Freeletics: C&S Coach Week 3

Between ramping up my mileage in preparation for some races that I have on the horizon and all of the extra jumping that comes with doing Freeletics, it seems that I've come down with a bit of a foot injury. My right arch has been causing me some very minor discomfort for awhile now, but this was the first week were it actually got painful enough that I had to ease up on my running. I suspected plantar fasciitis at first, but I've had that in the past and it seemed unlikely since the pain wasn't at its worst first thing in the morning; instead, my new diagnose is peroneal tendinosis, which makes more sense based on the location of the pain and the fact that it gets worse, and not better, over the course of a run. I know that it would heal faster if I actually took some time off from running, but with my 300^th day of running in a row set for this Tuesday, I'm just way too committed to my run streak at this point to even consider breaking it any sooner than reaching a year. I'll just continue running lighter mileage for the time being and hoping that doing so will be enough to get me over this injury.

Aside from that though, everything else has been going really well. As a runner and an indoor cycling instructor, I came into Freeletics with a pretty strong cardio base, but constantly pushing myself to set new PB's has helped me quite a bit in that department and has definitely shown me that I still have plenty of room left for improvement. Where I've noticed the biggest gains though is in my upper body strength. Push ups and pulls ups are way easier than they were when I first started; in fact, I've become so fond of doing them that Poseidon is now my go-to workout for when I'm looking to add a little something extra to whatever the Coach has planned for me. It's working hard and then actually seeing that progress from week-to-week that really make Freeletics an incredible program.

Session 1: Metis (4:47) (*) | Poseidon (7:33)

Session 2: Hyperion [endurance 4/5] (6:27) (*) (PB) | 50 Push Ups (2:03) (*) (PB) | 50 Squats (0:40) (*) (PB)

Session 3: Ares (10:22) (*) (PB) | Metis [strength 1/3] (1:39) (PB) | 100 Jumping Jacks (1:09) (*)

Session 4: 5K (39:59) (PB) | 50 Sit Ups (1:38) (*) (PB)
Session 5: Poseidon (6:20) (PB) | 50 Sit Ups (1:57) (*)

   * blue text denotes additional workouts unassigned by the Coach

a post long over due

I guess it would be a bit of an understatement to say that it's been awhile since I last posted anything. I was new to the whole blogging thing when I started writing here, and for a time I was really loving it. Life, however, has a tendency of sneaking up on you, and time plows forward whether you're ready or not. Between work, and trying to flip a house, and a million other things here and there, this little blog just sort of fell by the wayside. I unfortunately can't say for certain that it won't happen again, but at the very least, I can give you an update on what's been going on since my last post.

I had a few running goals for the year, and so far I've been cruising along quite nicely with all of them. I've managed to maintain a paper log for all of my runs and workouts, I'm already 75% of the way towards reaching 500 miles for the year, and I've kept up with the run streak that I started on Thanksgiving. At 230 days of running at least one mile every day, I've blown way past the 50 day mark at which I said I would reassess whether or not I was going to continue.

In other news, I ran the Peachtree Road Race this year for the first time, and posted a new 10K PR, besting my previous record by just over 3 minutes. With almost 60,000 participants each year, the Peachtree is the largest race in the country, and it is absolutely amazing in every way. The overwhelming number of enthusiastic spectators and bands along the course is incredibly motivating, and it is an indescribable spectacle to race with so many other runners. If you haven't ever run the Peachtree, definitely put it on your list of most do destination races. Not only is it an incredible race, but it occurs right in the heart of Atlanta, a place I've really come to appreciate as a truly great American city. Between having the opportunity to check out a Braves game or visit the World of Coca-Cola, it's hard to imagine a better, more classically American place to celebrate the Fourth of July.

Finally, Jinny, the little rescue dog who my wife and I picked up at the beginning of the year, has blossomed into an amazing running companion. She'll accompany me on any run shorter than three miles, and she's ready and waiting at the door before I even get my shoes on. Sure I might almost trip while trying to get my speed work in every once in awhile when she lounges for a squirrel, but really she's all that one could ever hope for in a dog. I couldn't have asked for a better first pet, and my wife and I are just so glad that she came into our lives.

So as you can see, a few things have happened here and there over the past few months, but in a lot of ways it's just the same old, same old. I'll try my best to stay consistent in posting though, and hopefully I'll start getting caught up on writing some reviews for the books I've finished.

a new year begins

After sleeping in way too late and then driving three hours to get back home, I completed my last official run of the Runner's World Holiday Streak, and my first run with the lumberjack, my new Lego running companion. For me at least, this seemingly unrelated transition signifies the end of one year, and the beginning of a new one. In the past few months, my running has undergone significant growth. I overcame injuries that had plagued me for years by switching to minimalist running, I broke a long-standing streak of increasingly dismal finishing times at my annual turkey trot, and I got myself involved in the online running community by starting a blog. Now as I look ahead, it seems only right that I continue to build off of last year's accomplishments and set new goals for the new year.

I'd like to start keeping a paper log again. I've flip-flopped between computer logs and paper logs many times over the course of my running career, but the switch to digital has almost always been out of laziness more than preference. I'd like to run at least 500 miles this year. I know for some that's a very meager mileage goal over the course of a whole year, but dozens of past setbacks have given me a great deal of respect for patience and incremental progression. Finally, since things went so well with the holiday streak, I'd like to continue it and see how much further I can take it. The official streak was 35 days long and took place between Thanksgiving and New Year's, but I'd like to get to 50 days and then reassess whether or not I want to keep going.

The start of a new year always holds so much potential. Why not make this a year of aiming high and working hard to reach your goals? I know that that's going to be my plan for 2014.

a month of blogging

I began this blog exactly one month ago, and while I don't yet write as often as I'd like to, I'm happy that it exists as a place to record and share my thoughts. I live in a rural area of Virginia on the Chesapeake Bay, a location best suited for retirees and summer tourists, so I don't often get the chance to interact with other like-minded individuals. Seeing other runners while out on the roads or the trails is an extremely rare occurrence, and one look around the local gym shows that there really aren't a whole lot of younger people in this area excited about fitness. However, since I began blogging and using Twitter regularly, I have been introduced to a much larger online community, a community of individuals who share my interests and who can relate to the triumphs and struggles that accompany our sport. In just one short month, I have gained and learned so much from the people who have also chosen to share their passion for running with others.

While my preference would obviously be to have running friends nearby, for the time being, I can be content with knowing that there are others out there, others who are logging miles and setting goals just like I am. On cold, rainy mornings, when the last thing I want to be doing is running in the dark, I find great solace in the fact that there are countless others toughing it out for the #RWRunStreak. When old routes grow tiresome, the #RunChatHunt is there to encourage me to try new places, and the pictures posted from those completing the scavenger hunt inspire me to make finds of my own. And when it seems like it's been forever since I've spoken with another runner, I've had the opportunity to communicate with the authors of the books I have enjoyed and reviewed.

I know this blog is young and that few people will read these words, but it's nice to have a record of one's thoughts and it's exciting to think about what still lies ahead.

a streak happily broken

With the Runner's World Holiday Run Streak currently underway, runners all across the country are making the pledge to run at least one mile every day between Thanksgiving and New Year's; I myself am among those attempting the 35 day challenge. I've gone on a streak a few times in my running career, and every time I've done one, whether long or short, I've always found it exciting to feel the tensions mount as the desire to not break the streak grows stronger with each passing day. Despite the benefits and the fun challenge that a running streak can provide though, there is one streak that I was very happy to break at this year's turkey trot on Thanksgiving morning.

As I mentioned before, I have run the same turkey trot around Rockland Lake near my hometown in New York for the past six years, and due to some combination of failing to properly train and requiring more effort to experience fitness gains these days, my finishing time has gotten slower each year. I knew that I was better prepared for the distance than I had been in the past few years though, but I had been running my training runs slowly and I wasn't feeling very confident in being able to post a faster time. I was fully prepared to just cruise through the race and celebrate the fact that I would be able to complete the distance without injuring myself, but as my friend and I were standing at the starting line, I told him about the downward trend in our times and he became committed to ending the streak right then and there.

We ran the first mile fairly slowly to warm up, but from there, my overly determined running buddy began pulling me along and steadily increasing the pace. We were running each mile faster than the one before it, and by the final mile I was really struggling to keep up. The pace was becoming more and more unsustainable, and just when I wanted to slow down most, we rounded the corner into the final stretch. The seconds on the clock ticked by, but I knew if I just held on a little bit longer the streak would be broken.

We ended up completing the 5 mile course and triumphantly crossing the finish line in 48:11, just about three minutes faster than our time from the previous year. With the streak of slower finishes finally meeting its demise, it seems only logical that the goal be to flip the trend. I'm sure a streak in which I get faster each year won't last nearly as long as the one where I got slower, but here's to a faster trot in 2014.