Training 2/26-3/4- Race Week

2/26- AM- Just a quickie to assess how I feel after cheating on the diet over the weekend.  This is not a relapse but I am definitely more sluggish than I should be even after the mileage of last week.  Came through 1 Mile with strain in 7:20 then jogged another half as a cool down.  I plan to be back this evening.  Since I only cheated on caffeine 2 days, I should be safe from an adrenal spike but a PABA flare could hit on Wednesday or Thursday.  3 consecutive days WILL trigger a spike.

PM- Canterbury 4 in 31:48 (7:57 pace).  Not a bad showing.  This was a hilly route and I really didn't push it until the last half mile when I saw that I could finish with a sub-8 pace.  Slow start but came alive on the mostly downhill back half (16:28-15:20).  Tacked on a half mile cool.  HR-151, Cadence-178.  Not worried about tomorrow.  Wednesday could be a little dicey.
Grade:B-/1 credit/distance=6.0

2/27- Easy 6 on Lakeshore in 46:29 (7:45 pace) on another nice evening.  Decent showing.  Even pace and never really struggled though I still feel a bit sluggish.  I believe I was 23:13 at the half so I was almost dead even there.  I am most definitely safe from an adrenal spike.  If a PABA flare occurs, it will come tomorrow or Thursday.  Though I never cheated 3 days in a row, I believe I did on 3 out of 4 days so we'll see if I can handle that.  It does appear that the more I cheat, the more sluggish I feel so I am determined to stay clean.
Grade:B/1 credit/distance=6.0

2/28- PABA flare hit today.  It came earlier than usual and required less to hit the balance point.  I managed to overshoot again despite taking only 200 mg.  Hopefully, that means quick clearance.  I did attempt to run today but knew it would be ugly.  Quit after 2 miles in 16:56 (8:28 pace) and it would have been the usual "day after relapse" mid-high 25 3 miler if I kept going.
No grade/distance=2.0

3/1- 3 miles in a time over 27.  I knew I was off but I had no idea it would be that bad.  The culprit was B-5.  My fault for experimenting but what is extremely upsetting is that I got better initially.  Likely out for the race on Saturday.
Grade:D-/1 credit/distance=3.0

3/2- Officially OUT for tomorrow.  I had a theory that B-5 will only work when I am cheating but that turned out to be false.  I pitched that supp as well as another in my cabinet.  I did attempt a workout this morning and knew within a few strides that I couldn't go.  Coaxed 1 mile on Wisteria in a time over 10 minutes.  I won't be able to crack the Mendoza line until at least Sunday so I will not even train tomorrow.
Grade:F/1 credit/distance=1.0

3/3- Missed race. Since I actually signed up, this is an Automatic F.  This relapse was my fault for cheating on the benzoates too often, which led me to try B-5.  Still, that does not make me feel any less angry about it.  Before adding B-5, I said earlier that it was do or die with this formula.  I get another chance only because I altered it.  Tested my tolerance to benzoates the last 2 days.  We shall see if I endure another PABA flare after 2 days on.
Grade:F/3 credit/distance=0

3/4- Went to Stone Mountain yesterday on a beautiful day so it wasn't a total loss.  Today was.  3 miles on Lakeshore in 29:36 (9:52 pace).  Never had a good pace and needed a small rally just to break 30 minutes.  A new culprit is Berberine, an anti-fungal product that was previously a non-factor.  I had been taking it only to get rid of it so it's not a death knell.  It may indirectly create PABA so I may face a flare anyway next week despite being free of preservatives.
Grade:D-/1 credit/distance=3.0

Weekly summary:
OUCH!  I've got another possible race on the radar in 3 weeks.  Can I get through this with no excuses?  If I relapse again and there is no explanation, it's over.
Distance= 21.0