Training Log
A journal of my running history, upcoming races and goal, and current training
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Personal Bests
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Indoor 5K at the Armory, NYC, March 6th, 2015. I ended up running 15:01, then a personal best
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Background
I started running in the fall of 2011 when my best friend from home in Massachusetts (shoutout to Dan Cabral: he and his awesome girlfriend Melinda just got engaged!) and I decided to go out for cross country, basically for the heck of it. Well, not exactly; I had played lacrosse the spring prior, and was looking for a way to stay in shape in the offseason. Turns out I like running way better than any other sport I had done before for a few reasons: 1) I was actually kind of good at it, 2) I liked the people better (not to get condescending, but go ask any runner and they'll probably tell you that the other runners they know are the most supportive and passionate people they know), and 3) It made me feel good, physically and mentally. Competitive running quickly because a big part of my life and I went on the run collegiately in a very solid NCAA Division 3 program at Ithaca College. Since I moved to New York City in August, 2018, I've been training with Central Park Track Club, an organization sponsored by New Balance and which amazingly enough sponsors me too (I basically get free shoes, great coaching, and some behind-the-scenes help getting into various races).
Training Philosophy
With each place I've lived and each group I've run with have come different approaches to training for middle- and long-distance competitive running. At Ithaca College, we were business-like, conservative, and smart. We hardly ran any weeks over 70 miles, even during cross country season. At Ithaca, I also tended to hit intervals in workouts a few seconds slower than what my expected pace would have been. At Indiana University, where I ran with the IU Run Club (a perennial powerhouse in the collegiate club running scene), we had an approach that emphasized higher mileage and higher intensity. Whereas a 1000m repeats workout at Ithaca may have looked something like [3–4 X 1000m on grass @ 3:00–3:10 w/ 3:00 rest], at Indiana we were more regularly doing sessions like [6–8 X 1000m on grass @ 2:55–3:05 w/ 2:30 rest]. Central Park Track Club has tended to be somewhere in the middle: train smart and race so that the second half of the race is always faster than the first, but push yourself like crazy in workouts. In a 1000m repeat session I did in NYC the week leading up to my early-April 5K PR (14:50) looked like this: [5 X 1000m on a track @ 2:53–3:00 w/ 2:30 rest].
But the look of workouts on paper alone doesn't tell the whole story. When training, I believe one really has to think about everything that goes into their routine: their stage of life (undergraduate student vs. full-time working adult), terrain they can train on (trails available vs. mainly roads), and diet, just to name a few. In Ithaca, for example, we ran trails for most of our easy runs. This had the great advantages of working a variety of muscle groups because we were going up and down hills and around twisting and turning routes all the time, forced us to slow down so that we would be sharper and more energetic on workout and race days, and prevented overuse injuries because of the softer surface of dirt. So even if we were doing less impressive workouts, we had a whole different weapon in our bag of tricks that aided us based solely on the landscape of New York's Finger Lakes region.
I feel lucky that I've lived and trained in a number of different environments because I've learned what works for me. As I progress in my running career I pick what has worked from me with a specific training regimen and keep doing it, and leave behind the rest. I want to keep training to run competitively and continue setting personal bests until I either physically can't, can't because of work or familial obligations, or am totally burnt out on it, which I don't see happening any time soon. On this page, you will find a log with my current day-to-day training, a list of recent results (sometimes with a commentary from me on the race), and a calendar with upcoming events. Scroll to the very bottom of the page for link to more detailed information on my training and history. If you want training plans or advice, please reach out to me on the contact page! I love talking about running with people; backup career choice if "Professor of Music Theory" doesn't pan out is definitely "Cross Country and Track & Field Coach."
Training Log
Week of 1/20–1/26 | Goals: 80 miles, 1 workouts, long run; BU Terrier 5K indoor track race this Saturday
Monday 1/20 |
Tuesday 1/21 |
Wednesday 1/22 |
Thursday 1/23 |
Friday 1/24 |
Saturday 1/25 |
Sunday 1/26 |
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Activity |
-9:26 am–13.4 miles easy @ 7:11/mile avg. pace |
-7:28 am–5 miles easy shakeout @ 7:22/mile avg. pace - |
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Notes |
Week of 1/13–1/19 | Goals: 80 miles, 1–2 workouts, long run workout
Monday 1/13 |
Tuesday 1/14 |
Wednesday 1/15 |
Thursday 1/16 |
Friday 1/17 |
Saturday 1/18 |
Sunday 1/19 |
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Activity |
-8:30 am–12 miles easy @ 7:06/mile avg. pace |
-6:34 pm–4-mile warmup (7:23 avg.) -7:18 pm–2 sets of [1K/800/600/400]; 2:30 jog rest in between intervals and 4:00 rest in between sets -8:09 pm–7-mile long cooldown (8:15 pace) |
2:30 pm–14.78 miles easy @ 7:22/mile avg. pace |
-1:30 pm–8.8 miles easy @ 7:27/mile avg. pace |
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Notes |
-This run felt surprisingly labored |
-Tough indoor track workout! Very hard to run this fast when I'm this high mileage -Splits–2:55, 2:17, 1:39, :62, 2:54, 2:16, 1:42, :62 |
-Met up with Ryan in Central Park for this one; first bitterly cold workout; very windy; took a Maurten caffeinated gel at about 10 miles in -4 miles easy, 4 miles at 6:25 ish, 4 miles at 5:58 ish, 4 miles at 5:48 ish, 2.1 mile cooldown |
Summary: 83 miles in seven days of running. Fairly pleased with this week; only thing I was really unhappy with was not being about to turn it on a little faster in the last 4-mile pickup segment of the long run on Friday. I averaged high 5:40s per mile there, and I was looking to be like high or mid 5:30s. But I'm not reading too much into it: I'm very high mileage right now and not very fresh at all and that was a cold, windy, early morning. A lot to be happy with this week, fitness gaining all the time. Let's keep the ball rolling.
Week of 1/6–1/12 | Goals: 80 miles, 2 workouts, long run
Monday 1/6 |
Tuesday 1/7 |
Wednesday 1/8 |
Thursday 1/9 |
Friday 1/10 |
Saturday 1/11 |
Sunday 1/12 |
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Activity |
-2:50 pm–11 miles easy @ 7:21/mile avg. pace |
-6:42 pm–3.1-mile warmup (8:00 pace); 6 x 1K with 2:30 rest (Armory workout); 4-mile cooldown (8:38 pace) |
-8:45 am–10.3 miles easy @ 7:44/mile pace |
-6:28 pm–4-mile warmup (7:25 pace); 2 X 5K w/ ~.5 mile jog rest; 2.4-mile cool down (7:42 pace) |
-6:47 am–10.5 miles easy @ 7:11/mile pace |
-8:47 am–18.23-mile long run @ 7:16/mile avg. pace |
-1:13 pm–7.81 miles easy @ 7:15/mile avg. pace |
Notes |
-Felt good today -Did core and one-leg balances (2x3:00) afterwards |
-Hard workout but felt strong and composed -Splits–3:01, 2:59, 2:58, 2:56, 2:56, 2:57 |
-Biked to and from Columbus circle to meet Nick for this run; feeling VERY tired |
-~15:55 (5:08 pace) for rep #1 and ~16:08 (5:12 pace) for rep #2 -Very challenging workout but satisfied with my fitness right now |
-Felt sore but confident and good -Did core, light weights, and stability drills afterwards |
-Easy long; felt pretty good! |
-Easy on the East River walkway; added 8 x ~:25 hill sprints at the end (4:45 avg. pace) |
Summary: 82 miles in seven days of running. Solid week of training in the books. Nothing of particular interest to report on, which is a good thing! Love this part of the training block where I'm starting to feel fit but I have no pressure on me to produce PR's or feel fresh; I can just put my head down and work hard with my running buddies. Let's keep the ball rolling!
Recent Race Results
Prospect Park Track Club Cherry Tree 10-miler (February 16th, 2020)-53:06 (PR), 1st overall
- Link to results: runsignup.com/Race/Results/83740/#resultSetId-188800;perpage:10
- 10-mile race consisting of three loops of Brooklyn's Prospect Park; overall a fairly challenging and hilly course (~350 feet of elevation gain). Easy Q train ride from my apartment on the Upper East Side to Prospect Park. Got there at about 8:30 for a 10:00 am start; warmed up ~2.2 miles with CPTC teammates and had plenty of time and space to change and use the bathroom before the race.
- Recap.: I got out a little faster than I wanted over the first four miles; me and Mike had at least 100 meters on the rest of the field after the first loop of the park. After the second time up the big Prospect Park hill, I fell off Mike (this was right before the 5-mile mark) and he was looking really smooth, which made me lose confidence that I would be with him through the end of the race. I didn't drop pace too much, though, and kept an eye on the overall average pace my watch was reporting; at around 6.5 miles, I was still on track to hit my goal pace for the whole race (5:20 pace), as long as I had a strong last few miles. Getting to the top of the the hill the last time around (this was just past 7 miles), I noticed Mike was less far ahead of me as he was a few minutes ago. I made a serious press from 7.5–8.5, not thinking that I would actually catch him because he had about 100 meters on me. Bit by bit though I caught up; at virtually exactly the 9-mile mark, he and I linked up again and I just happened to have a little bit left in me to cross the line first, only by a second or two.
- This was a really hard race, and the way that I didn't give up on myself during the rough part (between 5–8 miles) makes me feel like this was one of the best overall efforts I've given in a race. I absolutely would not have had the good day that I did if Mike wasn't there to push me during the first half and to compete with me during the last two miles.
- Link to results: www.lancertiming.com/results/winter20/terrier-m.htm
- Recap.:
- Link to results: http://live.xacte.com/templates/philadelphiamarathon.com/for-runners/
- 8K on Saturday morning, the day before the Philadelphia marathon. Took a bus down from NYC with Mikey at around 7am and had to jog to the race camp area (go there at about 9:30 for a 10:45 race start time). Near perfect weather and a flat and fast course.
- Thoughts: So excited about this race and result, one of my personal best performances as a runner. The weather was perfect, the field was competitive, the course was flat and fast, and I was feeling confident that I could PR today. The first mile of this course is slightly downhill, and, according to my watch, I ran 4:46 for the first mile! Way too fast, honestly, but it didn't feel hard at all. The stretch from the first mile to about mile 2.7 were a false flat (in the slightly downhill direction), so I was able to keep up about 4:53 pace over that stretch. A little shocked when I saw 9:45-ish at the 2-mile mark! I was working of the back of a smooth pack, letting them do the work for me. The pack started to break up after the 2-mile, so I was alone for a stretch from 2.5 to about 4. Passed 5K at 15:10 (again...surprising myself along the way, my 5K PR is 14:50...on a track!), passed 4-mile in 19:56, then buckled down to just not fall apart over the last mile. Had two guys to catch up to and try to beat. I think I beat one of them. Great day, can't wait to do this race again next year and go for another PR.
- Link to results: http://results.tfmeetpro.com/Mitchell_Timing/46_th_Lehigh_Paul_Short_Run/
- Link to results: https://results.nyrr.org/event/19TEAM5M/finishers
- Small open meet at Icahn Stadium on Randall's Island, Manhattan. Nice night, not much wind by the time we raced and the sun was low in the sky; high low 70s and dry conditions.
- Thoughts: worked with college teammate Nathan Bickell for the first two miles. We switched off leading every 800m, and that was a great strategy (I've never successfully done that before, despite a few attempts). Definitely didn't feel easy, and I did not feel fresh or bouncy at any point; it's good to know that I have enough experience running and I know my body well enough at this point that I can kind of work with how I'm feeling and the conditions in a given race and get the most out of it. With some more competition up front, feel like I could have run ~10 seconds faster on this day. Only run two weeks of mileage since taking a week off after Brooklyn Half, so this was a nice rust buster and just a fun casual race in general.
- Link to results: https://results.nyrr.org/event/19BKH/finishers
- Course: Back and forth next to and in Prospect Park, north-central Brooklyn for ~7 miles, then a straight shot south on Ocean Parkway ending on the Coney Island boardwalk to cover miles 7–13.1.
- Thoughts: This was my first raced half marathon. My expectations were pretty high for myself because I was in great shape (just PR'd in the 5K and ran some stellar workouts) and had a bad race two weeks prior at the Healthy Kidney 10K in Central Park. Everyone (everyone) told me to go out conservative and then hammer the pace on Ocean Parkway as the course heads down from Prospect Park to Coney Island. I thought that I was conserving my energy well, and I wasn't particularly intimidated by the pace when I saw splits. I was actually getting really excited when I saw that me and my pack were right on 5:20 pace through 3 miles and hit ~33:30 through 10K. I had the same feeling I did in my 5K at Bucknell about a month prior where I was thinking to myself "this is going to be a good race...it's just inevitable that I do well today." Well, I felt pretty bad about myself when I quickly dropped off the pack of Central Park Track Club guys I had been working with from the start through mile 7. That's the one moment I wish I could do over again: right when we exited Prospect Park and passed mile 7, I started really feeling worn down–honestly all of a sudden–and dropped off my teammates over the course of about 400 meters. Being in no man's land for the entirety of Eastern Parkway was taxing mentally, and I was running backwards at that point too. I felt extremely exhausted from miles 8–12.5, but was able to give a strong kick at the very end of the race. Overall, I am happy that I gave my best effort in the moment on the day, and took a risk going for it from the beginning, but I don't think the time I ended up with reflects my fitness or my potential in this event.
- Link to results: https://results.nyrr.org/event/19UAE10K/finishers
- Course: Full loop of Central Park plus a little extra at the end on 79th Street transverse
- Link to results: https://results.leonetiming.com/?mid=1636
- Meet: Track meet in Lewisburg, PA; combination of D1–D3 NCAA schools (competitive D3 schools makes up the largest portion at this meet) and post-collegiates/a few professional runners
- Thoughts: Super excited about this race. I consider the track 5K to be "my baby," as in it's my strongest event and the event that I feel my physiology is most naturally suited for. I ran at this very meet all four years of my undergraduate track career and PR'd three times over that period, all in the 5K. My previous 5K PR of 14:55 was at this meet from 2015, my junior year in college. The race conditions were perfect and I was feeling confident going into it. There was a false start at the beginning but honestly that was not a problem; honestly, it helped to alleviate some of the race jitters. The only part of this race that I would take back was 3K–just after 4K. I saw the split at 3K (8:56 or so) and got mentally intimidated, which caused me to flatten out the pace a little bit and get passed by a few runners. Other than that, this was a lot of fun and a great road trip with two CPTC buddies, Luis and David.
- Link to results: https://results.nyrr.org/event/19WH5K/finishers
- Course: Infamously hilly course. North from ~170th street on Fort Washington Ave. loop around the Cloisters and head back to where you started. Large hills from 0M–.5M, 1.5M–2M, and 2.25M–2.5M.
- Link to results: http://newyork.usatf.org/Events/2019/NJNY_DualMeet.aspx
- Meet: Pretty low-key indoor track meet at Staten Island's Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex.
FOR MORE DETAILED INFORMATION ABOUT MY TRAINING DATING BACK TO SEPTEMBER OF 2016 AND MY COLLEGIATE (2012–2016) RACE RESULTS, FOLLOW THESE LINKS TO MY STRAVA PAGE, MY TRACK & FIELD RESULTS REPORTING (TFRRS) PAGE, AND CENTRAL PARK TRACK CLUB'S WEBSITE: