Final Phase Conditioning: Intervals (2 Sets by 1 K @ 4:30/K Pace)

March 22, 2019

Warm Up 3 K: 20:00.39

Rest: 1:00.17

<Intervals>

1st K: 4:03.80

Rest: 1:00.22

2nd K: 4:13.34

Rest: 1:00.56

Warm Down 3 K: 20:00.97

Total 8 K: 51:19.45

With two days remaining before Sakura Marathon 2019 I did intervals to elevate my heart rates to a level much higher than in regular jogging. The purpose of course is to prepare my mindbody to every possible situation the race may present to me.

Originally I was scheduled to do the intervals on Thursday night. It was a national holiday then, and I was able to come home almost four hours earlier than usual, so as soon as I finished dinner, I took a short nap, hoping to wake up a couple of hours later to do the training. 

The next time I woke up, though, was almost 12 hours after I hit the bed--8:45 a.m. of Friday morning. Though I hadn't realized it then, I had been in chronic lack of sleep recently. It was my body's natural response to make up for the shortage. 

Thanks to the sufficient sleep, I felt like a new man when I woke. I quickly threw myself into my running gear the moment I got up. It was warm enough to get out without long pants and a wind-breaker. I ran in shorts and a short-sleeved running T-shirt. It felt awesome!

A 20-minute easy run brought me back to the multi-purpose city park near my house. I did 2 sets of 1 K fast run with a one-minute rest between the runs. In both I came well under my target of 4:30/K.

My next training will be tonight. I'm going to jog for an hour. It's going to be my last training before the race. I'm going to give myself a full rest on Saturday, and just going to do some stretching and hit the bed early.

There is no pain, no discomfort, no injury, no nothing, but high spirits!

　

10 K Run in MUTEKI

March 21, 2019
10.5 K: 59:20.95

Ran 10.5 K in split-toe minimalist shoes MUTEKI. Ran a course different from the one I had run on the previous night just to keep me motivated.

Just four more days to go before the race. I was originally going to run 10 K on Thursday, do intervals on Friday, and run another 10 K on Saturday. But I've changed my mind. I'll do intervals tomorrow, run 10 K Friday night, and give myself a full rest on Saturday. This is because I have an event scheduled until eight or so Saturday night, and running 10 K after coming home from work might leave me unrecovered.

10.2 K Barefoot Run

March 19, 2019
5.1 K: 33:.07.77
5.1 K: 30:00.36
Total 10.2 K: 1:03:08

Five more days to go before the Sakura Marathon this coming Sunday. After coming home from work I was drained with energy, and sleepy also from a slight shortage of sleep, but I wanted to keep the promise with myself, so I threw myself into my running gear after having two oranges. Once in athletic outfit, I could feel renewed motivation rising from within. I hit the road without shoes, feeling the coldness of the road on my bare feet. It felt awesome. I cruised along the 5.1 K shuttle course without changing pace much. The purpose of the session tonight is mainly to relieve tension in my leg muscles and check my running form. 

I didn't feel any discomfort in the sole. It'd got more durable after running Ohme. I was glad.

I ran a little more than 10 K in about an hour. I listened to two lectures while running. One is a financial lecture by Robert Kiyosaki, the author of best-selling book "Rich Dad Poor Dad". I also listened to a lecture by world-renowned sales consultant Brian Tracy who addressed an audience in Dubai. I enjoyed them both. As I listened to Robert's lecture, I remember a day back in the late 1990s when I went to Kuala Lumpur to attend my friends' wedding. On my way back home I bought a book from a bookstore inside the airport, and that was "Rich Dad Poor Dad" by Robert Kiyosaki. His explanation of how a house is not an asset, but a liability unless it generates passive income fascinated me. It explained my intuitive inclination against home ownership.

I enjoyed listening to Brian too. He is an excellent public speaker, and is also such an extensive reader. His data and episodes to illustrate points are very informative. He is one of my role models of public speaker. I hope to be as resourceful as he is.

For the next two days I will have a similar running session, mainly to keep my body from becoming too relaxed. 

One-Hour Jog

March 18, 2019

Park workout: 15:29.87
1) Inclined pull-ups
2) Isometric push-ups
3) Isometric prayers
4) Isometric shoulder press
5) Single-handed pull-ups

One-hour jog: 1:01.58
1 K fast run: 4:02.30
Warm down: 2:16.71
Total: 1:23:47

Six days to go before Sakura Asahi Kenko Marathon 2019. As part of my final phase conditioning I jogged for about an hour, and wrapped it up with one 1 K fast run at the end.

While running, I listened to a fitness lecture by Jeff Cavaliere, who used to be head physical therapist of the New York Mets. I've always been fascinated by how disciplined he is as an athletic professional, as well as his eloquence as a social media star. Today he explained in his fitness video 6 keys to effective muscle gain. Out of six one thing left me with the strongest impression. That is, exercising is not training. While both involve movement of your body, only moving your body with a purpose in mind is training. I take it to my heart, because it has an important implication to me as a language teacher. I'm going to share this new knowledge of mine with my students next time I see them, and encourage them to train, not exercise by having a clear purpose in mind of doing something if they do something. 

Intervals: 3.2 K + 1 K

March 15, 2019

Warm Up 4.1 K: 29:13.31

Rest: 1:00.28

<Intervals>

3.2 K: 14:57.10

Rest: 1:00.29

1 K: 4:09.76

*************

Rest: 0:40.34

Warm Down 4.1 K: 25:21.96

Total 12.4 K: 1:15:23

Nine days to go before Sakura Asahi Kenko Marathon 2019. I'm slowly reducing the amount of training, but without compromising on quality of course. 

I was scheduled to do intervals last night. But I was expecting a very, very important corporate seminar this morning, so I chose to rest, and shifted the training to tonight. 

I jogged to the water tap in the park across from the Kashiwai water treatment plant 4.1 K away from home. From there I ran around the water plant once and added another K by running a loop next to the water plant. 

After taking a minute's break, I set off for a 1 K fast run, and finished under 4:10 though my target was 4:30.

Satisfied, I jogged back home, hit a shower, ate fresh sea pineapples, and crashed.

10 K Build-Up in MUTEKI

 March 13, 2019
Warm Up 750 M: 6:38.52
2.5 K : 16:11.42 (Target=16:15.00 / 6:30/K)
2.5 K : 14:40.77 (Target=14:10.00 / 5:40/K)
2.5 K : 11:45.13 (Target=12:17.00 / 4:55/K)
2.5 K : 10:25.92 (Target=11:15.00 / 4:30/K)
Warm Down 750 M: 6:18:34 
Total 11.5 K: 1:06:00

Today is the first training day of the second last week before the race. I was originally scheduled to just jog for 60 minutes. But I wasn't too motivated to just run at a slow pace for an hour. I found it too mundane. So I decided to change the pace every 2.5 K, and also to run a different course.

I Google-mapped the course below. It's a simple loop with only two right-angled corners. Very easy to run. There are a number of traffic lights along the course, but it being the small hours, there was little traffic to watch out for. Nothing distracted me. I was totally zoned in.

I ran the first 2.5 K at a very slow pace, mainly checking my form and resultant feeling by changing the stride, cadence, and landing positing. Eventually I settled into the most comfortable form, which happens to be the most efficient one also. 

After the first lap I gradually increased the pace, first to my sub-4 full marathon pace, next to my average half marathon pace, and finally to my average 10 K pace. 

Though I fell short of the target in the second lap, in the third and fourth I was well under the target. I was glad. 

Tomorrow is interval day. I haven't decided exactly what to do. But I am going to listen to the voice of my mindbody, and decide to do what it calls for. 

Barefoot LSD: 30.4 K in 3:05:20

March 11, 2019

30.4 K: 3:05:20

With 13 days remaining before Sakura Asahi Kenko Marathon 2019, I wanted to do a session focusing on distance rather than speed. The last week is mainly devoted to final phase conditioning, and any significant contribution to increase in overall running ability cannot be expected, so this weekend is the only chance to do that.

 I had a choice between running shoes and going barefoot. I chose the latter because there was little chance of injury in LSD. You get blisters mostly when you run fast.

I jogged to the Kashiwai Water Treatment Plan taking the route above. It's a little less than 10 K to get there. (9.9 K)

 Once I got to the water plant, I lapped two loops of varied distances, one 2.2 K and the other 1 K, three times, and then added an extra lap of the shorter loop to cover 10.6 K around the water plant area. This is one of my most favorite training venues in recent times. There is a water tap at two places in a park. There are toilets available. The 2.2 K loop is rich in undulation. The 1 K loop is perfect for intervals. It's quiet at night. Traffic is little. 

I didn't pay much attention to my time as my focus was mainly on distance, not the time, but about an hour and 40 minutes into the session I felt hungry. I had no food with me, so I went on, saying to myself, "Now my body only needs to my fat reserve." 

Having run 9.9 K to come to the water plant, and additional 10.6 K around the plant, I only had another 9.9 K to run before reaching home. But it was never easy. Though I hydrated myself frequently enough, I repeatedly felt thirsty. It's a feeling I had in the last quarter of Sakura Marathon 2018. I think it has to do with a lack of potassium. But I had no sports drink with me, nor did I have money to buy some from a convenient store. I had no choice but go on.

With about 6 K remaining, I had a choice at an intersection. If I took a left, I could get home sooner, with only a K or thereabout to run. If I took a right, I would still have 6 K to cover. I decided to stick to my original goal and took a right, but it was getting harder for me to continue. I made a stop at a park and had some water though I knew it wouldn't make much difference.

I decided to slow down and ease the discomfort. It helped. But only temporarily. I continued to slow down. Whenever stopped by the red light at an intersection, I stretched my legs and Achilles tendons to distract my mind from the physiological discomfort running through my body.

With each step, though, the home got nearer. I closed my eyes and ran, and felt glad to find out I was closer to the goal every time I reopened my eyes. Three hours had passed since I left home, and my running distance was about to reach 30 K, but both of my soles were still enduring the countless contacts with the road. I was satisfied with their durability. 

When I finally got home, my watch said 3:05:20. 

Tomorrow I may take a full rest. Or if I'm in a mood, I might go for a short walk while listening to a business lecture by Brian Tracy. Tonight I was listening to his audio lectures while running. They are about time-management, achieving success, and leadership. They were all useful. I have a two-hour corporate seminar tomorrow. There are a number of useful messages that I want to share with my audience.