How am I feeling today?

The bulk of the rain missed us, but it is still overcast, humid and misting a bit outside – in other words, a nice day for a run. I am feeling pretty good this morning and got to thinking that Saturday is supposed to be much more seasonable – in other words, miserable for running. That sunny, hot/humid August type of weather that we have avoided for the past month. I am sure that today will be a better day for a time trial than Saturday will be.

So, in my infinite wisdom or is that stoopidity, I have decided to do my 5K time trial this morning.

Am I ready for it?

I would have liked to have rested the legs a little more and gotten my brain more excited/ready, but this way, I get the better weather, don’t get to dwell on running harder, and won’t have to contend with as many people on the course.

Planned Workout Description: 

Do a 15:00-minute warm-up with a couple of surges/strides to get the body ready for a 5K time trial. Run a controlled, not all out 5K and see what shape I am currently in and what I need to work on for the next training block.

A – Stay healthy

B – Go under 25:00-minutes

C – Do better than my June 12th time.

Today’s Running Focus

• Run consistently

What I Did Today: 

I ended up going down to the Augusta Rail Trail to do the time trial in light rain.

Warm-up – 15:00 minute

Target Range	Duration	Distance	Power	Heart Rate	Pace	Cadence	Stride Length
150-174	13:12	1.48	221	140	8:54	172	1.04

Primary Workout – 5K Time Trial

Target Range	Duration	Distance	Power	Heart Rate	Pace	Cadence	Stride Length
179	25:24	3.1	243	157	8:10	176	1.11

Did the workout go as planned?

Yes, although I didn’t do the 20:00 minute cooldown that I had planned.

The warm-up was probably a bit too fast/hard, and I think it might have drained some of the energy I wanted for the time trial. 

I started the time trial with a slower pace versus my usual going out way too fast in the first mile and then getting on the struggle bus the rest of the way. 

I am not really paying attention to the Power numbers during the workout and didn’t look at my watch during the time trial. But I do listen for the too slow buzz on my watch, and today I got mixed up which one was the too slow buzz pattern. I know of at least three times that I did it, and looking at the graph on Strava, I can see where I was beginning to pick up the pace and suddenly slowed back down at least four times.

Even so, I thought that I did pretty good at maintaining a challenging pace, although, as usual, there were parts that were predictably slower. However, there was one point toward the end that my confusion over which buzz meant what got me good. In the future, I will rely more on how I am feeling and take a sneak peek at the watch to see how I am doing. Over-reliance on tech is not something I am quite willing to completely do – sometimes, too much tech can be part of the problem and not part of the solution.

Although, I did have to slow down just before the 3.0-mile mark. Two baby strollers were coming from opposite directions, and I met them at precisely the worst time to do so. They smiled and waved, so I chuckled, slowed down enough to let one pass in the other direction before I sped up to the finish.

Also, I was surprised at the number of people that were out on the Augusta end of the Rail Trail this morning. The rain didn’t keep everyone away, so I didn’t feel so much like the lone crazy runner out there. 🙂

Injuries/Niggles: Nothing really bothered me during the run. However, once I shut it down and began to walk, there was some discomfort in the ankle/Achilles area, so I shut it down and did a .5 cooldown walk instead.

Weather: Light rain, 66°F, Feels like 67°F, Humidity 92%, Wind 5mph from E

Shoes: Hoka Carbon X1 – They did everything I wanted, and I didn’t think about them during the warm-up or time trial. However, a large hole has started in the right heel counter, where I wear through in many of my shoes. Soon, it will become an issue that will force me to retire the X1s.

What did I learn today?

After my experience today, I will probably turn off the too fast/too slow buzzes and beeps because I got confused by them. The different buzzes and beeps are simply one more thing to worry about during a hard session or race that only adds stress to the workout instead of helping as it is supposed to. Especially when I screw up what the buzz/beep mean, then slow down when I should have been speeding up.

Over the years, I have never warmed up this much for any race, and for me, I think a 15:00 minute warm-up is too long. Typically, I do about a mile with a couple of faster strides towards the end of the mile. I felt that today’s warm-up took a little out of me that I wanted for the time trial. That was nice to learn in a non-race setting. Plus, I was a little excited about running faster and did run the warm-up a bit quicker than I needed to.

Yes, I knew this, but I do enjoy running in the rain and always have.

The Hoka Carbon X1s have zero issues with traction on wet pavement. However, the one time I had to get into the wet dirt, with a bit slimy mud, on the side of the tar path, they were pretty much useless. With that hole in the heel cup, they will need to be retired soon. Which is too bad, because I run well in them, but that is what happens when you buy a pair of used running shoes on eBay, you don’t know how many miles have been run in them, but you get to find out if you like them or not for a lot cheaper than the retail price.

The best part of the time trial 5K is that I always felt as though I had a little more to give, and if it was a race, I had another gear that I could have achieved. The lack of other runners to feed off during a solitary time trial makes them much more challenging.

I did achieve my primary goal, to run harder than usual and not have the Achilles bother during the run. I did get within 25 seconds of my B goal of getting under 25:00 for a 5K, which was pretty good for a solo effort.

• June 12th – 27:17
• August 5th – 25:24

Cutting off almost 2:00 minutes in two months is good progress. It will take time to get back in the shape I want to be in, and I know I need to be patient. Yes, that and trusting the process while continuing to do the work, not just talk about it.

What do I have to work on during the next 5K training block?

Running faster for longer. Increasing my speed and stamina, but I feel that will happen as long as I can run consistently and increase my mileage a bit more. Definitely some longer strides and track workouts beyond the 200s and quarters that I prefer. More 5:00-10:00-minute repeats/intervals.