Oof this is hard.

This is all hard. But this is why I do it.

I'd be dishonest with you if I told you that all this running and even this newsletter thing is easy.

Training for my upcoming 10k race has not been going as well as planned.

Remember that I am training for the Peachtree Road Race here in Atlanta, an annual July 4th tradition in the city.

So as of this writing, June 9th, I have only 3 weeks and 4 days left for training.

Fortunately for me, my easy pace endurance is there, but my top speed fitness is still lacking. I should be able to finish the race distance, but not at the pace I'd like.

So realistically, I don't think a PR performance is possible for me this year.

Ideally I would have liked to have at least 4-6 weeks of good speed specific training under my belt.

To only have 3 weeks left, here is the game plan.

1. Include as many hills during all runs, easy and speed runs.
2. Get in at least 2 speed workouts each week. More specifically, challenge the lactate clearing mechanisms during the speed work. This means running at pace close to the lactate threshold (right when the build up of lactate is greater than the clearing of lactate), with minimal rest time duration.
3. Train in the heat and humidity (not that I really have the choice, but this means that treadmill runs won't be beneficial now)
4. Get as much sleep as possible to optimize the training adaptations.

With the short amount of time available for training, the biggest mistake to make is to dump a heavy load of training in this short amount of time. With only 3 weeks to go, there wouldn't be enough time to accommodate any possible tendonitis flare up. Muscle soreness is possible with all the hill running, but so is tendonitis flare up.

I'll have to definitely watch out for this.

These the challenges us running have to go through. Thankfully I am not a professional runner!

These are good lessons to learn from for future races and training.

I'll admit that the challenging variable has been time management around work and family. Running has taken a lower priority lately, but understandably so. And that's okay.

If you find yourself short on training time for an upcoming race, my advice is to avoid overtraining. This is a recipe for injury. The liklihood of a PR performance gets low.

Thanks for reading!