One of the better weeks I’ve had all year.  The forced days off last week did me some good and I felt like I ran better this week as a result.  Nice to get in some harder efforts, too.  It has been much too long.  I think I was happier with how I ran in the days between the workouts than I was with the workouts themselves.  Nice to have a sense of building strength rather than being totally wrecked.

Monday
Run – 12.7 miles
Tough route from home. Felt good ascending the first half, fell apart a little on the descent coming back. Came around a corner and faced off with a bear about 30 yards away. Luckily it bolted into the brush after a few seconds.

Tuesday
Run – 11 miles
Really productive workout. Did 3 surges of 200-400 meters during the first three miles. Then .5 mile, 1 mile, 1 mile, .5 mile repeats at 5k pace. Felt rusty, been a long time since I’ve done a workout. Last repeat was the best.

Wednesday
Run – 7 miles
Good run. Physiological adaptation is an amazing thing. I ran 7 hilly miles in one hour flat today (8:30 pace). Nothing that remarkable, except my average heart rate was 132. I remember back when I started running, I used to do a flat 4 miler keeping my heart rate at 140 as a test and I would usually hit about 10:20 pace for the run. Took me about a year to get under 10 minute pace for that run. Big difference between then and now. Cool.

Thursday
Run – 11 miles
Tempo’d the middle 5 @ 6:54 pace. Happy with that, been a long time since I have done much of anything with a 6 in front of it. Wasn’t a true tempo, though. I need to be more disciplined about that. The first few miles were good, hanging out in the mid to high 160 range, but the last two were up into the 170s and became more of a race-type effort.

Friday
Run – 10.4 miles
Squeezing in some running before/after/during the kid’s XC meet. The course was one big loop so I really had to sprint for all I was worth to get some photos at various points. Really enjoyed watching the kids run and the atmosphere at the event.

Saturday
Run – 14.5 miles
Took care of some things around the house then bolted out the front door at noon headed for Carpenter Peak. This is my favorite run to do from home and I love getting up on the trails of Roxborough State Park whenever I have the chance. The weather was spectacular. Bright, warm sunshine, and a nice cool breeze. I felt good. Not great, but good enough to really enjoy the effort it took to reach the peak. Satisfying.

Sunday
Run – 4 miles

Easy treadmill.

Total: 10:41
Run 70.5 miles / 10:41

Pic of the week:

Eat your veggies

I had great intentions of really getting after it this week, but a combination of not feeling well plus needing to help take care of my sick daughter derailed the second half of the week training-wise. Not a big deal. Running is easily forgotten and set aside when one of your kids needs you.

The highlight of the week was getting to see my son and daughter run in their first meet of the Cross Country season. So proud of them for working hard at all of their practices, keeping up with good grades, and being great kids in general. I would have been too chicken/self-conscious to compete like they are at that age, but thankfully they didn’t inherit my limitations in that regard.

Monday
Run – 10.2
Took about 3 miles to loosen up, then rolled nicely at mid 7 pace for about 5 miles before slowing for the last 2.

Tuesday
Run – 8
Dismal.

Run – 3
Felt good. Hydrated a bunch this afternoon. Kept it slow.

Wednesday
Run – 7
Dismal-er.

Bike – 14.5
Got in a good evening/night ride in the Highlands Ranch Backcountry while waiting to pick up my kids. Felt good. Celebrated the noticeable lack of heel pain when hitting the jumps. My achilles tendons used to scream on the liftoffs and landings. Not even a whimper tonight. First time in 2.5 years…

Thursday
Off

Friday
Run – 10.2 miles

Accumulated some miles running around the course at the kid’s cross country meet shooting photos and also doing a couple of miles in between races. So proud of the kids. They aren’t the speediest in the bunch (just like dad), but work really hard and have fun. It was a huge meet and a challenging course with two stream crossings thrown in.

Saturday
Run – 3 miles
Just a short jog while waiting to pick up my daughter.

Sunday
Off

Total: 7:52
Run 41.8 miles / 6:35
Bike 14.6 miles / 1:16

Pic of the week:

Speed Dial #2

Recovery week post-Leadville.  Definitely the easiest week I’ve had coming back around after a 100 miler.  That 27 mile hike at the end served as a great cool down.  My legs feel pretty good and I’m ready to get back to some more focused training again.

Monday
Off

Tuesday
Run – 5.5 miles

Almost felt guilty on this one.  No way my legs should feel this good.  Definitely didn’t leave it all on the course at Leadville.

Wednesday
Run – 5.5  miles
Another easy cruise.

Bike – ~12 miles

Night ride with some buddies from work.  Had a blast carving up the singletrack in the dark.

Thursday
Run – 8.7 miles

Pushed this one a little bit.  Hot and hilly.  Still feeling decent.

Friday
Off

Saturday
Run – 7 miles

Ran the annual neighborhood 5k/10k.  Won the 10k.  Legs weren’t firing as fast as I would like, but felt good so no complaints.

Sunday – Off

Total – 27 miles

Pic of the week:

Climbing above the city on our night ride