2016 New York City Marathon Training – Week 10

NYCM Week 10 Infographic

This may be one of the shortest training posts I’ve ever done because I only had one workout this week!  Last Saturday’s long run took so much out of me that my coach assigned easy running for the other days.


Training Schedule
August 28th – September 3rd

Sunday: 5 miles recovery.
Monday: 8 miles recovery.
Tuesday: 8 miles recovery.
Wednesday: Fartlek Run. 7 miles with time “on” and “off”.
Thursday: 10 miles recovery.
Friday: 8 miles recovery.
Saturday: 7 miles recovery.

Mileage Total: ~56 Miles

Adaptations.  None.


Workout Details

Fartlek Run 8 miles easy w/5 x 3 min. @ 10K to half marathon pace [Log Details].

I kept the pace and my mood light during the first few miles.  Fartlek is Swedish for “speed play”, right?  So, I made the run fun by playing up-tempo but light-hearted songs on my iPod.

I started the set of 2-minutes “on”/”off” while on the trail that parallels Route 50 in Clarendon.  I made my way through Rosslyn, where I may have had to stop, until I hooked up with the Mount Vernon Trail.

Under Roosevelt Bridge

I ran pretty uninterrupted for the next few miles.  I tried to focus on good leg turnover, which may have resulted in some over-striding at points.  Generally, my legs felt good during this entire set.

I was still on the MVT for the set of 1-minute “on”/”off”.  My legs still felt pretty fresh during the “on” segments but I was running slower during the “off” segments.

Gravelly Point

The final set of 30-seconds “on”/”off” started in Crystal City.  Not ideal since I had to stop a lot for traffic.  By then, I was slowing down or walking during the “off” segments anyway.   In the end, it was a hodge-podge of paces.

I felt as though this workout went better than others but it still wasn’t great.

Pace for “on” segments=2 minutes at 7:33, 1 minute at 7:21, 30 seconds at 7:42.


Health

I spent the week recovering from last Saturday’s long run.  I was just plain tired and my leg muscles were sore.  I slept like a rock every night but woke up feeling like I could have slept even longer.


Weather

The temperatures were milder than previous weeks but it was still low-70s and humid through Wednesday.  A cold front moved in on Thursday and brought rain!  Friday and Saturday felt like fall even though temperatures were in the 60s!


Racing Schedule 

Next race: Parks Half Marathon on September 11th.  (My Complete Racing Schedule.)

I signed up for the D.C. Road Runners National Capital 20-Miler on September 25th.  I thought it might make a good long run.

And, I continued looking at spring marathons.  Now, I’m thinking Vermont City on May 28th and Eugene on May 7th.  I struck the others I mentioned last week for various reasons.