The Boston Diaries: Chapter 8
Every day I'm juggling
Saturday morning’s run — 20 miles — was the first run this week that ran as scheduled. I ran Wednesday’s run on Monday, Monday’s runs on Tuesday, Tuesday’s run on Wednesday, Friday’s run on Thursday, and Thursday’s run on Friday.
Got all that?
By the end of the week, a rare thought came to mind, one I haven’t had to deal with a lot since 2020: “I’m happy the week of running is done.” I was ready for a day off.
Juggling runs isn’t a huge deal for me. I try not to do it too often, but sometimes I need to move a long run up a day, or move a midweek speed workout to later in the week. No harm, no foul. Mostly.
This was the first week of the year where the mileage really seemed to get to me. Something similar happened last summer; the week came to an end and I felt relief. Like last summer, I left this week with no injuries. But I’d be lying if I said the legs weren’t a little heavy. The muscles weren’t a little sore.
In particular, when Wednesday’s run came to a close — 14 miles — I wondered if my body would have felt the way it did had I been on schedule. My right hamstring was in pain, just not in the way I was used to. Rolling didn’t help at all. Instead, I leaned on stretching and icing. Speaking of ice, the ground was absolutely covered in it Thursday morning, so I decided to head inside for an easy run, which allowed me to kill two birds with one stone. I could save a speed run for Friday, which meant I’d be able to get back outside again. More importantly though, I could see how my hamstring responded to things.
By the time I finished Thursday’s run, most of my concerns were in the rearview. I’d ice it again that day, multiple times, and prepare for what was to come. Friday’s run was challenging — 11 miles with the middle six of them at a harder pace — and again, my hamstring responded well.
I was thankful the week came to an end. I hope I don’t have to feel that particular sense of thankfulness in future weeks. Onward!
The log:
Sunday: 20 minutes of weightlifting + a 3 mile walk with Banksy
Monday: 5 miles
Tuesday: 6 miles in the AM + 4 miles in the PM
Wednesday: 14.01 miles
Thursday: 6 miles
Friday: 11 miles, with 6 of them at a faster pace
Saturday: 20 miles
Total: 66.01 miles
Year to date: 481.1 miles
Day 50: The weather was gorgeous when Banks and I went out for a few miles around the lake. I have enjoyed the Sunday rhythms of heading to the gym first and then coming home with a surprise walk. He always gets so jacked. Looking forward to many more of these in the months to come.
Day 51: As mentioned above, no run (sans Saturday) took place on the day it should have. This was supposed to be a double, but I wouldn’t have a chance Monday night to get the second run in. Overall, I didn’t mind an easy five miles, given I had run 21 two days prior. Even broke my rule of a recovery run being on the treadmill and headed back to the lake. Shorts weather in February? Yes please! Kept it nice and easy — 9:04 per mile, 127 HR — and felt excellent when it was done.
Day 52: The first double of the year and in the end I wasn’t really that happy with it. Didn’t sleep great on Monday night, and it showed over the course of the next couple days. Ran six miles at an 8:49 pace on the treadmill early on Tuesday. My HR averaged 123, but it wasn’t a run that felt like it should have. The one at night was somehow worse. Four miles, 9:41 pace, with an average HR of 131. I chalked it up to a couple things: Hadn’t had a day with two runs in six months, so I just wasn’t in the groove. More importantly though, I ate a snack at the office too late in the day. Doubles again this week and I won’t be making the same mistake. At least the views were nice and I got to wear shorts again.
Day 53: Pound for pound, probably the toughest run of the year. Poor sleep from Monday still seemed to be lingering when I went out for 14 miles, doing so at 7:47 per. My HR was fine — 150 on average — and the forecasted wind only bothered me when I was at dam at Zorinsky, which thankfully was where I turned around. But the hamstring issue cropped up with a few miles to go and it was kind of icing on the cake that was a frustrating run.
One of the things I don’t want to do with this newsletter is paint a picture that everything is perfect all the time. I have made some huge strides, but I have had frustrating days and weeks for sure. This was one of the most frustrating days since 2020, and I was honestly happy when it was done. Not the run, the day. I was ready to get to Wednesday.
Day 54: “Hurt or injured” — something I know I’ve seen discussed about many athletes over the years. As I woke up Thursday morning, I was doing so with myself. “Am I hurt or injured?” I had iced the hamstring the night before and it was feeling better. More of an annoying pain than anything. I chalked it up to being hurt, went to the gym for six recovery miles, and felt mostly ok throughout. That was the lone silver lining of the ice outside; saving the tougher run for Friday. 9:14 per mile, 120 HR. Nothing spectacular, but that’s exactly what I was looking for.
Day 55: Woke up to more snow on the ground — more than half an inch, less than an inch — and as the morning continued on, I debated what to do with my footing. Not only would I have 11 miles, but after my third, I’d run the next six around a 7:00-per mile pace1. Would the snow be too much of a bother with that type of speed? Ultimately, I went out without spikes, the correct decision. I averaged 6:58 over the course of those miles. Most importantly, my hamstring responded extremely well and all concerns about it were put to bed.
Comparing this run to the exact same workout last summer was quite the treat when I looked them over Friday night. Granted, the 2022 run came on one of the hotter mornings of the year and left me unsatisfied. At the time I wrote, “Not happy with today’s run… Bring on tomorrow.” So yeah, not a great day at the office. Meanwhile, this week’s was done at temperatures close to zero. All that preamble aside, my improvements jumped off the page:
My best mile last summer was my average pace this time. My HR was a tick lower. I even gained more elevation this time! After the week I had, this gave me an extra boost.
Day 56: 20 miles, 7:46 per, 146 HR. The best part about this run was that I felt stronger at the end than I did the beginning. My fastest mile was my last, and it’s not like I felt like I was pushing myself to run harder. It just kind of happened. That said, I made a rare tactical mistake with this run; I went out with the wrong tights. Guess I had missed the windchill would keep temps closer to zero! Legs were cold throughout the first half of the run before warming up after the sunrise the back half.
56 days down. Ten weeks until Lincoln. Closing in on 400 days until the 2024 Boston Marathon.
I’ll see you on the trail.
As usual, this uptick in pace was more about my HR than a prescribed pace. A “lactate threshold run,” where I try to stay between 155-170.
Always good to keep it real.