July 17  to 23

Saturday , 7/17.  Today I joined the Jackson Liberty cross country boys team at Manasquan Reservoir for this Saturday practice. It was a treat to be back with the coaches and the boys for the first time in over a year. I managed to run the five miles around the reservoir in 1 hour and 3 minutes through the 89*, humid air.  It was quite taxing on the body!

Sunday, 7/18.  Speed day. 10x 100m in :23 – :25 in between 3.4 miles on the cinders.  Quick!

Monday, 7/19.   Lots of walking on tired legs with Gracie. Stretching and leg loosening drills.

Tuesday, 7/20.  20 minute swim – still recovering

Wednesday, 7/21.   Back on the Cinders  for 4 1/2 miles in 1 hour with frequent speed segments of in excess of 200m all on the shady part of the 800m track.  Started slow, built intensity, finished strong and spent.  Good day.

Thursday, 7/22.   45 minute fast walk on the phone with Rich at Turkey Swamp Park.

Friday, 7/23. Today I went to the Jackson Liberty track in the afternoon hoping to do a decent repeat workout. Once again my legs were heavy when I started out. So, I did an extended warm up with numerous pick-ups.  Still filled with trepidation, I started out to do his ladder Up and Down at 10:00 pace. (200, 400, 600, 800, 1000, 800, 600 400, 200)  I thought it might be a little too ambitious, but I figured I would give it a shot. I surprised myself by maintaining an 8:00 pace has I got underway with relative comfort. The long story short is that I was able to maintain an 8:00  pace throughout the entire ladder, up and down. I actually finished final 200m in a comfortable :51, which converts to 3:24 pace for 800m.  With warm-up and cool-down this workout amounted to over 5 miles on the track. This workout surpassed my highest expectations, tested me thoroughly and produced a two-hour nap immediately after I arrived home.   🙂 🙂 🙂Loving the rubber…..

Stats- All are stable in a good range. No leg or foot issues.

Sleep- 8 to 10 hours

Diet- 9/10

Weight- 143/145 lb

Heart rate 54  bpm daily

My Garmin says my Vo2Max is 40. They say that is good. 🙂