Training Log Archive: Sandy

Event: West Point
 

Really, really enjoyed this course. Had to stop a few times to make sure I really was where I thought I was (terrain didn't always seem to match up with what I was anticipating), and also to try and read the detail on the map and I couldn't really run much of the course, doing more of a fast walk. Made a few not so intelligent micro route choices (should have stayed higher longer to #4 to avoid sidehilling through rocks, should have stayed further to the right on the way to 7 to avoid a steep downhill) but overall quite happy with the race.

Short hike/jog. My calf seemed really tight and I was worried about it "snapping" the way it did a couple months ago so my intended 3 mile jog along the drive turned into about a mile jog on the drive, a hike straight up the hillside (hoping to stretch it out some), and then some walking and jogging through the meadows to get home.

Rode my mountain bike to work. It's an okay ride with a lot of it in Fairmount Park, although there are a few spots near school where I have to go on busy streets. Took it pretty easy but got a good workout - the ride is hilly and my pack was heavy (work clothes and laptop). Luckily I don't have to ride it home! (Dennis is picking me up after my evening class.)

elliptic trainer

cool down, stretching, weights

Red course at Valley Forge, Mt. Joy. Course by Dasha; excellent use of the terrain, made possible by epunching. Reasonably clean run but couldn't push the pace. Just didn't quite feel like I had the balance or the lungs. Legs felt okay though. Great fun.

Funny day today. Headed out for a run about 12:30. Got halfway down the block and my knees were aching and I thought "this is no fun" and turned around and went home. So instead I did about two hours of yard work: raking out some flower beds, weeding and mostly mowing the grass, er weeds. When I was finished I took a short rest and although I wasn't planning on it, decided I wanted to try to run. This time my knees felt fine. Guess they needed to be warmed up. Ran the trails up and down the hills. Took it easy and occasionally walked a hill although did run up many as well. Forget training, I'm working on making it fun again.

stretched, 20 pushups, 40 situps

Slow walk down to the drive, 2 miles at 11 min pace, slow walk home. Better than nothing which was the only other option today.

Had worked up to 30 pushups (real ones) but a week of not doing them had me back to 15 today. Feel like I'm back where I was a year ago.

Green course at Patuxent in QOC land. Great course in white woods almost all the time. Had memories of much, much more green at that park which was my first ever A event about 10 years ago. A decent race with one small error and two less than stellar route choices. But a few legs were really good as well. Another great day; glad I made the drive down and made a weekend of it.

First mountain biking of the year (won't count the five minutes around the neighborhood on roads yesterday just to test out that everything was working). Biked with Brad W. at Rocky Ridge in preparation for the adventure race. Easy ride, nothing too, too steep or rocky. Almost made it all the way up the big hill at the end but slid on some loose leaves, fell off and had to walk about 20 feet to a place level enough to get going again. Absolutely gorgeous day, lots of fun.

Very discouraging. Felt awful.

Rest day today. Gave blood this morning. Finally my iron levels were high enough that I wasn't rejected. Although they weren't too happy about my low blood pressure and pulse either.

My knees feel pretty good. Unfortunately I think I know why they weren't feeling so great the last few weeks. I had been very bad about wearing the knee brace except when exercising and I really need to wear it most of the time. Now that I've worn it all day for a few days, they feel fine again. Bleah.

A quick run after getting home from school. It's so nice that at 6:30 I can head out the door and still have an hour or more of light! I only did two miles along the drive at a little over 10 minutes plus the jog down and walk home. I just went straight down through the woods to the drive and then straight back up the hill home in an effort to save time instead of taking the more round about trails. Not a big workout by any means but a moral victory that I even got out at all since I was pretty tired from the weekend. But I know I won't have any time tomorrow and maybe not Wednesday either so glad I did something today. It was a beautiful spring day today, but quite cold down in the valley where the sun had long since gone by the time I was down there and I never did get completely warm.

Brown course at Ridley Creek SP (DVOA local event) after working epunch all day. Poor route choice to #1, but was fairly clean after that with only small hesitation errors. There was a lot of trail running and then short bursts of navigation. Pushed hard telling myself that since I was only running brown there was no excuse not to be running on the trails even if they were uphill! Glad I did as I barely beat out Petr to win the course. (He smoked me yesterday at King's Gap.)

Green course at King's Gap (SVO local event). A very fine course but I was not at all concentrating on my way to #1 and as a result wandered around for a while, wondering if the map was 1:15 or 1:10 (the latter). Finally got it together, but probably lost more than 5 minutes. The course was physically demanding - blueberry everywhere, lots of climb and/or steep downhill and rocks. A bit sloppy in a few places but no real errors after #1. But I wasn't moving terribly fast either.

Did a short trail loop. Caffeine attack - at least that's what I think it was. Better start cutting back again...

An interesting workout.
11:46 - warm up jog down to Forbidden Dr.
9:07 - 1st mile, probably faster than I've ever done the first mile
8:16 - 2nd mile, ditto
7:15 - had to walk the next half mile
4:35 - last half mile
13:08 - walk & jog home up the hill

Need to get new shoes... Bruce?

Beautiful spring day but I'm at school and didn't think my knees could take another track work out. So decided to swim instead. 1600m in a 25m pool is 64 very, very monotonous laps...

Took a walk in the Wissahickon just to get outside after a very rainy weekend. Knees and asthma pretty bad.

Did a good solid hill loop on the trails, making it up to the highest trail between Rex Ave and Valley green, so three climbs from the bottom of the valley to the top. Beautiful day for a run. My knees weren't great though and uphill is easier than down in many respects. I need to get my bike out again or start swimming or something.