeling down or like I can't finish a workout, I need to remember these critical elements because they cannot be taken for granted.  I need to savior each and every run leading up to the Trials because it's all about the journey!


In other news, Garrett's team was eliminated from the playoffs, so he'll be driving from upstate New York and all the way to Southern Illinois starting on Monday.  I am flying home to see him and my extended family members for an entire 9 days while still working remotely for Bank of America.  Assuming I did the math correctly in my head, that means there are only 7 days left until I see him!  Ra-ra-ra!

A real pain in the butt

I have a real pain in the ass right now.

To elaborate....

This Tuesday, I ran a 5x1200m workout at McAlpine because we wanted to get in some quality intervals with a soft surface. I met up with my favorite running boys (Justin, Aaron, Jay, Jordan, and Will) and we all ran some good times on the back wooded loop, starting from the 3200m mark. Since Aaron is training for a marathon and I'm training for a 10 miler, Aaron was kind enough to run with me for my first 5 repeats around 4:00 min pace. This time he didn't come from behind, yelling "Choo Choo, here comes the Old Man Train!" Instead, he kept it more tame and gave me some encouraging feedback throughout the intervals, sticking next to me the entire time. It really helped on the last one, when I really wanted to get under 4:00, which we did. After that, he went on to run 3 more 1200s at a much faster pace around 3:45s. He reminded me afterwards that I would be doing similar sort of stuff this coming Fall for my own Chicago marathon training , and I tried my best not to cringe. ;o)

I cooled down with everyone else and my legs felt great. I drove home. I ate some eggs. I had spinach with olive oil and vinegar. I played virus buster on my Nintendo DS. I slept.

The next morning, I crawled out of bed at 540am to get ready to run to the Dowd YMCA...and all I could feel was my right butt cheek (aka glute). Really, it felt like the entire muscle had two baseballs lodged between all of the key muscles and ligaments that are essential for creating the running motion. I limped my way to my closet to put on my clothes, and crossed my fingers that once I laced up my shoes, it would stop hurting. Of course, the pain did not subside, and I walked out the door regardless. With that, I limped my way through the first mile, and the tightness eventually subsided so that it felt like I was just using a rusty lever to propel my legs forward.

Since with most runs, your mind tunes out any pain that you have, I didn't notice anything once I passed the four mile mark. Once I got home, however, I went into emergency recovery mode. I stretched extensively, did all of my Mark Kane physical therapy exercises and used a lacrosse ball to dig out the huge knots that had inconveniently situated themselves in my gluteus during my slumber. On my walk to work, however, I was limping slightly because it was too difficult to bring my right leg forward. I immediately made an appointment to get it rubbed out by a massage therapist that night.

Extensive icing, exercises, and self massages have seemed to solve my injury, but now I realize the importance of doing the injury prevention exercises that Mark Kane had given me a month ago. Now I know why Garrett is so diligent in performing all of his exercises...even if they decrease his chances of getting an injury by 25%, that's still better than nothing!