Author: Trail to 50

Training Week: 04/10/17 – 04/16/17

| Trail to 50

04/10/2017 – 04/16/2017
Still battling the remaining little bit of whatever I had last week, I couldn’t decide on whether I should switch up the training schedule or just stay on schedule. Turns out I’m apparently just making this whole thing up every week as I go along regardless of what I planned four months ago. Time is fast closing on the remaining of the two training blocks and I need to log some serious quality miles in the next month and half.

Speaking of, I have two more races in the next two weeks which I’m using as long supported training runs. Coming up next week, I have a just a little three year old chip on my shoulder and a bone to pick on my return for revenge at the Yakima 50k. (Oh you haven’t seen this yet. Yeah, not my finest moment.) I’ll tackle that first before I focus on the week after that, which is Tillamook 50 miler in western Oregon. Still officially a little bit nervous and anxious.

Questions to you:
• If you miss a training week, do you just skip it or try to make it up?
• What’s the longest training plan you’ve ever planned? Completed?
• Do you have a chip on your shoulder race that you plan to try again?
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Training Week: 04/03/17 – 04/09/17

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04/03/2017 – 04/09/2017
I have yet to finish a full 6 month 100 mile training cycle without something not going right. The first time I trained for Mohican I had a stress fracture in my left 5th metatarsal that I failed to believe for a few weeks before I literally couldn’t walk anymore. The second time I trained for Kettle Moraine I battled plantar fasciitis which sidelined me for a few weeks. This time I’ve made it just over halfway through my training cycle without any major setback. I even hit all my planned mileage last week, but this week I have a fairly persistent cough which won’t go away. While not a major setback, it is only two and three weeks away from my last two races, Yakima and Tillamook, before Bighorn…

Oh yeah, speaking of this year’s 100 mile race (but then again aren’t I always?), there’s only a 10 weeks (TEN WEEKS!) left until Bighorn 100. So yeah, that’s close. And I’m officially nervous and anxious.

Questions to you:
• Have you had a setback during a training cycle? How long did you heal?
• Do you use races as races only or as supported long training races?
• Do you get anxious or nervous before a race?
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Training Week: 03/27/17 – 04/02/17

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03/27/2017 – 04/02/2017
Another solid week of running just like last week! Finally hit my mileage, overshot my vert goal, and just felt good for every run this week. Perhaps it was the nice run of weather or conversation or the company. Perhaps it was getting over the hump in the training. Perhaps it was just a lucky streak of running. I don’t care really care. When it’s good, run with it. (See what I did there?) The weeks are only going to get harder for the next two months.

Finally pinned down and verified all my pacers for Bighorn, which is good for me because that’s one less thing I need to worry about organizing. It also lets everyone prepare themselves for a specific section of trail, none really which are any less than 14 miles or have an elevation change of less than 4,500′.

Questions to you:
• What’s your longest streak of consecutive days of running?
• Have you ever been a pacer? What’s your go to strategy to keep them moving?
• Have you ever had a pacer in a race? Do you like to lead or have them lead?
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Training Week: 03/20/17 – 03/26/17

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03/20/2017 – 03/26/2017
A friend asked me the other day what I did this past weekend and I told him, unlike the week before when I missed both weekend long runs, I was able to get out on back to back long 18 mile runs Saturday and Sunday, both in the rain, one which even had bits of hail and snow thrown in just for good measure. His first reaction was a scrunched up face, face pulled back, followed immediately with, “why? What’s your motivation?” I paused, because honestly, those two 18 mile runs sucked. They weren’t entirely what I’d call fun and except for the two hours I spent running with a different friend, I spent 7 hours by myself tromping around in the cold dimly lit wet suburban mountains in March. It’s not exactly the dream weekend that graces the covers of Trailrunner or Ultrarunner magazine or actually now that I think about it, any magazine. So what did I say?

I said, “Because I want to know what I can do. I want to know what my limits are and then push farther beyond them.” He nodded, knowingly (but not knowingly because how do you sum up something so large in just one sentence.) How can one three letter word, “why?” have so many answers and none of them can ever be sufficient? I left the answer at that. I could spend an entire evening explaining without ever actually answering his question. “Why do you run?” has been asked by countless people and answered by countless runners who drag themselves out on long weekend solo runs in weather more associated with a hot cup of joe, a couch, some comfortable clothes and a thick book ripe for reading or remote control and a television. The answer as to why we run has been explained in a myriad of numerous ways and every single reason is both insufficient and at the same completely valid.

This is week 2 of the 3rd (of 5) training blocks which puts me pretty squarely halfway through my training for Bighorn.

Questions to you:
• Why do you run?
• What’s your motivation?
• What’s the worst weather you’ve ever run in? How did you get through it?
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Training Week: 03/13/17 – 03/19/17

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03/13/2017 – 03/19/2017
Didn’t hit my mileage and was slightly disappointed, but it probably turned out to be what I needed, even though last week was an easy week. Legs have been constantly fatigued. Finding myself starting to dread the double digit midweek run. Definitely not looking forward to the double digit weekend run starting with a 2. Uninspired not only to run, but to do any physical activity. Looking for any excuse. I found it this week and looking back on it, I’m actually ok with it.

Questions to you:
• What are your symptoms when you overtrain?
• How many times a week do you run?
• How many of your runs each week are double digits?
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Training Week: 03/06/17 – 03/12/17

| Trail to 50

03/06/2017 – 03/12/2017
This was a down week in all aspects of the meaning of a down week. My legs were defiantly fatigued. My desire to run was low. My (scheduled) miles were almost half as much as it has been. It rained almost all week. I needed this down week to be even more down than it already was. Last week’s faux easy week was probably, in hindsight, pushing the line. The fatigued legs bled over into the majority of this week and culminated into one of the harder Sunday ‘easy’ runs in a while (minus the company of my always fantastic trail friends). Three more training blocks until Bighorn 100 miler…

Questions to you:
• How often are your ‘down weeks’?
• What do you do to ‘make yourself’ go run?
• Do you like to run with friends or by yourself on long runs?
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