Cloudland Canyon 50k Training (Week 3 of 14)

Week 3:
- 12 mi long run (plan for Sunday)
- 35 mpw
- 5k race Saturday a.m.

Monday
Planned: strength
Did: 30 min strength
I just couldn't muster the motivation for more than 30 minutes today.

Tuesday
Planned: Track Tuesday
Did: 3x3x400m progression, 6.39 mi @ 8:11/mi avg
Track Tuesday downtown! Low energy, so focused on short distances. 3 sets of 3x400m at progressively faster paces (10k, 5k, 1mi).
10k pace (target = 1:51) - 1:54, 1:47, 1:52
5k pace (target = 1:45) - 1:45, 1:46, 1:47
1M pace (target = 1:36) - 1:35, 1:36, 1:33

This Splits Calculator is pretty cool... https://www.uscaa.org/goodies/splitsCalc.html

Wednesday
Planned: lunch trail run (~5 mi)
Did: 5.51 mi treadmill run
Just felt like getting the run over with first thing, so I went straight to the treadmill when I got to work this morning. Started off NOT feeling like doing much but ended up (as usually happens) feeling great and strong with some speedwork. Did a downward ladder at progressively faster intervals. My last 400 was around a 6:00/mi pace. Woo!

Thursday
Planned: bike ride or gym
Did: walk

Friday
Planned: Friday Five?
Did: walk
I've had some twinge-y knee pain the past couple of days that is concerning to me, so I'm going to take it easy knowing I have some long miles to do tomorrow. Blergh. Not in the mood for injury, hopefully it's short-lived.

Saturday
Planned: Michelin 5k + Freak Bike
Did: 1.11 mi warm-up, 3.15 mi race, 0.59 mi cool-down, 9.28 mi run, 14.16 mi bike ride
Yeah, it was a long day but MAN did it feel good!
First up was the Michelin 5k race. Race report here.
After that, I had to drop my car off in downtown Greenville so that it would be there for us after our night bike ride. The plan: park the car, run home. I wasn't totally excited about the prospect of a long run after a race, but I knew I needed the miles, and the hazy mist in the air actually made it nice to run. Once I got started, telling myself I could go as slow and easy as I wanted, just make the journey home, I felt great and enjoyed the 9+ miles of quiet time with my thoughts. It's as close to meditation as I get and man, it has been too long. I hadn't realized how mentally tiring the trails can be - having to pay attention to every footstep so I don't trip. It was nice to kind of set on auto-pilot and just run.
Made it home with no issue, clocked close to 9-minute miles most of the way, and felt pretty darn good when I got back.
Last event for the day: FREAK BIKE! The theme was Mad Max, which I have never seen or even heard of before, but I Googled for some costume inspiration and I think I did OK.

  

We had a great time - just riding along with friends, stopping for beers along the way, and ending with Mexican food downtown. It was a much later night than anticipated, but we had a lot of fun and it was worth it to just relax.

Sunday
Planned: 12 mi trail run 
Did: rest

Week-ending thoughts:
Way short on mileage (~26 vs. planned 35) but mentally feeling much better now. Happy with the long run and the knee pain has basically gone. Didn't get on trails this week either. But oh I'm loving these cooler temperatures we're experiencing right now!