Week Ending 5/6

This week I decided to ease off the quality, while still getting in some decent volume, in order to recover from the Cheyenne Mountain 50K on 4/28.

Turns out my recovery from Cheyenne has been much faster than I anticipated, maybe as a result of my vigilance in taking a full serving of Hammer Recoverite after every single workout. Or maybe my calf sleeves are really paying off, as I haven't felt much of any muscle soreness in my shins or calves in weeks. Or maybe I'm just really getting into good shape. Actually, it's probably a combination of factors. At any rate, there used to be a time when I recovered pretty well from races, and maybe now--after two years of struggles--I'm back to that place in my fitness?

Here's how the week went:

Monday: super-easy/recovery

AM: 4 miles in a little more than 34 minutes on the treadmill. I was surprised how decent my legs felt only two days after a 50K trail race.

Tuesday: easy
AM: 7.65 miles in 1 hour on the trails near my neighborhood. My legs and hips, which are usually sore after a long race, felt fantastic. Unfortunately, I'm still having some lingering posterior-tibial issues in my right leg. Will continue to ice and wear calf sleeves as a precaution.

Wednesday: mid-level effort
AM: 9.1 miles miles in 1:08, taking Buffaloberry out and back and then hitting the trails for a few miles.

Thursday: mid-level effort
AM: 9.35 miles in 1:10, mostly on the nearby trails. My legs were a bit tired. I was also labored in my breathing toward the end--maybe allergies?

Friday: mid-level effort
AM: 9.25 miles 1:10 on the trails. I felt much better than yesterday.

Saturday: long

AM: 16.05 miles in 2:05 on the Tomahawk loop and dirt trails in Parker. 1,000’. Not a very good run; I was winded and labored on the trail--maybe because of allergies?

PM: 4 miles in 33 minutes on the treadmill

Total: 20.05 miles
 

Sunday: long/trail

AM: 12.8 miles in 2 hours at Castelwood Canyon State Park. Did 2.5 loops around the canyon, hitting the Rim Rock Trail twice, and discovered a few new trails, as well. Enjoyed this outing and felt good--much better than yesterday. Felt like I ran well on the technical sections. 1524'.

PM: 3.1 miles on the treadmill.

Total: 15.9 miles

Weekly totals:

• 75,2 miles run
• ~5,000 feet of climbing
• Total training: 10:08
• 9 total runs
• Averaged 8:06/mile
• Push-ups and core work

April totals:

• 301.6 miles run
• 40 hours, 37 minutes
• Averaged 8:05/mile
• Several hundred push-ups and core work reps

Year to date mileage:

• 1,160.1 miles run
• 118 miles biked
• 2.6 miles walked

This week I'll be getting back into quality, with intervals on Tuesday and a tempo run on Thursday, and will gun for about 80-85 miles. I'm also giving myself until Friday to make a decision about the Colfax Marathon on May 20. That would allow a one-week taper for the marathon. My hesitance is that I'm still fighting some lingering effects from poster tibial tendonitis in my right inner calf. The lingering effects aren't bad by any stretch. But the injury sidelined me for two weeks over Christmas, and sometimes too much road work can inflame the situation--so I'm inclined to be cautious. At this point, I'd say Colfax is 50/50.

I'm excited about the spring and summer and am planning some big outings in the next few weeks, including a Memorial Day weekend run up to the summit of Mount Bierstadt, a 14'er that sits right next to Mount Evans. Alternatively, I may do Greys and Torreys. Such limited time....

The plan still stands--keep my weekly mileage in the 80s in May, and then jump up to the 90s in June and the 100s in July, with some recovery sprinkled in. Because of work stuff, I'm going to have to do a two-week taper for Leadville instead of a three-week taper. I'll go into more detail on that later. For now, I think I'll go for a little run....