Sing This W/ Me This Is Sixty......

If the previous week had been  me going Billy Bragg and going "Back To Basics" then last week was me going  ''Billy Big Bollocks" and laying down a blueprint for the weeks to come as I managed five twelve milers between Tuesday and Sunday.
Granted it was a tad easier to do when I wasn't getting up at "silly o clock" (5.25am) during the week and putting in a full day at work then coming home to log 12 milers.....that task will be this coming week,but having laid the blueprint for that last week in theory that task should be easier he typed on Monday........

So here's the play by play of last week
Monday: Rest Day
Tuesday: 12 miles
I blew off Monday when I awoke to the sound of rain.....now b4 someone goes all Rachel Reiley on me and says "that was a proper bottle job by The Shamrock Warrior"  let me state for the record the previous Wednesday I logged a 6 miler in the rain,granted I had little to no leeway w/ my schedule that week so  I had to make do but given I now had a whole week and upon consulting the local weather discovered no rain in the forecast till possibly Saturday I felt why run in the rain when I don't have to? I suspect there will be plenty of runs between now and Nov 12th where I won't have that luxury.....but isn't that why God created Waterproof running clothes afterall!!!
Up by 8am and stretched and out by 9.15am it felt odd to be out running this early as most of if not all my midweek runs are doing around 5pm,I could get used to the cooler temps and less traffic both pedestrian and motorist
1.37.51 off an 8.09 mile average,not too shabby given prior to the viral infection and post Garmin era my  pervious 12 milers were:1.34.33-1.36.58-1.39.10-1.39.19-1.39.20
Something to build on over the coming days

Wednesday:12 miles
A slightly later start given it was 9am b4 I finally answered the call of my alarm and not the 8am I was able to  galvanize myself for the whole week.
That 10.20am start meant the temps were a littler warmer and while not quite the "Dog Days" that August can be it was still warm enough to work up a decent sweat out there.
1.44.32 off of 8.43 mile pace,my slowest time to date BUT unlike in May,June and my lone run in July when the going got tough I didn't buckle which told me my head and heart were now truly "in the game" I pride myself on being a tough SOB where my running is concerned and not the type to run up the white flag at the first sign of trouble,sadly that version of me had gone AWOL in May & June but looks to be back now in August as I approach the "business end" of my season.

Thursday:12 miles
1.40.45 off of 8.24 pace,again not earth shattering and were the Philadelphia Rock & Roll Half Marathon this weekend I'd be fucked frankly....but since I still have five weeks to  hone my skills I could be less hard on myself,frankly back to back to back 12 milers given my near six weeks of inactivity was quite a coup I felt and again while not feeling great I never contemplated stopping so that in of its self felt like a moral victory.....and there haven't been too meny of them since Broad St and some of my initial 12 and 13 miles in May prior to the Oddesey Half Marathon where the wheel came off in spectacular fashion,that old adage "you learn nothing from a defeat" is in my opinion bollocks,you can learn a lot if you're honest w/ yourself and what I learnt the hard way on June 11th was basing expections on former times was my downfall......I won't be that cavilier again any time soon

Friday:12 miler
The time honoured " the spirit was willing but the flesh was weak" saying  came home to roost today,at the 2 mile mark I had a "uhoh" moment from the knees down....at mile 4 I had another "uhoh" moment,only this time from the knees up and yet somehow I continued to dig deep mentally and physically over the remaining 8 miles to log a 1.43.27 time off of 8.37 pace
Maybe four in a row was too big an ask? although the tell tale sign of yellow urine in the afternoon after I crashed out on my futon for three hours indicated dehydration and a need to drink more water during the day.
I am proud of the fact I hunkered down and kept going when bailing seemed so much easier,I kept telling myself "one more mile" and w/ 2.5 miles to go began breaking it down into half mile incruments,whatever it took to get home and finish.
A well earnt rest day was coming.

Saturday: Rest Day

Sunday:12 miles
W/ four 12 milers under my belt and a much needed rest day I now had the option of going "long" on Sunday and trying to log 15 miles,sadly I didn't have the option of being able to run mid morning due to my Philly Spurs/Broad & Hotspur comitments and thanks in no small part to the fact Septa can't run a #34 trolley schedule if their lives depended on it it was 1.30pm when I got home and 1.45pm b4 I was on the road to run in the height of the afternoon sun.
It would've been all too easy to go for 12 miles knowing I had  four under my belt already so I chanced my arm and set out to run 15.....
Sadly that bravardo somewhat blew up in my face by the time I reached mile 11 and having kept my mile splits below 9 mins  up until then mile 11 thro 12 ballooned up to 10 plus although in fairness I had already decided to call it quits at mile 12 anyway which may've slowed me even more.
1.42.00 off 8.30 pace and unfortunately a 3 mile "walk of shame" home however I had logged a 5day/60mpw so I couldn't be too hard on myself.....I suspect there are plenty of others who will do that for me,however the fact remains I've gone from zero to sixty miles in two weeks (36/60) so fuck them!!!

W/ 12 milers logged I hope this coming week to tweak things to 12/13/12/13/15 for a 65mpw,I believe w/ a pair of 13 milers under me the "leap" to 15 miles next Sunday morning( Philly Spurs kick off is at 11am and even w/ a 10.15-10.30 meeting pre game I can probably get up at 6/6.30am easy to say now!!!)should be easier.....at least in theory anyway!!!!!