Training 2/20-2/26

Marathon Recovery Update:
I could have run a few shake out miles on the 3rd day after the race if I chose to do so. By the 5th day, I was ready to roll again but I will stick with my plan to take the whole week off. I have not had more than 2 consecutive days off since October 2010 so it's definitely a good call to take a planned break to guard against burnout. I did have one rough day on Thursday but I attribute that to cheating on my diet BADLY after the race. If I go back to heavy sugar and caffeine consumption on a regular basis, it won't be long until I am unstable again.

Next round of racing:
3/31- Rumpshaker 5K (local)
4/7- Crescent City 10K (New Orleans)
4/28- Kentucky Derby half (Louisville)
The 5K is most important to me at this stage.

2/20- My first day back after any layoff, even a short one, is usually a little rough. This one was worse than usual. 3 miles on the track in 22:48 (7:36 pace). Started off in the 7:20s then it was a slow fade from there. By the end of Mile 3, I was working for a 7:45 so I decided to pack it in. Calf muscles felt like lead and knees were aching as well. It's only the first day and with no races looming, there is no need to panic yet. There is an explanation. My protein drink contained chromium, which has caused me trouble in the past. This is the longest streak of good health that I've had but I'm not bulletproof. Today has re-awakened my fears of a relapse.
Grade:C-/1 credit/distance=3.0

PM- Vestavia Mile in 5:48.4 (best time of the year). Partial clearing in my system but still not feeling too good. The sore knee is officially a concern now. I may need more prolo. I will also ask my doctor if there's anything to keep my Na and K levels from going up without affecting my thyroid. Under a normal grading scale, this is a 67 (5:15+33 secs) but I get 10 bonus points because I'm fresh off a break. Splits were good (87-88-89-84) for a negative split. Added a cool down.
Grade:C+/2 credits/distance=2.0

2/21- Woke up feeling terrible then took Paramin and felt much worse. Hoped for some clearing by the evening but it didn't happen. 2 miles indoors in 16:32 (8:16 pace). This was as fast as I could go today. Splits were 8:11-8:21 and to put that in perspective, my slowest mile in the marathon was Mile 25 at 8:19. It is clear that Paramin is the problem. Do I cut it out entirely or do I need 2 pills/day? This is not good. I can only hope that it will be better tomorrow. God is able.
Grade:F/1 credit/distance=2.0

2/22- No pills today. Felt much better. Trak Shak 5 in 34:55 (6:59 pace). Tempo effort, which was still about 20 seconds slower per Mile. Significant fade in Mile 4 and still sluggish but probably my best run since the marathon. Knee was fine, groin was sore. Lenient grading because this was a planned easy day. Dreamed that I met a childhood friend and his sister at an airport. In real life, this person does not even have a sister. I forgot to pay for lunch and got on a plane to St. Louis instead of Birmingham. LOL.
Grade:B/1 credit/distance=5.0

2/23- Easy 6 indoors (very strong wind). Time was 45:43 (7:36 pace). Even pace through Mile 5 then closed with a strong 7:28 without any additional effort. Pretty solid performance. Felt somewhat like my old self by Mile 6. Took 1/2 a Paramin last night and my body tightened up. It looks like I don't need that stuff anymore. Has God done it again? I still may be low on magnesium but I like being free at least for now. Maybe a pot shot at the 400 tomorrow but realistically, I don't expect to be much below 70.
Grade:B+/1 credit/distance=6.0

2/24- Pot shot at the 400 as planned at Vestavia. My time was 67.8 (best of the year), which was in line with my low-balled expectations. Chopping off 8 seconds really seems daunting right now but I had several factors holding me back. No spikes, less than ideal weather (55 w/ 15mph wind) and no event specific training since last summer. Perhaps the 6 miler yesterday took something out of me as well. No pills. The groin and knee were fine warming up but the knee stiffened a bit after the 400. I think I am capable of a low-mid 65 under perfect conditions. Sprinters like it warm and dry with no headwinds. The 400 is a tough race. As you're coming around the final turn, you're giving it all you've got but can't go any faster because your legs feel like jello. At least today gives me a baseline of where I am and how much work must be done. The real training starts next week. 1/2 mile warm and a 5 lap cool.
Grade:B-/2 credits/distance=2.0

2/25- Gnome run today. 10 miles in 77:18 (7:44 pace). Felt decent through Mile 7 then just died. Groin was killing me and Mile 10 was worse than Mile 25 of the marathon. I was sore all over and it does NOT feel like natural fatigue. Perhaps I did too many fast runs this week. Then again, they were all short. I want to give magnesium a shot. I may need prolo.
Grade:C/2 credits/distance=10.0

2/26- Short tempo. 3 miles in 19:36 (6:32 pace). Splits were 6:36-6:35-6:25. I think I could have gone sub-20 for 5K if I raced this all out. As soon as I took the magnesium yesterday, I knew that help was on the way. I will probably need a different Cal/Mag supplement with a 1:1 ratio. Again, I sure hope it does not evolve into x pills/day or else.
Grade:B+/2 credits/distance=4.0

Weekly summary:
Pretty ugly overall this week. I felt like I was operating at 90% for much of the week. One sub-par performance is not a big deal. When it becomes a pattern, it is. No real red flags this week except for Tuesday but almost all the rest of them were yellow flags. Is magnesium the answer? A simple mineral deficiency can really cause a big problem. More on that later.
Distance=34.0/ GPA= 27.6/12= 2.30