UANYCHM2020 Week 3

This week is largely the same as the last. The goal is to consistently keep the mileage somewhat high and to comfortably adapt the workload. There's a 4-mile race on Sunday though so I'll probably skip this long run for a speedier run (aiming average 7:20/mile). There are 125 days to Race day!

Week 3 workouts are as follow (26-30 miles):

Tuesday 11/12: 1.25 mi WU + Drills and 3xStrides; 6x 0.5 mi @ 7:35/mile (2 mins jogging rest); 1.25 mi CD + Stretch
Thursday 11/14: 4-5 mi @ 9:25/mile
Friday 11/15: 1.25 mi WU + Drills and 3xStrides; 2x 2.0 mi @ 8:14/mile (2 mins jogging rest); 1.25 mi CD + Stretch
Sunday 11/17: ~~8-9 mi @ 9:25/mile~~ 4 mi @ 7:20/mile

Wish me luck!

W3D1 Speed session went well at my home gym (we just bought a dreadmill!) It's wonderful running shirtless at the comfort of your home. I won't have to deal with driving/the snow, but that also means I won't be able to make excuses. I need to do some tune-up with Stryd still as it's under-reporting my pace anywhere from 15-20 secs/mile. Second dark blue bar is lower because I stopped to grab some water without pausing. High bars are all 7:35/mile, short bars are all 10:00/mile.

W3D2 Easy run session for the extra mileage. Felt surprisingly fresh so I upped the pace a bit to 9:13/mile, HR was stable at 142 until drift happened around mile 3 (hot indoor too, sweat like crazy). Average HR at for the session was 145, perfect. Treadmill was shaky at 5:00/mile so I had to cut strides short. I need to figure out a way to hold the treadmill in place for fast intervals somehow.

Did 3 strides at the end because I forgot to do them last session

W3D3 I felt a bit sluggish starting the run as this was a back-to-back session. It did pick up within 10-15 mins though. I was able to maintain 8:13/mile without much trouble and HR stayed in check. Strava is reporting lowered Relative Effort lately so I might have to tweak these training sessions a bit. It's probably because most of these runs were done on treadmills which require somewhat lower effort.

Threshold session: Average HR 144, might have to push a bit?

W4D4 The weather was 'perfect' for Race to Deliver 2019. It rained the whole way and I was wet and started the run without proper warm-up. It took me more than 2 miles to get in the zone. I actually had to stop for like 20-40 secs to pee just after the Mile 1 mark. I know right, peeing during a 4-miler wtf, but you gotta go when nature calls. So with that in the equation, I ended up a bit slower than last year clocking in at 30:17, averaging 7:35/mile. I was expecting to be doing (a lot) better than last year but maybe it was the rain.

I was thinking about doing a double day, i.e. a slow 4-5 miler in the afternoon to hit weekly mileage target, but nah, less is more so I rested instead.