I got a message from last week's post from someone named Ryan who directed me to Podrunner. I'm going to check that out and get back to you, but I am looking forward to it. He also recommended AC/DC Live. Couldn't agree more. There is something great about those Aussies when you are running along and one of their tunes confronts your ears...
Great week of running. I did fewer miles, but every run was quality. In the middle of last week, I made the mistake of smacking tennis balls. Tennis used to be my main sport. But it s sooo hard on the knees. I felt the experience for a few days afterward. I may play on clay or grass in the future, but hard surface will have to be limited in order to preserve the joints for running.
On Saturday, the indomitable Eric Henry came over and we popped out to Clinton North Shore. We drove into the park (into the pay portion) so that we could catch the trails farther in. The Trail Hawks were holding their 50K race that morning. If I ever looked at race schedules, I probably would have signed up and done that, because the trails were in great shape, the weather was perfect, and the staff on hand seemed super nice. The two of us only did a few miles out and back, but did get to see parts of the trails that we had never run in previous training runs and races.
Sunday I only had time to squeeze in a quick 5-10 miler before heading to a brunch in the country. I realize that there is a lot of difference between 5 and 10 miles. But the options in this case are 5 miles with an insane hill, or 10 miles of relatively flat, and downhill running. Yesterday I opted for the 5 (a route I had never chosen because of the stupid hill). And, I can honestly say that I don't think that I would have expended any more energy running the 10 miles. Once I made it to the top of the hill, my heart rate felt nice and high. I always have a hard time getting it into a faster beat, but not yesterday. The final two miles of the run sailed by because everything felt easy after the hill. I do want to note here that I actually like running on courses with hills. I love hills. But there is a difference between hills and HILLS.
For the second week in a row, btw, Djokovic beat Nadal in a clay court final in straight sets. Seriously, the French is going to be quite a tourney.
Finally a question for ultra people. After reading Jessie's blog, I checked out Indi's for a race schedule. I'm thinking of the 50k in July. Any thoughts on how much training one really needs to do in order to accomplish a 50? I feel pretty confident up to about 18-20 miles at this point. How much time should I budget to get the extra miles under my belt in terms of 6 weeks out training?
I was hoping to do the Hawk Marathon, but had promised friends that I would be there to support a race they were doing..so skipped out. But it would have been perfect and I need another full before Lunar Trek...which looks like you might be considering. I took the plan below and adjusted it based on what I have going on. I really need to start adding miles. I've not done much since my race in April.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.trailrunevents.com/ul/schedule-50k.asp