I am one with the levee and the levee with me

8 slow

AM - 12.25 easy including 8 x 200m levee sprints. I felt pretty toast, but I felt it was important to get these in. 

38, 36, 36, 35, 34, 34, 34, 34

Couldn't quite hit my top gear. Effects of last week. Now a couple days of easy running before the next workout.

PM - 6 easy

12 easy. Legs are starting to feel good again.

Big workout. 8 x mile (1:00 rests) in 5:13 avg. 

5:14, 5:12, 5:16, 5:09, 5:15, 5:10, 5:16, 5:06

No sprints because my right peroneal tibial tendon is still a little sore, and I'm being cautious. The sprints put a lot more stress on it than LT pace. 

I felt GREAT. I was tired by the end but never felt like I got bogged down by acid accumulation. Which is the point of the 1:00 rests. Coming in I wanted to average about 5:15 for the first 4 and work down to 5:10 for the last 4. I started way too hot with a 72/73 first quarter and then settled in. I finally have to admit that one direction of the levee is faster than the other, but I have no clue why. There might be 1 foot elevation change over the mile stretch I use. Usually I have a head wind to blame it on, but there was maybe a 1-2 mph breeze on the odds. I couldn't tell the difference either direction. But the same effort produced 5:10 going one direction and 5:15 the other. 

There have been a few times in my running experience where training just feels magical. Once was after I moved from Utah and came down to sea level. Another was my first XC season with WWU. I'm in another one. Training is just clicking. 

I don't have the blood data to back it up, but the common theme in each of these periods has been iron supplements. I got a little lazy with them the last few years, but this cycle I rededicated to taking them daily. I'm speaking a little prematurely as I don't have race results to support this feeling yet, but I think those are coming. It's clear from training that I'm in much better shape than just the training can explain. 

Anyway, I'm on a bit of a post-run high and enjoying it. Looking forward to more work, and even more so to upcoming races.

AM - 12 easy

PM - Added an easy 30 min on the treadmill.

12 easy. Dodging thunderstorms this morning. Runs get exciting when flash to thunder is less than a second.

21 miles run as 3.5E + 4x1600m @ LT + 8E + 3 miles @ T + CD.

1600s: 5:14, 5:14, 5:12, 5:12

3-mile tempo: 15:47 (5:18, 5:18, 5:11)

It was 70F + 70 dew point this morning.... though it didn't seem to affect me too much. My legs are tired from the week, and none of the tempo portions felt particularly easy, but they also never got terribly hard either. If I'm being picky I'd have liked to shave the 5:18s to 5:15s. But not a big deal.

The right peroneal tibial tendon flared badly after the workout, though I never felt it during the run. I've been working hard on it all day. I probably need to see someone for it as it's trending in the wrong direction.