Training Log Archive: Johnny M

Easy run through the neighbourhood. Finished with four 8-sec hill sprints.

Late night, so had trouble getting out the door this morning. I had planned on running longer this morning, but had to be back by 11:30 so Rochelle could go out and didn't have time for more. Since my water bottles froze in the first 45 mins, I probably wouldn't have lasted much past 4 hrs anyway. May go out for a top-up later this afternoon.

I like wearing these shoes (NB MT100), but they don't hold up well on runs over 2 1/2 hrs. My feet get very tired, as they're forced to do a lot of work as the shoes don't secure the forefront well. It's not a big deal on flats or uphills, but anything too technical or downhill and my feet move around too much. I'll keep using them for most of my runs, but I probably need to find something else for my long runs and races. Not really keen on buying another pair of shoes, but I just don't think my feet will be strong enough by the spring to use these for a long race.

I'll probably look at the La Sportiva Crosslite or INOV-8 X-Talon, most likely the Crosslite as they seem very well liked by people I trust and they're also available in Canada. They're both heavier shoes than I've been wearing, but perhaps that's the cost of having some security on technical trails.

C • Great week 5

This run felt awesome. Picked up the pace in the second half. Much warmer than this morning's run, so that helped.

Very cold out. This was meant to be a speed workout enroute to the in-laws, but fizzled into an easy run.

Lunch run through Crowther. Lots of hill repeats. Very cold and windy, but felt great to be outside. Finished with the stair climb. Nearly quit 2/3 of the way up, but held on. Really pleased with this workout.

Now I'm enjoying my peanut butter, Nutella and banana sandwich.

Very cold tonight. Same route as last night.

Lunch run. Saw how much ice I ran over last night. Crazy.

Ran the Hudson Hill Sprints routine Keith sent me. For today, I just had to run two eight-second hill sprints, so it wasn't too bad. No doubt it will get a lot harder as I increase the reps and duration in the weeks ahead.

At the end of the run, I ran up the stairs that connect the water treatment facility in the valley to the top of the ravine entrance. That was a workout!

Thorncliffe to Don Mills to York Mills to Leslie to Eglinton to Leaside to Bayview to Overlea to Thorncliffe. Nice.

Night run on the trails. Lots of thin ice and mud, so quite slippery in spots. Nearly impaled myself on a tree while on a slippery downhill section. I also nearly stepped on a dead raccoon. All the road running I've been doing has left me a bit weaker on the hills. Lots of hills tonight. Had a good time (except for the weirdness of running at night on the city trails) and felt pretty good.