36 miles and counting

I'm not sure what possessed me to run from Los Altos to Saratoga and back, all on trails. I've had the idea in the back of my head for some time to run from Rancho San Antonio in Los Altos/Cupertino to the Pacific. This run on Saturday was an exploration of the first ~18 miles of this route. From Saratoga Gap the route follows the Skyline to the Sea trail exclusively but prior to that the route runs through complex of trails leading up to Saratoga. I looked through the relevant maps online and pieced together the route.

Rancho to Black Mtn. Indian Creek Trail to Canyon Trail. Canyon Trail to Table Mountain trail. Table Mtn trail to Saratoga Gap trail (north). Cross Skyline Blvd to Achistaca trail. How did they come up with a name like Achistaca? I thought I'd ascended to Peru.

As this was an exploration of a future point to point route I headed back whence I came and completed just over 36 miles in a leisurely 7 hours. I'm guessing the climbing totalled around 6000 ft. The route is pleasant even though the weather was cool and fog was blowing a light drizzle. The Canyon trail and parts of the Table Mountain trail are beat to hell by mountain bikes which gives the path the feel of a thoroughfare and takes away the illusion of remoteness. I have to say, in the defense of my two-wheeled brethren, the terrain is ideal for riding.

I didn't feel that strong during the run but I kept going which is good enough.

Running Drills

 

Here is a good source for running drills. I need to verify these with a few other sources but these are similar to what I did way back when (college days).

 

http://www.momentumsports.co.uk/TtDrills.asp

Gaps

I thought it would be useful if before delving into my hard copy files for my coach's training plans from 1998-2001 I identified specific gaps in my current fitness.

Endurance: Definitely by strongest asset at this point. 50K results at Woodside 2/3 are ample evidence.

Strength
Lower Body: Reasonably strong from running and yoga but could benefit a lot from consistent (2x weekly) squats and toe raises
-Upper Body: Need to get to another level with my upper body strength. This is historically a weak area for me and it will take a lot of focus and consistency to change that for good. Move forward with pull-ups, push-ups, bench press, inclined bench, dumbbell curls, two arm curls, dips, tricep extensions - high reps two sets.
-Core: Inconsistent training in this area. Should move forward with planks, sculler situps and raised-leg twists (Trevor's e-mail)

Threshold
Based on 1/26/07 10K time-trial my threshold looks to be about 164 BPM. But based on lap HR averages during the 1-1.5 hr of my 50K it looks like 167 was my threshold. This is probably a fair bet.

Speed
This is currently my weakness. I ran 3x1600 this last Wed. and couldn't go any faster than 6:24 pace. Results were 6:27, 6:24, 6:27 w/ about 3:00 recovery. I ran my 10K time trial at 6:48 pace so clearly I have stamina but no speed! What else could be interfering? I ran the intervals on Wed. at 5:50 AM after only a 17 min warmup. I should probably either move my intervals to the afternoon or evening or modify the morning session tinclude a longer warmup such as 40:00 progressing from 8:30/M to 7:00/M.

Weight
Currently 142 (4/30/07) down from 154 in January. My ideal race weight is probably closer to 135-138 but I need to rely on high mileage to take this weight down. Restricting my calory consumption too much causes me to lose muscle and become very irritable.

Flexibility
Good due to yoga. I sometimes neglect to stretch after training and that causes me to regress.

Last Marathon

I somehow thought my last marathon was in 2003 the year I broke my ankle. I was wrong. I last ran CIM in 2001.

http://www.runcim.org/data/results/Results2001all.html

PR: 2:56:38

Running Blog Community

I came across Donald's excellent blog through his column in the Monterey Herald. He lists a number of other blogs I'm looking forward to reading through.

 

http://runningandrambling.blogspot.com/

 

Workout Menu

Workout Menu

Running
Track workouts - Speedwork
-For examples see Jim Tracy's hardcopy workouts
Progression Runs
-Advantage is race simulation and speedwork with less fatigue
Fartlek
-Same as above
Tempo Runs
-Time trial, consistent pace work
Diagonals
-See Run like the Kenyans article
Hill Repeats
-See Run like the Kenyans article
Drills
-Need more examples
Long Runs
-Can include Tempo, Fartlek, Progression
Maintenance/Recovery runs

Bikram Yoga

Cycling

Swimming

Recovery

The PCTR Woodside 50K took a lot out of me but I am back running much sooner than usual. In the past (pre-2003) I took off at least three weeks after a big race. This proved to be a big hindrance to running year-round as I put on weight and found it hard to get back into any rhythm. I raced 2/3 and was running again 2/6. Just 4.8 miles at 8:30 pace but I didn't feel hobbled as in earlier years. I ran the same loop Tuesday-Thursday. Bikram Yoga was part of the recovery plan but between fatigue and Itir travelling on business I haven't been able to make it. Cycling and/or swimming might speed up recovery in future.