2017 New York City Marathon – Week 12
I entered the race preparation phase of the training program this week. All the hard work came early with three workouts in a row. I had a rough medium run on Wednesday. But, I ran the 2017 Dulles Day on the Runway 10K today in 45:08(7:14 pace), which is much faster than I thought I would. It was a terrible week for sleep and summer refuses to leave.
Training Schedule
September 17th – September 23rd
Sunday: Recovery Run. 6 miles (AM) + Recovery Run. 4 miles (PM).
Monday: VO2Max Run. 9 miles w/5x600m @ 5K race pace; jog 50 to 90% interval time between.
Tuesday: General Aerobic Run. 10 miles.
Wednesday: Medium-long Run. 15 miles.
Thursday: Recovery Run + Speed. 7 miles w/6x100m strides.
Friday: Recovery Run. 6 miles.
Saturday: 2017 Dulles Day on the Runway 10K.
Mileage Total: ~63 Miles
Notes. I entered the race preparation phase of the training program. The hard work came early in the week and my mileage was lower because I moved my long runs to Sundays.
Goal. Finish the Dulles Day 10K in sub-46:00 (7:23 pace). Outcome: Success!!! I ran 45:08 (7:14 pace). I’m shocked. I thought sub-46:00 was a stretch. I didn’t think I’d come so far under it.
Workout Details
VO2Max Run. 9 miles w/5x600m @ 5K race pace; jog 50 to 90% interval time between [Log Details].
After weeks of long, steady running, I’m getting more speed work in my schedule. Even though I woke up feeling tired and sore from last week’s workouts, I was looking forward to turning my legs over for a change. My goal was to run faster than I did during my last interval workout. I ran close to 4 miles as a warm-up to the Mount Vernon Trail. I listened to a mix of songs that I might use for my playlist for this weekend’s 10K. I started the intervals after having a drink at the water fountain at National Airport. I ran the repetitions on the Four Mile Run Trail. The first repetition was a little stiff. I didn’t have a good feeling about how this workout would end. But then the second was much speedier. “Maybe this won’t be so bad,” I thought. I stopped to take a picture and got a complete rest.
I felt great for the final repetitions and was able to hold a consistent pace. Afterwards, I was certainly tired but not exhausted. I did almost two miles as a a cool-down home, walking the steep uphill.
Splits=6:57, 6:44, 6:54, 6:50, 6:58. Average=6:53.
General Aerobic Run. 10 miles. [Log Details].
For this workout, I wanted to have another sub-8:20 pace general aerobic run. I listened to some songs that might end u as my playlist for this weekend’s 10K. When I reached the Custis Trail, my overall pace was 8:10. I felt good. “That gives me some wiggle room.” I stopped for water at Nelson Street. After finishing the rolling hills, my overall pace was up to 8:18! Just before the W&OD, I got passed by a female runner gliding down the trail. “I’m going pretty fast here so, who is that?” She didn’t pull away until we hit the junction. I stopped for water and kept up the pace the rest of the way. I slowed down a little.
Overall pace=8:11.
Medium-long Run. 15 miles. [Log Details].
I wanted to run hard since I was taking the next two days easy, but I was pretty tired from the day before. I did this run as a commute to work but looped down through Alexandria, Virginia since I’m only 7 miles away from my office.
I realized pretty early on that I should have brought a handheld and food. (I didn’t eat breakfast.) Still, I felt surprisingly good during the early miles! Just as I was leaving Old Town, though, I hit a wall and felt terrible. My legs completely lost their pep and I started shuffling along the sidewalks. I stopped for water before reaching the Mount Vernon Trail and miserably thought, “I still have 6 miles to go.” I trudged along and then stopped for water again at National Airport. I filled my belly with water to trick my stomach into thinking it had food. Why did I feel so terrible? Was it the heat? The wind? I crossed the 14th Street Bridge, which meant I only had two more miles to go. I thought about finishing early – I could take the Smithsonian Metro stop to Capitol hill. But, I managed to finish the run.
That evening after work, I realized I forgot my house key in my gym bag and had to go back to work. I walked over to the Capitol and took a picture:
Overall pace=8:48.
2017 Dulles Day on the Runway 10K. 6.24 miles. [Log Details].
This was my first race of the 2017 New York City Marathon training cycle!
The course was completely flat and the weather wasn’t terrible. I ran fairly splits and started picking off runners mid-way through the race. I moved into 4th place at the 6 mile mark and was seconds away from ou-tkicking the 3rd place woman at the end! My time was 45:08 (7:14 pace) – almost a minute faster than where I thought my fitness was!
Time=45:08. Splits=7:24, 7:24, 7:16, 7:21, 7:08, 6:56, 1:41 (6:29 pace). Overall pace=7:14.
Health
Sleep. It was a terrible week for sleep. I took a long nap on Sunday and it messed up my sleep going into Monday. On Wednesday, I forgot my key at work, after already working late, and had to double-back. I didn’t get to bed until 11:30pm. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to make up the time later in the week.
Weight. I didn’t eat very much after my runs mid-week, so my weight dropped a little.
Weather
Usually, our region gets fall-like weather by mid-September. But, summer won’t move along. Morning temperatures were in the low 70s but with high humidity most mornings.
Racing Schedule
Future races. I find out if I got into the Tokyo Marathon on Monday!
Next race: 2017 Cherry Blossom 10 Miler on April 2nd. (My Complete Racing Schedule.)
