Hills and Humidity

For the past two days I've attended an optional training seminar for a new educational model. Very interactive and I learned a lot, so it was great to cap off the day with a nice easy paced run on some hills.

Went well. Legs felt pretty fresh after the scheduled rest day yesterday. Humid out... and running the next several days will be challenging with the heat wave, but at least it's supposed to get back down to normal by the end of the weekend.

Ran 8.0 miles @ 7:46/mile pace.
Paved roads.
Very hilly.
Upper 70s, partly cloudy, humid.
Saucony Kinvara 3, shorts, short sleeved shirt, cap.

Saco River Loop

Segmented progression run down along the river and back. First third easy, middle third moderate, last third tempo. Felt great out there and another solid building block to the ramp up.

Great week overall. Another step up to the weekly mileage (46.6 miles) with quality workouts as well. Everything is on track to getting to where I want to be, so I'm pretty pleased. Still have my work cut out for me though.



Ran 14.4 miles @ 7:31/mile pace.
Paved roads.
Moderately hilly.
Lower to mid 60s, sunny.
Saucony Kinvara 3, shorts, short sleeved shirt, cap.

Mt. Washington Hike

Very fun day hiking up Mt. Washington with Kate! It was her first time there, so that was a lot of fun. Hiked up, watched the runners at the finish line for the road race and then hiked back down. Fun time! I'll let the pics do the talkin'.

Runners near the finish. 

Kate as we were about to head down. 

Snowball fight at Tucks!

Melting ice field.

Bizarre alien plant. 

Looking up Tuckerman's Ravine. 

Hiked 8.4 miles in 6:20 (include stops, except at summit).
Rugged trails.
Insanely hilly.
Around 50 degrees on the summit, lower 70s in the valley, partly cloudy.
New Balance MT110, shorts, short sleeved shirt, long sleeved shirt (summit).

3 X 1 Mile

I had a vivid nightmare last night about today's workout. I dreamt that my first split was the fastest and it was only eight minutes and change. The second was ten something and I can't remember what was up with the third.

Thankfully, it didn't go that horribly. Goal was to be consistant and hit all three under six minutes. Hit the splits in 5:47, 5:51 and 5:56. Not terribly happy about each mile getting slower. However, I haven't done these in a while, so I'll cut myself a little slack.

400M active recovery after the first mile. After the second, a bio break was needed. Ducked into a porta-pottie and it only took a little longer than the active recovery but it was at least 20-30 degrees hotter inside that thing, so I muse that it about evened out.

Normally, I like to do five repeats, but felt just doing three was smart at this stage. Also, it was a good assessment of where I'm at right now, which is better than I thought but I still have a good amount of work to do.

Afterwards, cooled down with a barefoot run on the adjacent athletic fields, then helped Kate move her classroom for the rest of the day (she's teaching second grade next year instead of kindergarten).

w/u: Ran 1.0 mile @ 7:54/mile pace. (track)
3 X 1 Mile: 5:47, 5:51, 5:56.
c/d: Ran 1.1 miles @ 10:03/mile pace. (fields)

Mid 60s, sunny.
Brooks Mach 13, shorts, short sleeved shirt, cap. Barefoot on cooldown.

It's the Humidity, Stupid!

The air was thick. 98% humidity out but at least it wasn't terribly warm (65F/18C). Oddly enough, it actually felt pretty nice to run in. Yesterday was also humid... not as much, but it was warmer, and I remember feeling pretty comfortable then as well. I guess I'm acclimating. If so, sweet.

Planned rest day tomorrow. Hoping to get in some speed work on Friday, likely in the form of something on the track, though I'm not sure what.

Ran 5.5 miles @ 8:03/mile pace.
Paved roads.
Very hilly.
Mid 60s, overcast, very humid.
Merrell Bare Access, shorts, short sleeved shirt, cap.

Deer, the Flies Named After Them and Ticks

The bridge that leads to the trail network in the woods out back was supposed to be finished a few weeks ago. But as I suspected, the rain and floods lately have delayed or inhibited construction. After I confirmed that, I decided to hit an alternate trail route in another area.

Along the way, I felt those annoying taps on my head for the first time this season. The deer flies are out. I actually killed one on Sunday when we were swimming after running the Bald Face loop, but none had bothered me while running that day.

Had to run on paved roads for about a mile, but I was pleasantly surprised to see a normally washed out section of snowmobile trails on the powerlines has been reworked. Normally I avoid this section because it's usually flooded, but it is now great to run on.

Took it up the hill and saw a few deer bound away into the woods. Several times I brushed against some taller grass and picked up ticks. Pulled off five so far (and counting). Joined the Dump Loop trails and took them home. Good run.

Ran 7.7 miles @ 8:49/mile pace.
Trails, one mile of paved roads.
Moderately hilly.
Lower 70s, very humid, mostly cloudy.
New Balance MT110, shorts, short sleeved shirt.

Recovery Run

Five miles at a recovery pace. The quads felt a little tight after yesterday, good to get out and loosen them up. Otherwise, felt pretty darn good.

I totaled 40.7 miles for the week last week. Not a lot, but compared to the past several weeks that was a nice step up. I think shooting for around 45 miles this week is logical. I'm also hoping to hit the track later in the week for some turnover.

Ran 5.1 miles @ 8:43/mile pace.
Paved roads.
Slightly hilly.
Lower 70s, partly cloudy, breezy.
Brooks Mach 13, shorts, short sleeved shirt, cap.