Since starting with Cliff more than a year ago, I’ve been trying to plan my weekly mileage according to a basic three-week cycle: two weeks high, one week low. During the lead up to the Blue Nose, I’ve defined “high” as between 90-100km, while low, according to Cliff, is always 70% of high. It’s funny, though, how difficult it is to hit the low number when things are going well and I’m running consistently. It doesn’t help that Cliff doesn’t lay off the workouts during the low weeks.
This week is supposed to be a low week for me. My last two weeks were 100k and 95k, so this one should be 70k or a little under. We’ll see how close I come. Monday was no shorter than usual (14k) because I ran with Alex, and he doesn’t really abide by the two up, one down rule at this point. But I’d much rather have a great running partner and do a few extra ks than get all obsessively wrapped up in the numbers to the point of becoming anti-social.
Today, I ran alone, so I kept the distance at 7.5k, about half of what I would normally do. It’s amazing how short that feels now – and how good it felt running it slow (4:40/k). I think of runs like these as more than just recovery runs – they're restorative runs. They don’t just help work the junk and fatigue out of tired legs; they also work the junk out of my head – they remind me that running just feels great and that it’s wonderful to feel fit. It’s this feeling of well-being that forms the foundation of my running. If I lose that to my obsession with mileage or my obsession with running faster, then running becomes a drain. These “low” weeks with their restorative runs get me back to the foundation.
After that disastrous workout last Tuesday, I’m actually excited again to get back on the track. My legs are feeling less heavy because of all the easy running, and I’ve reconnected with the set of emotions that keeps me running. The schedule calls for a “mixed session” tomorrow, so it should be fun – it’ll be some combination of threshold, V02max, and speed all rolled into one workout – unless, of course, Cliff throws a curve.
Hi,In your next race are you going to wear your watch, or you ll race without your watch?
ReplyDeleteHey. I haven't decided yet. I think I'm going to go without. For one, the race has a clock at the mile mark, so I can get a sense of my pace there. And second, I've never found the watch helped. Are you going to race without a watch? I imagine with all the training you've done without the watch, you're very comfortable now without it.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely!! I only do use a watch for workouts and some easy runs, but sometimes I leave the watch at home. I dont use a watch while racing. Imagine if i look at it and i dont like the split that i am seeing, that will ruin my race mentally, so if i am running bad , it is best to know it at the finish line, whereas if i am running above expectations, then without a watch I dont sell my short.
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