Bostonward

All right, so the marathon didn't kill me. I took a bit of downtime, ran provincial cross country championships, took more downtime, and started back up in early December. I thought I was ready to begin proper marathon training, and I had a pretty good week, but it was a case of too much, too soon, with a hard long run, weight training, LSAT exam, and a highly anticipated (if not ultimately fulfilling) date in the space of 48 hours. So I got sick and was out again for a couple of weeks.

The last two weeks of 2006 were solid. 56 and 61 mpw, and then on the final day of the year, a good 2 hour run, just under 16miles. No quality to speak of, other than a 10mile hilly road race on Dec 26th in Hamilton. It was quite fun, actually. I averaged 5:50 per mile, though more accurately I was running 5:45 and there was one mile that was about 6:15 because it was all uphill. I reeled people in from mile 3, and was not passed. I ended up behind the next pack by a bit though, behind Terry Gehl (rival from MTL) and Scott Stevens (who I coach). So, 2006 ended ok.

2007 started with a well-enjoyed day off, followed by 10 straight days of training. In there I ran a 16:15 indoor 5k at Dartmouth, a solid and accurate test of fitness. The mileage has crept up nicely (71,67,83 so far), but I'm not too concerned with weekly totals. For example, here are two progressions of weekly mileage:

1) 54,64,53,67,53,60,67,69,73
2) 72,64,55,48,72,57,67,71,69

The first looks a little more organised, with an up-down flow at first, then rising for the last four weeks. The second one is kind of hap-hazard. Actually, it is the same person's "weekly" mileage, just taken from a different starting point (Sunday vs Monday).

My point is just that weekly mileage totals only tell you the total volume. They don't say anything about intensity, nor about how the volume was distributed (in 6 days, 7 days, 5 days, doubles, no doubles). I'd rather worry about session volume, make sure there are adequate recovery days (which don't necessarily mean days not running), and let others add up the totals.

That said, there's something nice about a good, round, 100 mile week. I can appreciate that, for sure. But in terms of what it means, well, not much.

The two weeks after the 5k were consistent, with only the 12th completely off. I had a great long run on the 14th in TO with Mario, Sharlene, Ian Reid, and others. 17miles at 6:50 pace. The 20th I did two runs of 5miles each, one in Montreal and one in Derry, New Hampshire. The next day I raced 16 hilly, windy miles. Another good test. It actually didn't feel that long. Another 10? Sure. Here's what it looked like:

So, since then I've been kinda tired, but pushing through. Saturday is my next fully off day. I thought I would try to quickly recap the buildup to Boston so far. I will try to be as consistent with the posts as I am with the runs, but, well, one is obviously more lucrative than the other, if not in monetary terms, at least in terms of how much I care... I will try for a weekly update.