Tsukuba Marathon - A Disaster!

Well, my back had been getting a little better, and I had been getting some good sleep for the few nights before the race, so I was hopeful, but realized the chances of having a good race were slim.
Got the train up with Don, and it all went pretty smoothly, although there were a ton of people there, of course, and was a little stressed about getting a good position. Turned out it was no big deal, and being the B block was not bad either, as I was able to jump up on the sidewalk and get by a lot of them.
First four 5k splits: 20/20:17/20:52/21:03
Right on target for a sub 3:00, but I knew from about the 10k mark that things were going to end well, as the pain in my back was starting in, and my right hamstring was feeling tight. Also, the new Zoom Streak XC 4s were giving me trouble - they felt really stiff and were starting to give me hotspots.
Pretty soon after the halfway mark I started to really feel bad, and couldn't breath properly because of my back, and started to walk. I thought I was going to get a DNF, but there was basically no way to get back to the finish, so I just kept plugging on. I tried to run as much as I could, but it started to get really tough.
I kept waiting for Don to pass me, but it took quite a while, so I knew he was not having a great day either.
The last 17k were really rough. Mostly walking, trying to run for five minutes at a time, but just couldn't. Kept thinking I would drop out, but it was never a feasible option, so I just kept pushing. Somehow I recovered enough to run (very slowly) for the last 5k and salvage a little pride.
Finished in 3:48.
Wondered if one issue was not getting in enough mileage, or from going out too fast, and they were probably both factors, but the real problem was my back. Frustrating that I don't know what caused it, and that a trip to the osteopath didn't help like it usually does.
Looking forward to some time off for the holidays, and then figuring out what the next challenge will be.

I'll be back for you Tsukuba!!

Taper week 2 - Last Week Before Tsukuba!

Mon: Zoom Streak 4. One hour on the way home along the Sumidagawa. Took it fairly easy, felt good, but am a little concerned about how comfortable these shoes will be for 42k...
Tue: Bike 33k.
Wed: Zoom Streak 4. 50 min/12k along the Arakawa. Woke up with a sore lower back, maybe from sleeping on the flooring in the small room because of Taiyo's snoring. Decided to run anyway, and after a while it loosened up a bit. Did about 3-4k in the middle at race pace, or a little faster. Wore my new super skimpy shorts, and they are a bit tight, so wonder what they will be like...
Had a great visit to Oedo Onsen with Miho as a surprise for my birthday. She got me an oil massage, which felt good, but did not make my back problems disappear.
Thu: My 39th B-day!! Rest. Back still feeling sore.
Fri: Rest. Back still sore, actually hurts on the right side when I try to take a deep breath. Went to the osteopath, which usually does the trick, but wasn't so lucky this time.
Sat: Rest. Back is slightly better. Wondered if part of the problem is just general lack of movement from all the rest, so went with Taiyo to his pool lesson, and then went up to the garden in Kashiwa after that. Ok enough to run at this point, but may not be a great race.
Sun: Tsukuba Marathon. Bad as expected. (see separate post)

Taper Week 1

Mon: Rest. Legs feel pretty good, but right hamstring tight.
Tue: Bike 33k. Tried to take it easy, but nasty north wind on the way home from work.
Wed: Ultras. One hour run home along Sumidagawa. Right hamstring feels tight, so will take another rest day tomorrow. Blisters from Sunday still bothering me, too.
Thu: Rest. Wore the new super ugly Zoom Streak XC 2s all day to break them in.
Fri: Zoom Streak 3s. One hour home along the Sumidagawa. First run in these shoes, although they do feel a bit pinched in the toe area, they are definitely stiffer than the old model. Still some tightness in my right hamstring, and my damn blisters were still bothering me, so I came home and cut them open.
Sat: Pouring rain all day, so gave myself some rest, but got in decent core workout at home.
Sun: Ultra liners. about 90 min/18k along the Arakawa. Great afternoon for a run, complete with pretty sunset followed by a downpour of downright painful raindrops for the last 1k. Legs and feet felt good for the whole run, liners have a big old hole in the right foot, so decided to toss them. Wish I could find something just like them that is more durable.

100 Ups!

http://hundredup.com/

Read about this first in an article Chris McDougall in the NYT. Then found this site through the huaraches group. Have been trying them recently, try to do at least one set of them today. Have still only done the Minor so far, and it's pretty challenging!

Namban Race and BBQ - My first medal!

It was a gorgeous day from the get go, if slightly chilly in the morning. Rode up the river early to help out, and Phil asked me to ride the 10k course to find where the finish would be. This means I ended up riding my bike over 20k before the race, albeit at a relaxed pace. It was a good warm up in any case.
We got things going and had a fairly good showing, both for the 10k and HM. I was set on getting in the top three, although knowing the times from last year made it a bit of a crap shoot.

Team Namban

I went out first off the line, but was quickly taken over by another guy, who got out in front of me, and stayed there the whole race. I felt pretty good the first loop, but was really starting to get tired by the second and was getting a blister on my left foot to boot. Like an idiot, I decided to try running in the MWU4s with no socks on, obviously forgetting how bad the MWU3s messed up my right foot at the HM in Watarase last year. As I climbed the riverbank at the last turnaround, I saw Jay at the bottom of it, and knew there was a good possibility he was going to overtake me. I didn't have much left in me to push until about the last 1k, and as I ran down the hill to the finish, a baseball team of boys were riding up. One of the boys wasn't paying attention and almost hit me, so I yelled at him: 危ない！バカやろう！I felt pretty bad about it later, but I was sprinting towards the finish line and didn't have much control over my emotions. Turns out Jay could not catch me, so I grabbed 2nd place! The guy that beat me, Brett, was way ahead, and turns out he wasn't even running hard (his PB for 10k is 32 something!). I finished in 38:00, which is almost two minutes faster than the TELL 10k I ran last year. It's still not really a fast time, but considering the long run I did the day before, the bike riding, and the blister, it wasn't bad.

On your marks...

First Place Brett

Second Place Me

Third Place Jay

That hurt!

The BBQ was a good time as well, got to chat with and meet a lot of people. We had good food and really warm weather. We had a kid's race that Taiyo ran in and then I got to give him his prize along with all the other kids. Then I got my 2nd place medal, the first I've ever gotten for something other than finishing.

Last Big Week Before the Taper

Not sure what 'big week' will mean, but hopefully solid mileage with a bit of speedwork.

Mon: Ultras. 80 min run home along the Arakawa. Threw in alternating 1k at race pace (?) X 4. This is my sixth straight day of running, so the legs are feeling it. Looking forward to a day of biking tomorrow.
Tue: Bike 33k. Got stupid on the way home from work and was 'racing' with some dude who was chasing me, and got home with a sore hamstring (?) on the outside of my right leg. Forced to miss the Namban workout that I've been looking forward to and take a day off. Stupid!
Wed: Rest. Feels like a pull, stiffer today than it was yesterday, but hopefully it will feel better tomorrow, although I have a feeling it will be another day of rest.
Thu: Ultras. One hour running home along the sumidagawa, very easy pace. Slept with castor oil that I got from my osteopath on my leg last night, and it seemed to do the trick, as my leg felt much better in the morning. Did feel a bit stiff towards the end of the run, but don't think I made it any worse.
Fri: bike 33k.
Sat: Ultras. 90 min along the Arakawa. Medium pace, but tried to take as many opportunities as possible to go up and down the riverbank.
Sun: Namban 10k and BBQ (see separate post)

Not a big week by any means, but some good solid runs considering how my right hamstring was feeling, and a race I was happy with!

Slow Build

Hoping to build up to a big week next week, but work has been really busy, so may be tough. Will definitely shoot for another long run on Saturday, though.
Mon: Bike 33k. Great Halloween party at KidZania!
Tue: Rest. Two days of being on my feet all day. My back started bothering me, and I finished late, so bagged it.
Wed: Ultra liners. Good run home, not too hard, not too easy.
Thu: Ultras. One hour home along the Sumidagawa. Running abnormally late from 9-10, and legs a bit stiff. But another lovely windless night.
Fri: Ultra liners. Easy run home for an hour along the sumidagawa. Taking it easy in preparation for a long run.
Sat: 31.4/2:26:25/4:40/143/Zoom Streak. Good, solid run. Legs felt good, if a bit fatigued at times, but did not feel like I was struggling despite the pace. Cool to know that this is my pace and HR without me keeping track of it at all. Was a little sore afterwards, but no issues with my feet, which is a real bonus.
Sun: Ultra Liners. Easy run out and around Sumidagawa for about 50 min. Got back and noticed that my Ultra liners already have a hole! No! I've really been enjoying running in them, and have no idea what I'll do a for a replacement.

Overall a good, solid week, and now just need to decide what to do with this next week, which I had originally planned on making my biggest week before starting the taper. Guess will leave it up to how my legs feel, but will definitely plan on doing the Namban workout on Wednesday.

Suwako HM - A new HM PB!

I signed up for this after Namban folks said it was feasible as a day trip. Come to find out it was not, but Geraldine, from Namban, offered me to stay at her cottage up there, despite that she had never met me. Took the Azusa up on Saturday and arrived a bit before 9, Geraldine was kind enough to drive out to pick me up, and was accompanied by another Nambanner, Maya. At her house were two more women, Taeko, a nambanner, and Ruby, Geraldine's 82 year old friend from the UK. It was a pleasant night chatting a bit, and I managed to sleep ok on the thin futon and hard floor.

In the morning, I drank a huge almost one liter shake I had made for the trip. This was too much, as I would find out later with some stomach issues. Also, I had only brought 3 of the stomach pills with me, whereas I usually take at least four.
We got to the race area plenty early, and parked nice and close at a pachinko place. Got in a good warm up, the weather was warmer and more humid than expected with cloud cover that was starting to break. It was a nice enough lake, mainly surrounded by urban area, but some mountains as well that were pretty.
I met up with Paddie and we got in the line up together. There was another guy Richard that Paddie knew and said he was going for sub 1:20. Paddie said he would be happy with anything under 1:25, so I was happy to have someone in the same ballpark as me.
My strategy was to go out hard and just try to push it through all the way. That's what I did, and it hurt right from the beginning. My legs felt a bit stiff and tight, and my gut was bothering me right away. I did the first 3k in under 11:30, which was fast, but close to the target of where I wanted to be. Paddie caught up with me by about 4k, and we hung together for a while. It was my first time running with him, and I was quite surprised by the way he slapped his right foot. Seemed really inefficient, and was surprised that he can run as fast as he does. He pulled ahead as I started to feel worse and wonder if I was going to have a decent race at all. It was good to have him in my sights, though, and so I just focused on that. I meant to take my splits every 3k, but kept missing the markers, so just kept going as fast as my condition allowed. As we got close to the halfway mark I passed Paddie and tried to pull him a long with a fairly feeble, 'C'mon Paddie!'. There was a cool little band at the halfway mark, and there were great people cheering pretty much the whole way. I started to feel better and get a second wind. When I got to about the 16k mark, I started feeling like I was not going to make it without a toilet stop. That big shake I drank and the lack of medicine was taking its toll (despite the 4-5 times I had already crapped before the race...). I tried to hold off a bit, and then could not find a toilet. When there finally was one, there were only about 2k left, and I just decided to see if I could push myself. I was feeling pretty beat, and I knew if I stopped I would lose a lot of momentum.
When we came around the corner and could see the big finish gate, I was pretty excited, as always. I gave it a push about 400 meters out, but couldn't sustain it. There was one guy right with me, and as we got about 100m meters away he tried to overtake me, but I literally gave it a last grunt (and crowd pleasing) push and beat him.
Finished in 1:23:25, beating my old PB by about 1.5 minutes. Was pretty happy with the race, and my legs felt decent.
Got in a good walk around part of the lake on the way to the train station, and stopped for lunch at a little place selling kama meishi which I enjoyed while looking at the lake.
Overall a good race, although a bit far. Would be nice to go up there and stay with the family before and/or after.

Post-Suwako Recovery (?!) Week

Thought this would be a really easy week, but my legs recovered faster than expected, and so I got in some good workouts.
Mon: Rest
Tue: Bike 33k (Had some issues with my rear hub after having just replaced the bearings along with my chain, sprockets, and front bearings)
Wed: 1hr Run home in the Ultra liners. Legs felt quite good.
Thu: 1 hr run home in the ultras. Ran pretty hard for a while.
Fri: Picked up the bike and went out for about 42k along the Arakawa. Got my butt kicked riding back against the wind - good workout!
Sat: 23k/1:50:49/4:50/119/Ultra liners. Wanted to go out for about two hours. Was a good workout, ran pretty hard for part of it. First time measuring my HR in a long time, and was surprised how low it was. What a difference cool weather makes!
Sun: Bike 33k

Last Week Before Suwako HM

Mon: Zoom Streaks. Took the long way home from work along the Arakawa. Really beautiful night for a run. Let me legs loosen up a bit and then pushed for 6-7k. Right hamstring was a bit sore now and then, so had to back off, but otherwise felt good.
Tue: Rest?
Wed: Ultras. Easy run home along the Sumidagawa.
Thu: Bike 33k. First ride with the new Sidi dominators! A bit surprised at having sore feet, but I guess they need to be broken in a bit.
Fri: Rest.
Sat: Suwako HM (see separate post)
Sun: Rest.

Recovery from Arakawa 30k

Legs a bit stiff, but did get in a nice cold bath after the race. Achilles feeling 'fine', which is good!
Sun/Mon Rest
Tue/Wed Bike 33k
Thu: Ultras. Easy run home from work. Right hamstring still a bit tight, which was making me wonder if I should have waited another day, but iced it when I got home, and feels fine now.
Fri: Better run home, legs felt decent. Tried running in the Ultra liners (only) for the first time. Was worried about tightness, but they were fine. Just like running barefoot, but no worry about what I step in/on. Will definitely be getting more use out of them!
Sat: Easy 30 min down the Arakawa, then 10X150-200m hard and then 30m back. Felt good to get in some speed work on the grass in bare feet. Also the first time running in the KSOs in a long time, and they felt ok, but I don't love them any more than I used to.
Sun: Rest.

Arakawa 30K 2:04:25, 39th

I went into this with pretty low confidence after my run in the ekiden in September, and after I couldn't do the full three intervals at race pace I had intended to the weekend before. I was also nervous, as I always am before races, and had trouble sleeping the two nights before the race.
My plan was just to go out a bit behind the 4:15 pacer, and then try to catch up with him by the middle and through the end of the race. I figured if I could average that pace, there would at least be a chance I could run 3hrs at Tsukuba.
Conditions were almost perfect, if only slightly hot. There was only a light wind, which felt great, and actually, the overpass gave us shade for over half the race. There were more people than I anticipated, and good facilities, etc, although I did not need them because it was so close to home.
I tried some new stuff for this race. First, I decided to try making my own energy gels. Found a recipe on the net which was very simple: honey, molasses and salt. We didn't have molasses, so I dissolved some of the kurosato that we got from kagoshima in some warm honey, and then added salt. All very random measurements. I put the mix into some 100 yen travel shampoo containers. I also decided I would wear my belt that holds a water bottle and put the gels in the pocket.
The night before I decided to make a shake for breakfast: bananas, a raw egg, yogurt, mueslix, almonds, soy milk. It sat a little heavy just before the race, but did not actually bother me when I was running.
Decided to run in the XC Zoom Streaks, because I knew my feet would take a beating from running hard, and didn't want any issues. They worked just fine.
I did about 15-20 min easy warm up run, some exercises to loosen up as well. Got to the line early to be up front, and many of the guys up front ogled at me, probably incorrectly assuming that I was going to try to win the race or something.

Me and Sky Tree!

When we took off, I started out in front of the 4:15 pacer, and actually stayed in front. I could hear them right behind me for a while, but I slowly moved further away from them. The pace felt comfortable, so I figured I would stick with it. I stuck with one guy for most of the race, which was helpful in some way, because we would work off each other. I felt good during pretty much the whole race, and when we got to the 20k mark, I decided to start to go and welcome the pain. I moved up slowly and had a good 5k. I started to feel tired and a bit frustrated as a 4-5 guys passed me with about 6k left. But then the number 1 woman caught up to us, and I decided I was going to stick with or ahead of her. That was the motivation I needed and I started to work harder. I got a stitch in my side for a little bit, but it soon went away. A new number 1 woman zoomed by, and I new I wasn't going to catch her.
At 29k I tried to push and when I saw the finish line, I gave it everything I had left. When I crossed the finish line, I actually choked up a bit, I guess because that last 1k was tough. Miho was there with the boys, and that made me choke up some more. Yeah for having family at the finish line!
My 5k splits: 20:38/20:58/20:53/20:43/20:44/20:27. Pretty much what I was going for in terms of negative splits. If I hadn't pushed the last 10k, I think I had enough in me to keep it up for another 12k, but I guess we'll find out soon.
As always, I wonder if I could have pushed myself more. I also wonder how I will fare if conditions are not so favorable. Anyway, it was an enjoyable and confidence-building race, and having it so close to home was a bonus.
Now, I just need to maintain until Suwako HM in two weeks!

The last week before Arakawa 30K

Decided just to forget about HR, pace etc. for the week (or indefinitely?). Just running.
Sun: Nice barefoot run along the Sumidagawa near home, legs and feet felt good.
Mon: Bike 33k.
Tue: Ran home along the Sumidagawa, and decided after warming up that I wanted to do a hard run, so that's what I did, and it felt good. Ultras?
Wed: Rest.
Thu: Easy, slow run home. Was a little nervous about whether I should be resting three days before my race, but it was too nice of a night not to run...
Fri: Rest.
Sat: Arakawa 30k (see separate post).

Needing a Fresh Start Again

After taking five days off for the second time this month, I went for a slow run on Monday and ended up doing a lot of thinking. I was frustrated by being injured even though I thought I was being careful with Maffetone, and I was frustrated by my performance at the ekiden.
What I started to think about is how much I have gotten attached both to the idea of being a fast runner and the ambition of running races in certain times. I don't think it's a bad thing to want to run fast, and it seems like a natural conclusion for someone who runs a lot, but I do think there is the danger of getting too serious and too attached. The body can only handle so much, especially as a new runner, and while I think my training over the past 4-5 months has been reasonable, I also feel like some of my attachment to my goals has added stress to what in theory should be a stress relieving activity. I also wonder if it is related to some of my anger and aggression lately.
I started thinking about the way that Taiyo runs, how carefree he is, and how much fun he has when he does it. I was thinking that he needs to learn how to run from me, but maybe it is the other way around.
I'm not abandoning Maffetone or running, of course, but I'm going to back off a bit. I'll still monitor my HR, etc. when I run, but I won't check it until after my run is finished. I'll also try some other variety, especially that makes my legs go a bit faster, as I'd still like to hit that 3:00 goal in Tsukuba.
I've also started some exercises that I've gotten through Running Times, good warm up stuff and fun stuff with circuit workouts. There's no doubt it would help me to other general strength work, and I think it should be a good fit.
Mon: 1:14/126/Zoom Streak. I've started just including the warm up and cool down. I'll have the watch going whenever I am actually running.
Tue: 1:08/126/Ultra
Wed: 1:08/135/Ultra. Had a bit fun for the last couple of hundred meters and ran hard.
Thu: Circuit workout! 4X500m with exercises in between. Shot for marathon pace, but was a little fast. Not too tough, will try to do two circuits next time I do this.
Fri: 1:27:50/18.7/145/MWU4 Had the day off, so after teaching at the day care, went out for a hard workout. I planned to do 3X5k at marathon pace with 2k easy in between each interval. I was running right in the middle of the day, and it ended up being a hot one, so I got through second interval and decided I was done. I did the intervals relatively fast: 4:03 pace for the first one, 4:15 for the second, but was a little discouraged that I didn't get through the third one. I was pretty wasted, though, and the shoes are really too small for my left foot, so I ended up walking back about 6k, about half of that barefoot.

Aerobic Base training Week 18 - Injured!

Weight: 180 Body Fat: 15.3
Haven't seen 180 in a long time! What a shocker to see that my weight increased after coming back from the US! Not so much of shock, I guess, as my eating habits have gone a bit down the tubes. Now the long, slow road to getting that weight down again in time for Tsukuba.

Sun: 1:00/BF. Garmin battery died, but know this was about the time, and I ran about 12k. A good run considering it was the day after a race and I haven't done any BF lately. I went out in the huaraches, but took them off right away, as I haven't worn them in a while, and could tell they were going to bother the space between my toes, especially as I had to redo the knots on both feet recently. Achilles still tender to the touch, but doesn't bother me at all when I run.
Mon: 1:03:47/142/Zoom Streak XC. Slightly cooler run along the Arakawa home from work. Felt solid with a decent pace, and the Suunto was working better after re-syncing it with the belt.
Tue: 50:03/142/Zoom Streak XC. Finally a cool run! Typhoons blowing through, so cool breeze and rain. Hamstrings tight at first, but loosened up and felt pretty good.
Wed-Sat: Off. Felt like I needed to rest my achilles with five days completely off. My back has still been bothering me, too. What is going on?!

Total time: 2:53:03

Aerobic Base Training Week 14 - Injured!

I'm quite behind on the blog, so have very little recollection of this week. Let's see what I can piece together. I believe this is the week I took off for the most part because of my tender right achilles.

Sun: Rest.
Mon: 50:01/10.5/4:43/141
Tue: Bike?
Wed: ?
Thu?
Fri: Run with no watch?
Sat: Rest

Aerobic Base Training Week 17

Weight: 179.2 Body Fat: 16.1%
This is a bit ugly, but expected after bingeing on beer and sweet foot in the US. Having to lose the weight again is a drag, but trying to get back out of the bad eating habits is even harder...

Sun: 56:22/139/BF. Meant to run in the Ultras, but the blister on my achilles was sore, so just decided to go BF. It was a nice run, did get a little sore on the bottom of my right foot, but iced it when I got home, and was fine the next day.
Mon: 50:14/9.4/5:01/142/Ultra. Tough adapting to the heat again, and my legs feel a bit tight overall.
Tue: 53:10/10.7/4:57/143/Zoom XC. Legs still feeling tired, but a pretty good run overall.
Wed: Rest. Meant to bike, but something wrong with the bike, so took the train in.
Thu: 52:37/145/Ultra. Something has been going wrong with my Suunto HRM, it won't link well to the belt. It was off for the majority of this run, so I know that average is wrong. This was a bit of a tough run, it was a very hot morning, and my legs were pretty tired. Probably not a great decision to go this long or hard two days before a race, but live and learn I guess.
Fri: Rest.
Sat: Saista Ekiden (see separate post). 19:45/MWU 4

Total time: 3:32:23. Probably should have been less for fresher legs on race day...

A hole in the Ultras

Unfortunately this is after only about three months of use, and only on roads. The wear is much worse on the left foot, which is always the case with the VBs for me. Luckily, they are great with customer service, and will be sending me a new pair. Hopefully they will last longer!

Aerobic Base Training Week 16

Sun: 1:12:38/15.2/4:46/142/Ultra. Run home from Kittery after some shopping. Nice, but hot, so hard to keep HR down without going pretty slow.
Mon: Rest.
Tue: 1:40:23/18.2/5:28/XC Zoom. Another run out and around Agamenticus. Almost ate shit a few times on the technical stuff. HRM was beeping at me to go faster on the downhills, but I couldn't without risking taking a fall. Great pace on the last road section, the cooler weather allowed me to run hard without making  my HR go up too much.
Wed: Rest. My last full day in the US, so decided to make it a smoky day instead of running...
Thu: Rest for travel.
Fri: Lost a day to travel.
Sat: 1:25:27/144/MWU4. Good, but hot run in the morning. Got a blister on my achilles from the MWUs.

Total time: 4:18:28

Aerobic Base Training Week 15

Recovering after the achilles issue, and a trip to America with Taiyo.

Sun: Bike about 50k up the Arakawa.
Mon: 51:43/137. Recovery run.
Tue: 45 min? Run with no watch. Travel to America!
Wed: 1:00/12.5/4:47/144/Ultra. A nice run home after going to chemo with Diane. Hotter than expected, but really beautiful along the ocean in York.
Thu: 59:53/12.7/4:42/141/ Luna. Run from Dad's to Erin's. Great BF run along Ogunquit Beach.
Fri: Rest.
Sat: 2:03:14/21.5/5:37/140/Zoom XC. A great run out to Aggie and around the reservoir and then up the mountain. Loved the single track, although quite technical. Nice skinny dip in the reservoir as well!

Total time: 5:39:40. Good return after last week. Achilles still tender to the touch, but doesn't really hurt when running except on some of the trail stuff.

Aerobic Base Training Week 13 - Injured!

Weight: 78.2/Body Fat %: 14.0 This is after resting for most of the week.

Sun: Rest. A full day at KidZania with Taiyo, and work after that. Actually woke up at 5:00 for a run, but just couldn't pull it off and went back to bed. Will do my best to run each of the remaining days this week...
Mon: Good run in cool weather. Getting strange pace readings from the Garmin, but that's nothing new really. Tried to keep my HR under the max as much as possible.
Tue: Rest. Tweaked my back in the morning getting up off the floor. I think it's a combination of being stressed, overtired, not doing my back exercises enough, and maybe also hitting my head really hard in a public bathroom on the run home last night. Went to the osteopath today, hopefully things will feel better tomorrow.
Also have been having an issue with my right achilles, which I guess just started to flare up after yesterday's run. Really strange, as I haven't changed my training in a long time, although I have been trying to speed up with the slightly cooler weather. Feels tender to touch it, which is worrying.
Wed: Bike 33k. Back better enough to bike, but achilles tender.
Thu: Bike 33k. Same.
Fri: Tried to run before work, but immediately felt the tenderness in my achilles so decided to walk for an hour instead. Walked BF for half of it and ended up getting blisters on both heels?!
Sat: Rest.

Aerobic Base Training Week 12

Weight 77.8/Body Fat %: 14.9/RHR 42

Sun: Rest
Mon: 48:28/144/Ultra. My first time running in the morning in a while, and in insanely hot conditions, was very hard to mak e the HRM stop beeping even at what seemed like very slow pace.
Tue: 50/141/Zoom XC. Another hot run at night. Used the Garmin but something very off, as it recorded my first 5k in 19 min, which I know wasn't even close to right...
Wed: 1:04:04/142. A good long run home along the Arakawa.
Thu: Bike 33k.
Fri: 1:30/20/4:28/143/Ultra. Was a bit hard to get out the door for this, it was rainy and cool, which I was thrilled about, but I was in sort of a funk with having the day off at home alone and just not knowing what to do with myself. Was really glad I got out there, and happy with my pace over this distance, considering I aven't really done a long run in a while. My last 5k was over a minute slower than my first 5k, which is a bit puzzling, and I spent what felt like quite a bit of time over my MAF.
Sat: Rest. Meant to run, but poor planning with Miho's friend visiting and her late yoga class.

Total time: 4:12:32. Meant to be an off week, but not quite this off. Will try to make up for it next week.

Aerobic Base Training Week 11

Weight: 77.4 Body Fat 14.6%
Ok, well I realize that in fact the scale I use at home does not measure BMI, but rather, body fat percentage, I think. So, I'm basically back where I started. I'm sure it's not super accurate, and I guess I don't need to worry about it much, but I do wish it were lower...

Sun: 1:08:13/142/Ultra/2/Neutral. The long run home along the Arakawa in crazy heat and humidity. Started right off with a cramp under my rib cage on the left, and it slowly worked its way down to my intestines during the run, not very pleasant. A nice north breeze kicked in towards the end of the run, which made things a bit more bearable, but I still had to go quite slow to stay within my MAF.
Mon: 1:00:17/141/Ultra/2/Neutral. This was a bit shorter than yesterday, but somehow felt tougher. Still very hot and humid, and my legs were beat. I also wore my Tokyo Marathon shirt, which is super uncomfortable, won't make that mistake again. No stomach pains while running, but did get them after I got home, hopefully something that will go away soon.
Tue: 50:50/142/XC Zoom. Can't remember much about this run home from work but I know it was hot!
Wed: 50:37/142/Ultra. My last run at the club. Was good and hard with a solid 20-25 minutes of climbing, up to 12% gradient at most. I'll miss getting hill workouts on the treadmills!
Thu: Bike 33k.
Fri: 56:54/142/Ultra. Insanely hot run, probably over 30 degrees C. Needless to say the pace was very slow.
Sat: 1:12:02/15.2/4:43/143/MWV 4. A nice evening run, but still pretty damn hot. Thought I was getting a better pace, but I guess this is decent for this kind of heat.

Total time: 5:58:53. Doh! Was sure this was over 6 hours, but just missed it. Will still back off a bit for a rest this week.

Aerobic Base Training Week 10

Weight: 177.6 BMI 15.1
Did a little reading about BMI today, and sort of knew that it was not the same as fat percentage, but confirmed that thought. Found an interesting equation using BMI to calculate body fat, and I came out at about 10%, which I think may be conservative, so I'm happy with that.

Sun: 1:00/13.4/4:28/142/MWU4/3/Confidence Up. Good to have some cool weather for another strong run, especially after running hard yesterday. Happy with the shoes again on this second run, although I am a little worried about what will happen with my big toe on my left foot in a marathon.
Mon: 50:03/137/Luna/3. Needed a slow run, so this felt good. Feet were fine in the Lunas, but the leather is still delaminating from the sole.
Tue: Rest. Sick boy.
Wed: 1:25:13/141/Ultra. I had a late start to work, so decided to go for a run in the morning, and then ride to work on my bike afterwards, and count the workout on the ride in and on the ride home. Was my first time riding after running, and my calves were a bit tight at first, but overall was ok.
Thu: 1:11:13/142/Ultra/3/Confidence up. My first time doing the run along the Arakawa home from work in a long time, and my legs were a bit tired, but overall it was a good run with a decent pace.
Fri: 49/141/Ultra. Running on the treadmill at TAC. Ran normal for the first five minutes or so, then slowly increased the gradient up to 12%, so a good hill workout, the best part of running on the treadmill. Got in some good core work with the weights as well.
Sat: Rest. Got busy with family stuff and went to the club.

Total time: 5:15:29. Meant to get over 6 hours, but didn't work out...

MAF Test 2!

Much more time elapsed between these tests than I originally planned, but such is life, especially when I am working more late shifts these days. I realized this time though that I could actually go straight after dropping the boys off over to the track and do it before work, which actually worked out fine time wise.

Conditions were quite different than last time: the track was less crowded, it was much hotter and more humid, it was early in the day as opposed to the evening. I did run barefoot again, and I decided to to 400m easy in between each 1k. Still don't know what the 'proper' way is to do it in terms of rest, but I figure if I'm consistent it all works out. 

Here are the results:

Lap    Time    AV HR
1        4:22     147
2        4:34     143
3        4:33     143
4        4:35     143
5        4:35     143 (Forgot to save and clear between 4-5, so split the difference)
6        4:34     143
7        4:35     143
8        4:35     1:43

Just looked back at my first test in early June, and the times were 4:10-4:22. I knew this time was slower, but I didn't realize it was that different. I have to attribute it to the heat and humidity, because I don't think I am in worse shape than I was then. I hope that I have improved, but I really doubt I've lost any conditioning.
Obviously I went out way too hard on the first one, and on the others as well I was more above the MAR than below, but it still averaged out to 143, so I guess it counts. Much more consistent times than last time, whatever that means. According to the Big Book, these times equate to around a 18:30 5k, which I think is probably accurate. I've got about six weeks to build up my conditioning before the Saitama ekiden (assuming I find people to run with me...) and would really love to run that under 18:00.

Aerobic Base Training Week 9

Weight: 78 BMI: 14.4
A weekend of heavy eating shows clearly. At least my BMI didn't go up again...

Sun: 1:02:07/12.4/5:00/143/Ultra/3+/Confidence up. Woke up at 5:30 for this run in the mountains during our camping trip. All road running, unfortunately, be very beautiful and fun. Ran all downhill at first, and so did my first 5k in just 20:40! Then got to climb up the stairs along the Naramata dam, which was really interesting. Climbed a hill as well, and got up to 1007 meters for a total elevation gain of 343 meters. As always, it made me wish I had a lot more opportunities to run in places like this.
Mon: 58/143/Ultra/3/Confidence up. Another run on the 'dreadmill' at the club. It was interesting again, I ran in shoes because they asked me to last time. Ran hard on flat for about 20 min, then climbed for another 20, up to 10% grade, and then finished with flat running again. Good pace on the flat, and I was plenty beat at the end. I always feel bad for whoever has to clean up my sweat...
Tue: 50:11/143/XC Zoom/1/Confidence down. This should not have been a tough run, it didn't feel that hot out when I started and there was a nice breeze. But my HRM started beeping quite early in the run, despite not feeling like I was running hard, and the same issue continued for most of the run. I played around with nose breathing to see if it made a difference, and it did seem that my HR went up more easily with just nose breathing, although the difference was probably slight. I guess the runs on the past two days were relatively tough, and so my body needed to take it easy.
Wed: 55/BF/MAF Test 2 (see separate post)
Thu: bike 33k
Fri: 50:26/142/Ultra Don't really remember the details of this run home from work, except that it was pretty warm as usual.
Sat: 1:20/17.5/4:32/Ultra/3/Confidence Up. A nice run along the river out in Chiba. We showed up a Reina's house and there was a festival going on across the street, so I almost gave up on running to join in on the festivities, but I made it past that temptation, and was glad I did. It was a pretty cool afternoon with a nice breeze, and boy did that make a difference! Such a nice place to run with all of the sounds of summer. The gravel was pretty hard on my feet in the Ultras, but after I got through that I was fine, and it felt good to be running fairly hard, be nose breathing, and still have my HR stay steady.

Total time: 5:55:44. So close to six hours! A good week overall. Was thinking today that I'd like to get this up to close to 8 hours during my hardest training in late October.

Aerobic Base Training Week 8

Weight: 76.6 BMI: 14.9 Man it's frustrating that I fluctuate just a little in my diet and have such an increase in weight and BMI. Got to stay disciplined, I guess...
RHR: 40. This was a bit of surprise, as I took it after the boys were up and playing in the other room, so I thought it would be hard to relax enough to get a good reading. Hopefully it being a bit lower than last time is a good sign, although it may be related to the fact that I used the Suunto this time and the Garmin last time, although it shouldn't...

Sun: 55:06/141/BF/3/Confidence up. This was a run on a treadmill at the TAC. It was my first time doing a serious run on a treadmill and was pretty interesting. I was able to regulate the speed and grade of the machine easily, so did some uphill stuff as well. Really felt like I was booking for most of it, and my speed topped out at 13.6 kph, which works out to about a 4:25 pace. Definitely the fastest I've run BF for any extended period of time. I did feel a bit conspicuous, and was disappointed when the manager spoke to me afterwards about their shoes rule. I would expect that at a Japanese gym, but not at an American gym. Poor guy had to clean up some serious sweat, too.
Mon: 1:00:47/143/MWU4/2/Confidence down. My first run it the new MWU4s! I was worried at first because the heel cup is a bit intense, and my big toe on my left foot was touching the top of the front part of the shoe, but it turns out that running in them was much better than walking in them. That big toe does feel slightly bruised now, which is of concern after such a short run since these are intended to be my marathon shoe. Hopefully they will stretch out a bit. This run was frustrating again in how slow my pace was. I didn't use the Garmin, but did check my pace various times, and although it started out around 4:45, it got progressively slower to around 5:00. I thought it was the headwind at first, but didn't seem to change when I turned around. I also played with nose breathing for a few kms, and it was interesting, but I wonder if there is any real benefit to it. I really hope the pace is connected mainly to the heat and humidity!
Tue: Wed: 57:07/142/Ultras/2/Confidence down. Another hard run in the heat and humidity. My legs were feeling a bit tired from four consecutive days of running, especially a little stiffness in my right calf. Felt like I was working really hard, but was probably barely keeping a 4:45 pace, and even that was setting off the HRM alarm a lot. I did manage to do nose breathing for pretty much the whole run, which was challenging and a little frustrating at times. The Ultras felt good.
Wed: 54:58/142/Ultra/3/Confidence up. I read a timely article in Running Times today about what a strong effect heat and humidity has on your running performance and heart rate. And as if to reiterate, this run home was in much cooler and less humid weather, and although it was the exact same run as yesterday, it was over two minutes faster, and felt much easier, even with nose breathing.
Thu: Bike 33k. Miho's b-day!
Fri/Sat. Rest. Family camping!

Total time: 3:47:11. Was hoping to get in a bigger week, but summer vacation came and so be it!

Aerobic Base Training Week 7

Weight: 76.6 BMI: 14.1
Weighed in at 75.6 at my health check last week, so don't know if our scale is a bit heavy, or if I was just a bit dehydrated that day...

Sun: 1:10:25/143/Ultra. Almost bailed on this Sunday evening run after having friends over for lunch, but glad I didn't. Was a hot but nice evening, went out along the Arakawa with the intention of going as hard as possible within my MAR. Pretty stiff headwind going out, but also got a nice push on the way home. Bottom of right foot was a little sore at the end, but otherwise a good run.
Mon: Bike 33k
Tue: 41:11/141/BF/1/Conifdence Down. This was supposed to be an easy barefoot run along the Sumidagawa running path before going in to work. My legs were stiff from the beginning, but then got better, but the issue is that I started to get blisters in the middle of both feet, despite that I didn't feel like I was going that hard. I cut the run short to be cautious, but it didn't end up helping much, as I spent the rest of the day working up in Kashiwa and climbing a ladder in tabi many times, so by the end of the day, both feet were really screwed!
Wed: Bike 33k. Blisters really painful!
Thu: Bike 33k. Blisters better, but still hurt.
Fri: Rest. Had teaching in the morning, and then it was too hot to run. Couldn't time it right, so decided to take the day off.
Sat: 1:34:06/18.5/5:03/143/Zoom XC/2/Confidence down. This was supposed to be a faster long run, as I rested the day before and hadn't run since Tuesday. But my legs were stiff from the beginning, and the damn HRM wouldn't stop beeping. I have to attribute it to the heat and humidity, which were both intense, even at 8:30 a.m. Ran in my new Mizuno singlet and shorts, and was pretty happy with those, at least.

Total time: 3:25:42. I was thinking it was probably a good week to back off, and that's the way it worked out. I'll hope for better next week...

Aerobic Base Training Week 6

Weight: 76.4  BMI: 14.1 RHR 42
Used my Garmin for RHR this time, and don't know if it is related, but it was high for a while 45-50. I had to consciously relax and breathe to get it down to 42. I don't know if that is the most accurate way to do it or not...

Sun: 1:29:51/19/4:44/142/Ultras/3/Confidence up. Another good Sunday run. Got up at 6:00 a.m. for this one before working on the farm in Kashiwa, and it was already blazing hot when I got out the door at 6:30. Went to the 21k mark on the Arakawa and did 10 downhill repeats, which accounts for the slower average pace. It is a bit too short of a hill, but it was interesting anyway. Was a little tired on the way back, but not bad. Then really got my butt kicked with a full day of manual labor out in the hot sun!
Mon: Rest. A day with the boys!
Tue: 53:23/142/Ultras/3/Confidence up. What a difference a full day of rest makes! Worked pretty hard to stay at my MAR during this run, and am pretty confident I was keeping around a 4:30 pace. Wish I had more varied terrain and more hills to run on, but it was a good summer night run anyway.
Wed: Rest, but again not really. Hard work at the farm, very physical, so decided to forego the run.
Thu: 43:35/138/Ultra/2/Confidence up. This was a recovery run, recovery both from the previous day's manual labor, and from my health check and swallowing all that barium. Just took it easy, and did not try to to hit my MAR.
Fri: 54:20/142/Lunas/2/Confidence up. My first hard run all the way home in the lunas. Overall, it went quite well, I was really pushing to hit my MAR through a lot of it. My feet felt fine, and only slight irritation between my toes in the right foot (last time it was the left). I also felt a little irritation in my left foot outside, the ball, and I wonder if it is because it is a bit loose for some reason. I did the cool down BF, and was a bit shocked to see that the leather on both shoes was starting to delaminate slightly.
Sat: 1:00/12k/5:00/143/BF/2. This was definitely a recovery run. I was pretty beat from running hard home the day before, but was pretty happy that I could go out BF after that. Ran mostly on grass, and did try to take it easy, but my HR kept going up, despite that I was taking it easy. It was at least partly because it was super hot!

Total time: 5:01:09. A solid week, good to get over 5 hrs finally, although mileage probably still not very high. Don't really need to start a build up until late August, so should be fine for now. May need to actually consider taking a light week soon?

Aerobic Base Training Week 5

Weight 76ish BMI 14.1
Sun: 1:40/22.2/4:30/143/Ultra/3/Confidence Up. What a difference one day off makes. Got up at the normal time and headed out the door by about 8:30. Nice cloudy, cool day and great for running. I tried the ultras with socks and they worked great, no feet issues at all. Pace felt good the whole way, but did start to slow for the final few km, and got a slight cramp in my stomach. One bathroom break, but otherwise no issues. If only I could have great runs like this every week!
Mon: Bike 33K Didn't keep track of HR
Tue: 45:59/142/BF Waited to long to record this run, so don't really remember it, but pretty sure it was partly in the Lunas and then the rest BF.
Wed: 54:31/142/Ultras. Can't really remember this one either...
Thu: Rest. Went out to work on the new project in Kashiwa, so it wasn't really rest! Then went out drinking...
Fri: 50:32/140/Ultras. Stiff legs from working the day before.
Sat: Rest. Went out to Chiba to Miho's family and planned on running, but decided to be social and run the next day instead.

Total time: 4:11:02. Keep intending to try get in six days, but rarely getting in more than four. Will not stress about it, as I'm still building my base and don't really need to intensify things until after the summer.

Aerobic Base Training Week 4

Weight: 75.8 BMI 14.5% RHR 142
Just completed six days of the Maffetone two week test (two weeks of not eating any carbs). Decided to back off and allow myself to eat a little rice and such because it was having a negative affect on my mood. Am still working on not eating wheat at all to see if it helps my skin at all, and trying to cut back on the carbs in general. But am a bit sick of meat at this point, so trying to limit it to once a day.

Sun: 34:51/141/BF/3/Confidence up. Love this run around the loop in Shiori. Legs were a bit stiff to start off with, but felt better after a while, and had fun trying to regulate my HR while going up and down the hill. BF felt great, too.
Mon: Bike 33k, didn't track HR.
Tue: 52:33/141/BF/3/Confidence up. Got my new Luna Huaraches, so wore them to work with the intention of running home in them. The lace in front was a bit harsh between my toes, so I decided to just wear them for my warm up, and then went BF from there. This was my first time doing the run home from work BF, and was a little worried about doing it in the dark and on a lot of different surfaces, but it went great! It was also really interesting that while my pace slowed down on some of the rougher surfaces, I still maintained my HR, partly because I was worried about stepping on stuff and because I was quickening my pace with shorter stride.
Wed: 59:26/141/Ultra/1/Confidence down. Bit of a tough run home along the Arakawa, and had issues both with the shoes and my GI tract. My feet don't like the ultras so much when it is humid and they are sweaty, so I'll need to try with socks next time. My gut is really screwed from what I've been doing with my diet, and it all seemed to come out during my run home.
Thu: Bike 33k 37:28/140 Tracked HR during the ride to work and home.
Fri: 1:01/142/BF/2/Confidence up. Ran a bit further in my huaraches for this and they felt pretty good, but then took them off and did most of the run BF. Was good, but I was pushing myself a bit too much so my HR kept going over the limit, which also resulted in me getting a couple slightly sore spots on my right foot. I like tracking HR, because it really is a good indicator of when I'm going too hard, even though I don't alway listen...
Sat: Rest. Decided I just needed a day to chill with the family and it felt good.

Total time: 4:05:18. Decided to include my bike time when I am tracking aerobic training.

Up and Down Maruyama Mountain

I got a rare day off on Friday with the kids at day care and Miho at work, so I decided to get up into the mountains. I had some hiking maps put out by the Seibu Ikebukuro line that I got at Tokyu Hands a few years ago, so I flipped through those and chose one that seemed good in terms of train time, distance, and overall difficulty. Turns out, it was the same place I had been hiking with a friend a few years ago, before I was into running; the station name is Ashigakubo, it was about two hours away.

The first 1-2 km were on road, which was not so interesting, but was a good chance to get in a warm up. Once I hit the turn off for the trail, I was at a slow jog, but had to immediately get back to walking because it got steep fast. I had intentionally chosen the steep way up the circuit because I wanted the longer sloping downhill. This was the same way that Scott and I had hiked it, so I had some recollection of how tough it was. The first half wasn't bad, with a few flat spots and descents where I could get in some jogging, and the trail quickly got away from the road so it was pretty peaceful. The second half of the climb was really steep, which allowed me to walk and enjoy the scenery, although I was still over my aerobic HR for most of it, and I was feeling it a bit in my calves.

I got to the top in just about 45 minutes, which was pretty good; unfortunately, it was totally socked in with fog, so there was no view whatsoever. It didn't matter, though, because that was where the fun really began. I started to get going downhill, and had insane fun. All my recollections of hiking downhill was that it was slow and tedious and hurt my knees. But now I was in light shoes (I was quite happy with my Nike XC Zooms for this, but did have to tighten the laces to avoid jamming my toes), and literally flying down the mountain. There were some really steep sections with loose rocks or slippery dirt, and I had to slow it down, but otherwise, I was running as fast as I could with a nice short and fast stride. Hitting banking turns, jumping for some air a few times, and having more fun than I have ever had running. Hell, more fun than I remember having in general in a long time. It reminded me both of surfing and of the mountain biking I used to do in college. I felt fast and wild and free!

It ended fast, and I was out on some road, but with plenty of time, so I decided to hit another small mountain nearby on the advice of a local guy. He said it would take about 30 minutes to climb, but I'm sure it took less than that to go up and come back down again. I also went to this cool little park that had a super long roller slide, took a video going down it to show Taiyo. Will definitely have to bring the family back there, as the river near the station would be great for swimming in the summer, and there are some places to pick fruit, and onsens as well.

Overall I did about 13k total, according to Runkeeper on my iPhone. My legs were a little sore, but overall I felt great. Unfortunately, I couldn't run again for five full days afterwards because of serious pain in my quads that made it really difficult to even walk up and down stairs, never mind run. I did do my normal 15 min warm up and cool down, but probably should have done more, and probably should have taken it a little easier going up and down.

Aerobic Base Training Week 3

Got some good ideas from Matt Fitzgerald's book Running by Feel about rating workouts in terms of increasing/decreasing confidence, and measuring enjoyment. I think it makes a lot of sense to judge training on how it makes you feel and how fun it is, instead of just the technical metrics. So I'll add to that to each of my workouts: confidence up/down and 1-3 on the enjoyment scale, 1 being not so enjoyable, 2 neutral, 3 enjoyable.
Sun: Bike 33k. My legs were still in a lot of pain from the trail run on Friday, but I had the genius idea that biking to work would help me loosen up. And then of course I decided I had to try to make part of it an aerobic workout so pushed myself. Needless to say, I could barely go up and down stairs for the next three days because of my quads.
Mon-Tue Rest due to serious quad pain.
Wed: Bike 33k Quads still a bit sore, so took it very easy.
Thu: 42:49/144/XC/3/Confidence up Zoom My first time using the new HRM for the Garmin. Seems to work fine, but I didn't know how to set up the alarm yet, so was doing it by looking, and running to fast for most of it. Legs feel much better. Gave this a 3 rating because I was so happy to be running again.
Fri: 30:06/143/Ultra/3/Confidence up. Got my new Ultras from Vivobarefoot! Was pretty worried that they would be too small, and they are with the sock liners, but they fit great without them. They are a super neat design, especially the way the sock liner and extra tongue use hexagon rubber nubs to keep them in place. This first run in them was great, didn't have much time so it was short, but I was happy.
Sat: 1:10/141/15.1k/4:39/Ultra/3/Confidence up. Another good run in the Ultras. Did have some rubbing issues on my heels and on top of my feet, so put on some vaseline before leaving. No issues with the heels when running, but did get some rubbing on the top of my right foot especially because I have to tighten that shoe more.

Total time: 2:22:55 Bad week, but ok considering I could barely walk for most of it and have eaten no carbs until Saturday.

Aerobic Base Training Week 2

I think I'll make some changes about how I enter information. I want to enter my weight, BMI, and RHR once a week, and Monday seems like a good day to do that, so I'll start making my weeks go from Monday to Sunday instead of Sunday to Saturday. Also, I'm going to try to get in the routine of making Monday my day off, as it will be a good way to recover from long runs over the weekend, and because dealing with the boys' day care stuff on Monday is quite a hassle, so I want to be able to go in late without having to come home too late because of running. I think Maffetone's idea of figuring out where the controllable stress is in your life and doing your best to cut it out makes a lot of sense. Not that it's some kind of revolutionary idea or anything, but when applied to improving training, it is easier to get motivated.

Sun: 50:48/142/BF A beautiful afternoon after spending the day at an amusement park with the boys. Considered maybe taking the day off because of all that activity, but was easy enough to get out the door, so I did. Ran the loop around Shioiri park, and was really interesting because I had to slow myself down during the uphill and run faster during the downhill. Feet felt great, no blistering or abrasion at all. 

Mon: Weight: 76.8/BMI: 14.5 Couldn't get a good RHR because forgot part of the monitor, and by the time I was up to get it, could not really get into a fully rested state again. I suspect that part of this drop in weight may be at least partially due to dehydration, but we'll see. 

54:26/1:41/XC Zoom Run home from work along the Sumidagawa. Was a bit surprised at how slow I had to run to keep my HR down, but also found it really interesting that following my HR really forced me to run at the speed my body could handle. If I hadn't been following HR, I likely would have pushed myself harder and possibly hurt myself. As it was, I was having issues with the tightness in my right hamstring again, so I think tomorrow will be a good day to bike to work and not run.
Tue: RHR: 42. Couldn't get it below 50 in bed for some reason, but when I went in to sit on the toilet and really concentrated on relaxing, in particular long exhalations, it dropped down to 42.
Bike 45 km total, timed 36 min@140 BPM average. Got in a bit more than that on the ride home from work, but was a bit drunk, so decided not to count it...
Wed: 1:02/142/Evo. First time doing the run home along the Arakawa in a while. Was pretty interesting, as after the warm up, my pace was really slow, probably around 5:00, but after about 5-7k, I was pushing pretty hard to keep my HR up, and felt like I was running at 4:30 or faster, then had to slow down again after a while. Was a good workout, and may take the day off tomorrow in preparation for some good running over the weekend.
Thu: Bike 33k, no HR tracking.
Fri: Run up Maruyama (see separate post) 1:42/140/XC Zoom
Sat: Rest. Legs completely shot.

Total time: 4:29:14. Doesn't really mean anything yet because this is my first week just tracking time.

MAF Test 1

My first MAF test. I was looking forward to this, although it happened on a bit of a crazy day with work stuff. Got out to Oda field and it was incredibly packed with people. But I managed to score a locker, and just got out there and did my thing, trying not to get in the way of too many sprinters.
I did everything BF, which I was a little concerned about because Bob said the track was a bit rougher since being resurfaced, but in the end my feet were totally fine.
Took me a bit to figure out how to get my HRM to work in terms of tracking each 1000m interval, so I actually wrote each time down on a piece of paper each time, although it ended up being unnecessary.
I decided to make my max aerobic HR 143, and kept the lower limit 133
Here are the results

1. 4:10/140
2. 4:15/138
3. 4:19/139
4. 4:18/140
5. 4:17/140
6. 4:19/139
7. 4:17/140
8. 4:22/139

Obviously, it was bit tricky to actually keep my at that 143 average, will have to work on that. Also, didn't know how much rest to take between intervals, so I really didn't take any except to write down the time and reset my watch. Even that made my HR drop a bit, so I spend the first 100m or so getting it back up to speed. 

Will plan on doing this once a month, ideally under the same conditions. Overall I'm happy with the results, and would love to make this pace something I can do for long periods of time in a race. 

Aerobic Base Building Week 1

RHR 43 bmp
Weight: 78 kg
BMI 15%

Sun: Rest. Typhoon, and sore right hamstring and left calf. Deep into Maffetone reading.
Mon: 13/46/4:38? Total 75 minute workout, 15 min warm up/cool down as recommended, keeping HR under 125 (too high?) by starting and finishing with walking and doing some very slow running. During the actual run, I kept my HR between 130-141, obviously going under and over on several occasions as I get used to it. Conditions were tough, as the post-typhoon winds were quite strong and right in my face, which is why I was surprised at the (very loose) calculation of pace. I guess the good news is that even if it is quite a bit off, my pace at Max HR is not so much slower than what I was averaging before. Will do the MAF test on Wednesday at the track to find out more.
Pretty happy with the Suunto t3d. Light and not so difficult to use after reading the manual online several times. Never lost the signal during the run, which is nice. Not a great readout of saved data, but I won't be too focused on that for now. Probably inevitable that I buy the HRM kit for the Garmin as well.
Tue: Rest. Home with sick Sky and no chance to run.
Wed: MAF test: 1000X8 + warm up/cool down. 12K total? all BF
Thu: 15K/ 51:54/141/Neo A bit of a rainy and chilly run home from work along the Sumidagawa. Still trying to figure out how to log this new info. Decided I would log total mileage including warm up & cool down, but it will generally be an estimate, as I'm not using the Garmin yet. So distance/time/avg HR/shoe
Fri: Bike 33k. Used the HRM to see what it would be like and I went pretty much at the same speed I usually do, if anything I had to push a bit more to keep it up to speed.
Sat: 21/1:17:54/4:34/142/KSO Ok, this may get a bit confusing, but on longer run days on weekends, I'll keep track of my average pace as well. So this is total distance (with warm up/cool down)/running time/average pace (during running time)/HR/shoe.
It was a pretty good workout, and I'm happy with that pace for now. I had a bit of an unfortunate incident with not being able to get to a toilet in time, but won't get into details. Needless to say, it cut down on some of my running time. Otherwise, it was a beautiful day with a light breeze, and I didn't get any blisters from the KSOs, which is rare running at that pace for that distance.

Total mileage: 61k. A bit low, but I'm going to try to focus less on total mileage and more on time, although I'm not sure exactly how that will work.

Turning over a new leaf, again. Hello Maffetone!

Heard about the Phil Maffetone book, The Big Book of Training and Endurance, on the huaraches group. Didn't know much about it, but was buying some gifts for Erin on Amazon, and ended up buying some gifts for myself, too. I bought it, and two Matt Fitzgerald books, one about getting down to race weight, one about running by feel.
The books came the other day, and I had a forced day of rest due to a typhoon, and grabbed the Maffetone book, beastly as it was, to try out on the train. I got sucked into it right away, and have so far managed to plow my way through almost a quarter of its 500+ pages.
The gist of what I've gotten so far, other than that his approach is very holistic and all aspects of health need to be considered in training, is building an aerobic base. This involves using an HRM while running, and not going beyond your max heart rate, in other words, no speed work. Goes against what I've been doing recently, and while I have gained speed, I have not been happy with what's happening with my body in terms of injury, blisters, fatigue, and overall inconsistency.
So I'm giving it a go. I'm going to follow his recommendations for the next four months or so in anticipation of getting in some good races this fall. I want to run a 10k in September, a HM in October, and hopefully a sub 3:00 FM in November, probably Tsukuba.
I've still got a lot to get out of the book, nutrition, stress, injury etc. But I've got the gist of the aerobic base building for now, and I've already started. Will start to log the results today.

2000 km of Training Week 27: 362.7 to go

Sun: 21k/Zoom XC Started with a pretty good pace because I was chasing a guy for about 5k. Kept it steady for most of the run, but did get a bit tired at the end. No issues with the hamstring.
Mon: Bike 16k
Tue: Bike 16k
Wed: 15.4/1:08:10/4:25/XC Zoom Good hard run at a good pace. First time in a while.
Thu: 13.7/1:05:09/4:44/Neo Legs a bit tight/tired from yesterday, especially since only about 12 hrs between runs; recovery run.
Fri: Rest. Went to osteopath with back probs.
Sat: 21k/Neo Free run in terms of time, picked it up to relatively fast pace for second five k, and wanted to again for last five, but right foot a bit sore. Good pace overall.

Total mileage: 71.1km First decent week in a while. Who knows what's coming next...

2000 km of Training Week 26: 433.8 to go INJURED

Sun: Bike 33k
Mon: Walk 12k. Dealing with a pull in the outside of my right hamstring. I think it must be from the interval session on Saturday. Had the day off with everyone away, so I decided to take a long walk up the river to the hardware store. I bought a 17kg bag of potting soil and lugged that back on my back. A good workout, BF on the way, and KSOs on the way back.
Tue: Walk 8k. Tried the run home, but the leg was still bothering me, so I ended up walking most of it, then took the train from Asakusa.
Wed: Bike 33k.
Thu: Bike 33k.
Fri: 15/Zoom XC A nice early morning run. Didn't really pay attention to time. Had some stiffness in my right knee at the beginning, but that went away after getting warmed up. Kept an easy pace the whole time so didn't hurt the hamstring. Ran primarily in the grass along the river.
Sat: 18/BF Another free run in terms of time. Pretty slow at the beginning, but picked it up at the halfway point for a while because it felt good. Nice long BF run without any blister issues, mainly because I did most of it in the grass.

Total Mileage: 33K. Another weak week, but will try to start a build from next week.

2000 km of Training Week 25: 466.8 to go

Sun: 21.1 Kanuma Satsuki HM
Mon: bike 33k
Tue: Rest
Wed: Rest (planned to run, but came unprepared for cold rain, so bagged it)
Thu: 12.4/58:47/4:43/Evo This was harder than expected. Some pain in the right knee which was a surprise, but went away after was warmed up. Running in steady rain the whole time.
Sat: 15/BF 5k warm up followed by intervals: 1000 X 2, 500 X 6, 5k cool down. Intervals were good, but tough. Was barely running under 4:00 min pace for the 1000, about 3:40 for the 500. Feel out of shape. Feet were in rough shape for the cool down, so my form was crap.

Total Mileage: 48.5 That HM was harder on me than expected. Hopefully this coming week will be better.

Kanuma Satsuki HM

This was a race I found out a few months ago by chance on Runnet. For some reason I decided to invite Hiroshi, and he signed right up as well. It's a race I didn't know anything about, but it seemed like a good distance (HM) and not too much of a hassle to get to.
For about two weeks before race, I was trying to decide if I was going to go out hard, or just run with Hiroshi and go barefoot. This was partially due to the fact that I started to get ITBS in my right knee after doing a 100k week, and partly because I know that racing hard makes me anxious and screws up my stomach, which is a hassle.
I still couldn't decide the day before the race, so I brought shoes and figured I would decide when I arrived. I ended up going with Taiyo because Chikako said she would watch him with their girls while we were running. They missed their train in the morning, so Taiyo and I ended up going ahead. It was a really long ride with a crowded train, and it was a bit of a haul from the train station as well. When we got to the site, I decided to leave my fate in Taiyo's hands. I asked him if I should run with shoes or no shoes, and he responded immediately, 'no shoes'. In any case, Hiroshi and family were too late for us to get a good place at the start, and I had no time to warm up.
When they did arrive, there was only about 20 minutes left to the gun, so we when to the starting line, and there were a ton of people there. I was obviously the only barefooter, and was hoping that the roads would be smooth. the first 3k or so were so packed with people it was hard to move. Then it started to open up, and I got caught up in the excitement and took off. I ended up running the first 10k in about 48 min, and my feet were already feeling a bit sore, especially the outside of my right foot. By the halfway, I was pretty worried about being able to finish, so I found a medic and got some tape for my right foot. It helped, but the roads were a bit rough, and it was getting painful. Hiroshi caught up with me, and I looped around to run with him, but eventually he lost me as the roads were making it hard for me to keep a decent pace. I tried to catch him at one point, but I was worried about damaging my feet and couldn't do it.
I hit the 16k mark and felt confident that I could finish, if slowly. And slow it was, I finished in 1:51, the slowest I've ever run that distance, even in training. My feet were in better shape than I thought, and within two days they were fine.
The lesson learned is that it was not a great idea to do this since I had not been doing any BF running lately. I also hated being passed by so many people that I know were slower runners than me, and I hated missing the opportunity to be out front with the fast guys. I thought going easy and BF would be fun, but it was a bit too painful to be fun, and the competitive side of me was definitely not satisfied.

2000 km of Training Week 24: 515.3 to go

Sun:  12/Neos Beautiful run in the woods again. Stopped at one point to drink from the river and do some meditation. That is the memory I conjure up these days if I have trouble sleeping.
Mon: 10/Neo Good last run in Kagoshima. I'll really miss running there.
Tue: 12.5/54:03/4:20/Zoom XC Wanted to get in one hard run before the HM. Happy with the time, and no issues with the knee.
Wed: Bike 33k
Thu: Rest
Fri: 10/KSO Estimate on the distance, didn't really pay attention to the time, but legs didn't feel that encouraging two days away from a HM.
Sat: 3k easy run to keep my legs loose.

Total Mileage: 47.5

2000 km of Training Week 23: 562.8 to go INJURED!

Sun: Bike 33k
Mon: 7.7/35/4:33/Evo. Good run, but felt the knee so decided to play it safe and take the train part way home.
Tue: Bike 33k.
Wed: Namban workout. Call it 15k total. 5K time trial. Wanted to run at race pace for my upcoming HM, so went all out. Unfortunately, no one else was running hard, but was still happy with a time of 18:48. Was definitely sucking wind so don't know if I could keep it up for four times that distance. Also happy that my knee didn't bother me.
Thu: KAGOSHIMA!! 12k/KSOs Boon and Kayo live really near some nice woods and trails. so ran in the woods every day. All estimates on the the distance.
Fri: Rest
Sat: 15k/KSOs

Total mileage: 54.7 Definitely think my knee is less of an issue than it was the first time with my left knee.

2000 km of Training Week 22: 617.5 to go INJURED!

Sun: Bike 33k
Mon: Went for my normal run home, but the legs were really tired, and had a feeling it might not go well. Got about 5 minutes in and started getting the same pain in my right knee that I used to get in the left. I guess the shot of pain I got after the 30k run on Saturday was not just a joke. In retrospect it was a combination of doing too many days in a row without rest, including hills (albeit very small, but more than I'm used to) in the loop I ran, and probably the cushioned shoes.
Tue: Rest. Some pain in the knee even with just normal walking. Exactly the same sensation as with the left before, although probably not as bad.
Wed: Bike 33k.
Thu: 8.7/38:30/4:25/Evo Didn't realize I was running this fast, guess that may be part of why my knee was getting sore. Took the train part way just to play it safe.
Fri: Rest. Was going to try a morning jog, but knew the knee needed rest.
Sat: 11/50:39/4:36/VFF Crazy windy and spring squalls, but a pretty good run; first time in a while running in the VFFs. Knee was sensitive, but didn't seem to be getting worse. Glad to at least get in over 10k.

Total Mileage: 19.7 Not at all what I had planned for this week, but then again, I'm not supposed to be planning my training, I guess. Hopefully will have some fun runs in Kagoshima from later this week, and still be able to run in the HM in two weeks.

2000 km of Training Week 21: 637.2 to go

Sun: Rest
Mon: Bike 33k
Tue: 20/1:29/4:27/Evo Battery issues with the Garmin again, checked the distance on Google Earth, and had the time, so should be pretty accurate. Good run overall, was working the whole time; no issues with feet.
Wed: 15.4/1:08:11/4:25/Zoom XC Was pretty surprised to bust out this pace after a hard run the day before, but it felt good, so I went for it.
Thu: 20/1:32:52/4:38/Zoom XC Hadn't done 20 twice in a week on weekdays before, but was happy with how this went and the time. The south wind has definitely been my friend lately, and leaving work a little earlier plus longer days has made the running more fun.
Fri: 15.1/1:12:27/4:47/Evo Legs were really tired for this. Also having some blister issues on the ball of my right foot, which was annoying, but made it through, and at an okay pace for four decent days in a row.
Sat: 30/no watch, but under 5:00 pace/Zoom XC Needed to do 30 to reach my goal of 100k for the week, and wasn't sure how it would go, mainly because of the issue with my blister. But I lanced it in the morning and had the day to fuel up an get ready. Decided to do a loop course around the Arakawa instead of an out and back and it went pretty well. Really nice, warm day, so running in shorts and a singlet. Legs were definitely tired, but happy with the run. Had a little scare right after with what felt like ITBS in my right knee for the first time, but walked it off and seems fine now.


Total mileage: 100.5km Yeah! Wasn't really a goal to get up to this mileage at this time, but things have been going well, and after the two 90k weeks, I figured I might as well try. It was definitely tough doing it in 5 straight days, but I am really happy with how my legs are holding up. Will probably do a bit less mileage next week, but try for more speed work. Three weeks until the HM in Tochigi!

2000 km of Training Week 20: 737.7 to go

Sun: Rest Trip up to Fukushima with KZ colleagues!
Mon: Rest Meant to run, but got lazy and wanted to get in some time with Taiyo.
Tue: 15.4/1:10:08/4:33/Evo Despite two days off, decided not to go out too hard. Felt a little hot spot on the bottom of my right foot.
Wed: Bike 33k
Thu: 15.2/1:05:06/4:18 Zoom XC Definitely my fastest average pace for this run home yet. Did a series of fartleks, felt good overall.
Fri: 15.4/1:13/4:44/Zoom XC Good recovery run. Frustrated by my garmin, seems to run out of battery immediately, and I have no idea why.
Sat: 23/Zoom XC Battery issues with the garmin again, so a forced free run. Strong wind from the south, but still a gorgeous run out in Katsutadai, lots of beautiful sakura and other signs of spring. Unfortunate issues with GI tract and no TP, but made it through somehow.

Total Mileage: 69 km Pretty happy with this for an off week. Will try to kick it up again next week, although will be tight on time.

2000 km of Training Week 19: 806.7 to go

Sun: Rest. Legs were fine, but wanted some family time, and no day off in 9 days.
Mon: 19.1/1:26:04/4:29/Neo Planned this as an interval run, 3k fast, 3k easy, 3 of each. Went well for the first two rounds, but started to feel a blister on the outside of my right foot (again!), so had to back off during the last one. Did the first two at a 4:00 pace, which was my goal. First time I have gotten blisters in the Neos, and first time I wondered if they are not the best choice for speed work.
Tue: 15.4/1:09:32/4:30/Zoom XC Was surprised at how strong my legs felt after the run yesterday, and very happy with the pace. My legs are definitely recovering from runs faster. 5k splits got faster each time.
Wed: 15.4/1:11:32/4:38/Neo Legs definitely a bit tired for this run, but happy to keep it under 4:45 pace without too much trouble.
Thu: Bike 33k
Fri: 15.2/1:05:24/4:20/Zoom XC After a day biking yesterday,  I decided just to go out with a good pace from the start. Was pretty happy with the overall pace, and the run felt great.
Sat: 25.5/Mach 11 Another free run with no watch. First time doing this distance in a while, but it felt good. Nice weather in shorts and t-shirt. The Mach 11s didn't feel great, but also didn't give me any blisters, so I can't complain. Pace felt good overall, but the last 5k were more tiring than expected.

Total mileage: 90.6 Glad to get in another over 90 week, especially only running 5 days. Will back off a bit next week.

2000 km of Training Week 18: 897.3 to go

Sun: 15.4/BF Decided to go all out free, again props to Harry in the huaraches group. BF and no watch. I am confident about the distance because of the markers along the Arakawa, but didn't pay attention to time at all. I'm sure I averaged 5:00 pace, and probably even a bit below. Feet held up well considering how long it has been since I ran BF. Did end up with a couple small blood blisters on my left foot, and one large, but not deep blister on the outside of my right foot, where I have gotten one before, but nothing that will last.
Mon: 15.1/1:11:13/4:42/Zoom XC I felt a little tired, so could not pick up the pace, but was more setting out to get in a solid 15k. First time since the quake that I took the train in and ran home, and it felt fine.
Tue: 15.2/1:12:16/4:45/Neo Legs pretty tired. Started to feel tightness in my right hamstring again, so almost bailed and did 12k, but decided to push through, and it felt ok. Speed on my 5k splits actually improved a little each time. Will bike tomorrow to give my legs a break.
Wed: Bike 33k
Thu: 15.3/1:07/4:23/Neo Felt refreshed after biking yesterday, so decided to get in some speed work. Did some fartleks at the beginning of the run, and then just decided to pick it up to a near tempo speed. Happy with the average pace, but a little suspicious of the Garmin accuracy.
Fri: 16.4/1:15:20/4:35/Zoom XC Went the long route along the Arakawa. It was a dark and gloomy night, and I really let shit get into my head about the earthquake, radiation, etc. Literally looked over my shoulder once or twice; don't know if I was expecting to be chased by a tsunami or what. Was being pushed by a strong south wind though, which I think explains the pace, as I felt like I was taking it easy. Again, not sure about Garmin accuracy, either.
Sat: 15/Neo Made this another free run with no watch. The distance is accurate, maybe even slightly short. Was running into a nasty, gusty (radiation filled?) north wind, that literally made it hard to move forward at times. thought about bagging it early on, but the prospect of how easy it would be on the way home got me through.

Total Mileage: 92.4 km Finally broke that 90k barrier! Legs feel good overall, but was tough to run six days. Will see how it goes with one less day next week, but a couple of longer days.

2000 km of Training Week 17: 989.7 to go

Sun: Rest No sleep and still afraid to be separated from the family for fear of something disastrous.
Mon: Bike 33K
Tue: 13.5/58:29/4:20/Neo My first run since the quake, and it felt great to go out and go hard. Hamstring seems to be all better. Great split times, fastest was 4:07.
Wed: Rest Flailed!
Thu: Bike 33K
Fri: Bike 23K/ Run 12.3/56:58/4:37/Zoom XC Still not comfortable taking the train, so decided to take bike to work, then ride it as far as the river, and run while pushing it. It worked pretty well, although not something I would want to do too regularly. Will consider riding to work then running home, and doing the opposite the next day.
Sat: 16.9/1:16:08/4:30/Neo A good hard run, and decided to try running as much as possible on the grass and hills, an idea from Harry in the huaraches group. It did feel harder, and I thought I was going slower, but it turned out my time was good, although 5k splits did get a bit slower each time.

Total Mileage: 42.7 Not bad for three days of running, and all at good speed. Will try to make up for the lack of distance next week! And this got me over the 1000k mark in the quest for 2000K!

2000 km of Training Week 16: 1032.4 to go/Sendai Earthquake!

Sun: Rest
Mon: Rest Should have run on Sunday in the nice weather. Today was miserably cold and rainy, so I bailed.
Tue: 20/1:37:18/4:51/Neo This was my first time running a full 20 on the way home from work, which is the good news. The bad new is that despite having two days off, I couldn't pick up the pace, and somehow had a slight muscle pull in my right hamstring for almost the whole run.
Wed: Namban workout 15K total/Zoom XC. 3000/2000/1000 split times were: 11:24/7:22/4:24. I think the garmin was measuring them a bit short, the last 1k I did slow because my hamstring was still bothering me.
Thu: Bike 33k
Fri: Bike 30K SENDAI EARTHQUAKE! Fortunately, I rode my bike because my hamstring was still bothering me. the earthquake hit at 2:46 p.m. and scared the shit out of me. I panicked and bailed from the office to get home on my bike ASAP. It was a crazy ride home, first seeing the smoke from the oil refineries that blew up in Chiba, then having a huge aftershock while waiting at an intersection, and trying to get through the crowds of people waiting outside their office buildings. I still made great time, and was very relieved to find Miho with the boys outside the day care. What a tragic, and life-changing event. We were extremely lucky to have no damage to ourselves or to anyone we know. I really had trouble dealing with it the first two days and had no idea what to do, but at the time of writing this, one week later, I am much more optimistic and very impressed with the country's ability to get back on the horse and get shit together. Go Japan!
That being said, it will probably be a while still before I feel comfortable going very far on a long run...
Sat: Rest Pumped with adrenaline all day and freaked out by the images on TV.

Total mileage: 35K

2000 km of Training Week 15: 1067.4 to go

Sun: Rest
Mon: Rest - Forgot I had an EPT dinner - should have run yesterday!
Tue: 15.7/1:11:13/4:32/Mach 11 Good hard run home, but had some pain for the first time in a long time in my left knee. May be from legs still tired from the 50k, but I'm guessing it is more related to the shoes. First time running in real rain in a long time!
Wed: 16.5/1:18:44/4:47/Neo Was a little worried about the knee, but it ended up being ok. Legs tired, though, so will bike tomorrow instead of running.
Thu: Bike 33K.
Fri: 15.7/1:12:59/4:22/Neo Day off, so got to run in the morning. Decided to pick things up early on, but was running into a headwind for the first leg. Got a push on the way back, and really pushed it for the last five - 4:05 pace!
Sat: 25.4/1:57/4:36/Neo This was supposed to be a recovery run, but was nice weather and my legs felt good, so I got a good pace going early on. Time may be slightly off because batter was dying, but fairly accurate.

Total Mileage: 73.3 Not over 90, as I was hoping for because I forgot about my dinner on Monday, but all good speed work, so no complaints.

2000 km of Training Week 14: 1140.7 to go and first 50K run!

Sun: 50k!/4:12/5:02/Neo Everything went as well as I could have hoped for. Didn't start off great, as I took a while to get ready and ended up waking Miho up at around 5:30, which was unpleasant. Prepared by making three PB wraps in tortillas, an apple cut in two, and put my camelbak bladder with 1L of water in the bigger Innov8 pack. I wore shorts with compression socks, heat tech layer underneath, one layer on top of that and a light wind layer. Brought extra short and long sleeve tops in case I wanted to change (which I didn't).
Headed off NW along the Arakawa with the intention of just taking it easy and going 25K each way. I did end up using the garmin, but set it to the time so I wouldn't be tempted to check my pace or time. I did get alerts every 10K, and my splits were 48:51/50:15/49:42/51:11/52:29. Pretty much the time I was hoping for. The first 15k were comfortable and went by relatively quickly. Things got a bit tedious during the next 15k, especially as there weren't any markers, so I wasn't sure exactly where to turn around. I had intended to eat food every 10k, but ended up eating breakfast  less than an hour before I left, so I didn't feel like eating anything until around the 20k mark, when I ate half an apple. I was drinking water about every 5k or so. The distance started to go by more quickly after about 30k, and I ate my first PB wrap around then. Eating PB and running was a bit challenging, but still way better than nasty gels. I wasn't surprised to start losing speed during the last 20k, and the last 10k were especially challenging. I ate the rest of the apple at about 40k, and then was just pushing. I never actually thought about quitting (at least not too seriously), but was very happy when I got that last alert that marked 50k.
My legs felt amazingly good at the end of it, much better than the marathons I have run (even though my marathon time was better than my two actual marathons 3:31), and I'm sure it's related to the fact that there was not the intensity and adrenaline that goes into racing.  Also, I was super impressed with the Neos, very comfortable the whole time, and not a blister to speak of. The bottoms of my feet were tired for sure, but still no blisters. I also didn't have any chafing at all, which surprised me, probably because of the cool 10-12C conditions.
I can't say I felt a lot of elation at finishing, but still very satisfied. Miho was still mad when I got home, so that did not add to the joy. I guess I never really doubted whether I could actually do it, since it isn't that much further than a marathon. But it is reassuring to know that I can do it alone and not find it boring or tedious, and that I can run a decent time like that just in training.
And so now I find myself faced with the question: I can run 50k; so what?
Mon: Rest.
Tue: Bike 33k
Wed: Bike 33k
Thu: 12.4/59:34/4:49/Neo My legs felt ready to run today, and although I took it easy on the speed, it was still tough. Not pain really, just really tired legs and a real effort to keep up a normal pace. Will try again to see how it feels.
Fri: 12.2/57:18/4:42/Mach 11 Felt better today, not nearly as much work to keep up a decent pace. Legs still tired, and a little achy in the left hamstring, but nothing out of the ordinary.
Sat: 12.2/57:54/4:31/VFF Same distance and the previous day, but a very different run in terms of how I felt. Running during the day is always nicer, and it was warm and sunny. Was able to continue building speed throughout, although running a 4:20 pace towards the end was tiring and made me think about how hard it would be to keep up during a whole marathon. But still plenty of time to prepare for that!

Total Mileage: 86.8 Very happy that I could put in decent mileage during the same week of the 50k run! will see if I can't get over the 90k mark this week.

2000 km of Training Week 13: 1227.5 to go

Sun: 23.2/1:44:39/4:30/VFF Didn't really have a plan for this run except to run over 20. Got a good start running with the wind and it felt good to go fast, so I just kept it up. 5K split times were: 4:32/4:20/4:26/4:27. I continue to feel like my speed is increasing lately, and it's nice to see I can keep it up over a medium distance as well. VFFs felt good overall, no blisters on my right foot, slight irritation on my left, but nothing bad.
Mon: Rest. Legs a bit tired from yesterday, and cold, rainy weather.
Tue: Bike 33k.
Wed: 14.2/1:04:43/4:32/Neo Good fast run. 2nd run in the Neos, and still very happy.
Thu: Bike 33K
Fri: 12.5/56:50/4:32/Mach 11 Kept this run pretty short in anticipation of my big run on Sunday.
Sat: Rest up for tomorrow.

Total Mileage: 49.9

2000 km of Training Week 12: 1277.4 to go

Sun: Rest
Mon: 12.5/58:30/4:41/Evo Normal run home from work, nothing to report.
Tue: Bike 33K
Wed: Namban workout 12K total? About 3k warmup then 3000/2000/1000. Couldn't get my watch right for the first one, but finished first and figure I was around a 3:40 pace or better. 2000 was 7:20 and 1000 was 3:37. Jay jumped out ahead of me for both of those, but I was second. A small group and clearly some of the faster Nambanners were not there, but it was fun to run at the front have Jay push me. Also met a nice French guy named Alex who helped to get me moving but who was ultimately slower than me.
Thu: Bike 33K
Fri: 14/1:03:23/4:25/Neo My first run in the new Neos and my first run in a snowstorm! Fortunately not slippery at all, and I got going out the gate pretty fast and just kept it that way. The Neos felt way too big when I wore them to work during the day, but it turns out they were just right when I laced them well. No movement around the heel, but nice and roomy around the forefoot. No blisters whatsoever for this fast run!
Sat: Rest. Cold rainy weather and decided to relax at home and get in a good run on Saturday.

Total Mileage: 38.5 Planned to take it easy this week, but not this easy! Planning on a big week next week, so no big deal.

2000 km of Training Week 11: 1315.9 to go

Sun: Rest
Mon: 13.8/1:02:33/4:31/Mach 11 My first try using the Garmin for an interval workout: 1.8 warm up then 3k X3 with 1K rests. Went well at first, but got pretty tired and was afraid of doing damage to my knee, so backed off for the last interval.
Tue: 12.5/57:59/4:38/Evo Thought my legs would be more tired from the intervals, but they felt good. Had a late meeting, so tried to get home quickly and was surprised by the pace!
Wed: 19/1:31:32/4:49/Evo First time running the long route with not only not having issues, but also adding mileage and feeling good the whole run. Surprising considering it was my third day of running in a row and that I the previous 2 days were relatively fast.
Thu: Bike 33K
Fri: 18.2/1:24:44/4:23/Mach 11 My first time using the Garmin for a workout: 3K warmup, 10K tempo at 4:15-4:30, 3K cool down. Was a bit annoying because of all the beeping it made when I was running too slow at first and then too fast during the tempo at first, but helped me to keep it reasonable. I was surprised at how comfortable 4:15 felt, and actually added a couple of kms on because there was a guy running in front of me that I wanted to catch. I did catch him eventually, and while he did put up a fight for a bit, I was able to leave him behind pretty comfortably. Actually, what I really wanted to do was chat with him and see if he was interested in running together because our paces were similar,  but my shy and competitive sides won.
Sat: 18.2/1:26:40/4:45/VFF Legs were a bit tired for this one, took it slow and tried just to keep the pace comfortably under 5:00. A little soreness on the inside of my left calf afterwards, which has not happened in a while, but it went away within 24 hrs. I did get a bit of a stomach bug this night, and wonder if it was from getting chilled because I wore pretty light clothes with no wind layer.

Total mileage: 81.7 Good to get it up over 80k! And was very happy both with the pace of my running and how well my body reacted. Will ease back a bit next week and then see if I can do the same or more again the week after.