Countdown to Ultra Training (3 weeks to go)

Monday
Did: rest
Well that didn't start off the week very well. Monday work craziness got the best of me and I didn't make it down to the gym, though I did walk on the treadmill desk and got my 10k steps for the day so... that's something.

Also noticing some soreness in my heel in the evenings... googling and consulting my athlete injury book all point to plantar fasciitis. I rolled my arches with a golf ball throughout the evening in an attempt to loosen things up. I think my slackness on stretching (calves & hammies) and the hike with added weight on Sunday (more stress on calves) may have been the cause. It doesn't crop up in the morning like most cases, just when I'm walking around the house in the evening. Doesn't bother me while running. Hoping that paying attention to it with golf ball and stretching better will make it go away.

Tuesday
Did: 3x4x400 progression, 6.81 mi @ 7:58/mi avg
Track Tuesday again this morning - felt better than last week, more energy, and I think it was (a little) less humid. Decided on a progression of 3 sets of 3 400s, and was impressed with how accurate I was on most of my 400s...
3x400 @ 10k pace (target 1:50): 1:59*, 1:49, 1:51
3x400 @ 5k pace (target 1:45): 1:45, 1:48, 1:45
3x400 @ 1M pace (target under 1:40): 1:37, 1:42, 1:34

*I stopped to take a photo of the moon, which was beautiful... but the photo didn't turn out great.

#TrackTuesday done!

Wednesday
Did: strength
Got down to the gym late afternoon (ugh) for a lift, only about 30 mins but felt pretty good about what I got done. 

Thursday
Did: 4.21 mi treadmill 4x half-mile hill repeats
Couldn't stomach the idea of the heat outside at lunch today so I opted instead for the treadmill and did something new: hill repeats! I'm not sure what % grade I was on but it was a 7.0 setting. whatever that means. Felt hard but not too hard to manage for a half mile. The last repeat I cranked it up a bit and ended up around a 9, which did feel much harder. Not a bad little workout!

Friday
Did: rest
Well okay, I did walk on the treadmill desk for ~1hr so I got my steps in but... other than that, nope.

Saturday
Did: 7.25 mi trail run
Really this was ~ 6.75 mi trail run with a ~1-2 mile hike in the middle, and then another half mile walking around with D on his bike.
I headed up to Dupont early, beautiful fog still hanging around in the air.

 

  

Started out on Sky Valley Rd gravel climb to get to the top of Rocky Ridge trail.

Frank Street ?

Quiet morning trail

Decided to explore Stone Mtn Trail at the top (it's an out-and-back one-mile trail) because it's not bikeable (for me). Turned out it wasn't very runnable either, but boy it was worth the trek!

 

It's hard to capture the steepness of the trail in photos... but trust me, it was steep. Descriptions of the trail that I read said it maxed out around 30% grade!

At one point, I came to a "clearing" in the trees, but the trail was so overgrown with weeds that I ended up basically burrowing through them. 

  

Yep, that was the trail.

More scrambling up rocks & roots...

 

... but finally came out on a rock face to see this!!

 

Apparently this is the highest point in Dupont. 😍

I spent a while up here just taking in the view. SO worth the climb.

 

Just a little hill.

I made my way back down and finished out the run on Rocky Ridge, then made my way back to the parking area to meet Scott & D for kid hand-off. I followed D for another ~half mile while he rode his bike, then he decided he was done and we headed home. 

Sunday

Did: 9.06 mi Paris Mountain climb

Decided on an early run up Altamont Road since apparently I didn't get enough hills yesterday? Sure, why not. I took this run overall slower than I usually would have due to 1) leg tiredness from the day before and 2) just wanted a steady run, wasn't trying to push the pace. I ended up with a slow ascent (24:14) but I didn't stop to walk at all, which was my goal. 

Still love seeing the "You Made It" sign at the top.

Bonus: Sunday Funday Yoga!
Got to attend our favorite yoga class with Kimmie at Mountain Goat... always a good stretchy time.

Week-ending thoughts: Although my mileage for the week (~27 mi) wasn't as high as I would have liked and I didn't get a double-digit run, I still got a lot of good hill work in which is good. Building that climbing strength will be beneficial in the coming months. I do miss biking.