Start Time: 10/14/08, 4:30pm
Location: Mount Vernon Trail
Distance: 5 miles
Average Pace: 8:53min/mile
Total Miles For October: 43 miles

I decided on Tuesday that I was going to run “whatever I wanted” and just enjoy the run. Well, that would have been ok… if the sudden heat wave had not unleased swarms of gnats all up and down the Mount Vernon Trail. So, about two miles in, I ran through a cloud of gnats… and then spent the entire rest of the run doing the following:

1) Greg wipes face with hand
2) Greg looks at hand now covered in gnat corpses
3) Greg wipes hand off on shorts
4) Greg looks at hand, now clear

Repeat over and over again. I probably wiped 60 to 80 gnats off of my face. Disgusting. Originally I was going to run 6 miles, but under the circumstances I decided ending my run a bit early was the smartest thing to do.

(9:11, 8:55, 8:36 (fleeing the gnats!), 8:46, 8:58)

Start Time: 10/12/08, 7:45am
Location: Clarendon, Ballston, Bluemont Park
Distance: 6 miles
Average Pace: 9:01min/mile
Total Miles For October: 38 miles

This was thankfully a lot nicer; the day after my run I was supposed to run a 6-miler at a 9min/mile pace, and while my quads were not thrilled with me they held up a-ok. One funny thing was that I decided to try out having a clear breath-right strip on my nose to see if that would help out any. It did… but after three miles it fell off because of all the sweat. Bah!

(8:59, 9:11, 8:37, 9:09, 9:03, 9:07)

Start Time: 10/11/08, 7:30am
Location: W&OD Trail
Distance: 20 miles
Average Pace: 9:31min/mile
Total Miles For October: 32 miles

The workout prescribed for me on Saturday was to run 5 sets of 4 miles; the first two at a 10min/mile page, the next two at a 9min/mile pace, the last (if possible) at an 8min/mile pace. Between each set was a slight (4 minute) rest break to refuel and the like. So, I headed out… and on the whole, I have to say, I am not feeling like this sets-of-mile-repeats program is really preparing me well for my marathon. In the real thing I don’t get rest breaks every four minutes, but more importantly, on that fifth set… no fuel left in the tank at all. I felt like I was pushing hard to try and at least get a 9min/mile pace, when it was really all the way back down to a 10min/mile pace. And that was with having rest breaks. That shouldn’t have happened at all.

I’m just not impressed with how this is going, and I think there are other issues going as well (which I want to sit down and write about later) but on the whole I’m really not happy with how this year’s training is panning out for me. If I run a marathon next year I think there will need to be a lot of thinking about what I need to get a good experience for myself. Unfortunately, I’m not getting what I need for myself this year.

Set 1: 39:21 (10:00, 9:39, 9:51, 9:50)
Set 2: 39:49 (10:06, 10:05, 9:53, 9:43)
Set 3: 35:24 (8:26, 8:57, 9:13, 8:47)
Set 4: 36:33 (8:39, 9:14, 9:33, 9:06)
Set 5: 39:18 (9:41, 9:43, 9:53, 9:59)

Start Time: 10/9/08, 8:30am
Location: Clarendon
Distance: 4 miles
Average Pace: 8:55min/mile
Total Miles For October: 12 miles

Oops! Way behind on my running log, here.

After my run on the 2nd, I was away for the weekend, then feeling sick on Monday. Deciding not to chance it (especially with a long run on that upcoming Saturday) I shifted my Monday gym trip to Tuesday, then did spinning as normal on Wednesday, making it a full week before I was out running again. Just an easy four-miler to get back into the saddle, nothing particular momentous.

Start Time: 9/28/08, 11:00am
Location: W&OD Trail
Distance: 3 miles
Average Pace: 9:04min/mile
Total Miles For September: 61 miles

Wow, that was horrible. I was supposed to run a 10-miler, but the humidity? Out of control. As in, having problems breathing and feeling like it was actually pulling me back. Much worse than anything through the summer itself, which was rather unexpected. Aborted the run and went home; my only consolation (hours later) was hearing how many other people had the same problem with outdoor exercise on Sunday. Still, a little distressing.

Start Time: 9/30/08, 7:30am
Location: North Arlington
Distance: 6 miles
Average Pace: 8:52min/mile
Total Miles For September: 67 miles

A slightly later start than I wanted this morning, but it all actually worked out very well. Just randomly ran all over the place; down Clarendon Boulevard and 10th Street to Glebe, then over to 50 before winding through residential neighborhoods, followed up by two more miles on 50. Nice weather, didn’t feel like I was pushing, and it was ultimately just what I needed to feel like things were starting to return to normal.

Start Time: 9/27/08, 8:00am
Location: W&OD Trail
Distance: 9 miles
Total Miles For September: 58 miles

This Saturday was supposed to be like last week’s 5x3mile extravaganza, but without set 4 added in. I did the first three sets and came in under my suggested times (30, 30, and 27min) but I didn’t attempt the last one (25min) because all the way through the third set I felt more and more like I was going to throw up. Charming. I thought it was from eating cereal instead of oatmeal for breakfast, but it’s now hours and I still feel really horrible. Fun fun fun.

9:10, 9:48, 9:46 (9:35avg, 28:46tot)
9:52, 9:49, 9:33 (9:45avg, 29:15tot)
8:26, 9:10, 9:08 (8:54avg, 26:44tot)

Start Time: 9/23/08, 4:45pm
Location: Mount Vernon Trail
Distance: 4 miles
Average Pace: 8:51min/mile
Total Miles For September: 49 miles

Originally I was going to run 6-to-8 miles on Tuesday, but within a mile I knew I just wasn’t feeling it. My right lower calf was feeling a little stiff, and I decided to terminate the run a little early. Two miles in, I turned around and just headed back to start. The ankle/calf never did really loosen up, so turning around early was absolutely the right decision.

9:04, 8:51, 8:52, 8:35

Start Time: 9/21/08, 8:15am
Location: W&OD Trail
Distance: 10 miles
Average Pace: 8:59min/mile (or 9:08min/mile)
Total Miles For September: 45 miles

I will be the first to admit that after Saturday’s bomb-out, I was not looking forward to Sunday’s run. My quads were a little sore, and I was feeling… less than encouraged about the run. But I headed out anyway (because I am a masochist, I guess) and ran on the W&OD Trail; starting at marker 3.5, down to the 2.5 marker, then up to 7.5 before heading back to start.

I don’t know why I am always surprised by the trail heading just slightly uphill as the marker numbers increase, but some days it gets me more than others. This was one of those days where that tiny tilt semed just horrible. About 4.5 miles in I actually turned off my watch, sat down, and ate my gel for 90 seconds before continuing on. That helped a little bit, but the biggest thing was about half a mile later running into Alma, whom I trained with back in 2005. She was on her bike getting ready for a triathlon next weekend, and she rode next to me for a few minutes before she zoomed off. And that was what really got me going again. My spirits were lifted, and I did just fine until (finishing off mile #6) I got to turn around and start heading slightly downhill for the remainder.

My finishing time was supposed to be between a 9:00 and 9:30min/mile average, so even with that 90 second break being fully added on, things were a-ok on that front. But I was still pretty beat after Saturday’s 15 mile disaster, so it was certainly tougher than it would have otherwise been!

(8:44, 8:47, 8:56, 9:32, 9:07 (or 10:37), 9:14, 9:06, 8:54, 8:40, 8:48)

Start Time: 9/20/08, 7:00am
Location: Thomas Jefferson Community Center half-mile loop
Distance: 15 miles
Total Miles For September: 35 miles

So here was my weekend assignment: “The workout is a 5 x 3 mile ‘make-or-break run’, with a 3-minute recovery (no more, no less) in between each 3-mile repeat. You’ll follow that with a 10-mile tempo run on Sunday. These workouts will help train you to run negative splits. The goal for this set of workouts is to run the EXACTLY as they are described in the table below – no faster – no slower.” I was given specific time goals for my 3-milers, and on paper I thought, “This will be easy.” Ha ha ha. Here’s out it turned out…

Target: 30:00 (10min/mile avg)
Miles 1-3: 29:43 (10:02, 9:48, 9:53)
Miles 4-6: 29:45 (9:53, 9:59, 9:53)

Target: 27:00 (9min/mile avg)
Miles 7-9: 26:42 (8:57, 8:55, 8:50)
Miles 10-12: 26:43 (8:48, 8:57, 8:57)

Target: 25:00 (8:20min/mile avg)
Miles 13-15: 26:43 (8:16, 9:05, 9:24)

Yeah, everything was going great until mile 14, huh? Just ran out of energy, and hauling around a few extra pounds from earlier this month was not helping matters. Time to stop stuffing my face and really buckle down after several weeks of slacking. This should have been easier, and I should’ve hit all five segments easily, not just the first four. Ah well! Now I know!