Training 6/20-6/26

6/20- Still a bit of residual soreness in my legs. No real concern. I don't think it's anything more serious than natural fatigue. I was like a pitcher with a sore arm that battled through 6 innings and kept the game competitive despite not having his best stuff. Workout was 7x600 with a goal of 2:00 followed by 3x200 with a goal of 35. That's a average pace of 5:15/mile for 3 miles worth of intervals. I was struggling from the get go and it was on the verge of getting ugly towards the end. I managed to fight through the tiredness and hope that it was pay dividends in the strength area (short distance endurance) that is crucial for the Mile and 5K. The 200s had the objective of keeping my speed sharp for a possible 59.9 attempt in late summer. 600s came in at:
2:01-2:01-2:00-2:02-2:04-2:06-2:07. Then, I showed some life in the 200s (33-34-30). It was good to see that 30 but back in '99, it could have been a 28. Finished with an average pace of 5:19/mile but there's no way I could have done that in a time trial today. R was about 2:15-2:30, which is what I planned.
Grade:B-/2 credits/distance=5.0

6/21- Elective rest day. There will be no penalty for this one because this is a scheduled cut back week. If I complete tomorrow's run as planned, I will pass 1,000 miles on the year. My previous high was 1,993 in 2009. I've got to top 2,000 this year and hope to have time for a week off.

6/22-I slept 10 hours last night and could have stayed in bed even longer. Usual Trak Shak run was rained out so I went indoors for an easy 7.5. Despite the off day yesterday, I still felt a bit stiff today. After a bit of a rough start, I found the zone and set the cruise control between 7:40 and 7:45. For the next 7 miles, I just relaxed and let my engine take over. Finished with a time of 57:52 (7:43 pace) and added a half mile cool down. I have no doubt that I could hold that pace through 20 miles. From that point, even a 9:00 pace for the last 10K brings me home in 3:29.
Grade:A-/1 credit/distance=8.0

6/23- Cruised another easy 6 in 46:14 (7:42 pace). Found it difficult to slow down but this wasn't the smartest workout. My status for Courthouse has been upgraded from doubtful to questionable. The temp should be 75-78 at the start with a humidity between 85-90%. If it's overcast, I'll consider it if I feel strong when I wake up. If it's sunny, I'm skipping it no matter how well I feel. Felt the same as yesterday, which is good. Passed 1,000 miles on the year a full week ahead of schedule.
Grade:A-/1 credit/distance=6.0

6/24- Planned rest day. I am hoping to be fresh enough tomorrow to at least attempt a 5K PR. The decision will be made after checking the weather when I wake up. Update: Latest forecast is 76 at the start, near 80 at the finish with sunny skies and high humidity. This course has zero shade so I will most likely skip it and do a quality long run.

6/25- Probably a good call on skipping the race. It's not terribly hot but it's sunny and humid and the course has zero shade. Enjoyed my group run today. Covered just over 11.5 (watch started late) with an average pace of 7:22 and a lot left at the end. I may have raced well but I'm not sure that I was sharp enough to PR at 5K. I'll save it for Peavine on the 4th. Here's the summary:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/94678216
Short cool down at the end to make it an even 12 and I'm heading to FLA in a few minutes.
Grade:A/2 credits/distance=12.0

6/26- I expected it to be brutally humid down on the Gulf coast but it was worse than expected. I started my run at 6:50 AM and it proved to be too late. Come to think of it, I don't think any time of day is good to run here. The low temp is usually 80 degrees with 100 percent humidity. At 7 AM, it was already pushing 85 with close to 90% humidity. I felt pretty well overall but the humidity eventually did me in after starting too fast. My moving time was a solid 37:52 (7:35 pace) for 5 miles but the final .75 was walk/run intervals. To my credit, I did manage to stay under 8 pace in Miles 3-4 after starting below 7:30.
Grade:B-/1 credit/distance=5.0

Weekly summary:
Did about what I planned in a cut back week. My body needed it. Next week could be low as well but I want a strong performance at Peavine on the 4th. Nothing less than a B-. I like that.
Distance=36.0/GPA= 23.5/7=3.36