First few weeks

Briggs Field, MIT

I have been fully back to training after marathon/cellulitis for two weeks and am trying to be patient and adapt to training and the weather. So far so good.

Not surprisingly I am building back strength and endurance on land and in the pool and trying to incorporate running on soft surfaces as much as possible.

Last week was what I image to be a typical one for the next month or so (although the mileage will increase over that period.) I was in Boston Sunday-Tuesday presenting a paper at the International Health Economic Association Meeting, so I got to run in some new places.

Monday was 6 x 3:00 at tempo interval pace with 2:00 jogs between. My hotel was near MIT so I used Briggs Field, their intramural grass field (real grass, not artificial turf) which spanned 2 x 3 soccer fields. Perfect! Given that I will race 2-4 cross country races this fall, practicing running on surfaces that are not smooth like a road or track is important. My paces per mile were 6:10-6:20 for each 3:00 segment which I was pleased with. On the track or road that would have been 6:00-6:10 pace for a tempo effort.

I used fields 1-9 which all connect even with the track!

Due to travel I did not do the second workout until Saturday. I had a 20:00 tempo run. I have a love/hate relationship with tempo. I hate the pain but love the results. It was a typical humid morning in Virginia and I was OK with the 6:36/mile average pace (through three miles in 6:38, 6:36, 6:34) especially since I descended slightly and did it alone. Looking back at training from this time last year (which is not always a wise thing to do as we age) I am well ahead of what I was averaging back then.

Sunday was a longish (not long for a marathon runner) 1:20 run on the hills of Fincastle which went well even on the tired legs.

What I was most excited about was my swim session! I got a new batch of workouts from Coach Brett. One of the workouts I did was a total of 5,000 yds. with a main set of:

17 x 100 kick on 1:30 for 1-5, 1:25 for 6-10, 1:20 for 11-14, and 1:15 for 15-17.
17 x 100 free with fins and paddles do the same way except on 1:35, 1:30, 1:25, and 1:20

I did it! I love swimming and working with Brett who is so positive and encouraging. Plus it builds me into a better runner. Win-win-win.

In the next post I will write about the conference in Boston and our paper.

Run & swim,

Fall plans, training update, and race report

After experiencing a disappointing spring track season due to strange breathing issues (which we now think was vocal chord dysfunction after undergoing eight tests and consults to rule out more serious causes) I took the second half of June off from running and swam minimally. Starting in July, Coach Tom put me on a 10 week base-building plan after a few weeks of getting my running legs back and Coach Brett got my swimming rolling.

During those 10 weeks I built my running mileage up to 70 miles a week, did up to sixty minutes of Mill Mountain repeats a week (with my partner in crime Sarah), and swam four days a week consistently. I enjoy long hill repeats (for example 4 sets of 10:00 up Mill Mountain, jog down recovery) because of the focus on form and positive self-talk rather than splits, which is particularly helpful when just coming back into form in the heat/humidity of summer.

Three weeks ago we moved from base training to speed adaptation. Rather than having 2-3 workouts a week consisting of hills (Tuesday), aerobic threshold (Thursday), and a long run-workout (AT in middle of long run), I have 2-3 workouts a week consisting of tempo/speed mix (Tuesday), tempo (Thursday), and long run-workout (AT in middle of long run.) The purpose of this phase is to reintroduce my legs to running fast while still building strength. For example, this past Tuesday I hit the track for 3 sets of 2,000 meters at tempo effort (6:25-6:30), 1:00 jog, 1 x 300 meters at mile pace (58-59) (4:00 jogs between sets.)

I the past I have raced too soon and let the poor results get in my head. This season Coach Tom told me that I could not even pick out a race until he said so. I listened and actually enjoyed embracing the grind of training. He gave me the OK to pick a race a few weeks ago and I selected the Virginia 10 Miler 4 Mile event. The course is brutal and I have never done it (I have done the 10 Mile race several times), so there was no pressure.

Virginia 10 Miler 4 Mile Race

September 24, 2016 was a warm day for the 10 Miler competitors, but not an issue for those of us in the shorter event. I ran the first downhill mile and a half very controlled (first mile 6:07), focused on form and grinding up the hills from 1.5 to 3.5 (mile 2: 6:26, mile 3: 6:32), and giving it my all into the finish (mile 4: 6:17.) I was pleased with my strength and form and how I kicked any negative thoughts out of my head when they popped up. I won the female masters and overall race in just over 25:30 (6:25/mile average; the course was 4.03 miles) which was exciting. The biggest surprise was the $250 prize for the win (I didn't even look at prizes before the race!) 

At the top of the last big climb

 I am pleased with my early season fitness and firmly believe in my training plan. (I ignore those who mock my slow miles on recovery days.) 

The rest of my season looks like this:

October 7 - Royal Invitational 5K (Charlotte, NC; cross country)

November 6 - USATF Masters Cross Country Championships (Tallahassee, FL; 5K)

November 24 - Wrightsville Beach Turkey Trot (Wilmington, NC; road 5K)

December 2 - Homer Bast Invitational (5k, indoor track, Roanoke College)

December 10 - USATF Club Cross Country Championships (Tallahassee, FL; 6K)

Additionally I am swimming in two swim meets (October 22-23 in Charlotte and November 20 in Greensboro.)

 Good luck in your season and I will leave you with a few MAlice pictures from the 4 Miler,

Zurich and Italy: Research and running Week #1

The NACDS (North American Clinical Dermatological Society) travels to a different country each year for their conference. Sessions occur in the morning for CME credit, leaving time to tour the city/country in the afternoon. My mother is on the BOD for the group. Being on sabbatical I am able to join her this year for the conference to Switzerland and Italy. My sister also came along, so we had a Kassens girls trip.

The first week was in Zurich and Luzern. I gave a lecture on May 5 on the economic consequences of PPACA. They earned an hour of CME credit for it! It is always interesting to present this material to folks strongly connected to the health care markets. Many of the physicians in the group are business owners, making the employer mandate an important business concern. In addition to enjoying the session, several complimented the Prezi application I used for the presentation. Several folks want to adopt it for presentations after seeing how "neat" it looks.

Zurich is home to one of the Diamond League Track and Field meets. On the first day in Zurich we took the public transit to Letzigrund Stadium. This track has a distinctive roof and the track sits below street level. The track was open, so we walked down to the track and saw some male sprinters go through a workout. I will have to watch for them on TV when the meet is televised in August.

Another great aspect of being in a different country is the opportunity to run in new places. Zurich has some great routes around Lake Zurich, but my favorite runs were those up Uetliberg (2864 feet). There is a bike path to a park keeping you off the high traffic roads. From the park there are wide smooth trails up the mountain and steeper single track routes. I tried both out and always left wishing that I had more time to play around up there. Amazing views of the city and lake and well marked trails (some even with lamps lighting the way). Some sections had very soft peat and chips. Great on the legs, especially when the runs were finished with some long, steep downhills on pavement back towards the city.

After staying in Zurich for three days we took a bus then a ferry to Lucern. On the way we stopped in a small town on Lake Lucerne which had spectacular views of the mountains, particularly Pilatus. Apparently this mountain was named for Pontius Pilat and legend has it he is buried there. Pilatus is about 7,000 feet. There is a cog railway that will take you to the observatory at the top which is the steepest in the world. I found out that this summer there is a series of races here, including one that races to the top of Pilatus! The series is called Mountain Man.

Lucerne was not to be outdone by Zurich for hospitality, beauty, history or running! Among the highlights of the old city is a bridge crossing the river dating back to the 15th century. People bustle across it on the way to and from work or other destinations daily. Queen Victoria once visited Lucern and stayed in Gutsch Castle, which is a hotel overlooking the city. The structure was built in the 1800s and modeled after Neuschwanstein (crazy King Ludwig, Germany). I ran to Gutsch and on the amazing trail system behind it. Later I walked back with my mother and sister and took pictures from the castle.

Today we leave for Milan. Before our bus leaves, I plan to do a speed workout from Coach Tom that I can do on the roads or the track. I am going to try to get into the national stadium (Allmend) with the backup option of the Alpenquai. I am really hoping that I can get on the track. It is home to Lucern's Euro Meeting track and field meet