Running Down the Dream: August was a time for doing things I've never done before!

August 2017 in review!

Total mileage for the month: 301.6 -- I've never done a monthly mileage starting with a 3 before! Well, unless perhaps at some point I was injured and it was 30, hah. In comparison: January - 261, February - 212, March - 203, April - 219, May - 249, June - 205, July - 275

July 31-August 6: 64.7
August 7-13: 62.4 (this was a cut-back week, and the mileage drop was tiny, partially due to a long run swap, but I had no scheduled workouts)
August 14-20: 66.4
August 21-27: 68.4
August 28-Sep. 3: 62.5

August = back to school

Races:

Nada...however, I will be starting September off with abandon, with races on September 2, 4, and 10, plus a goal half marathon on September 30. A month of no racing when I'm 100% healthy may be something I've never done before, or at least not done often!

Workouts:

August 2: 3 x 2 mile tempos in 11:53 (5:57, 5:56), 11:47 (5:51, 5:56), 11:43 (5:52, 5:50), with 0.5 recoveries and 2 warm-up and 2.2 cool-down. Ben ran this one with me, which was very helpful. Although I felt somewhat fatigued going into this workout, I felt strong once I was running it and like I had 5+ more seconds/mile in me. I finished feeling like I could run one more repeat at a similar pace, which is technically how you are supposed to finish speed workouts (the most training gains for the least effort and stress on the body, but easier said than done!). After my 6 mile tempo and fast finish long run during the last week of July, my coach told me to stop trying to set workout PRs every hard day, and to stick to the paces he gives me; so I tried to do that better, because as much as I love pushing workouts, I don't want to over-train or peak too early. My pace range was 5:55-6:05, so I was 50% within the prescribed range, but the course is fast so I say it evens out (it was a workout PR, and having every mile under 6:00 is something I'd never done before). When looking at my splits afterward, I noticed that both my half mile recoveries were at 7:42 pace; not sure how I managed that consistency, but it made me laugh!
August 12: progression run within a long run, described below, and technically Jessi's workout and not mine
August 16: 8 mile tempo in 49:04 (6:07 average via 6:09, 6:07, 6:00, 6:05, 6:09, 6:08, 6:15, 6:08), with 2 warm-up and 2 cool-down. This was not the tempo I was hoping for (that was a sub-6:00 average), and this was not a workout PR (I've done 6:06 average for this workout). But, based on how I felt during this run I was glad to complete it and to keep all of my miles except for mile 7 within my goal tempo pace range of 5:57-6:10. Going into the workout, I hoped to run splits something like 6:10, 6:05, 6:01, 6:00, 5:59, 5:58, 5:57, 5:55, 5:50, but when I passed mile 3 my goal changed to just keeping it under 6:10 the rest of the way. 8 miles is a long grind when you're not feeling it at mile 3 and are running alone; I wanted to stop at mile 4 and I really wanted to bag it at mile 6, but I reminded myself that I would never quit with 2 or 4 miles left in a half of full marathon, so this was good practice hanging on the best I could. This workout felt an awful lot like the Dam to Dam half marathon (and no one wants to re-live that!), so I was happy to just get it done. Funny how the slower paces on bad days take so much more out of you than faster paces on fantastic days! What went wrong after 3 stellar tempo workouts (August 2 as described above, here, and here)? It was 71* with a dew point of 70* (96% humidity), I was running solo after having company on the other 3 tempo workouts, I felt like my glycogen stores were down (possibly due to a second run the evening before), and simply not every day is my best. Although I didn't meet my goal, I can't be completely unhappy with a solo 8 mile tempo that ended up being 1 sec/mile slower than my goal half marathon pace; I think I was just mainly disappointed that I had to fight for the goal pace the whole way. My coach said he thought this was a fine tempo, and that I was probably feeling my mileage. I averaged 6:24 pace on the 8 mile tempo I ran about a year ago, so my current bad day was still 16 sec/mile better than my 2016 really good day. I'll get you next time, sub-6:00 8 mile tempo!
August 22: Mile repeat workout fail...I don't really want to include this, but it felt like a lie to leave it out. I ran one 1600 m. repeat on the track in 5:42, and then things went sharply downhill and I pulled the plug halfway through repeat 2 when I was at 3:04 through 800 m. Cutting a workout isn't something I've never done before, but it's something that's pretty rare, fortunately...although I also cut my long run distance on August 5, which makes this month seem pretty pathetic in this regard. A thunderstorm was rolling in when I stopped (it was also 76* with 100% humidity), so I blamed that, but I also did not have it mentally or physically this day; honestly, I think I was defeated in my own head before I even started.
August 24: Mile repeat workout re-do - 3 x 1 mile repeats with 3:00 recoveries in 5:48, 5:44, & 5:46 (2.1 warm-up and 2.4 cool-down). After my failure on the track two days prior, I didn't want to go back so I ran these on the road instead. My goal was to keep them all in the 5:40s, so I was pleased with the outcome, even though my original goal time for them on the track was 5:35-5:40. A 5:46 average is my second best mile repeat workout ever; my best was 5:40 back in May, but this time I was on tired legs so I didn't expect to rival my PR workout (the May workout was also 4 x 1 mile repeats, but I had longer recoveries of 0.5 mile jogs on that day, which I think my coach did on purpose to make them not exactly comparable!). I was coming off of 25 miles in two days (13 with my failed workout and a double two days before, and 12 in a single one day before), and I ran alone, so I think this went as well as it could have -- especially considering that it's mentally very difficult to re-try a workout only two days after pulling the plug on it! It was 56* and that sure helped! It amazes me how much different 5:45 pace is than 5:55 pace. 5:55 pace is challenging for me but it feels maintainable during most workouts; when I drop 10-15 seconds I feel like I'm dying! I have not done speed work since my last mile repeat workout on May 10, so it makes sense that I'd be more comfortable in my tempo range than below it, but oy!
August 29: 4 mile fartlek of 2' on/2' off (2 warm up and 2 cool down). A no-pressure fartlek was just what I needed this week! I ran this on a course with rolling hills -- the same course I ran it on last time (July 18 here). I kept all of my pushes under 6:00 pace for the first time ever on a fartlek on this course, with them all between 5:42-5:54, and I was pumped about that.
Doubles on August 1, 3, 8, (not on August 10 due to the cut-back week), 15, 16, 22, 24, 29, and 31.
Strides on August 7, 10, and 31.
Bootcamp (full body strength workouts) on August 7, 14, 21, and 28 (plus enough additional strength work here and there to get to a minimum of 90 minutes total per week).
Yoga on August 9, 23, and 27; I know, I can't believe it either! I'm dabbling in a calf release routine.
Favorite workout: the 3 x 2 mile repeats on August 2 was hands down the smoothest workout of the month! In theory I like the 8 mile tempo better, but it didn't go quite as well.

Long Runs:

August 5: 13 base pace miles (7:29). Just checking off my bad long run of this training cycle with this one! It was supposed to be 16 miles... I'd spent Thursday and Friday in Kansas City for work, so I expected to be tired from that trip, but I felt decent enough until shortly after 10 miles when I was hit with stomach pain! I made a couple of pit stops, but it kept getting worse instead of better, and my pace kept getting slower. At 12.9, I started dry heaving. I made it to 12.99 before throwing up on the side of the road. I ran the 0.01 to 13 (obsess much?) and then walked it in; I was only 0.6 from my car at that point, fortunately. I was upset about this, and it has never happened to me before (another thing I've never done before, hah). I'm blaming eating out for all meals for two days and moving on... I got to bump up my mileage on my August 12 long run -- I kind of flip-flopped this run and the next week's scheduled cut-back long run -- so nothing was lost except for my stomach contents!
August 12: 16.1 miles (7:02) with 7 base pace, 7 progression, 2 base pace. This was scheduled as 15 base pace, but Jessi had a progression run that was 8 miles total, with the first mile at easy pace and then progressing down to around 6:20 pace. I love progression runs so I told her I'd do it with her within our long run if she wanted, by doing 7 easy first instead of just the 1. Our first 7 were between 7:18-7:35 (although they were kind of a progression too, just not as pronounced), then the progression miles were 7:10, 7:04, 6:55, 6:42, 6:33, 6:14, 6:04. This was a bit faster than planned, but it felt good to cruise in. The last half mile was up an incline, so I am calling it sub-6:00 effort (the run as a whole had 564 feet gain). It was also a fast finish mile PR on that route, bettering my previous long run fast finish final mile of 6:09 on it. I then went 2 more miles for 16, to avenge the previous week's crappy long run and get in a 16!
August 19: 18 base pace miles (6:57). Running an 18 miler made me feel like I was officially marathon training! This was a base pace run, which we started with a 7:40 mile and finished with a 6:30 mile. Zach ran this with me and gave me the push I needed to average sub-7:00. My go-to easy pace isn't quite that fast, but it is a relaxed pace when I am running with someone else doing that pace (my ideal long run pace is 6:57-7:07 after I get warmed up, per my coach -- marathon goal pace +40-50 seconds). Missy ran the first 10 with us, and Rebecca the first 6. I ran this fasted, having just water and 2 nuun tablets - electrolytes and a mere 20 calories - before and during, because doing my relaxed long runs like that up to 20 miles pays off for me on marathon day (plus I don't want to get up any earlier than I already am at 4:45 a.m.!), but I was dreaming of breakfast buffets in the final couple of miles! It was 69* and 98% humidity, so I can't wait to see how my long runs feel when it's 45*! We ran one of our normal courses, with 537 ft elevation gain. Afterward, it struck me that I could have run a sub-3:00 marathon in training if I'd have kept going on this run, if I'd have done 8 more miles at 6:35-6:40 pace, which I believe I could have (our final 4 were 6:39, 6:40, 6:36, 6:30, talking the whole time). The gravity of this was not lost on me, because last year at this time breaking 3:00 was my huge goal! God is amazing.
August 26: 17.2 base pace miles (7:01). I felt really good about this run because it was truly relaxed the whole way, and most of my miles were 6:55-7:05 (the first 2 were slower, the last 2 a little faster but not as fast as the previous week). Zach ran with me again, and it went by very quickly! I ran this fasted like the previous week, and on a similar course.
August 30: 15 base pace miles (6:57). I traded my midweek short long run for a longer one this week due to impending weekend races, and I was glad I did because I felt like a million bucks on this run! I also think this arrangement was better for both my long run and race, because trying to get in 15 miles when racing a 10K means a long run that is a bit split up and a slower pace on the miles run before and after the race -- not to mention an impending 7 mile cool down hanging over my head during the race! I started at 5:04 a.m., ran 4 miles solo, picked up Ben just after 5:30 a.m. (I told him beforehand that he had to jump in when I came by, because I wasn't stopping, hah), and we did an 11 mile route together. After I got warmed up, it felt great to knock of 6:5X miles that felt like they were 7:15 pace. It was also only because of this long run swap that I made it over 300 miles in August, because I was originally scheduled for 11 miles on this day and 15 on Labor Day!
Favorite long run: All of them except for August 5!
I also had midweek runs that were short long runs every Wednesday (11-12 milers); these went well with average paces of 6:59-7:03 on the non-workout ones.

Highlights/thoughts/randomness:

I was excited to have some base pace runs dip below 7:00 pace while keeping it easy, which is always exciting! Why is 6:59 vs. 7:01 such a big deal (same with 5:59 vs. 6:01)? Really the difference between those paces could just be Garmin error!
This was another month of NO days off running -- the second month for that, as my last day off was June 19! I haven't noticed any difference with adding a 7th day of running, probably because two of my days are short (Mondays and Fridays).
When I was thinking about my August mileage, I thought about the song lyric "Count your blessings, name them one by one," and how in one month of running I had 301 miles of blessings. I am so thankful for all of the things running brings to my life: wonderful friends to train with, a passion for competitive goals, a hobby with a purpose, opportunities to travel, endorphins, and health benefits. I pray I am using it as I am supposed to! I count every run as a blessing, for certain.

Non-running life events:

My little started 4th grade on August 15!
I started teaching as an per course faculty member for the 6th semester on August 22.
Our family expanded with the addition of a fish tank, an early birthday present Albani talked Jon into. We already had our first death, with a frog named Croaker not making it (Croaker was the first to croak, aww!).
We had 96% coverage in the eclipse, which was simultaneously amazing to watch through eclipse glasses and unimpressive because it did not get dark, at all.
This was also another month of garden goodness in the Ibbetson household!