Ok wow, it's been a while. I have been running, I promise.
Last fall I got so frustrated with my nagging Achilles injury that I just had to completely shut down. I got stuck in a cycle of: start running again, feel good, slowly feel that goodness deteriorate, end up back at square one needing more time off. Nothing seemed to be helping, so I finally just checked out of running entirely.
After a few weeks in a walking boot, I decided to give it a cautious go one more time (this is around the beginning of November). I played it very safe, running without a schedule and entirely by feel, and by the end of December I was able to hit 60+ miles per week. Most importantly, though, I was simply enjoying running again.
My goal for January and February, then, was to work in aerobic base training while gradually increasing my mileage and re-establishing some semblance of consistency. I mostly succeeded -- my mileage didn't make it up to where I wanted it, but my base training went pretty well. I ran a lot of effort-based tempos, thresholds, and fartleks, and finally began to feel confident that I was through the worst of my injury.
The first real test came during the first weekend of March, busting some rust at the Bockfest 5k. With absolutely no expectations coming in, I won it in 15:35...but even though I raced solo the whole way, it was much tougher than the time indicates. I was worried that a hard race would aggravate my Achilles, but the opposite happened: I felt better after the race than before. For the first time in about 10 months, I seriously entertained the thought of having a season again.
The rest of March saw my training finally enter a steady upward rhythm, and on the first day of April I tested myself out with another race, this time the Papa John's 10 Miler in Louisville. Somewhat disappointingly, I finished 6th, one spot out of the money. But I did run 50:32, which is nearly exactly the same time I ran there last year, when I was coming off of my Olympic Trials peak. If I could be in that same shape after post-injury base training, then imagine what I could do with a couple more months of real training!
The only thing left I really want to accomplish running-wise is to finally figure out the marathon. Running a fast 5k, 10k, Half Marathon? That's all well and good, but I've already done those. The real glory is in the marathon, that's what people actually care about. And that's the one thing left that I want to master. And what better way to do that than by racing one?
Since I've been feeling positive about my training and managing my Achilles well, I've decided to commit to the Vermont City Marathon in Burlington, VT on the Sunday before Memorial Day. Really, the schedule works out perfectly: I needed a late-spring race due to my slow buildup and the last day of school this year is the Friday before. Plus, VCM has historically been competitive in the 2:20-2:25 range. AND, to top it all off, my wife went to grad school at UVM and still has plenty of friends up there, so any excuse to go visit is a welcome one!
Along the way I'm also planning on running the Flying Pig Half Marathon, but due to its proximity in time to VCM (three weeks separate the two), I'll probably treat it as a dress rehearsal, running most of the Pig at about a marathon tempo.
One week before VCM, I may do one final tune-up race (the OTR 5k), but that may be a game-time decision. We'll have to see how I'm feeling at that point.
So anyway, that's the update for this spring season! I'm really excited to go into this marathon without the weight of self-imposed pressure or expectations. Training like that has been a liberating experience and I can't wait to see how it pays off on race day.
Last fall I got so frustrated with my nagging Achilles injury that I just had to completely shut down. I got stuck in a cycle of: start running again, feel good, slowly feel that goodness deteriorate, end up back at square one needing more time off. Nothing seemed to be helping, so I finally just checked out of running entirely.
After a few weeks in a walking boot, I decided to give it a cautious go one more time (this is around the beginning of November). I played it very safe, running without a schedule and entirely by feel, and by the end of December I was able to hit 60+ miles per week. Most importantly, though, I was simply enjoying running again.
My goal for January and February, then, was to work in aerobic base training while gradually increasing my mileage and re-establishing some semblance of consistency. I mostly succeeded -- my mileage didn't make it up to where I wanted it, but my base training went pretty well. I ran a lot of effort-based tempos, thresholds, and fartleks, and finally began to feel confident that I was through the worst of my injury.
The first real test came during the first weekend of March, busting some rust at the Bockfest 5k. With absolutely no expectations coming in, I won it in 15:35...but even though I raced solo the whole way, it was much tougher than the time indicates. I was worried that a hard race would aggravate my Achilles, but the opposite happened: I felt better after the race than before. For the first time in about 10 months, I seriously entertained the thought of having a season again.
The rest of March saw my training finally enter a steady upward rhythm, and on the first day of April I tested myself out with another race, this time the Papa John's 10 Miler in Louisville. Somewhat disappointingly, I finished 6th, one spot out of the money. But I did run 50:32, which is nearly exactly the same time I ran there last year, when I was coming off of my Olympic Trials peak. If I could be in that same shape after post-injury base training, then imagine what I could do with a couple more months of real training!
The only thing left I really want to accomplish running-wise is to finally figure out the marathon. Running a fast 5k, 10k, Half Marathon? That's all well and good, but I've already done those. The real glory is in the marathon, that's what people actually care about. And that's the one thing left that I want to master. And what better way to do that than by racing one?
Since I've been feeling positive about my training and managing my Achilles well, I've decided to commit to the Vermont City Marathon in Burlington, VT on the Sunday before Memorial Day. Really, the schedule works out perfectly: I needed a late-spring race due to my slow buildup and the last day of school this year is the Friday before. Plus, VCM has historically been competitive in the 2:20-2:25 range. AND, to top it all off, my wife went to grad school at UVM and still has plenty of friends up there, so any excuse to go visit is a welcome one!
Along the way I'm also planning on running the Flying Pig Half Marathon, but due to its proximity in time to VCM (three weeks separate the two), I'll probably treat it as a dress rehearsal, running most of the Pig at about a marathon tempo.
One week before VCM, I may do one final tune-up race (the OTR 5k), but that may be a game-time decision. We'll have to see how I'm feeling at that point.
So anyway, that's the update for this spring season! I'm really excited to go into this marathon without the weight of self-imposed pressure or expectations. Training like that has been a liberating experience and I can't wait to see how it pays off on race day.
Welcome back Tommy!
ReplyDeleteOn the Half Marathon... Hasay ran a Half at 100% effort 2 weeks before Boston and look how that worked out. You can do it too man!