Yesterday I decided on a hard run at Busey Woods, the usual 1000m hard repeats on the trails. In the spring the recovery jog was 300m but I was able to shorten it by summer to 150m, and even though my seasonal asthma is upon me I can still recover with the 150m. I ended up running 7 reps, the first four I struggled with my breathing due to constricted lung space (65-70% capacity), but the lungs cleared and I was able to run the final 3 reps at 85-90% oxygen capacity. It was odd having the extra oxygen boost during a time when fatigue was settling in, so instead of getting slower I was able to run faster during reps 5-7. My endurance is currently high, I could have run 12-15 reps if I needed to, but stopping at 7 ensured that I would make a fast recovery. I don't plan on running again until the 50 miler this Saturday, so I have 3 days to relax and mentally prepare for the race.
Today after work I walked the cemetery hill for 2 hours. The day was perfect, 75 degrees with low humidity. The weather forecast for Saturday calls for sunny skies with a high of 80 degrees. When the race starts at 5:00am it will be in the upper 40's, so a full day of running will bring a large fluctuation in temperature. I plan to drink little during the first 30 miles, by then the day will be warm and I can start to drink more liberally.
Since I will most likely have congested lungs at the beginning of the race I will be forced to run the first hour at a slow pace. My asthma will therefore enforce a smart race strategy. The lungs will probably clear to 90% capacity after 10 miles and I can then start to push the pace. I believe I currently have a solid combination of endurance and speed, so even though my energy and breathing won't be optimum I have confidence that I can run a solid race if I don't make any mental errors.
I recently watched the film Hard 8, here is my favorite scene from the movie :
