A Decent Little Week

Going into this week I knew I had a serious long run slated for the weekend, but i still needed to accomplish a couple other objectives: 1.) re-introduce speed work into the weekly schedule after a cold-induced hiatus 2.) build up weekly mileage through running most days of the week. There were some bumps along the way, but I'd say it was a decent little week.

Enjoy the following little diddy that won't get out of my head from Fleet Foxes.




4/18 - 24

Monday - 3 mi easy run (33:23) Teller Farms
Nice little shake out run after the awesomeness that is the Mesa loop.

Tuesday - 1.5 mi crappy run (15:13) Twin Lakes Trail
The outside of my left knee has been giving me intermittent twinges of awkwardness lately. I haven't figured out if it's simply an IT band issue or some sort of meniscus problem. Either way, it was acting up within the first five minutes of this run, so I cut an otherwise 4 mile easy run short. Bummer.

Thursday - 6 mi Speed work (3X800m @ 4:02, 3:58, 3:23; 51 mins tot)
After skipping a speed work last week, it was nice to let the legs fly for a little bit. Started a bit soft to test the knee, which felt nice throughout. Finally got into the fun zone with the last 800 split. Hopefully I can stay in the low 3's from here on out, but we'll see.

Friday - 4 mi (35:30) Easy run around Twin Lakes with an extra loop around the east lake
One of the many goals of the running ramp-up this season is to run most (if not all) days of the week, so this run made progress toward that goal.

Saturday - 13.5 mi (2:56), 1800 ft vert. Mesa Trail loop w/ Emily
Foolish, but fun. I couldn't help but double the distance i did on this trail the previous week. This was by far the toughest 13.5 miles I’ve done in a long time. My long runs have historically been on roads or local Boulder paths, so I definitely wasn’t accustom to ascending and descending any significant hills. Last week was my first time running this trail and I was so excited about the new terrain that I figured I’d try doing a long run on it. Emily and I had a mellow pace for the first loop to save energy for the second bout, yet the first ascent was just as challenging as last week. The first loop (6.5 mi) was done in 1:24. For the second loop, Emily suggested we do it in reverse. When she said “this is where the wheels fall off”, I knew it was going to be a proper run. When we hit South Shanahan Fork, my legs were beginning to feel heavy and a half-mile further, I succumbed to walking for 20 yards or so. I have never walked during a long run before, but this wasn’t just a long run. This was a cardiovascular moment staring into the whites of Jesus’ eyes. I don’t wear a heart monitor, but I definitely felt like I was pushing the upper boundaries. Once I made it back to the Mesa trail for the final stretch, I was thrilled to be descending and took a few moments to coast and enjoy the snowy view of the Eldorado Springs area. I've never run for 3 hours straight and without water. Felt great.