Base Training 11/28 - 12/4

M: 10 miles/70 minutes steady on Andover roads solo. Calf is still tender but less tight and felt better as the run progressed.
T: 10 miles/75 minutes on five or six reservations in Andover/N. Andover. Connected more of the Bay Circuit trail and I officially know how to get from Ward to Harold-Parker. I would have gone to H-P but I heard so many rifle shots in that direction I decided to give the hunters a little extra room. Calf didn't bother me. 10 minute plank session plus back, glute, crunch routine afterward.
W: 11.7 mi with 12x400 at 77s, 60s off. 2x200 at 32s, 60s off. Ran into Nate Jenkins on the cool down. Chatted for a couple miles making my cool-down a tad longer than intended. Nice day for a run and a wimpy yet satisfying first workout!
R: 5 easy in the evening after work. Felt crappy from standing all day at work. Top of foot is sore too. Drills plus 10 minute core
F: 9 easy, foot still a tad sore. It feels like my arch is collapsing in more than it should be. Less sore than yesterday though.
S: 9 miles with a HILLY 5k tempo in 17:10 on the Garmin. HR averaged 185, which is pretty high for a tempo effort. I couldn't believe the course I picked this morning Google Maps. Brutal. Started at 150ft elevation, maxed out at 320, and finished at 255. Reminded me of road version of Manchester's Derryfield Park.
S: 0. Right as I was dressing to run I got a call that there were things much more important than running going on that I needed to tend to.

Total: 54.7 on 6. I'll take it.

Base Training 11/21 - 11/27

M: off
T: off
w: 8 miles steady
R: 13 miles plus 5 mile Thanksgiving day race
F: 10 miles 70 minutes over hilly terrain
S: off
S: off

Total: 31 - Had a disappointing week with some calf tenderness after a really encouraging series of runs. I took Saturday off to let things heal up but all that happened is everything got super tight and more painful on Sunday. Lesson learned: don't take that first day off!

Feaster Five / Thanksgiving

Feaster Five splits

5:48
11:22 - 5:34
17:05 - 5:43
22:41 - 5:36
27:33 - 4:52

I'm pretty happy with the run this morning. After a couple weeks of decent, but certainly not ideal running, I feel like I'm finally past the major aspects of marathon recovery. My left hamstring bugs me when I stretch my quad (as if that makes sense?) but it doesn't bother me when I run. I've spent a good amount of time on the foam roller hoping to avoid a setback by building back to a good volume too quickly.

Anyway, Alex and I were up until about 1am hanging out and got up around 7 to roll out at 7:30. It was cool to be able to run right from my apartment to the start line (3.7 mi) but it was a little difficult carrying extra gear and layers. It was a crisp 29 degrees as we left the apartment and hit the trails. Arriving at the start line it was exciting to see several really solid runners doing strides. The crowd was also amazingly large as far as New England road races typically go. At the time I didn't notice it, but I guess several top guys were bandits, most likely because the race sold out for the second year in a row. Feaster has to cap the race at 10,000 people, making it the second largest road race in MA.

On this morning I was sort of ambivalent about a performance goal and just wanted to be out there with my kind on the day that classically holds the most road races accross the United States. Meanwhile, Alex was instructed by his coach to run 5:00-5:05 as a pace run. I entertained no thought of running that hard, so the gun sounded and I was instantly surrounded by a mass of runners as we settled into the start. It was difficult to tell who was running the 5k and who was in the 5 mile, so I just relaxed and tried to let a solid pace run effort come to me.

I felt flat from the first step, but I expected nothing less so I just embraced the effort and tried to do the best I could with unresponsive legs. It's the oddest feeling as a runner to be unable to force yourself to breathe hard, and for the second race in a row my muscles have been the limiting factor. At the same time, it is good to know that I am aerobically sound and I can focus on improving my mechanics and strength in the coming weeks. It was my first time running the Feaster and I was pumped to find the course really played to my strengths. After a tough hill in the first mile, an uninspired 4 miles had passed. I hung onto a loose pack of 3 guys through 2 miles but gradually let them run on ahead of me. Hitting the 4 mile mark, I did some quick math and decided I would really try to punch it and dip under 28 minutes. There were several guys in sight and the 5k crowd to my left was really motivating. The downhill grade as far as I could see was a major motivator.

I caught four guys, and passing the final two I rounded a turn and looked uphill to see a banner in the distance. Reinforcing the fact that I really need to buy glasses, I began an all-out sprint up the hill thinking it was the finish line! The adrenaline of trying to dust the two guys I had just passed mixed with anticipating the finish caused this rookie mistake, but I tried to embrace the lactic acid rush as it poured into my shoulders and arms, making me feel instantly heavy and uncoordinated. The move worked out for the better and I finished with one heck of a final mile. The splits are based on the mile markers out on the course, so it's possible my last mile was slightly slower and #4 was a bit faster. Either way, it was an exciting way to finish up. It was probably the most content I've ever been running a 27-mid 5 miler.

Alex and I hung out for a bit after the race and chatted with a few racers. Nate Jenkins had taken it to him and broke away early. Alex had been really pumped before the race and was hoping to go for the win despite his coaches' orders, and ultimately I think he put in a racing effort. Fresh off his 30:20 10k at the Southeast Regional, my best guess is he was a little rusty after some downtime, not to mention pulling an all-nighter three nights ago plus hitting the weights hard the night before. I'm not trying to make excuses but trying to explain he did indeed put in a racing effort and Jenkins most certainly earned a win this morning!

In the end we made out like bandits, snagging full-size apple pies, vitamin waters, tons of snacks, and such items and stashed them in the woods on the run back to my apartment. It is good to spend time with the little bro and inspiring to hear about his training and truly Spartan focus during this fall cross-country season. It has been helpful to be reminded of what it takes to run at a high level. I'm amazed sometimes at my own complacency in my training. The major take-away: drills and strength training are important components to running efficiently at a fast pace.

Base Training: 11/14 - 11/20

M: 3.5 easy plus a light core session.
T: 10 miles steady 65 minutes on a combination of roads and trails. Felt great today from the start.
w: 8 miles/53 minutes on trails from the apartment w/ old partner in crime Alex Hall.
R: 5 miles/35 minutes through a few reservations in N Andover.
F: 9 miles/65 minutes on the Rivah trail for the first time. Ran into MQ and he was nice enough to show me the 10 mile out and back, making his run somewhere around 17 miles! 10 minute core. 
S: 6 miles/45 minutes on trails with Jenkins
S: 3 miles easy/felt like dog poo. Core and drills. 


Total: 44.5


Thoughts: This week was an odd one in the sense that in strange ways I feel like I'm still recovering from the damage caused by the cramps late in the CCM. My left hamstring feels tight and high up near the pelvis and my right hip feels crappy late in runs. I had a few good runs without much pain but the few strides I've done have simply felt terrible. This coming week I need to focus on good rest and nutrition, bumping up to 50-55 miles and making core a regular component of each training day.

Base Training 11/7 - 11/13

M: 6 miles 45 miles solo, second day back running
T: 0 off - why not?
W: 5.5 miles/40 min solo
R: 7.5 miles/56 min with Matt
F: 8 miles/55 min with Ken at Winnekenni
S: 5 miles/54 min with Jim and Dan at Bald Hill
S: 10.5 miles/67 min solo on the Holt Road loop in Andover. Dropped a few under 6mp near the end.

Total: 42.5 miles on 6 days.

I'm still working out some kinks in the hamstrings, but by now I'm feeling pretty well recovered from Cape Cod. The first few days out there I felt really slow but by the end of the week things seem to be coming together.  Sunday's first few miles were slow but once I warmed up I was feeling really good. It was a mental battle to hold myself back and not start hammering... but I'll take is a good omen that I'm holding myself back rather than dragging my feet to get back to running consistently.

October and the Cape Cod Marathon

October is my favorite month of the year. The scent of the foliage season is at its peak and I become nostalgic about past team championships and my personal discovery of running as a young teenager. This October marks my 10th year of running, and I guess it was only appropriate that I took my first shot at the marathon distance. Despite some struggles with injury during the final 4 weeks of training limiting me to no more than 30 miles per week, I really looked forward to the event and discovering what the marathon is all about. 

As race day drew nearer, I was becoming more anxious and frustrated with my limited preparation. In mid-September I would have guaranteed a 2:38-2:40 finish. Recognizing that nothing could be gained by fitting in miles on a leg that finally felt healthy in the final week of training, I didn't run the 4 days leading up to the race. I may have been unprepared, but at least I would be fresh! So race day arrived and I woke without power caused by a pretty nasty snowfall. I checked the water temp and cursed our tiny water heater. Skipping the shower, I realized I would also have to find a store for my coffee. My pre race meal of oatmeal also didn’t happen.

While we only got 6 or 8 inches, the snow was wet and heavy and had laid waste to much of southern NH and northern MA. As Lauren and I made our way slowly down 93, we could see transformers igniting in greenish-blue sparks in the distance and we seriously wondered if we would make it to the race on time. 

It was mostly easy driving once we were past Boston except our search for Dunkin' Donuts coffee and bagels led to a dead end. Apparently the factory supplying the south shore of delicious donuts and bagels had also lost power. By 7:00 I was getting pretty anxious about getting food in my stomach, so we stopped at an On-the-Run and I bought the soggiest chicken salad sandwich and just put it down as fast as I could. It was a little nasty but it felt good to have something to digest. 

Onto the race: I found most of the CMSers pretty easily and I was pumped about the crew we brought to the line. JJ and I ran probably less than a mile total before the start plus a couple of strides. It occurred to me as I stood on the start line and spoke with Sam Wood about pace that I hadn't even picked a goal pace to begin at. Sam said something about running 2:55 and I agreed that sounded good, but I had no idea what pace/mile that would involve. About a minute later after a cannon sounded the start, my "race plan”, like my shower and breakfast, was also kaput. I decided to aim for low-6:00s knowing the odds were stacked against holding pace.

I was happy to run into Jon May and a few others including Dan Verrington and we hit the first mile in 5:53. The pace felt effortless, but we all knew we had to reign it in. I have thought about ways to describe how my race played out, but as my buddy Brandon said recently, "the numbers never fail to tell the story in a way nothing else can". Here they are:

1 - 5:53
2 - 6:05
3 - 6:02
4 - 5:56
5 - 6:02
6 - 6:11
7 - 6:09
8 - 6:11
9 - 6:15 break from group and begin solo journey
10 - 6:05
11 - 6:10
12 - 6:13 hills begin
13 - 5:55
14 - 5:57
15 - 5:49 oops
16 - 6:13
17 - 6:15
18 - 6:18
19 - 6:00
20 - 6:11
21 - 6:16 caught JJ
22 - 8:59 running + 1:44 most insane hamstring cramps of my life (aka, wheels come off)
23 - 7:54 running + 2:11 stretching, getting passed by top female
24 - 8:19 running + 1:27 asking for fluids from strangers, almost took a ride ... walked most of the way to someone's car before deliriously spinning around and running on
25 - 9:40 determined to finish, gave up on watch
26 - 7:21 fluids from final aid station kick in
.2 - ~1:15

10 mile split 60:48
20 mile split 121:49
Final 10k 53:16

Finish: 2:55

From mile 9 to 21 I ran alone with exception to passing or getting passed by a relay runner here and there. I was really enjoying working on the hills and recovering on the downhills. I felt super smooth too and at one point got a little too aggressive running 5:50's for a few miles. Right around mile 16 I felt the first alarming sign of a hamstring cramp. It was in the exact same spot as the cramps that made the Nahant race so difficult. At this point I knew the inevitable would eventually catch up to me, and it was only a matter of when. I took down a couple Rocksters back to back and stopped momentarily to give the hamstring a hard stretch. Eureka! I kicked the cramp and could run normally again. Around this point I started seeing racers in the distance and knew I couldn't be too far behind a few guys. I was assuming stragglers would begin falling off a faster early pace, and so I pushed pretty hard to make up some ground during miles 18-20.

Finally someone came into view, and to my surprise, I realized it was JJ. I caught up to him somewhere around mile 21 and we spoke briefly. He was in cruise control mode but still appeared to have some energy, although I could tell his legs were hurting. He encouraged me to keep rolling but I told him I was better off just trying to stick with him. My hamstrings and groin muscles really started to jump and I knew the end was near. At the next aid station I stopped at a table and pounded 2 full cups of Cytomax and then got going again. JJ had gained ground on me, so I pushed hard up a small hill to get even with him again....

And then I bonked. It wasn't the low-energy, light-headed wimpy kind of bonk though. It was the my-muscles-are-tearing-themselves-apart, pulling-harder-than-should-be-physically-possible kind of bonk. From the insertion point behind the knees to the connective tissue in my butt bones, I felt the most excruciating pull in my hamstrings. JJ thinks I shouted "oh God!" but it may have just been a nonsensical cry of pain and surprise. It was all I could do but desperately reach for my toes and hope the cramps would subside.

While I stood hunched on the curb I watched my race mostly slip away from me. All the racers I had left at mile 9 moved by me in a loose pack led by Jon May. It was around this moment I fully realized just how important race preparation for this distance is. I had felt incredibly comfortable, aerobically, throughout the race, but I knew as early as mile 10 that targeting a 2:40 or anything close to that was a gamble.

The last 10k is a sort of delirious blur. I managed to get moving again but never at more than a hobble. Someone in a car passed me, stopped, threw it in reverse back to me and offered me an entire 20 oz electrolyte drink. Normally I’m not in the habit of soliciting strangers for help, but I was desperate for fluids I hoped would ease the cramping. I slammed the bottle and got going again. Right at mile 24 is where I almost threw in the towel. A CMSer I had only met once before (I think his name is Tom) was spectating and when I stopped again to stretch he came up alongside me and asked me if I was okay. At that point I really wasn’t sure. My left quad had just cramped really badly and I was keenly aware of the physical damage being done. Tom and several other people began walking me to their car but as we approached I spun around and shouted I had to continue. I couldn’t bear the thought of not finishing.

Coming into the downtown area I was thrilled to hear from JJ that Pat Rich had won the whole damn thing. After finishing I was instantly freezing and after watching Abbey and Sam finish up a few minutes later I headed straight for the showers.

It’s easy to have mixed feelings about my first marathon, but similar to what some other guys have said, I can’t stop thinking about racing the next one. I’m not sure if a spring marathon is in the works, but Vermont City could be it. The coming winter season for me will be a base-building phase with regular strength-building workouts. I’ll likely try out a few more snowshoe races as my work schedule permits and if things go really well, I might run a couple 3ks or 5ks on the boards.  

Week 9/26 - 10/2

Monday: 0 - sick

Tuesday: 0 - sick

Wednesday: 5 slow slog on the trails trying to shake out the remainder of this infection.

Thursday: 3.5 am / off to a killer week thanks to some bad luck with E-coli. Finally felt mostly normal on my morning run. I'm trying to look at the time missed as a good restful break for my legs, although overall I'm feeling anything but rested. /  4 miles pm got rained out by the craziest thunder and lightening storm. Made it home safe and sound. 7.5 total... ugh.

Friday: 10.8 with JJ on Salem, Haverhill and Methuen roads. Jim had a race the next day but we moved along at a good clip nonetheless, something like 6:20 average, last mile close to 6 flat. Felt good today, especially considering 80 degrees and humid - what's up September 30?? / hiked a few miles around 9pm to stretch out a sore calf...

Saturday: off. Hiked again today, 6 miles total.

Sunday: off.

Total: 19!!

Overall this was about the worst week in marathon training I could have hoped for. I started out the week getting over a ridiculous stomach bug and finished it off with a really tender calf. Normally I wouldn't be so cautious but since my calf is sore in the same spot that triggered long-term injury during my last training cycle I'm making it a point to rest... Also, I just don't feel quite right with headaches, muscle soreness, sleeping a lot and waking tired... I wonder if I'm fighting an underlying virus which isn't allowing me to recover fully. Putting this week behind me NOW. There is still time to salvage an OK marathon on the 30th.

Training 9/19 - 9/25

Monday: 59 minutes am on trails, about 8 miles, really easy recovery run. / 45 min bike ride pm pretty hard around town just for fun. 15 mi

Tuesday: 10.5 miles from the apt at 6:50 average, really slow to start (15 min through 2 miles) and then the pace gradually dropped to about 6:20. Feeling good once I was warmed up.

Wednesday: 9.5 from the apt at 6:20 average. Feeling a heck of a lot more snappy than yesterday. Held back a bit - Thursday and Friday should be quality days. I'm noticing a pattern that it takes me 2 full days to recover from a hard long run effort.

Thursday: 9 miles with Brandon mid-afternoon mostly easy, with 15 minutes of fast ~120m diagonals between 14.8 and 15.3 mph. Rest was about 75m easy to the next corner and we were off again. We were surprised to see we averaged 6:10 pace for the total effort. // 3 miles easy pm with MVS, 12 total.

Friday: 3.5 up, 1.25 at 5:15 pace, walk-jog and drills for unknown time, 1.5 at 5:10-15 pace, 2.5 cooldown. Basically this planned 8 mile tempo turned to absolute crap. I'll spare the details but in summary I was not ready to roll today. Tomorrow is off. Sunday TBD. 7.75 total

Saturday: 5 easy with Ben. Still feeling off, not sure what's up exactly. I know one thing for certain: this is FALL, and I am ready to be rid of this humidity!!

Sunday: off. I sort of knew this was coming. Lauren and I both have a crappy stomach bug. Exhausted on top of it all.

Total: 54 miles plus one bike ride and a couple of core workouts.

Nahant 30k Road Race

Over the past few weeks I've watched the clock tic closer to Cape Cod but I wasn't making any progress in terms of improving my endurance. Yeah, I've been getting faster, but I was basically untested at distances beyond 15 miles at any pace. So, despite less than good decision-making leading up to Sunday, I was determined to get a long hard run in. I have been preoccupied with moving, organizing the new place, job searching and really hadn't prepared for a long run how I normally would. Still, on Saturday evening I was hunting for a good marathon prep course and found a gem in the Nahant 30k Road Race. I think this is one of the races Jim Pawlicki recommended to me a few weeks ago too.

When I was running at UNH, I would head out for a hard 16 miler affectionately known as Bay Road. When running with the team we would pretty often keep the pace around 6:30 pace, only dropping it down close to 6:00 in the last few miles. But sometimes I would run the loop by myself and just hit it at 6:00 from the beginning, and I've always been really confident with my ability to run hard for a good distance.  That's just the thing about memories of your past self, though. You recall the glorious long runs, workouts and races when you couldn't have been slowed down by anything. But you don't recall the regimented sleep schedule, hydrating constantly, eating well, and the overall total focus that consumes successful running. Well, I had a tough wake-up call on Sunday, to say the least.

I woke early since Lauren was getting up for work and spent a few minutes with her before she took off. Driving towards the coast I was fantasizing of 55 degrees, zero humidity and a light coastal breeze. After I registered and warmed up 10 minutes, I realized the weather could become a bigger factor. I forgot my water bottle at home, but had remembered two GUs and luckily brought them to the starting line. My watch strap got chewed by my stepbrother's dog and I didn't want to deal with carrying GU and my watch, so I left the watch at the car, thinking that running by feel would make the most sense anyway. 

My plan had been to run roughly 6:20-6:30s for the first 12 miles and then get aggressive and see how fast I could close out the 18.7 mile run. At the same time, I was really hoping to find at least one person running my pace early on. I began chatting with Paul Ryan who's plan was to run 6:30s for 6, 6:00s for 6, and 5:40's for the final 6. Perfect! I thought as we chatted through the first 6 miles. It was only at mile 7 he revealed to me that we had run just under 42 for the first 7. I was struggling with taking down water and was feeling weaker than I have in several days. It was humid and the coastal breeze I'd dreamed about was nowhere in sight once we were over the bridge. I'll give the course organizers credit, too, because it was as hilly as advertised. 

I let Paul go at 7.5 and decided it was time to salvage my race plan and back off for the next 5 miles or so. By 10 miles I had lost sight of Paul and was running completely alone. I didn't have a great sense of my pace, but I knew that the steep rollers were playing a number on my quads and I couldn't shake the feeling that I was more fatigued than I should be. By roughly 12 miles, I was running scared. My quads were really wrecked, but my hamstrings started to cramp on the downhills. I shortened my stride for a half mile to the next aid station. There I threw off my jersey, walked for about 30 seconds to the station, and chatted with a volunteer for a few minutes. He gave me a bottle of Gatorade and I downed it. Then I drank down 4 or 5 dixie cups of water. Having felt totally defeated, I decided I must be dehydrated and that stopping at all the water stops would be a solution to get me to the finish line.

I couldn't believe no one caught me when I stopped. Of course I didn't have my watch, but someone seriously should have caught me. I was pissed that I didn't have my watch too because now I wouldn't know my moving average, although I could generalize later. The rest of the race played out with me stopping at every water stop, running relaxed, and getting to about mile 16 before the cramps returned, this time with a fury. By 17 I was really wishing the race was over and I stopped one last time to stretch at 18 miles. Finishing, well, you can tell by the photo how I was feeling. At least I had the smarts to throw my singlet back on. It actually felt chilly compared to my body temperature. 

After the race I wasn't really disappointed. It was really only a wake-up call that to run long and hard you have to prepare not just by running the miles and getting fit, but by living running as a lifestyle. That's something my high school coach always hammered home and it's good to be reminded now. It was also good to realize how important the long run efforts are. Overall, I really enjoyed this event. The course was challenging and the competition up front was really solid. The food post-race seemed like the best food ever, but that could be the 20 miles run talking. 

Top 10:

Place Name                No.  S Ag Div   Div City       St S Time    Pace  
===== =================== ==== = == ===== === ========== == = ======= ===== 
    1 DAN VASSALLO         262 M 26 M2029   1 PEABODY    MA   1:42:23  5:30 
    2 CHRIS BRUNNQUELL     280 M 22 M2029   2 MEDFORD    MA   1:45:41  5:41 
    3 JOSH ANDREWS          73 M 22 M2029   3 CHELMSFORD MA   1:49:34  5:53 
    4 PAUL RYAN            217 M 31 M3039   1 BOSTON     MA   1:50:44  5:57 
    5 RYAN MURDOCH         269 M 23 M2029   4 ROSLINDALE MA   1:52:44  6:03 
    6 BEN SCHERSTEN        164 M 32 M3039   2 SOMERVILLE MA   1:54:16  6:08 
    7 SCOTT MCGRATH        266 M 24 M2029   5 ANDOVER    MA   2:00:25  6:28 
    8 EMILY KROSHUS        168 F 28 F2029   1 BOSTON     MA   2:03:10  6:37 
    9 LAURA BRUSTOLON      104 F 23 F2029   2 MYSTIC     CT   2:03:42  6:39 
   10 KATIE MISURACA       277 F 30 F3039   1 GLOUCESTER MA   2:07:06  6:50 

Training 9/12 - 9/18

Monday: 6 miles am (45 min) real easy from the apartment. 4 miles pm easy again (28 min) but feeling much better from Sunday's effort compared to this morning. light core work at night. 10 total.

Tuesday: 9 pm easy mostly on awesome trails from the new apartment. I can't believe the network I found this afternoon... unbelievable stuff right in my back yard. 3 pm with Brandon and Whirlaway guys after coaching. 12 total.

Wednesday: 11 pm on the roads of Andover. I picked a hilly looking 10.7m loop on gmaps and went after it today. 64:10 for the 10.7 and then jogged 5 minutes down the road to loosen up and call it 11. I wouldn't say I felt great today but my breathing was controlled and I worked on keeping my stride efficient, one of the lessons learned from the 30k last Sunday.

Thursday: Met up with some CMS folks and ran the Thursday night fun run, this time equipped with my brand new Garmin 305. I had never run with a HRM or GPS before and it was pretty cool to have splits automatically taken throughout the run. I found it interesting that there was almost no difference in my HR with a mile at 6:00 and a mile at 5:40, 177 bpm compared to 179. I warmed up 4 miles, ran the 3 mile course in 17:50 and cooled down 2.5 for a total of 8.5 on the evening. Today was basically an intentional rest day and I should be ready to roll for a 5m tempo tomorrow.

Friday: 10 miles total with 5 mile tempo in 28:45 with Ken in Amesbury. Felt great today. It's about time 5:40's felt comfortable again! I wore the Garmin and my HR stayed steady at 177 throughout. Is 177 high? I should probably do a max test or something, but I'd guess I can get into the 190's mid-sprint.

Saturday: 8 am 60 minutes on trails in Andover. Felt great out there, holding back all the way and getting excited for tomorrow's long run. I may double 6 tonight.

Sunday: 20 miles steady with last 4-4.5 at 5:50 pace to see how the legs would respond. Ran with a group from the Bedford Depot. Great run, felt strong and relaxed.

Total: 79.5