My dad told me this proverb: When you drink water, think about where it's from. No it's not a warning about drinking tap water, rather it was a reminder to think back to where you came from.
So what did I do before my first week of marathon training? I went back to (Akron) Ohio...
Saturday I went back to some old trails for about a seven mile run. I've run the Towpath ever since I started running in high school. The first half was way faster than I should have ran. The mile markers were off, but I'm guessing, or rather I'm hoping I was hitting sub 7 minute miles. On my way back I met up with my Iron Sis Cas for an easy run back. I was a little timid with this run; I had not run for 10 days because of my knee. I could tell it still needs a bit of strength work, but I'm not terribly worried about it.
Sunday I checked in with a 50 mile ride. My legs were a little tired from the up tempo part of my Saturday run. This ride started with two people. We picked up another rider on our way to meet another rider. Surprisingly we picked up two more riders at the parking lot then we set out to pick up yet another rider. After a few miles we picked up still another rider. We all wanted to get something different out of our ride, but for about half an hour we had a great little impromptu group ride. That was fun randomly meeting folks from my old riding group. I stayed out a little longer than everyone else. I wasn't going to miss out on climbing a few hills. Toward the end of my ride, I went by the familiar Hale Farm and up Oak Hill. There are some locals that will not climb that hill because it is so steep. It's probably about a 20% grade, but it is short. The tough part comes in the form of a false flat that continues on for maybe one and a half to two miles more. It hurt, but I had to do it for old times sake.
What else reminded me of my "roots." I stopped in to my sponsors from the last several seasons.
I stopped into Ritchie's Sporting Goods to reload on some tech shirts and shorts. I think every pair of running shoes I've ever purchased was from there.
I also stopped in to Eddy's bike shop for a look at some new Treks. This is where I bought my first road bike.
Okay now it's time for some announcements.
Congratulations to my Iron Sis TP who got married this past Saturday. And good luck in Colorado.
Congratulations to Josh on his new baby girl. I'll bet she's already running six minute miles.
Happy Birthday to TriSaraTops!!!
Preview of Stage 1:
The three key workouts of Week 1 of the FIRST plan are a couple of mile repeats, a six mile run with two miles up tempo, and a long 13 mile run. Well I will squeeze these in some where but the highlight will definitely be WIBA. That's a lot of volume for me, so let's hope I can make it through in good shape.
6 comments:
Great workouts! Wish I could have joined ya.
Have fun at WIBA! Maybe next year you and I can actually be there at the same time.
Thanks for the b-day shout out. :)
I, too, went home to my "roots" this past weekend and had a similar rejuvenizing experience -- so refreshing to run/bike those old haunts!
Also, I used the FIRST program for a marathon I just did at the end of May. The program was fantastic (unfortunately, the weather, my cramp-ridden legs, and my resulting time wasn't) -- and I'll definitely use it again. You'll love it, and it fits in great with Ironman training!
Yeah, that's an old Chinese proverb we learnt in school. Good of your Dad to pass it on. :-)
Great workouts, you are really getting the mileage up!
thanks for the post on my blog...i'll keep checking in with yours as well. it's a lot of fun to read and get inspired by others. i have another friend linked on my site who writes a triathalon blog -- you might want to check her out.
nevermind...i just noticed that you read rach's blog already. :)
Hey Alan, I just wanted to say hey and that I really like the inspiration at the beginning. Give me a shout the next time you are up this direction...ROTER22@aol.com
Post a Comment