To Infinity and Beyond - Becoming a Better DopeyBadger (Comments Welcome)

[FFigawi]

How many on the list are left?

 

[DopeyBadger]

Congrats! Onto the next 500!

Thanks! At the current rate, I'd say it'll be another 2.5-4 years to hit #1000.

How many on the list are left?

In the 3 years and 2 months since I listed out the 102 goals, I've completed 10 of them. So I've got 92 remaining. Many of them will likely never be completed. But I say, "Dare to dream the impossible."

Goals Completed: 10/102

1. Qualify for the Boston Marathon
2. Run a sub-3 hour Marathon
3. Run the Boston Marathon
4. Run a 5k or longer with my daughter, Gigi
5. Complete all six of the current World Marathon Major Marathons (Boston, New York, Chicago, London, Berlin, and Tokyo).
6. Run a World Marathon Major Marathon under 3 hours
7. Run a marathon on every continent
8. Win the Walt Disney World Marathon
9. Win the Dopey Challenge by cumulative time at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend
10. Complete the Sextuple PR Challenge at Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend by PR’ing all 4 distances (5k, 10k, HM, and M) and the two associated challenges: Goofy (HM +M) and Dopey (5k+10k+HM+M).
11. Run a NYQ (New York Qualifying Race Standard). Currently as a Male 34 or less that is a 2:53 marathon or 1:21 half marathon
12. Age group award at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend Marathon
13. Age group award at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend Half Marathon
14. Age group award at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend 10k
15. Place Top 10 in the Dopey Challenge by cumulative time at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend
16a. Write a training plan that causes someone to Boston Qualify - Completed with @garneska on 10/7/2018 at the Chicago Marathon!
16b. Write a training plan and coach them actively through it that causes someone to Boston Qualify - Completed with @dis_or_dat on 3/31/2019 at the Modesto Marathon!
17. Pace someone I know to their first Boston Qualifying standard
18. Pace someone I know to a PR at the marathon distance
19. Pace someone I know to a PR at the half marathon distance
20. Pace someone I know to a PR at the 10k distance - Completed with @roxymama on 10/15/2017 at the Milwaukee Marathon Weekend 10k!
21. Pace someone I know to their first marathon finish
22. Pace someone I know to their first half marathon finish
23. Write a training plan that causes someone to run their first sub-3 marathon - Completed 5/18/19 by writing @canglim52 's training plan for the Fargo Marathon. A 2:55 marathon finish! Congrats!
24. Win the Middleton Haunted Hustle Marathon (my 1st marathon) OR the half marathon distance if the marathon is not offered
25. Win a marathon with at least 500 finishers
26. Win a half marathon with at least 500 finishers
27. Win a 10k with at least 200 finishers
28. Win a 5k with at least 200 finishers
29. Run a sub-3 at the Walt Disney World Marathon (my 2nd marathon)
30. Run a sub-3 at the Madison Marathon (my 3rd marathon)
31. Run a sub-3 at the Wisconsin Marathon (my 5th marathon)
32. Run the London Marathon
33. Run the New York Marathon
34. Run the Tokyo Marathon
35. Run the Berlin Marathon
36. Run the Chicago Marathon
37. Run a marathon in South America
38. Run a marathon in Europe
39. Run a marathon in Africa
40. Run a marathon in Asia
41. Run a marathon in Australia
42. Run a marathon in Antarctica
43. Win a marathon
44. Win a half marathon
45. Win a 10k
46. Win a 5k
47. Win a local race of any distance in the city I live
48. Run the Eugene Marathon
49. Run the Marine Corps Marathon
50. Run the Paris Marathon
51. Win the MadCity 50k
52. Complete a 100 miler in 17:19:17 (10:24 min/mile) or less (McMillan 3 hour marathon race equivalent)
53. Complete a 100k in 8:46:10 (8:28 min/mile) or less (McMillan 3 hour marathon race equivalent)
54. Complete a 50 miler in 6:39:21 (7:59 min/mile) or less (McMillan 3 hour marathon race equivalent)
55. Complete a 50k in 3:38:21 (7:02 min/mile) or less (McMillan 3 hour marathon race equivalent)
56. Complete a 100 miler
57. Complete a 100k
58. Complete a 50 miler
59. Complete a 50k
60. Run a sub 2:30 marathon
61. Run a sub 2:35 marathon
62. Run a sub 2:40 marathon
63. Run a sub 2:45 marathon
64. Run a sub 2:50 marathon
65. Run a sub 2:55 marathon
66. Run a sub 1:10 half marathon
67. Run a sub 1:15 half marathon
68. Run a sub 1:20 half marathon
69. Run a sub 1:25 half marathon
70. Run a sub 1:30 half marathon - Completed 11/10/2019 in the Madison Half Marathon (1:28:40)
71. Run a sub 36 minute 10k
72. Run a sub 38 minute 10k
73. Run a sub 40 minute 10k - Completed 1/5/2018 in the Walt Disney World 10k (39:54)
74. Run a sub 17 minute 5k
75. Run a sub 18 minute 5k
76. Run a sub 19 minute 5k
77. Run a sub 20 minute 5k (in a race) - Completed 1/5/2018 in the Walt Disney World 10k (5k split of 19:36, Strava of 19:27, and total time of 39:54 for 10k)
78. Run a sub 5 minute mile
79. Run a sub 6 minute mile - Completed 5/24/20 in a time of 5:42 with the help of @canglim52 and G!
80. Write 1000 training plans
81. Write 500 training plans - Completed 12/10/2020 by writing @GuinnessRunner 's new hybrid cycling/running plan.
82. Write 200 training plans - Completed 5/1/2018 by writing @roxymama 's first marathon plan for the Chicago Marathon! Fun fact, @roxymama was also Training Plan #3 way back in January 2016 for an 8k.
83. Write a book about running
84. Become a certified running coach
85. Coach high school running sports
86. Make a scientific discovery about running
87. Organize my own race
88. Open my own running store centered around learning, merchandise, coffee and alcohol
89. Open my own high-tech training center for multi-sports and athletes of all abilities
90. Run 50,000 career miles
91. Run 40,000 career miles
92. Run 30,000 career miles
93. Run 25,000 career miles
94. Run 20,000 career miles
95. Run 15,000 career miles
96. Run 10,000 career miles - Completed 7/21/2018
97. Complete 50 marathons
98. Complete 40 marathons
99. Complete 30 marathons
100. Complete 20 marathons
101. Complete a transcontinental run from San Francisco, CA to New York City, NY
102. Complete the World Marathon Challenge – 7 marathons in 7 days on 7 continents

 

[SheHulk]

Heck yeah! This makes me want to write out my (much less exciting) running goals!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Heck yeah! This makes me want to write out my (much less exciting) running goals!

I believe the research says, “You are twice as likely to complete a goal if you write them down. You are quadruple as likely to meet your goal if you write it and tell others.” So I say you should write your goals down right here.

 

[SheHulk]

Okay, I'll play along... These are my running goals, past and present

1. Sub-5 hour marathon!!! This is the overarching goal and would make me feel like a runner somehow. As I’ve said to you Billy I would retire from running the marathon distance for time if I could do that. I’d still noodle through the Disney Marathon for fun, but never stress about my marathon time after that. Current PR is 5:16:29 from 2018, the first race you gave me a plan for.
2. Lose 5 lbs (almost there)
3. Lose 10 lbs
4. Lose 15 lbs (all these weight goals are in the service of speeding up my running)
5. Sub 30 min 5k (done, a bunch of times now)
6. Sub 1 hr 10k (done, but would like to do again)
7. Sub 2:30 half (done, a bunch of times now)
8. Sub 2:20 half (done, 2x)
9. Sub 2:15 half
10. Sub 2:10 half
11. Sub 2:00 half (pie-in-the-sky but why not)
12. Sub 1:40 10-miler (also a stretch)
13. Win an age group prize in any race of any size (hitting that sweet new 50-54 age group in 2021! Still this may have to wait a while, we have a pretty strong local running community)
14. Get a proof-of-time to get me in a B corral at a runDisney HM (A is just out of the question)

 

[DopeyBadger]

Sub-5 hour marathon!!! This is the overarching goal and would make me feel like a runner somehow. As I’ve said to you Billy I would retire from running the marathon distance for time if I could do that. I’d still noodle through the Disney Marathon for fun, but never stress about my marathon time after that. Current PR is 5:16:29 from 2018, the first race you gave me a plan for.

I'm confident under ideal conditions you can do this. Maybe one of these days we can try and plan to be at the same race and get that sub-5 for you.

 

[SheHulk]

I'm confident under ideal conditions you can do this. Maybe one of these days we can try and plan to be at the same race and get that sub-5 for you.

That is a very nice suggestion but I deferred my registration for the Philly Marathon to 2021 and I am going to do everything in my power this year to knock it off then! Getting my diet under control and dropping some extra weight is a priority this time, and staying on progressive training plans (if you'll make them) all year instead of treading water for half the year, races or no races. I'm not getting any younger you know and I don't want to squander any more healthy years of running.

That said Chicago is a dream of mine so if Philly is a bust that would be a great Dis meetup someday! And Hubby (who I think I mentioned to you, is an experimental psychologist who studies the psychology of goals) just rolls his eyes when I say I'll retire after getting that sub-5. He says that will just give me a taste of success and make me keep going. Much to his chagrin. Maybe he knows me better than I know myself! All I know is that if I never get that sub-5 hour marathon I'm going to put on my tombstone: "Never Ran a Sub-5 Marathon". Yes I'm dramatic.

 

[DopeyBadger]

That is a very nice suggestion but I deferred my registration for the Philly Marathon to 2021 and I am going to do everything in my power this year to knock it off then! Getting my diet under control and dropping some extra weight is a priority this time, and staying on progressive training plans (if you'll make them) all year instead of treading water for half the year, races or no races. I'm not getting any younger you know and I don't want to squander any more healthy years of running.

If the weather is good, then you'll get it. I think that'll be the key factor more than most other things.

That said Chicago is a dream of mine so if Philly is a bust that would be a great Dis meetup someday!

If I did Chicago again, it would have to be a 1-day trip for me, or at least planned differently. It ended up at $2500 for the weekend which was a little steep for my taste. But a smaller local race would be far easier to justify cost wise.

And Hubby (who I think I mentioned to you, is an experimental psychologist who studies the psychology of goals) just rolls his eyes when I say I'll retire after getting that sub-5. He says that will just give me a taste of success and make me keep going. Much to his chagrin. Maybe he knows me better than I know myself! All I know is that if I never get that sub-5 hour marathon I'm going to put on my tombstone: "Never Ran a Sub-5 Marathon". Yes I'm dramatic.

Well there you go. He probably knows better than most what the stats and research says about such things. And I totally understand that dramatic mindset. I've got an uncle in law who ran a 3:00:01 (I believe that was the time), and he still brings it up to me all the time when I see him and chat running with him. It clearly still haunts him.

 

[SheHulk]

Oh I just mentioned Chicago because it was midwest. That price tag for a weekend is yikes for me too!

Honestly I think all I need to go sub-5, is somebody to whack me with a ruler when I suggest I have to stop and use the port-a-potty! And yes heat is the death of me. a) Philly is the weekend before Thanksgiving so it's usually safe, and b) I personally believe that losing some weight will help my ability to cope with heat a little.

 

[DopeyBadger]

17 Weeks to go + HIM Base Mid Volume Cycling + (LIIFT 4 + McMillan Core/Legs)

12/7/20 - M - OFF
12/8/20 - T - 30 min Run @ Easy + LIIFT4-Back/Biceps + McMillan Core
12/9/20 - W - Pettit (60 min; 39 TSS)
12/10/20 - R - 30 min Run @ Easy
12/11/20 - F - Pettit (60 min; 39 TSS) + McMillan Legs
12/12/20 - Sa - Townsend (90 min; 60 TSS)
12/13/20 - Su - 45 min @ LR + LIIFT4-Shoulders

Total Run Miles - 12.0 miles
Total Run Time - 1:46 hours
Total Run TSS - x TSS

Total Biking Time - 3:30 hours
Total Biking TSS - 138 TSS

Total Strength Time - 1:24 hours
Total Strength TSS - x TSS

Total Training Time - 6:41 hours
Total TSS - x TSS

Tuesday

Essentially a repeat of last week with the grocery trip adjustment.

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 12mph to 25mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 34°F + 28°F; FL - 25°F
End: Temp+Dew = 34°F + 28°F; FL - 25°F

Finally not shorts/tank weather anymore as we cross into sub-30s. So I had to break out the light pants and a thin long sleeve. Overall, not much to say about it. It was 30 min, 3.4 miles, 8:56 pace, and HR of 135. I'd say the HR is a tad higher than desired. So I need to slow down a bit more.

Finished the run with a LIIFT4 + McMillan Core combo.

Wednesday

Easy 60 min endurance cycling ride with nothing much to add.

Thursday

Just a 30 min easy run.

Conditions - Partly Cloudy, Wind 6mph to 11mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 43°F + 37°F; FL - 39°F
End: Temp+Dew = 41°F + 37°F; FL - 39°F

Warmed up out there just prior to getting a dump of snow on Friday/Saturday. Not much different than the Tuesday run. A total of 30 min, 3.4 miles, 8:59 pace, and 130 bpm HR.

Friday

Another easy 60 min endurance ride. Afterwards I did a McMillan Legs workout. Nice to get back into the routine of these. Definitely feel stronger on the second time through the program.

Saturday

Got dumped with about 6 inches of wet snow. So I shoveled in the morning and then got on the bike for 90 min of endurance cycling. All was good.

That evening I was scheduled for 30 min easy run. However, the road conditions weren't great. I'll run in snow. I'll run on ice with some traction. But the road was in that weird quasi-state, where it was warm enough to just barely melt in the late afternoon, but as the sun set it became cold enough to freeze into ice. So it was a slick ice without snow around for traction. Not a good combo. So since it was so early in the training cycle, I decided it was fine to just move on from it.

Sunday

Conditions were better by around noon.

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 5mph to 7mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 22°F + 20°F; FL - 16°F
End: Temp+Dew = 24°F + 22°F; FL - 16°F

Still some snow/ice on the road to cause some slowdowns. Not everyone had finished plowing their paths, and the bike path near my house was still 6 inches deep. So the pace was a bit more all over the place with sudden ups and downs in pace.



Definitely felt like I was going too fast for long run effort, but never self corrected. Ended up much more like Marathon Tempo effort. Pace wise it was a lot more consistent than I would have guessed at first instinct. The Mile 4 is easily explained by the sudden occurrence of 6 inches of snow. Otherwise, it was fairly solid pacing, albeit higher effort than intended. In all it was 5.6 miles in 45 min at 8:01 pace with HR of 145. The Garmin VO2max continues to fall which is as expected since the running training load form continues to stay outside my golden zone of 0 to -10. It was 59 on 11/8, then 57 on 11/29, then 55 on 12/6 and 54 on 12/13. I expect it to bottom out soon since I'm not dealing with any heat stress right now. So somewhere in the 54-55 region makes sense. That should leave plenty of room to grow once the run training starts in earnest in 8 weeks.

Afterwards, I did a LIIFT4 Shoulders workout.

That marks the end of three weeks of recovery following three weeks off. So now I'll begin to reintroduce hard cycling into the mix. Like I said though, still 8 weeks away from any paced running. The cycling will be 3 days a week of HIM Low volume training for 4 weeks, and then alternate 3/4 days per week for 4 weeks. The 4 day weeks will be HIM Mid Volume. I'm doing this to try and balance out life schedules because doing those hard cycling rides in the morning has been a real challenge. So this way I can delay really challenging the life schedule until closer to race day.

The left ankle still feels good. Seemingly better after each run. Not 100% though as I can still feel remnants of whatever went wrong. But since it continues to heal with the current training, then I will continue on this path. If it starts to worsen, then I'll look to pivot. The Milwaukee Marathon pushed out their next price increase until Jan 8th. So I'll continue to play the long game on registering. I want to see how the hard cycling goes since it's been six weeks since I really pushed the cycling, and whether that'll cause any problems.

I did sign up for the Hot2Trot HM in June though. That puts 10 weeks between the MM and H2T. Not a ton of time, but also because of the historical weather at HOT2Trot I don't have any expectations. Just going to put in a good effort and donate some money to a good cause. They're doing a staggered start with registration on the stagger. So I wanted to ensure a placement closer to the front with their restrictions on in-race passing.

After Hot2Trot, I want to do the local FleetFeet Speed training on the track. I haven't done speed work on the track, let alone with other people around. So I figure it would be a fun new experience. That runs from mid-June to late-July. I wanted to do it last year, but then all the uncertainty during the summer made me push it. One of my students did it last year. She's a faster 5k runner than myself (at least in high school she ran 18s), but I've got the stronger HM/M times given my endurance experience. So I think she would pose a nice challenge on the short track stuff if she decides to do it again as well since she was throwing down a few sub-4 reps.

 

[DopeyBadger]

16 Weeks to go + HIM Base Mid Volume Cycling + (LIIFT 4 + McMillan Core/Legs)

12/14/20 - M - OFF
12/15/20 - T - 30 min Run @ Easy + LIIFT4-Chest/Back + McMillan Core
12/16/20 - W - Ramp Test + Dans (60 min; 47 TSS)
12/17/20 - R - 30 min Run @ Easy
12/18/20 - F - Haku (60 min; 57 TSS) + McMillan Legs
12/19/20 - Sa - Antelope (90 min; 96 TSS)
12/20/20 - Su - 60 min @ LR

Total Run Miles - 18.0 miles
Total Run Time - 2:32 hours
Total Run TSS - x TSS

Total Biking Time - 3:25 hours
Total Biking TSS - 201 TSS

Total Strength Time - 1:02 hours
Total Strength TSS - x TSS

Total Training Time - 6:59 hours
Total TSS - x TSS

Tuesday

An easy 30 min run followed by a LIIFT McMillan Combo.

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 6mph to 11mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 18°F + 12°F; FL - 10°F
End: Temp+Dew = 18°F + 12°F; FL - 10°F

A total of 3.47 miles in 31 min at 8:59 pace with HR of 130. This run was notable because it was the first time my top of my left ankle did not hurt. So that puts it at about 41 days. Of course, now the right ankle is hurting like the summer 2018 tendonitis. So yea, you win some you lose some. Something to monitor.

An interesting side note is that this was the first run where I didn't feel completely like junk. Like the legs felt a bit snappier and peppier. So it came as no surprise when I came home and reviewed the training load data that I had crossed from "freshness" into "neutral" when it comes to training load "form". So I'm exiting the recovery area and entering closer to the area my legs like to be.

Wednesday

Ramp Test. Not my best effort. Not unexpected though since it's been since mid September since I really did any true cycling training. And I even made a bone headed move and discarded the data as well. Ugh! Oh well. Since I'm doing something more structured for 8 weeks on the bike, I'll be curious to see where I end up.



I did a very easy 30 min cycle after the Ramp Test. I was scheduled to do a McMillan Legs as well, but then I remembered that didn't go so well post Ramp Test the last time. So I opted out.

Thursday

Just a 30 min easy run.

Conditions - Partly Cloudy, Wind 3mph to 4mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 24°F + 19°F; FL - 24°F
End: Temp+Dew = 23°F + 18°F; FL - 24°F

A total of 3.45 miles in 30 min at 8:53 pace with HR of 131. Right where I want to live pace/HR wise. Left ankle felt good, right ankle a bit bothersome.

Friday

First cycling workout of the cycle. Haku is 6x20-second all-out efforts at 200% FTP, each separated by about 5 minutes of active recovery at 65% of FTP. Cadence was 99 rpm.

After the cycling, I did a McMillan Legs workout.

Saturday

Followed up yesterday's sprint workout with a sweet spot workout. Antelope is 5x10-minute Sweet Spot intervals ranging between 88-94% FTP with 5-minute recoveries between intervals. Kept a cadence of 97 rpm. It was hard, but doable. A good workout overall.

That evening I got the running clothes on and headed out for my first double of the training plan.

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 4mph to 9mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 32°F + 30°F; FL - 28°F
End: Temp+Dew = 32°F + 30°F; FL - 28°F

A total of 3.44 miles in 30 min at 8:43 pace with HR of 137. All indications are that I definitely ran this one too fast. I use to allow my easy days up to 137 bpm, but I haven't done that in years. So I've gotta pull back some more.

Sunday

A 60 min long run. I decided to break out my pink Next% again. These were the shoes I was wearing when I had the left ankle issue initially. I'm not saying it was the shoes, but it's a possibility.

Conditions - Partly Cloudy, Wind 12mph to 23mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 25°F + 24°F; FL - 13°F
End: Temp+Dew = 26°F + 24°F; FL - 13°F



I could definitely feel the left ankle a bit more on this run than I had all week. Was it more of a pace issue or a shoe issue is an unknown. Thankfully by the time I was home and done with the run, I had little to no issues. The right ankle was still bothersome, but not to the level of 2018. Pace wise, I really screwed up badly on this run. Those first two miles were WAY WAY too fast for current fitness levels. Sure at peak fitness they're doable, but not right now. So I've got to correct myself before I wreck myself. After the first three miles, I definitely throttled down the effort level. But the damage was certainly done, because the run didn't necessarily feel as easy as it should have given what I had done to myself early in the run. The GAP pacing for miles 4 through end is about as good as it gets for me considering the undulating hills. So despite the "real" splits looking like a fade, the GAP shows a nice even pacing. In all it was 60 min, 7.68 miles, 7:50 pace with HR of 146. That's M Tempo territory and way too fast for a long run effort.

The Garmin VO2max is still 54. So things to continue to proceed as designed. The sub-optimal run training load form is keeping my Garmin VO2max depressed.

After looking at the training load form data for the week, it's clear I'm trending in the wrong direction. I'm gaining "form" faster than I want to be. It's not an issue now, but it could be an issue late in the training plan again. So this week I'm going to pull back on the pacing in earnest to slow down my progression. Some real super easy stuff this coming week.

I decided to look up weather data for Milwaukee on April 10th. Given my past data shows my optimal racing temperature seems to be a wind chill of 30-40 degrees or a T+D around 60-75, I wanted to see how this marathon compares.



Eight years of data. Five of eight were in my ideal window (63%), two of eight were still good (25%), and one was above ideal (12.5%). So a 87.5% occurrence of good-ideal T+D on this date in Milwaukee. About the biggest issue will probably be the wind since that area of the state can be quite windy on a regular basis.

 

[DopeyBadger]

15 Weeks to go + HIM Base Mid Volume Cycling + (LIIFT 4 + McMillan Core/Legs)

12/21/20 - M - OFF
12/22/20 - T - 30 min Run @ Easy + LIIFT4-Shoulders/Arms
12/23/20 - W - Shasta (60 min; 61 TSS) + McMillan Legs
12/24/20 - R - 30 min Run @ Easy
12/25/20 - F - Tunnabora (60 min; 65 TSS) + McMillan Legs
12/26/20 - Sa - Pioneer (60 min; 61 TSS) + 30 min Brick @ Easy
12/27/20 - Su - 45 min @ Easy

Total Run Miles - 15.2 miles
Total Run Time - 2:16 hours
Total Run TSS - x TSS

Total Biking Time - 3:00 hours
Total Biking TSS - 187 TSS

Total Strength Time - 1:20 hours
Total Strength TSS - x TSS

Total Training Time - 6:36 hours
Total TSS - x TSS

Tuesday

Woke up to a sore inner right shin. Not a place I've had a stress reaction/fracture in the past. I doubted that it actually was a stress reaction/fracture but probably more likely just a warning sign that the last two weeks haven't been as easy as they should have. So the goal this week was to remain in the easy zone as much as possible. Even taking that easy pace even slower. Secondly, I decided to do some running on the sidewalks instead of the roads. The cambered roads have been wreaking havoc lately (combination of snow and darkness forces me on the edges more often), so I thought maybe a week of sidewalks would be helpful.

Conditions - Mostly Cloudy, Wind 9mph to 16mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 35°F + 29°F; FL - 27°F
End: Temp+Dew = 35°F + 30°F; FL - 27°F

A total of 30 min, 3.2 miles at 9:19 pace with HR of 130 bpm. I broke out a new pair of Saucony Ride Iso as well. The right shin was still sore. The right ankle felt ok. The left ankle was noticeable but decent. Despite being 20-30 sec/mile slower than the last few weeks, the HR was still around 130 bpm.

I came inside and did a LIIFT4 workout. I did the full LIIFT4 instead of adding in the McMillan Core at the end.


Wednesday

Shasta is 7x20-second all-out efforts at 200% FTP, each separated by about 5 minutes of active recovery at 65% of FTP. The quality of the workout was good and the cadence was 96 rpm.

Afterwards, I did a McMillan Legs workout.


Thursday

First wind chill under 0F for the training cycle!

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 15mph to 20mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 11°F + 3°F; FL - -5°F
End: Temp+Dew = 10°F + 3°F; FL - -5°F

Clothing choices were spot on. Not too hot or too cold. In all it was 30 min, 3.3 miles, 9:10 pace with HR of 132. The ankles were ok, but the shin still hurt.


Friday

Tunnabora is 5x7-minute sets of decreasing then increasing watts between 88-94% FTP in 1-minute steps to allow cadence changes over the course of each form interval. Cadence varied between 95-105 rpm throughout the drills. Felt good overall.

Afterwards, I did a McMillan Legs workout.


Saturday

First brick of the cycle.

Pioneer is a 45-minute segment between 80-85% FTP nestled inside of an hour-long workout. The intensity is around HIM effort.

Afterwards, I aimed for 30 min at an easy pace.

Conditions - Partly Cloudy, Wind 7mph to 12mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 21°F + 17°F; FL - 12°F
End: Temp+Dew = 22°F + 18°F; FL - 12°F

Ended up being 30 min, 3.4 miles, 8:46 pace, and HR of 132. Right ankle felt normal, left ankle was a little sore, and right shin was still sore.


Sunday

Went with 45 min at an easy pace instead of long run pace to continue the recovery this week.

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 12mph to 24mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 29°F + 26°F; FL - 19°F
End: Temp+Dew = 30°F + 27°F; FL - 19°F

Misjudged the weather on this one. My app said no wind and wind chill of 30. But I think the above was definitely right. So I was in shorts when I should have been in light pants. It worked out eventually, but it was a bit chilly for shorts. Ended up with 45 min, 5.3 miles, 8:36 pace and HR of 134. The right ankle was good, the left ankle was sore towards the end of the run (but was gone soon after the run ended), and the right shin felt good. So feeling like I'm on the mend and in the right direction.

Next week we pick the volume up a touch and have the first morning workout of the cycle. I have off on Friday though, so that's no biggie. I think I'll keep the intensity down for another week or two and just at easy pacing. I still have 15 weeks and am in no rush. I was just a hair too high on the training load data. So I've got to keep things easy to keep myself from slipping into the training zone. My Garmin VO2max remains at 54 as designed.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Just a copy and paste from the Running Thread for future reference:

2020 Training Summary

Running duration = 168:55 hours
Running mileage = 1175.9 miles
Running activities = 199
Average Pace = 8:37 min/mile (~97 sec slower than Marathon Tempo)
Average HR = 134 (14 bpm less than Marathon Tempo)
Indoor Cycling duration = 231:20 hours
Indoor Cycling mileage = 3748 miles
Indoor Cycling average power = 163 watts
Indoor Cycling average Normalized Power = 172 watts
Indoor Cycling activities = 174
Strength Training duration = 68:38 hours
Strength Training activities = 125
Total Training Time = 468:54 hours
Total Training activities = 498
Avg. workout duration per day that I workout (Mon off) = 1:30 hrs

Like most, 2020 was a different year when it came to training. After coming up short on my goals in the Disney Marathon, I was aiming for the April Milwaukee Marathon. But it ended up being cancelled. Just to try something new, I pivoted to doing mile training. It was an enjoyable experience despite some nagging injuries late in the training cycle. I was able to keep up my streak of PR'ing in a distance every year since I started in 2012 with a new mile PR of 5:42 (first and only time sub-6). But it's going to keep getting harder to continue to shave off time as the years go by. So I cherish these moments. The summer/fall was spent trying to tinker with training plan methodology a bit and despite an injury late in the training cycle I chalked it up as a success. I was able to train less and more efficiently, yet reach those same high levels of fitness I'm aiming for. I look forward to 2021 and what I can do next.

 

[Sleepless Knight]

And Hubby (who I think I mentioned to you, is an experimental psychologist who studies the psychology of goals) just rolls his eyes when I say I'll retire after getting that sub-5. He says that will just give me a taste of success and make me keep going.

I know that feeling. My first half marathon was a very difficult experience. I started way too fast and created a shin splint like pain. I slowed down to a tolerable pace and finished it. But I did not enjoy the experience. In fact the only reason I signed up for half marathons 2 and 3 was because I concluded that I could tolerate two more half marathons to earn the runDisney Coast to Coast medal. But then half marathon number 2 happened. Instead of being something that I tolerated and endured, I actually enjoyed myself. The rest as they say is history. I'm still slow, but now I'm a slow 2x Dopey Marathoner.

 

[DopeyBadger]

14 Weeks to go + HIM Base Mid Volume Cycling + (LIIFT 4 + McMillan Core/Legs)

12/28/20 - M - OFF
12/29/20 - T - 45 min Run @ Easy + McMillan Legs
12/30/20 - W - Berryessa (60 min; 63 TSS)
12/31/20 - R - 45 min Run @ Easy + McMillan Legs
1/1/21 - F - Ericsson (60 min; 64 TSS) + LIIFT4-Chest/Back
1/2/21 - Sa - Galena (90 min; 107 TSS) + 35 min Brick @ Easy
1/3/21 - Su - 60 min @ Long Run

Total Run Miles - 21.6 miles
Total Run Time - 3:05 hours
Total Run TSS - x TSS

Total Biking Time - 3:30 hours
Total Biking TSS - 234 TSS

Total Strength Time - 1:04 hours
Total Strength TSS - x TSS

Total Training Time - 7:39 hours
Total TSS - x TSS

Tuesday

Upping the mid-week run to 45 min.

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 10mph to 19mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 23°F + 18°F; FL - 13°F
End: Temp+Dew = 25°F + 18°F; FL - 13°F

Ended up as 5.2 miles in 45 min at 8:42 pace with HR of 133. Not a bad run. The right shin finally feels normal again and it feels like is confirmation that it was just an episode of too much too soon. The left ankle issue is still not completely resolved, but still isn't a major hinderance.

The stimulus changed a bit this week as I did McMillan Legs after the runs instead of LIIFT4. Just preparing for the shift in a couple weeks for cycling and running.


Wednesday

Peak of the 60 min sprint cycling workouts. Berryessa is 8x20-second all-out efforts at 200% FTP, each separated by almost 5 minutes of active recovery at 65% of FTP. Eight seemed to be right at my maximum as that last interval felt a bit shaky.


Thursday

Another 45 min easy run.

Conditions - Partly Cloudy, Wind 5mph to 7mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 18°F + 17°F; FL - 11°F
End: Temp+Dew = 20°F + 18°F; FL - 11°F

5.1 miles in 45 min at 8:54 pace with HR of 136. Effort felt fine, but the HR was too high for an easy run these days. I'd like to see it closer to the low 130s. The left ankle was still bothersome. I hypothesized that it may have something to do with the ankle sleeves I've been wearing since February 2019. They helped mitigate the ankle tendonitis issues I had in the summer of 2018. But maybe it's putting too much strain on the ankle joint, or preventing the ankle motion too much. I decided I would try and do Saturday's run without the left ankle sleeve for the first time in nearly 2 years.

Another McMillan legs workout.


Friday

A 60 min sweetspot workout. Ericsson is 4x8-minute spin-up intervals between 88-94% FTP where riders begin with a slightly quicker-than-usual spin for the first 4 minutes, increase their pedal speed for the following 3 minutes, and then spin all-out for the final minute. The rest between intervals is 4 minutes. All went as desired.

Afterwards, I did a LIIFT4 Chest/Back workout. It's peak week for LIIFT4 and I always enjoy a good chest/back workout. I think I'm going to ask for heavier dumbbells for my birthday because the chest workout is getting a little less challenging these days.


Saturday

Hardest cycling workout since mid-November. Galena is 3x20-minute Sweet Spot efforts between 90-94% FTP with 5 minutes of recovery between intervals. I had to take a few seconds break one time each in the second and third intervals around the halfway mark. I was struggling, but I made it through. More evidence that my recent FTP test is accurate despite it dropping slightly.

That evening I did a 35 min easy run without the left ankle sleeve.

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 2mph to 3mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 24°F + 20°F; FL - 24°F
End: Temp+Dew = 23°F + 20°F; FL - 24°F

I could definitely tell the difference for better or worse in my ankle mobility. It felt lighter and easier to flex. It remains to be seen whether that's the right decision. But the ankle felt slightly better and had not residual issues post-run. If anything it felt better immediately post-run probably because nothing was squeezing it. Ended up as 4.1 miles in 35 min at 8:38 pace with HR of 137. Too fast to be easy. I need to slow down.


Sunday

Just a simple 60 min LR. That matches the duration from two weeks ago as I'm still in a holding pattern trying to maintain depressing my fitness increases.

Conditions - Mostly Cloudy, Wind 6mph to 10mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 20°F + 19°F; FL - 12°F
End: Temp+Dew = 22°F + 20°F; FL - 12°F

Pacing was good.



Right shin still no problems. Left ankle felt ok, probably better than the two other runs with the sleeve this week. So possibly heading into a good area. I'd like to see it continue to stay the same or feel better. Otherwise, it might be time to get it checked despite it being a low issue problem right now.

The price increase for the Milwaukee Marathon is this week. I think I'll hold off on registering until the next increase in early Feb.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Dizzy De La Rosa update!

Dizzy (our petite goldendoodle puppy) was to be born at the end of December. Last week we received an email that the litter had been born on 12/24. But the bad news was there were only 5 puppies and 2 females. We were 3rd pick for females. Lots of tears were shed by Steph and G. So we reached out to a neighbor and found a different breeder who would have puppies available in April. Unfortunately we were going to be 4th pick overall on this one. We also decided to let our deposit ride with the first breeder on the chance of a Fall 1st pick female. On Saturday night, we received final confirmation from the first breeder that all pups were spoken for, as there was some light at the end of the tunnel since one family was hoping for a light coat dog. But only an hour after that email, Steph got a phone call from the first breeder. The second choice female family had a change of heart and wanted to wait for the next litter on the chance of a lighter coat puppy. So we got it!



So Dizzy De La Rosa should be coming home sometime in late February. We had some very happy ladies in the Blaser house Saturday night. Dizzy will be a half-sister to Heidi's (Steph's sister) dog Pepper. They share a dad but have different moms. This was Pepper when she came home in 2017.

 

[DopeyBadger]

 

[DopeyBadger]

Finally scheduled a PT appointment for next week Wednesday for the left ankle. It's been 9 weeks now and it hasn't resolved to a satisfactory level on my own. It was making progress for a while, but now the progress seems to have leveled off.

 

[dobball23]

Finally scheduled a PT appointment for next week Wednesday for the left ankle. It's been 9 weeks now and it hasn't resolved to a satisfactory level on my own. It was making progress for a while, but now the progress seems to have leveled off.

Good luck! It is so frustrating being injured, but I love going to PT. I learn so much and the people I see are outstanding. And it gives me an outlet for activity during a time my activity is usually impacted.

 

[DopeyBadger]

13 Weeks to go + HIM Base Mid Volume Cycling + (LIIFT 4 + McMillan Core/Legs)

1/4/21 - M - OFF
1/5/21 - T - 30 min Run @ Easy + McMillan Legs
1/6/21 - W - Haku (60 min; 59 TSS)
1/7/21 - R - 30 min Run @ Easy + McMillan Legs
1/8/21 - F - LIIFT4-Arms + Geiger (60 min; 67 TSS) +
1/9/21 - Sa - Pioneer (60 min; 61 TSS) + 30 min Brick @ Long Run
1/10/21 - Su - 45 min @ Easy

Total Run Miles - 15.3 miles
Total Run Time - 2:15 hours
Total Run TSS - x TSS

Total Biking Time - 3:00 hours
Total Biking TSS - 187 TSS

Total Strength Time - 1:28 hours
Total Strength TSS - x TSS

Total Training Time - 6:43 hours
Total TSS - x TSS

Tuesday

Another easy run without the left ankle sleeve to see if there is any improvement.

Conditions - Partly Cloudy, Wind 4mph to 5mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 24°F + 23°F; FL - 19°F
End: Temp+Dew = 24°F + 23°F; FL - 19°F

Took it easy enough this time around. It was 3.3 miles at 9:06 pace with 128 HR. This was a good place to be. Although the ankle still didn't feel like I wanted it to. I questioned whether I should call the PT, but decided not to.

I did McMillan Legs afterwards and this seemed to aggravate the ankle.


Wednesday

A down week for cycling. Haku is 6x20-second all-out efforts at 200% FTP, each separated by about 5 minutes of active recovery at 65% of FTP. This was an easier version of the same workout from the last few weeks. It was completed with no issues.


Thursday

Another 30 min easy day.

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 8mph to 15mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 27°F + 27°F; FL - 19°F
End: Temp+Dew = 27°F + 27°F; FL - 19°F

Taken super easy again. It was 3.2 miles at 9:14 pace with HR of 126. A good place to be for an easy day.

I did McMillan legs afterwards. The ankle was bothersome still and so I decided I would call the PT the next morning to set an appointment.


Friday

First early morning workout, and boy was it a rude wake up alarm. Ugh, I can't believe I used to get up at 4:30am every morning. Steph and I did the final LIIFT4-Arms workout and followed it up with McMillan Core. Time to circle back around and possibly get some new heavier dumbbells.

That evening was a Sweet Spot workout. Geiger is 3x12-minute efforts spent in the Sweet Spot (88-94% FTP) with brief, 3-minute recoveries between efforts. It felt really good. I can tell I've made some improvements in cycling fitness in the last 4 weeks. Felt really smooth and strong.


Saturday

Brick day! Pioneer is a 45-minute segment between 80-85% FTP nestled inside of an hour-long workout.

Followed that up with 30 min at long run effort.

Conditions - Mostly Cloudy, Wind 6mph to 8mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 27°F + 22°F; FL - 20°F
End: Temp+Dew = 28°F + 23°F; FL - 20°F

Ended up as 3.6 miles at 8:18 pace with Bad HR data (going to assume around 140 bpm). The HR data was between 190-200 which was above my maxHR and not cadence. It sucks because it creates a void for my training load data. I'm still trying to fix it. I edited the .fit file and reuploaded, but Strava won't accept the new HR data. So I've got to figure out a different solution. For now, I'll have to manually type in the training load data into Excel.


Sunday

An easy 45 min run.

Conditions - Overcast, Wind 5mph to 5mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 23°F + 18°F; FL - 17°F
End: Temp+Dew = 23°F + 18°F; FL - 17°F

5.1 miles at 8:45 pace with HR of 131. Happy with it. The Garmin VO2max remains at 54. That makes it 5 consecutive weeks at 54 now. That's one of the longest stretches of maintaining a single VO2max in the 4 years I've been tracking the dataset. So I think the intentional depression of training load form is doing the trick. The downside is it just doesn't feel good to train in this area. Like I don't get that rush from running because my body isn't excited about the training or something. I know "that feeling" and it doesn't necessarily only come during hard workouts. But I can tell this intentional depression of training load form comes in a different area of training that my body doesn't like to be sustained from a response standpoint. Ankle still bothersome so I'm glad I scheduled an appointment.

This coming week is a jump back into a higher volume and the last 4 week block of prep leading into the real training. On tap is 4 cycle workouts of 5:50 hrs, 4 runs of 3:20 hrs, but no early morning workouts. The PT is on Wednesday, so we'll see what her diagnosis is.