Monday, September 26, 2011

Training 9/26-10/2 (race week)

9/26- Planned rest day. I am hoping to be fresh for my final attempt of the year at 5:15. In yet another massive shift, I am taking mega doses of Thym-Adren. In time, I hope to gradually cut it down. I could try going back to choline/inositol but it's too close to race day. Assuming the weather is good, tomorrow's time trial will be my last shot of 2011 win, lose or draw.

9/27- I had the good weather, fresh legs and a smart pace but I failed because my dosage was off. The plan was to try a Mile time trial but if I got to 800 and realized I wasn't going to break 5:19, I would quit and turn the workout into a downward ladder. I knew that I wasn't going to make it as soon as I entered the backstretch the first time. I hit the first 200 in 39 then faded to a 43 for the next 2 200s and finished with a 42 for a 2:47 1st 800. Obviously, I wasn't going to make it. The remainder of the workout was also mediocre. 600 in 2:10, 400 in 79, 200 in 38. The grade will be based on what my Mile would have been if I finished it. I figure that it would have been between 5:40-5:45, which is a grade of 70-75. Not a disaster but mediocre at best. I did not take enough Thym-Adren. Of course, I am upset but this is better than needing manganese or thyroid pills. I've got 3 days to fix this. I don't consider this a real effort so I may or may not try this again.
Grade:C/1 credit/distance= 3.0

9/28- Increased the Thym-Adren dosage and was very pleased with the result. Trak Shak 5 with Lee (the Caucasian Kenyan) with an impressive moving time of 31:54 (6:23 pace) and a course PR. Unfortunately, it cannot count as an actual PR because I had to stop several times for traffic. I hit the 3 mile split around 18:50 so if you put me out on a track, I believe I would have had a good shot at 19:12 today. Much faster than I planned but I really needed a confidence boost for Saturday. I'll be plenty fresh too. Just a junk run tomorrow morning and a complete rest for 48 hours and I should be good to go. Tacked on a Mile warm and cool to make up for yesterday's shortfall. Passed 1,550 miles on the year.
Grade:A/2 credits/distance=7.0

9/29- AM run at the gym. Had to cut it short to make it to work on time. Finished a 2.5 mile light progression in 18:08 (7:15 pace) with splits of 7:35-7:17-3:16. This won't hurt me on Saturday. I'll have 48 hours to rest and the mileage has been very low. I took the mega dose of Thym-Adren early in the day and was pleased with the result. I needed to test how I felt on that dose because that's what I'll take race morning. That's why I made this one a semi-quality day instead of a junk run as planned. I expect to be ready to roll on Saturday but do not expect a PR. I predict a 1:33-1:34.
Grade:B+/1 credit/distance=2.5

9/30- I feel ready to go and could have raced today. Hotel strides is all I did. A cool front has passed through so the weather should be great tomorrow (50s and clear). Expectations are rising a bit. Maybe a 1:31-1:32 is realistic after all. Dare I say, PR? After the first 3 quarters, I am at 1,559 miles on the year. At this pace, I'll finish at 2,079 miles, which is a big PR.
Grade:Pass/0 credit/distance=0.5

10/1- Montgomery half marathon in 1:31:32 PR. 3rd in age group
Grade:A/4 credits/distance=14.0

10/2- I tried some ADHS this morning and had an immediate negative reaction. With or without sugar, I cannot take anything that contains Lithium. My thyroid could still be sub-optimal but as long as I can take the Thym-Adren, I'll be fine. The workout was a naked 2 mile recovery jog at Veteran's Park on a beautiful day. Abnormally sore and this would have been a "C" or worse but it's pass/fail today. I should be in the clear tomorrow. No worries.
Grade:Pass/0 credit/distance=2.0

Weekly summary:
I've PR'd at 4 distances this year but this is the first time that I've done significant damage to a PR. I've still got time to get some more. I'm proud of my restraint in allowing the mileage to stay below 30 in a race week. That's fine. I'm still well ahead of pace for 2,000. I've got some big weeks ahead and now is the time to get hot. Can I finally break out of the good week/bad week pattern? I've not had consequtive weeks over 3.0 since late June.
Distance= 29.0/ GPA= 29.3/8=3.66

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