Mt. Bonnell, Scenic, Town Lake, Track

Time: 120:00
Distance: 18.75 mi.
Map


Mid-way up Mt. Bonnell (View Larger Map)

I met the Texas guys at the track for a bit of an easier Sunday run than Vig usually has planned. It was a recovery day for a bunch of them, so the long group was just 90 minutes at a fairly easy pace. We ran Mt. Bonnell and Scenic, skipped Stratford and headed to Town Lake on Lake Austin. It was a beautiful day and everyone seemed it good spirits. My knee is still stiff, but it loosened up.

When they finished up at 90 minutes, I got on the track to try to get a bit of an uptempo effort in. I was shooting for 3 or 4 miles depending on how I was feeling. I ended up running 5:26, 5:27, 5:26, 5:18 (21:37). Birdsong ran the first two miles with me and then I ran the rest on my own. I finished up with an easy mile on the infield.

The most inspiring race of the weekend had to be Darren's 3:59.99 in the mile. He's been on the cusp for a while, and I think has felt a lot of pressure to do it, especially as he was trying to make his father and him the first American father-son sub-four duo. Hopefully he'll be able to have a breakthrough now that breaking four isn't his day-to-day focus.

4 Mile Tempo

Time: 80:00
Distance: 12.5 mi.

Target: 4 mile track tempo in 19:30 (4:55, 4:55, 4:50, 4:50), though honestly I was just hoping for a good effort over 4 miles
Workout: 4:55, 4:55, 4:55, 5:00 (19:45)

Overall not a bad workout, but I was hurting a bit running with Leo (who the target splits were set up for... he ended up running 19:20 by dropping it to 4:45 the last two miles). Darren had run the first 3 miles with Leo and then jumped in for the last half mile to help me out, which was, well, quite helpful. It was pretty warm out on the track. I finished up with a 30 minute cool down with Darren and then 10 minutes barefoot on the infield, including 8 x diagonal strides decently hard.

Track 1ks, 200s

Time: 66:00
Distance: 10.5 mi.

Target: 5 x 1k in 3:00 with "full" jogging rest; 4 x 200m in 30-31
Workout: 2:56.9, 2:56.7, 2:59.3, 2:54.5, 2:57.3 (avg. 2:56.9); 29, 31, 32, 30

I really felt like I had to get at least some sort of workout in this week even if it aggravated my knee. Given that I didn't know how the knee (or the rest of my body) would feel getting back on the track, this went well. Some other guys were doing fast 400s and Jake was doing a tempo, so Joe and I did our own workout. I felt totally comfortable in the 1ks and would have with significantly shorter rest, as I felt recovered pretty quickly. Knee was tight on the warmup, but once I started running hard I didn't feel it much at all. I ran the first 3 1ks in flats and then the rest in spikes, which made my calves pretty tight almost immediately. Hopped in the ice bath afterward for the first time since December... hopefully the knee feels okay tomorrow.

6 Mile Tempo, 200s

Time: 82:00
Distance: 13 mi.

Target: 6 mile tempo starting in 5:25 and going down; 4 x 200m in 30 with 45 sec rest
Workout: 5:23, 5:14, 5:12, 5:19, 5:09, 5:00 (31:20, 5:13s); 4 x 200 in 30-31


It was a sunny and relatively warm afternoon on Town Lake

This is pretty damn close to what Joe and I did last week, especially adjusted the way I described. Unfortunately Joe is a bit sick, but Vig sent Birdsong and Habben with me. This time we started at the 3 mile mark and ran to 0.0 and back (starting at the 3 mile mark, rather than the conventional spot). I felt better aerobically and physically than last week and it was much windier and very dry (though it was warmer, too). A little bit pissed that I got dropped again, but this time it was in the last half mile by about 5 seconds. Stomach was feeling pretty bad by the end which makes it hard to fight and feel competitive.

Class after workouts sucks. Mild workout stomach... hopefully by next week I'll be done with this.

6 Mile Tempo, 200s

Time: 80:00
Distance: 12.5 mi.

Target: 6 mile tempo in 5:25 down to 5:00 on Town Lake; 200s or 300s on the track
Workout: 5:21, 5:15, 5:22 (5:12?), 5:28 (5:18?), 5:08, 5:05 - 31:41 (31:21 adjusted, 5:13s); 4 x 200m in 32

I may be uptight about this stuff, but I find it a little bit annoying that we don't tend to go by the mile markers on Town Lake, despite the fact that they appear to be right. We start our normal 4 mile tempo course a bit back from the 4 mile marker, we split the next mile a bit back from the 3 mile marker, and then we split 2, 1 and 0 right on the markers. Almost every tempo that I have done on that loop has had a long second mile... which is exactly what you would expect from this setup if the mile markers are, in fact, right. Now, this may not matter for the most part, as we all know what a good time for these "4 miles" is, and we're talking about it being ~10 seconds off. No big deal, right?

Well due to construction in the first mile of our normal 4 mile loop, Joe and I started at 0.0, ran out to mile 3 and back. The only thing is that we ran past the mile 3 marker so we could hit the "normal" spot. This added on 10ish seconds on both miles 3 and 4. Maybe this is just a stupid rant, but I really don't see the point of that when we have good markers. Anyway, this at least somewhat explains the splits (though mile 4 was definitely slow regardless... I got a bit unfocused as Joe ran away from me a little bit).


A nice section of Town Lake near the boathouse... part of the "long mile"

This was definitely a better workout than saturday, so I was happy about that. Workout stomach afterwards seems to indicate that I was a bit over my head (and that I ate a Snickers bar a few hours before)... but it always takes one or two of these to get back into things. Belly of left hamstring and both calves sore afterwards.

Track, Possum Trot

Time: 89:00
Distance: 13.5 mi.

We were originally going to do a tempo today, but it was cold and wet so Vig pushed it to tomorrow. I didn't really care, as I prefer to work out early in the day, but it would've been nice to get it over with (because, you know, I hate running and think that it is something you should just want to get through, ahem). I started with 20 minutes on the track waiting for the guys to get ready and so that I hopefully wouldn't have to add on at the end. That seemed to work out pretty well, as they were shooting for 70 minutes. Headed down to Town Lake and over to the Possum Trot, which we ended up messing up a little bit. It was pretty cold coming back north into the wind, but not too bad. I'm tired from a bad night of sleep last night, but at least feel like I have somewhat of a schedule that will continue for the spring, and I'm happy about that. Workout tomorrow AM.

Twenty Twos

Time: 90:00
Distance: 13 mi.

Target: 20 x 200m in 30ish with 60 sec. jogging rest
Workout: hit it right on, 30-low down to 29-mid

Very happy with this workout. I feel like I'm back on the train of getting ready to race, rather than just slogging away some miles (not that there's anything wrong with that). Started with some of the sophomores and freshmen for the first 16, then finished up the last 4 with Jake and Wilson. Jake in particular was rocking out on the last few (27ish) and I got dropped a bit, but was happy to finish close to 29 for the last few. My calves will be sore tomorrow.

Mt. Bonnell, Scenic, Town Lake, Track

Time: 120:00
Distance: 19 mi.



Met the guys for a run from the track. They were pretty giddy out the gate (and only going 90+ minutes) and it didn't take long for Hanley, Joe and I (the OBTC) to start bringing up the rear and decide that we didn't want to kill it for two hours. After Scenic we got on Town Lake for a bit and then headed back to the track at about 100 minutes. We ratcheted it down for 10 minutes under 5:40 pace and then 10 minutes barefoot recovery. I felt okay the whole way... a bit tired and my stomach was a little bit off, but this was one of the better efforts I've put in for the last few weeks.

Warmup Loop, Track

Time: 46:00
Distance: 6.5 mi.

Accompanied Hanley on another Team Terrible evening workout. He was doing a 20 minute tempo at with a target of 5:25 pace. We did the standard warmup loop and then I ran around the track easy while he was doing the workout. I tried to help him on the first mile but was way slow... didn't have the pace in my head. He took care of it though, dropping down under 5:15 pace most of the way. I did one of his two 400s afterwards in 66.

3 Mile Tempo

Time: 55:30
Distance: 8.5 mi.

Target: 3 mile tempo, first and last miles under 5:00 (to help Hanley hit his times), middle mile of "recovery" at 5:30
Workout: 4:57, 5:26, 4:57; 15:20 for 3 miles

Hanley and Tom have apparently started challenging each other to workouts. Since Tom is now my racing arch-nemesis, I was happy to help out with Team Hanley today. I think ideally I would've taken one more easy day to kill this cold, but I was feeling stircrazy after two days of not running and a frustrating day. Despite throat and nose soreness and stuffiness I felt very relaxed through two miles--bringing the pace back down really didn't feel good. It also didn't help that my stomach wasn't settled at all. Oh well... it was fun to run in the cool evening on the dark track.

I also have to get the legs going a few times this week as I am officially signed up for the Decker Challenge 20k on Sunday. It looks like it will be... a challenge.

Also, the Daily Texan finally put up a story from an interview I did a few weeks back. I'm glad they got the final quote in, because it pretty much sums up how I'm feeling these days:

"I will miss being on a team with these guys," he said. "There is something about competing with a team ... an anxious feeling that you are competing for something bigger than your own performance."

Morris Williams 1ks, Track 300s

Time: 60:00
Distance: 9 mi.

Target: 2 x 1k at "2:25 is too fast and 2:55 is too slow"; 6 x 300m in 50 sec. with 100m rest in 25 sec. (7:30 for 1.5 mi.)
Workout: 2:44, 2:36; 300s between 46-49, 7:20 for 1.5 mi.

A good workout moving the legs a bit faster without going to the well. The second 1k was definitely hard for me, but I think that feeling that faster pace was important. The 300s went fine... the easiest they've felt all season.

Right hamstring still tight, but not too bad.

Morris Williams Hills, 300s

Time: 90:00
Distance: 13.5 mi.

Target: 16 steady to hard hills; 6 x 300m in ~48 sec with 100m rest in ~25 sec (~7:20-25 total)
Workout: 16 hills from 42 down to 35ish?; 300s from 48-49 down to 46 (7:26 total)

An okay workout, but I was feeling a little off of it on both the hills and the 300s (especially the last one that the guys blazed). Tried to keep under control on the hills, which meant getting dropped a little bit up and then catching up across the top of the hill. These are never my best workouts, and both hamstrings were very tight so I wanted to make sure not to over do it.

Zilker 1ks, Track 300s

Time: 91:30
Distance: 14 mi.

Target: 6 x 1k in ~2:45 with 3:00 rest; 6 x 100m/300m in 25/48 (7:30 for 1.5 mi.)
Workout: 2:50, 2:44, 2:44, 2:43, 2:43, 2:39 (avg. 2:43.8); 7:31


Downtown Austin, Town Lake, and Zilker Park (bottom left)

Headed out to Zilker with a small group (Jake, Kyle, Stan, and Rob and Jay for a few) for some quick 1ks with solid rest, then back to the track for 300s with quick rest. Overall a very good workout... meant to target an area that we haven't done much training on: intervals pushing VO2 Max with decent recovery. I have a great aerobic base, but didn't feel on Friday that I could push beyond that, which is exactly what this workout was for--and I felt it just as I expected: I recovered quickly, but I had heavy arms and was rigging a bit by the end (got dropped by a few seconds by Jake, Kyle and Stanley on the last one). Happy with the work we put in, though, and definitely an indication that we're in great shape.

The rankings got shaken up a bit this week after pre-nats, but conference weekend is when things will get really interesting.

Morris Williams 1ks, Track 300s

Time: 95:00
Distance: 15 mi.

Target: 9 x 1k in 3:00-3:05 with 60 sec rest; 6 x 300m in 50 sec. with 100m rest in 25 sec. (7:30 for 1.5 mi.)
Workout: First in 3:09, middle 7 were 3:01-3:03, last was 2:57; 300s in 49-51, 7:29 total

Very good day... just the right effort and we were running together well. The 1ks were all very under control, and after the first few we settled in and found a good rhythm (I've gotten pretty good at getting us right on it and took control in the third one). Had no problem recovering in 60 sec... legs felt a little dead, though, still probably a result of going hard on the hills on Sunday. The 300s on the track were also under control, and we were together well. Legs (esp. calves) pretty tight by the end... we were in flats for the 1ks and spikes for the 300s.


Myers Stadium

I very much like finishing up with the 300s on the track... keep the legs from getting the lethargic feeling I sometimes get after tempos and longer interval workouts.

6 Mile Tempo, 300s

Time: 100:00
Distance: 15 mi.

Target: 6 mile tempo on Town Lake in ~5:20 pace; 6 x 300m (50 sec) with 100m rest (25 sec)
Workout: 32:10 (5:22); 6 x 300m all in ~49.5

Overall a good workout, but not feeling quite as good as I wanted to. Having a bit of a hard time breathing on the tempo and some mild stomach issues. We got out very slow (5:45) due to some miscommunications, but we were able to get back on it. Felt good on the 300s back on the track, and it was good to get in spikes for pretty much the first time. It was pretty humid and I was feeling it. Erik, Jake, Habben, Kyle and I ran as a really good pack, though.

2 x 4 Mile Tempo, 300s

Time: 97:00
Distance: 15.5 mi.

Target: 2 x 4 mile tempo with 2 min rest on Town Lake, both in 22:00 (5:30s); 6 x 300m with 100m jog in 50
Workout: 21:40, 21:20; 6 x 300m in 47-49

Very good workout... an improvement from the tempo two weeks ago and far better than when we did a similar workout at this time last year (8 miles straight, which turned into the pain train). The first 4 (with most of the guys) felt very relaxed and was still totally under control for the second 4 (with Jake, Habben and Stanley). Had to do a little work to keep us together on the second half, which was definitely worth it as it was very good to finish together.

The track work was also good and controlled. Ran together and felt good to get the legs going. Calves and achilles a little sore afterwards, but nothing serious. Right piriformis/glute also a bit tight throughout.

Morris Williams 1ks, Track 300s

Time: 89:00
Distance: 14.5 mi.

Target: 8 x 1k with the first and last quicker and the middle ones about 3:05-07 and 75-90 sec. rest; 6 x 300m in 52 with a quick 100m jog
Workout: 2:55, 3:06, 3:00, 3:05, 3:03, 3:06, 3:04, 2:45 (avg. 3:00) and rest about 80 sec. for all; 52.6, 52.7, 51.5, 52.3, 51.5, 48.5 (avg. 51.5)

Great workout... headed over to Morris Williams to hit 8 x 1k on a relatively flat loop. Felt strong from the get-go and under control the whole way. We're running together as well as (probably better than) we have since I've been at Texas. Very humid, but the cool weather continues, which keeps things bearable. Calves a bit sore after getting 7.5 miles in flats (and doing hills Wednesday) but got them flushed after.

On an unrelated note (unrelated because these things seem to have very little connection to reality, as we went from 5th to unranked to 24th and then finished 7th during the course of last season) we've entered the season ranked 9th.

Morris Williams Hills, Track Tempo

Time: 104:00
Distance: 15.5 mi.

Target: 16 steady to hard hills; 3 mile tempo at 5:05 pace
Workout: 16 hills, 42 down to 34 sec.; 3 miles in 14:55

Unlike yesterday, this was a beautiful morning for a workout. The skies were a little overcast and the temp was a balmy mid-70s. Easy 20 minutes over to Morris Williams to do 16 hills (increase of 4 from last week), which felt decent though I was missing a little bit of "pop" in my legs (probably from running a hilly run yesterday evening). Ran back for 3 miles on the track, and I recovered very quickly from the hills. Five minute pace felt very good, and I was happy to get in flats and work my calves a bit. Definitely a better workout than last week for pretty much everyone. Felt very relaxed.

Got a general massage in the evening, which was nice... some work on hamstrings, IT bands and piriformises.

Morris Williams Hills, Track Tempo

Time: 90:00
Distance: 14 mi.

Target: 12 steady to hard hills; 2 mile tempo at 5:05 pace
Workout: 12 hills, 40 down to 35 sec.; 2 miles in 9:59 (5:00, 4:59)

The good ole' tuesday morning workout. Ran from the track down to the Morris Williams Golf Course (just about 3 miles), ran 12 hills there, and headed back to the track for 2 miles in just over 5 min pace. Started off feeling pretty stiff and sore from the strength workout yesterday afternoon and only loosened up a little bit. Adducters and hip flexors on both legs are pretty sore, as well as both arms. Other than that I felt pretty good. Most of the guys ran really well together, which was good to see.

Tuesdays are a little tough because I have a 9am class that I need to rush to, so no stretching or therapy right after the workout. I was still feeling sore after class, so I headed back to Moncrief to contrast bath.

5 Mile Tempo

Time: 75:00
Distance: 12 mi.

Target: 5 miles at 5:15-20 pace maybe finishing a little faster
Workout: 5:15, 5:16, 5:13, 5:11, 5:03 - 26:00


John Jacobs track

Warmed up from Jilane's house with Jordan to the University of Oklahoma track, which is about 3 miles. Shooting for something similar to last week's 4 mile tempo, but a little longer. We hit the paces pretty well, but it took a little while to get settled. It is pretty humid here, as I assume I'll be getting used to in Austin the next few weeks. Ran 1 mile easy on the track and then did 8 diagonal strides on the inside of the grass before heading the 3 miles back.