Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Week Summary 12/19 - 12/25


12-19-2011
Mon - XT / playground circuits

12-20-2011
Tue - 1:00 AM

12-21-2011
Wed - :52 AM

12-22-2011
Thurs - 1:58 AM

If I didn’t keep looking down at my watch and see today’s date, I would have never guessed it was the first day of winter. A toasty 60 degrees on a run around the city. There’s something to be said about running past the Christmas tree in Rock Center in nothing but a tank and shorts... comfortably -- global warming?? or maybe just an early gift of peak winter training weather?

12-23-2011
Fri - :30 AM // PG circuits

Legs were feeling good today so I decided to take them out on a light rest day spin before getting in some solid circuit training. I’m praying I don’t overtrain and sideline myself with an IT band injury like I’ve done before. Knock on wood.

12-24-2011
Sat - 2:08 PM

12-25-2011
Sun - 3:40 PM

Long run fell on Christmas Day, but got to hit the road/trails with my new Garmin 610 gps watch. Seriously an awesome piece of technology and now it will be much easier to track overall mileage and elevation gains, especially on random routes in the trails when the daily focus is quality time on the feet. After yesterday's mid-long run at a grueling pace, I was really feeling the fatigue in the legs pretty early on today, however. These back-to-back long training runs on the weekends are great, but man do they teach your legs to perform on a beating. On that note, Merry Christmas! now get out and run (or recover!)

Week Totals: 10h 08m

Overall, another great week with more unusually warm weather. Solid weekly mileage (about 70 miles or so for the week) and good time on the feet. The legs are still feeling great despite a sharp increase in training on the trails, but I am definitely looking forward to a nice recovery schedule next week. I’ll probably cut back about 10 miles/90 minutes of training to keep the legs fresh before upping the mileage even more as I start climbing into the peak training weeks before Bel Monte (just over 12 weeks away!) I’ve been mixing up the terrain a good amount, but I’ll have to incorporate some more mountain training in on the weekends when I have the time in order to mimic the terrain I’ll be tackling in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Speaking of which -- here’s an old favorite to fit the occasion:



Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Two Week Summary 12/5 - 12/18


12-12-2011
Mon - XT / PlayGround circuits

12-13-2011
Tue - :20 AM // :34 PM

12-14-2011
Wed - :50 AM

12-15-2011
Thurs - 1:06 AM

12-16-2011
Fri - PG circuits

12-17-2011
Sat - 1:32 PM

12-18-2011
Sun - 3:02 PM

Week Summary: Total 7h 24m

Another good week with more unusually warm weather for December. Temps hovering the 40s/50s EXCEPT on Sunday’s long run. Decided to cover my 3 hour run on Fire Island. A balmy 25 degrees at the start, dropping a few degrees as the day wore ond and the winds off the ocean picked up a bit. Despite the first signs of winter, it was probably one of my favorite runs of the entire year. An out-and-back from the lighthouse to Point O’ Woods followed by and out and back through Moses along the beach. I saw far more deer than people through the barren towns and the beach parts of the run felt like I was running on Mars. Desolation at its finest. Got through the run on light supply, too. Only carried 2 bottles and a CLIF Bar for the 22mile slog through the sands.


This weekend's homemade version of handheld hydration.. Haven't had a chance to pick up my Amphipod handhelds yet.



Burma Road on the way back. Sunday desolation.



December 5-11

12-5-2011
Mon - XT / playground circuits

12-6-2011
Tue - 1:00 AM

12-7-2011
Wed - :38 AM

12-8-2011
Thurs - 1:12 AM

12-9-2011
Fri - PG circuits

12-10-2011
Sat - 1:16 AM

12-11-2011
Sun - 3:16 PM

Week Summary: Total 7h 22m

Solid opening week of event-specific training for the BMER. Logging decent mileage and getting some good time on my feet for the schedule that I have. First weekend of back-to-back long runs and I’m feeling good. Focusing on building quality mileage while staying injury free. Peak mileage is probably sitting around the mid 50s for the first couple of weeks of building. Good strength training outside at the local playground where I’ve been getting in my plyometric circuits with plenty of reps of pull-ups on the rings and monkey bars, followed by dips and incline pushups on the park benches. There’s nothing like a free outdoor gym! (might be feeling less enthusiastic about that once the real winter weather rolls in).

3 months 'til Bel Monte 50

After a successful and surprisingly injury-free season of races and hard training, it's time to get back on it in full force. With the NYC Marathon behind me, I spent the remaining few weeks in November with some low key running and cross training, but now with December in full bloom and 2012 waiting at the next trailhead, I'm feeling fresh and focused on my first ultra -- the Bel Monte Endurance Run. 50 miles through the Blue Ridge Mountains and trails of George Washington National Park in Charlottesville, VA. Already 2 weeks into "official" training, there's just 14 weeks left before I toe the line for my maiden ultra-trek through the mountains and, I must say, I cannot wait! The Northeast has been experiencing unusually warm temperatures for mid-December (it hit 60 today in Manhattan and we're just 4 days from Christmas!), but I am not complaining about that. The temps have been ideal for training. An early morning run during the month of December typically triggers imagery of multi-layered clothing, icy roads and trails, and a deep breath that becomes visible upon exhale in the frigid New York air. But, with the exception of a day or two, the average temperature over the last couple of weeks hasn't dipped below 45. The new move to Manhattan has also helped training, both mentally and physically. Every day I'm feeling fully rested and recovered and revving to get out the door for a run up the East River and into Central Park where I've been doing most of my trail runs and getting some solid climbs in through the North Woods. The forecast calls for at least another week of this late-spring December, but one things for sure: mild, hot, or frozen -- I'm raring to lace 'em up each day and tackle the trails in preparation for what March 24th has to bring... 3 months until Bel Monte.