Training Archive: iansmith

Running 38:23 [3] 6.5 km (5:54 / km)
shoes: NB MT620 BK Alpha

I went on a late night, extremely easy recovery run. I felt fantastic - perhaps better than I have recently running, which is unsurprising given my pace. I continued Into Thin Air and comfortably ran in tights, underarmor, short-sleeved shirt, windbreaker and gloves. Conditions were pleasant and clear, with a temperature of -5 C and an intermittent breeze of 15 kph.

Nineteen days to NC!

3011 (wooo)

Map Exercises (Catching Features) 3 [0]

I played about three hours of Catching Features this week; for future logging purposes, seconds = hours of intensity 0 stuff.

Running 56:00 [1] 10 km (5:36 / km)
shoes: NB MT620 BK Alpha

Running to and from the start of the street-O.

Unexpectedly, my energy level plummeted on my return trip - it required force of will even to plod on. The feeling reminded me of the sensations I had on the 2008 West Point Classic course, where I was so utterly spent that I DNF'd. Climbing the stairs to my apartment on my return was an ordeal; I don't think I could have run an additional ten minutes.

I woke up very late today, and I don't recall eating anything. I suspect that the lack of food combined with the low temperatures brought about my downfall; I rested a bit at the end of the street-O, and my body cooled. Certainly my workout today was longer than much of what I have done lately, but it is not a significant outlier - I ran the Skyline at a high intensity some weeks ago without difficulty.

Orienteering (Street-O) 46:51 [3] 5.8 mi (8:05 / mi)
shoes: NB MT620 BK Alpha

I finally ran Clem's Charlestown Street-O from 16 November. I knew going into the run that Ross and Brendan had run the course in just under 44 minutes, so I tried to hit that time. I felt very good throughout the run, with a steady 2/2 breathing rate and a threshold-esque pace (though I slowed). The course itself was excellent; I focused particularly on reading ahead and having good flow.

Conditions were clear, with a temperature of -9 C, mild winds, and a wind chill of -16 C. I wore a short-sleeved Underarmor, a short-sleeved shirt, a wind breaker, hat, gloves, and running shorts under tights. Apart from cold fingers on my left hand from holding the map, I had no trouble staying warm and even perspired a bit. Most of the streets were well insulated from the wind. I received a few odd looks from pedestrians, though at 11 PM, the streets were largely clear.

I lost three minutes to Ross and Brendan, though some of that was probably due to the extra clothing and cold temperature. Nevertheless, I was a bit slower than my goal. It was an excellent exercise.

I am torn as to how to classify this; while the running is entirely on roads and clear grassy ground, I was actively using my navigation and orienteering technique. I also attribute a cost to the creation of a new training activity; for that reason, I have reluctantly concluded that the 'orienteering' grouping is most appropriate.

Running 1:05:26 [1] 12.1 km (5:24 / km)
shoes: NB MT620 BK Alpha

Ken's relatively new "session" feature reveals a contradiction in my logging: the session is mapped to the date, whereas I log by Circadian rhythm. So while technically this was a Saturday morning run, I will log it as Friday.

The weather has been cold the past few days, juxtaposing with Wednesday's pleasantness. The temperature was -14 C with 25-40 kph winds and a wind chill of -23 C; conditions were clear with some ice though no snow on the ground. I ran in tights, a long- and short- sleeved shirt, a wind breaker, a hat, and gloves. I was generally comfortable apart from prolonged periods exposed to wind, which were more numerous on the return trip.

My objective was an easy training session of moderate length (about 1 hour), and I was adamant about training, since my recent schedule has suffered due to work and weather (yesterday). I listened to Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer.

The run was productive; my clothing was adequate with the exceptions of exposed facial skin and a desperately lacking third glove. My hands, to my surprise, were comfortable with just my worn out gloves and clenched fists.

That there are three weeks until my first A-meet - North Carolina - is a constant reminder and motivator to train. My efforts have been passable at best so far; I must be more consistent.

C • add shorts 1

Running 31:52 [1] 6.82 km (4:40 / km)
shoes: NB MT620 BK Alpha

I worked late last night, so I did not go running - to my chagrin. So, after a good night's rest, I set out this morning with the second episode of my effort to run at a higher cadence. Again, I ran with the 165 bpm "Breeze" track from podrunner, and I endeavored to run with a stride shorter than 1.2 meters - which is a slightly slower pace than 5 min/km. I ran at a steady 4/4 breathing rate, hoping that with less oxygen available, I would not push so hard. I did feel winded much of the run; it was difficult holding to 4/4, and it is clear why - I was running faster than I planned.

Crew is a very different sport from running; the stroke remains unchanged, and speed is controlled with the stroke rate (pain is also tied to the stroke rate). I think my instinctive running speed control method combines both stride length and cadence as regulators. When I run reps, strides or sprints, my cadence is much higher than 165. In a finish chute, I suspect it exceeds 190. I will continue my experiment for some sessions at 165; if and when I become comfortable running easy pace at 165 bpm, I will increase to 170.

C • strides per minute 5

Running 34:20 [1] 6.4 km (5:22 / km)
shoes: NB MT620 BK Alpha

Easy run, short sleeves and tights.

Running 45:13 [1] 9.5 km (4:46 / km)
shoes: NB MT620 BK Alpha

I have been absurdly busy this week, primarily with work; my training has suffered horrendously. Last week was disappointing, with only 14 miles of running and no orienteering. I set out to start this week right, with an easy run. I brought some podrunner techno with the objective of running at 165 bpm for this session. Podrunner has free techno mixes of about an hour length at constant tempo, with a spectrum of tempos. I think that I typically run at about 160 min^-1 at easy pace; according to Daniel's, a higher cadence - closer to 180 - mitigates the risk of impact injury and improves economy.

Running at 165 was much more arduous than I expected; I consciously had to work to shorten my strides to avoid moving too fast. Even still, I broke 5 min/k.