June 12, Sunday

After five weeks of training in the pool to protect a sore knee,  I approached this 800m trial with apprehension.  I was fairly confident that the water work had maintained my aerobic conditioning to a significant level.  It also seemed that the leg work that I did in the pool was demanding on my muscles.  I had no idea what effect five weeks of absence of impact  would have  my leg structure.  Would  my legs even carry my body twice around d the track?    So, I created an optimistic goal of running 3:30 for this 800m trial with no basis at all support that goal.

The plan was to run a careful first 400m  with the hope of hitting near 1:45.  The timer read 1:43 as I completed the lap, and I was still upright. So, I tentatively pushed the pace each 100m going forward and finished in a very satisfying 3:27.4. 😅   Everything seemed to be intact and my knee did not hurt afterward.  All in all, it was a satisfying trial and a confidence builder for my 800m relay leg on July 2nd.

Trainingwise I plan to alternate track and pool running for the next three weeks as long as my knee holds up.

Stats have remained steady and sound during this non-traditional training  period.

Memorial Day  2022,  Monday

As May is ending I reflect on what was a pretty weak month of work hampered by a nagging, sore knee.  I spent a lot of time, including today, running in the water. So, it is possible that my aerobic fitness has not suffered terribly. But I have no idea about the status of my leg strength.

Today I actually did it double. Early in the day at Turkey Swamp Park I covered two miles walking and running moderately. In the evening I spent 30 minutes running in the pool after a 15-minute whirlpool on my knee. My knee felt very good as I left the pool area. So, I have decided to continue that routine until the pain in my knee has completely disappeared. Still hoping that by July 2nd I can run a respectable 800m with th AC  4x800m relay.

STATS are steady and solid.

May 21, Saturday

Running and swimming  in pool to a allow knee to heal..  I don’t know how or why the pain began in my knee.  I have never had a knee injury in my entire career. So, I’m not sure how to feel about this. But It is a consistent low level pain that is getting better slowly.  I’ve been running in the water and swimming and heating and stretching and resting.

The only current goal is to be fit enough to run a  respectable 800m leg on the Shore AC, 4 x 800m, age  75/79, relay team at Monmouth College on July 2nd.

Consistent  OK stats.

 May 8, Sunday

Well, the weather finally cleared up and I got a chance to go out and run on the roads today for 4.5miles. Still going pretty slow and occasionally walkinh when muscle aches reappeared, but accomplished that in one hour and one minute. Had a 20 minute swim on Friday with a nice long stretch in the hot tub thatreally felt good. Hid from the nasty rain and cold on Saturday.

MEDAL FROM PENN RELAYS 2022. 4 X400M MASTERS 75/79  2ND PLACE

In case you’ve never seen a Penn Relays medal, they are very unique.

May 5th, Thursday

Still adding base, 3.5 miles, with lots of stops for stretching.  48:00.

May 3, Tuesday

“NO WORKOUT IS WRITTEN IN STONE”  a nod a revered coach and friend, the late Skip Norcross

With a successful 400m run at the Penn Relays in the rear view mirror, it is time to move forward with a new plan.

Next up will be a few track races during the Spring and Summer followed by the cross-country series in September and October.  One highlight will be the Masters National Championships run July 2nd at the Monmouth County track. We will make another attempt to put together a Shore AC  75 to 79 year old 4x800m  rely to establish a national record.  I have two months to get track ready.  So, today I am writing a two month training plan which will probably be altered daily.  🙂 🙂    Since I haven’t done a significant workout in 10 days because of a pulled quadricep muscle, the first week of this new plan will be simply recovering and getting back to zero.  Today I ran two and a half miles on the cinders just working out the aches.

STATS are steady. Continue reading Reboot →

April 10, Sunday

“If you are noticing the scenery you probably aren’t working hard.”                                      Sebastian Coe – one of my heros

The 5k this morning under bright sunny skies with breezy winds and cold temperatures was surprisingly delightful.  My time was a respectable 28:34, actually better than I expected. I described it  to myself as a quick Sunday morning  run.  I was never breathless, never had heavy legs, finished strong and recovered quickly.  My quadriceps were sore for a few days which means to me that I need to do more training runs closer to 8 minute pace. That will be the focus of the next few months training.

Over the next 8 days I completed 5 workouts. All of them were focused on short or quick work In anticipation of  running a 400m on April 29 at Penn Relays.

Stats-

Weight back to 145lb 😊

HR steady

No foot or leg at issues

Diet = 9

Sleep good – 9 to 10 regularly

April 9th

So, it has been a full month since my last post. This is very difficult for me to believe or understand. It is undoubtedly the longest going ap in my posting history since I began my blog  7 years ago. So, I asked myself what explains this? First of all, it was immediately after my last post that we left Saint Augustine for the two-day ride home. That usually results in a gap right there. Then it has been such a miserable spring in terms of weather that the motivation to get out totrain has been very low. I have to say, even though the motivation was low, I did get out very frequently in the last 30 days.  Looking at my records  I find that I had 21 out of 30 days on which I did something to improve my fitness.  Most of the workouts were somewhat shorter than usual but some quite difficult and demanding. The fact that I didn’t I think the workouts were veryproductive, or interesting for that matter,  I just choose to let that day pass without blogging.  Here it is a month later and I am preparing to run a 5K race tomorrow.  Interestingly, the last sentence of my previous log was a reference to the April 10th, 5k race.

I don’t have much confidence in my fitness level but we will see.

STATS- Also have been lax in noting fitness stats   – YUCK

But !!!!!!       Motivation levels surged on Monday when I was notified by the Shore AC that I was chosen to run a leg on the Masters 4 x 400m relay at the Penn Relays on April 29th. Very excited!   Haven’t run at Penn since 1961.  It’s time…….

March 7, Monday

Stayed on the neighborhood roads today.  Covered 5.25 miles in 56 minutes, mostly on the bike.  Final mile was a series of 50 to 60 stride pickups.

Sunday, yesterday, was a day of needed rest.

Sunday night to Monday I slept an amazing 12 hours.  I did  not recognize how worn out I was after a workout on Saturday.  That was a one mile bike to the beach, 4 progressive miles and a mile ride back.  It felt great, but I guess it took a lot out of me.  Also, for the last 10 days my workouts have been at a quicker average pace.

Never found a second race to run on this trip. So, it looks like a 5k on April 10th in Colts Neck when I get back to NJ.

Stats- Good rest, good diet, sound legs and feet, steady heart.

March 5, Saturday

Perfect comditions- 48:50  4 negative miles, all systems doing well.  Good recovery.

Friday- REST