This is my training journal. I'm bad at titles. (Comments welcome!)

[nancipants]

It's kind of reassuring that it's miserable in every part of the country right now, not just Florida.

 

[WillRunForPizza]

It is absolutely miserable out there now. The T+D is over 150 even at 7 AM. Yesterday I had to cut short my speed session, and today I slogged through 8 easy miles (which turned into 7.5 instead). I thought I was doing pretty well with my heat acclimation, but I'm clearly not as far in as I'd like. I do need to be better about adjusting paces too. I tend to do okay at holding on to my usual paces up until about 140.

Today is my rest day, but my dog was very worn out after his 6 a.m. walk He is also not acclimated yet

 

[striker1064]

I'm assuming this is retribution for our very mild winter and pleasantly cool spring overall - DC summers are relentless but even this is a little too hot and a little too humid for this time of year.

 

[Naomeri]

It's kind of reassuring that it's miserable in every part of the country right now, not just Florida.

It was 53°F here in MN this morning (82% humidity) and it should be continuing about like that through my weekend long runs

 

[JAMIESMITH]

It is absolutely miserable out there now. The T+D is over 150 even at 7 AM.....I tend to do okay at holding on to my usual paces up until about 140.

It is miserable here too. T+D is still sitting at 160 even at dusk. It's to the point that I'm not trying to hit any specific paces.

 

[striker1064]

July 3 - July 9: 16 Weeks until Marine Corps Marathon

Total running time: 8h 35min
Total running mileage: 51.1mi

This has been a rough week with the heat and humidity. We are getting a full blast and it's a real wake-up call. I'm also dropping a fair bit of weight in a short amount of time. Part of this is likely my body getting acclimated to the new training load, but definitely part of it is water weight loss and part of it is I'm not eating enough. Weight loss and marathon training are not exactly concurrent goals, so I need to figure this out in a hurry.

To that end, I downed half a pint of Ben & Jerry's a couple of nights this week. More testing is needed. It's a hard job, but someone has to do it.

I have also been quite consistent with the strength training, so I'm happy with that. I still limit it to 10-20 minutes of kettlebell work 4 times per week. Tuesday is always a total rest day, and the other days I listen to my body to see what I can handle.

Monday: 6.5 Miles Easy; T+D 85+71=156

• Splits: 10:45, 9:59, 9:54, 9:53, 9:56, 10:02, 9:50

Just like last week, I ran earlier in the day because of the threat of storms. And again just like last week, they never materialized.

Tuesday: rest - Although I did add a ~19.3mi bike ride since it was the holiday and yeah this was a bad idea, I totally overdid it and it affected my Wednesday workout.

Wednesday: Lactate Threshold + VO2max: 2.5 Mi WU + 3x 1 Mi T (8:05) w/ 1:00 jog + 7x 400m I (7:27) + 2 Mi CD

• T+D: 80+70=150
• WU: 10:03, 10:02, 10:20
• 3x 1 Mi T (8:05)
  • Rep 1: 8:02
  • Rep 2: 8:02
  • Rep 3: 8:07

This was the real gut check workout on the plan, and it went pretty miserably. I got through the 3 T miles, but when it came time for the I reps I had nothing left. I reps are hard enough as it is on their own, and this is a big workout this early in the plan. But I mean, there's no surprise here - with a TD of 150 I knew better and should have adjusted the T paces down a bit. This was brutal and I have no idea if it would've made any difference, but I didn't give myself much of a chance here.

As I eloquently wrote in my Strava: This sucked.

Thursday: 7.5 Miles Easy; T+D 80+74=154

• Splits: 10:07, 9:50, 9:48, 9:44, 9:59, 9:43, 9:53, 9:43

This also was miserable. V.O2 called for an 8 mile run but I was back at home by 7.5 and didn't feel like going any further. I was fine cutting this down as I attempt to get through this heat.

Friday: 8.75 Miles Easy; T+D 81+73=154

• Splits: 10:07, 10:04, 10:11, 10:06, 10:35, 10:29, 10:03, 10:12, 9:55

Again here, V.O2 called for 9.5 miles but I cut it down. This run actually did not feel quite as bad though.

Saturday: 8.5 Miles Easy; T+D 81+73=155 (run club)

• Splits: 10:06, 10:02, 9:58, 8:51, 9:54, 11:16, 12:55, 10:52, 10:40

This was easily the worst-feeling run of the week. I started off early to get in a few miles before heading to run club, and by the time I got there I was so soaked I was literally dripping and could not stop sweating. This was a brutal, full-Sun morning without even a single cloud to break it up. I felt pretty self-conscious if I'm being honest here, and even after "only" a 5k run with the run club and seeing they were mostly okay I'm starting to think I'm a seriously heavy sweater.

Sunday: 14 Miles Easy

• Starting T+D: 75+72=147
• Ending T+D: 79+74=153
• Pre-run: Maurten 320 drink mix
• In-run: Egel @ mile 3, 2 scoops concentrated Tailwind @ mile 7, Maurten gel at mile 11
• 14 Miles Easy (9:42-10:40)
  • Mile 1: 9:54
  • Mile 2: 10:20
  • Mile 3: 10:17
  • Mile 4: 10:27
  • Mile 5: 10:02
  • Mile 6: 9:54
  • Mile 7: 10:20
  • Mile 8: 10:59
  • Mile 9: 10:08
  • Mile 10: 11:05
  • Mile 11: 10:55
  • Mile 12: 10:11
  • Mile 13: 10:18
  • Mile 14: 9:56

I was out the door by 6:30 AM for this one to beat the heat. Still a TD of 147 even that early! Woof.

I intentionally sketched a route down around the National Mall so I could catch some shade and refill my water bottles, if needed. I ended up refilling one bottle, which means I took in about 1.5 liters of water during this run - and I still weighed less when I got home than I did when I left. So yeah, I've got some hydration to think about. About 40oz of that water went toward nutrition needs, though.

I took in 79g carbs before heading out (Maurten drink mix) and 107g during my run for a total of 186g. That was a pretty significant jump over my previous highs and I tolerated it no problem. I was thinking during my run I didn't calculate spacing very well and I probably could've brought another Egel.

I otherwise have no real notes on this. Despite the high temperatures, it was cloudy all morning. I was able to get through this. V.O2 banked on this being a 2:15:48 run and I actually elapsed 2:24:55 thanks to running a little more slowly to make sure I got through it all, so I think I probably should have cut a mile off this and only gone 13 miles to ensure I'm not over-pushing my body.

Next week: A cut-back week with 45 miles, including a 4x 1 mile T workout Sunday instead of a long run.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Also I know I'm way late to the party on this one, but dating... am I right guys? Yeesh. The landscape has changed just a tad since the last time I was single - in many ways for the better - but I don't know how people do it consistently around here!

My husband and I have a longstanding joke about which one of us is allowed to die first, because neither of us ever want to have to figure out dating in the current landscape. My single friends do not have many good stories to share (I mean, they're entertaining in a train-wreck sort of way.) I'm also slightly terrified for my kids (the oldest will be 18 this year) and what dating will look like for them as they enter adulthood.

 

[azrivest]

I'm starting to think I'm a seriously heavy sweater.

Maybe wear a t-shirt next time? Good job on those runs. You are putting in serious mileage in 150 T+D temps

 

[striker1064]

July 10 - July 16: 15 Weeks until Marine Corps Marathon

Total running time: 5h 26min
Total running mileage: 33.8mi
Total cycling mileage: 18.8mi

Good news! I turned the tide on my weight loss. The Ben & Jerry's theory checks out!

Monday: 6 Miles Easy; T+D 86+61=147 (run club)

• Splits: 9:39, 9:19, 10:54, 11:29, 10:23, 9:31

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: 7 Miles Easy; T+D 78+68=146

• Splits: 11:05, 10:08, 10:04, 9:42, 9:51, 9:34, 9:47

Thursday: Endurance + Speed: 2 Mi WU + 3x [1 Mi T (8:05) w/ 1:00 jog] + 6x [200m R (7:03) w/ 200m jog] + 1 Mi CD

Oh boy. This workout went poorly last week, although it was I repeats instead of R, and R is easier.

• T+D: 77+70=147
• WU: 10:05, 9:49; CD: 9:48
• 3x 1 Mi T (8:05)
  • Rep 1: 8:10
  • Rep 2: 8:08
  • Rep 3: 8:00
• 6x 200m R (7:03, or 0:53/rep)
  • Rep 1: 6:58 (0:52)
  • Rep 2: 7:06 (0:53)
  • Rep 3: 6:42 (0:50)
  • Rep 4: 6:58 (0:52)
  • Rep 5: 7:06 (0:53)
  • Rep 6: 6:58 (0:52)

So this was still not fun, but a much better effort than last week. I continue to walk almost the entire recovery period, whether it's 60 seconds or a 200m interval, but I'm fine with that at this point. And yeah, although R is easier than I, these were still tough. It's hard to go on R at the end of a workout like this without just sprinting, which is too fast.

Friday: 5 Miles Easy; T+D 77+67=144

• Splits: 10:10, 9:59, 9:53, 9:44, 9:44

This was supposed to be a 7 mile run, but I was feeling a little under the weather on Thursday night and didn't get the best sleep. I felt better when I got up Friday, but I was leery of pushing it too hard so I cut it down to 5 miles.

Saturday: 18.8 mile bike ride

Another edited run - supposed to be 7.5 miles, but a friend was in town and wanted to go biking. I figure I can cut one running day for a long ride. Although I did specifically request a not-super-hilly route so I wouldn't destroy my legs, and wouldn't you know he brought us on a super hilly route and I destroyed my legs. Go figure!

We took the National Mall to the Mount Vernon Trail to the Four Mile Run to the Custis Trail. On my Strava you can see the exact moment my soul died and I got back on the Rosslyn metro to go back home.



Sunday: Lactate Threshold: 2 Mi WU + 4x LT (8:05) w/ 1:00 jog + 2 Mi CD

• T+D: 77+74=151
• WU: 10:04, 9:50; CD: 9:58, 9:59
• 4x 1 Mi T (8:05)
  • Rep 1: 8:04
  • Rep 2: 7:58
  • Rep 3: 8:03
  • Rep 4: 7:59

Hooooooly humidity. This also was not fun! I laugh at the idea of a 2-mile warm up - I was fully warmed up and soaked by a half mile. And LOL at a "cool down" in this weather.

Anyway I got through it and it was hard but it's done.

Next week: 55.5 MILES LOL I SURE HOPE IT ISN'T HOT AND HUMID

The Thursday quality session is ugh... 16x (!) 400m I repeats. Hopefully I can handle that, but wow 4 miles of I is a lot. Also, next Sunday is the dreaded 2 Mi Easy, 14 Mi M Tempo long run. V.O2 estimates that at a 2h 20min effort, but in this heat I know it will take me longer than that. I'm thinking of cutting down the pace a little and doing 12-13 M Tempo miles instead so I'm not going over 2h 30min on my feet. This'll be a game-time decision I'm sure.

I also picked up some SiS and SiS Beta gels recently, which I only just learned are isotonic like the Maurten gels (meaning they do not require any water for absorption). If my stomach can handle them, these would be great to cycle through to vary up my nutrition a bit.

 

[WillRunForPizza]

That's a long bike ride!

Although in fairness I view biking purely as a means of getting from point A to point B as quickly as possible, and at that point it would be faster to Metro

 

[striker1064]

That's a long bike ride!

Although in fairness I view biking purely as a means of getting from point A to point B as quickly as possible, and at that point it would be faster to Metro

Lol oh yeah, there's no universe in which the path we took was faster than metroing. We were way out there. I mostly bike for the same reasons you do, but it's fun every so often to explore a path that's out of the way.

When I was considering buying a bike, a friend told me it's like running, but you get to do way more of it and see more stuff. That stuck with me!

 

[avondale]

Our DC summers are why I no longer do races in October - too much summer training. When I did my training for the 2017 MCM, I got up at 5am to start my long runs at 6am on Sundays, and it was still way too hot and humid. However, I was planning on a ~5 hr marathon, not sub-4 and so I was out there longer for training runs.

But that was also before I learned about T+D and adjusting paces due to that. If you are running according to paces, then I'd really suggest planning out what that adjustment should be for each run and use it. Otherwise you're just using the summer to exhaust yourself in training before you get to the race. Trying to do any kind of speedwork in those T+Ds is no joke. Summer running in the DC area became SOOO much less torture once I started adjusting for T+D.

I hope you get the sub-4. It would be really exciting for you to get it in your home marathon.

 

[striker1064]

July 17 - July 23: 14 Weeks until Marine Corps Marathon

Total running time: 7h 44min
Total running mileage: 47.6mi

Monday: 6 Miles Easy; T+D 86+66=154, hazy (run club)

• Splits: 9:31, 10:51, 11:11, 13:13, 10:46, 9:29

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: 7.5 Miles Easy; T+D 73+69=142, rainy

• Splits: 9:41, 9:55, 9:58, 10:39, 9:37, 9:35, 9:36, 9:15

Thursday: VO2 Max: 2.5 Mi WU + 16x 400m I (7:27) w/ 1:00 jog + 2 Mi CD

Oh dear. This looked unpleasant at a glance. 400m of anything isn't too bad, but that much I pace is brutal.

Spoiler: ugh

• Starting T+D: 73+69=142
• Ending T+D: 77+70=147
• Pre-run: Egel, water
• WU: 10:02, 10:10, 10:10; CD: 10:09, 10:04
• 16x 400m I (7:27, or 1:51/rep)
  • I am not typing out 16 reps, so here's some Strava action:

Some thoughts about this one: hey, I did it!

The first 4 reps weren't too bad. By rep 8 I was starting to get pretty tired. When I made it to rep 12, I knew I'd finish the whole workout - although I was definitely walking almost the entire 60 second rest interval instead of jogging it. It was just too hot to do anything else.

A few of the reps are either at or a little over 1:51 each, but I'm considering this to be a dead-on good workout that is ordinarily very tough.

Friday: 5 Miles Easy; T+D 72+67=139

• Splits: 10:30, 9:59, 9:56, 9:45, 9:46, 9:37, 9:48, 9:36, 9:32

A tad sore after the previous day's effort!

Saturday: 7 Miles Easy; T+D 76+62=138 (run club)

• Splits: 9:42, 9:29, 10:45, 10:07, 10:29, 10:39, 11:33

My run club's Saturday meetup has two options: a 5k route and a 7 mile route. Ordinarily I jog to run club, do the 5k, and jog back home. This time, a friend wanted to try the 7 mile route, so I opted to bike there and back instead and do the full loop. And look! A TD under 140 in July! Small miracles.

I actually was supposed to do 7.5 according to V.O2 and this ended up being 6.9ish miles but I'm fine with that. Fun to do something different.

Sunday: M Tempo: 2 Mi WU + 14 Mi M Tempo (8:38) hahaha actually completed: 2 Mi WU + 6 Mi M Tempo + 1.25 Mi CD

So yeah. This was the infamous 14 mile M Tempo run. I didn't feel all that ready to tackle this, and with a TD of 143 it wasn't going to be fun. My plan was to drop a mile off the M Tempo and do "only" 13, and also keep my paces around a 9 minute mile to account for the heat plus the fact that a 9 minute mile is much closer to a sub-4.

And... this felt bad from the start. On Saturday night I started experiencing hip/glute pain. I figured I'd start this run and see how things felt, but from the M tempo miles the pain just wasn't right. My level of effort felt very high, much more than usual for an M tempo run, and ultimately I got to a metro station and cut it short.

So, a bummer to be sure. But - it's early in the plan and there's time to right what's wrong.

I don't think my pain is running-related, but running isn't making it feel better. I rested on Monday and took my usual rest day Tuesday, then tested it again on my run today and it wasn't bad. Not perfect, but it's okay I think. That's good news.

4 weeks in to using V.O2, and I was really hoping the app would give me a regular-old Daniels 2Q 55 MPW plan with 18 weeks to go. That's not happening. I did 50+ miles, then a slight cutback, then was scheduled for 55 miles, then another 50+ this (current) week. That's probably not helping the injury.

I've decided to cut back the mileage a little bit. If the app is insistent on keeping me at the upper range of the mileage I pick, I should probably not already be at peak mileage week after week. I dropped it to 50, so we'll see how that feels. I figure much like the VDOT score, I can update it as I progress the weeks.

First things first - keep stretching and working the hip/glute, and get that better. One day at a time.

 

[jmasgat]

16 x 400? Wow. I have never seen that many reps in a training plan. That is insane, and I am super impressed that you did it.

 

[SheHulk]

woof that plan is intense! At least you have the perspective to cut back when you need to.

 

[azrivest]

Hope you feel better soon

 

[WillRunForPizza]

That is a tough schedule!

 

[avondale]

16 x 400? Wow. I have never seen that many reps in a training plan. That is insane, and I am super impressed that you did it.

I was thinking the same thing! And the plan's author didn't know it would happen in the summer... whew!

 

[striker1064]

Thanks y'all!

Today's tempo run is R repeats, which aren't too bad... except the T+D is already 79+74=153. At 6 AM.

This journal is now a safe space to complain about the heat.

 

[garneska]

My T +D this morning was only 145 but i am visiting FIL in Ohio so was hoping it would not be this bad. Here to complain. I head back to Atlanta on Sat and it is supposed to be 97 as the highs next week. I will say my first 3 runs the T + D was around 120 and it was awesome.