Training 3/24-3/30

3/24- I MADE IT!  5K time trial in 19:54 (6:23 pace).  Fastest time since 2012.  Splits were 6:18-6:27-6:28-41.  Little too fast early but maintained about a 5-7 second cushion most of the way.  The sub-20 was still in doubt up until about 300 to go and I left nothing to chance with a strong finish.  Cut off another 11 ticks from last week and am now within 41 of a PR.  This was just a stepping stone.  Improvements will not come so easily from here on out.  As recently as March of last year, I was capable of a sub-40 10K and am determined to get back there.
Grade:A-/2 credits/distance=4.0

3/25- Health screening at work today turned out well as usual.  BP was 122/82.  Weight: 160, Cholesterol: 151.  I am paper healthy and look fine on the outside.  Inside is another matter.  The workout was a standard issue run.  Easy 6 at Gold's in 45-flat (7:30 pace).  Slowed just a tad in Mile 6 only because I did not want to be under 7:30 overall.  Strong.
Grade:A-/1 credit/distance=6.0  

3/26- OUTSTANDING!  Trak Shak 7.5 in a comfortable 54:24 (7:17 pace).  Felt so much easier than last week's 7:24 pace.  Paces were a bit more variable this time depending on the terrain but all but Mile 1 was faster than last time.  Fell just 2 ticks short of seeing every mile below 7:30.  I hope this one does not come back to bite me.  I want a quality speed session and it will have to be done either tomorrow morning in the cold or inside on Friday because it will be stormy.
Grade:A/1 credit/distance=8.0

3/27- AM.  Chose to sleep in.  I'll bet Mountain Brook's track will be open this afternoon because it's Spring Break.  It's there or Friday morning at the gym.  I won't drive around for an hour.

PM- Salazar 300s at Vestavia.  10 reps in sets of 5 with an average of 56.8 then closed with a 32 second 200.  Even 5:00 pace overall.  #1 and #6 were 56 and the rest were 57 so that's some remarkable consistency.  Temp was in the upper 60s but I had to battle a 15 mph wind right in my face in the homestretch.   That probably cost me about a second per rep.  Overall, this was solid but not stellar.  I did improve 1.2 ticks per rep from a 58.0 to 56.8 since last Salazar workout.
An older couple asked me if I was a college athlete and could not believe it when I told them that I was 33 years old.  My speed is not what it was when I was 28 but these workout help rebuild it.
Grade:B+/2 credits/distance=3.0

3/28- Planned rest day.  Foot is sore again.  Could be the too flexible shoes (Lunar Racer) but most of it is likely due to insufficient magnesium.  My need for Mag has increased in recent weeks for sure.  I know that's related to copper toxicity but increased intensity of training plays a role as well.

3/29- Windy with drizzle outside with temps in the 50s so I decided to postpone the LR until tomorrow, which will be sunny and 60.  Good call.  I would have struggled in a long run but was okay for a standard issue workout.  Gold's 6 in 44:48 (7:28 pace).  Very similar to Tuesday's workout.  Slight fade in the 2nd half (22:16/22:32) and a bit of a tender Achilles.  May need to cut the Cal altogether. Need only a "D" tomorrow to win this week.

PM- Decidedly worse after taking the Cal.  Hopefully it will be out of my system by tomorrow because I took it at noon rather than the evening.  I've got to do something about this.  I don't think I can handle being off it completely.  I may take it only as needed or take half every day.  Man, I hate cutting pills in half.  I'd prefer to hold off the next detox until the middle of May or at least my next medical report.  Again, as long as I take the Magnesium and Thym-Adren, my chemistry will definitely move in the right direction.
Grade:B+/1 credit/distance=6.0

3/30- The Cal hasn't fully cleared and I was feeling it today.  Still, I improved my long run over last week.  Trak Shak 13 in 1:41:36 (7:49 pace).  That's better than the 10@7:57 that I managed last week but that's still just so-so.  In a race setting, I would not have been much below 1:40 for a half.  I did fade a bit in the second half (50ish-51:30ish) but 11 of 13 miles were sub-8 so there was no collapse.
Grade:B-/2 credits/distance=13.0

Weekly summary:
Another nice win.  2 in row now.  I have not won 3 straight since Weeks 9-11 of last year.  Again, the long run was the poorest showing of the week but I'm not racing a goal half until Fall anyway so I'd rather perform best in speed and tempo workouts at this stage.  I'm going to try to get by without the Cal.  That's the fifth major adjustment of the year.  Still far too unstable but again, I can deal with the occasional "C" workout, not the "D" and "F" workouts.  I'm planning on racing a 5K next week so there will be no tempo and the mileage will be low.
Distance=40.0/ GPA= 30.4/9= 3.38
YTD: 390 miles.  Record: 5-7 with a 2.52 GPA