444 Miles. 64 1/2 hours. 1 Race. Two days off (both 7hr travel days to/from Bighorn) By far the largest month (by about 100 mi) I've ever had. Simple purpose of the month was to hit volume and do some really tough runs. I certainly achieved that. The B2B Mt. Falcon days were tough, but it made me a bit harder mentally which will be key come August. With the wife and son gone until Tuesday, I've been up in the mountains every day after work including yesterday evening on the CT above 10,000 feet where I felt pretty good, took it easy, but the last 500' climb back to the ridge I got stronger as I went higher. Overall, I feel the volume in my legs and I'll be now shifting into a different period of training.
As I said, I wanted to combine some things that have worked for others (high mileage and specificity). I remember Lucho warning against cramming in 100+ mile weeks so close to a 100. Being that these last 4 weeks were my first consecutive big weeks, I don't want to push volume for volume's sake. This week may touch 100, but it will probably be the last until 8/20. I'll keep the volume at an appropriate level (probably 80-95ish) and do some more focused training while allowing my legs to recover and build strength again. This week and weekend I'm focusing on vertical and altitude. All of my runs will take place on big mountains and primarily above 10,000 feet.
So, my big volume weeks are behind me. I'm hoping to do some more specific work at altitude, faster work on flats, and dial in a bit. Hopefully I can trim down slightly (3-4lbs) and stay healthy. The big test is in a few weeks where Silver Rush is waiting. While the course is a fair amount different than the 100, being able to run well there should give me a much better idea about what to realistically go after at LT100. I threw out a reach goal while on a run Wednesday with Brendan and Steve, and while I actually believe I can do it (confidence is high, maybe too high, but it's as important as fitness I think), I'm not going to run myself into debt in the first half if it's not there.
1 comment:
Strong work, man. Sounds like a great plan. Last year I crammed 420 in July, not good. I think you're much better off doing it in June like you've been doing. Good stuff!
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