To Infinity and Beyond - Becoming a Better DopeyBadger (Comments Welcome)

[DopeyBadger]

Daniels 1 mile/2 mile/ 5k training plan (Fall 2024)







It's been a while hasn't it. What was supposed to be a training plan that lasted from September 2023 through April 2024, with a mid-point at the 2024 Disneyland HM Weekend in January needed to be ended prematurely. Not because of injury, but just because life dictated I needed to step away for a bit. But things are in a better place here in August 2024, and the itch to get back out there and dedicate myself to another training plan has been picking up these last few weeks. So with that I said to myself, "It is time", "I just felt like running", and "Hello there" to you all again.

To start, I know that while the itch is there to dive into another training plan, my time availability still isn't quite where it's been in the past. So I needed an appetizer to start to keep myself from overcommitting. That's why I've decided to go back to mile training. I did the Daniels 1500m / 2 mile training back in Spring 2020 when the world completely pivoted and races were harder to come by. For the most part the training went well, and a now retired member of the DIS came out and paced me to a new mile PR of 5:42 (link).

This time around, I'm older, probably not wiser, and races are definitely occurring at the moment to give this idea another try. There are two things I'm going to do differently. One thing I'm taking as a learned experience from the last go around, is that I can't handle three speed sessions in a single week. I can handle two pretty consistently, but I suspect three is what ended up leading to the glute strain that lingered for some time. So this go around I'm capping at only 2 speeds per week. I'm also being more cautious on the spacing of the speed workouts to make sure I'm physically recovered. We'll see. The second change is that I don't do indoor cycling anymore. Although if I had to, I could break out the equipment from storage. But the plan is just to do easy running instead. So with that, let's see what I came up with. Most of the plan mirrors what I had done previously, but never detailed in the journal.



Pacing

My endurance is not what it was back in January. After an extended period of time in maintenance, it's definitely diminished. But I also don't think I'm in a bad place per se. The raw power and speed however is in a reasonably good place. I've done a few weeks of strides, and have managed to live in the 4:45-5:30 range for 15 sec reps. I did one workout on Friday of last week just as a check-in before I commit to the training plan. I did 4 x 15s + 4 x 30s + 4 x 15s. Where 15s is about 75m and 30s about 150m. The 15s reps were 5:46, 5:57, 5:12, and 5:16 pace. Then the 30s reps were around 5:03, 5:11, 5:13, 5:17 pace. Then wrapped up with the second 15s rep set at 5:01, 4:43, 4:56, and 4:29. These paces are comparable to what I did at the beginning of the last plan in March 2020 around 5 flat pace. Finished feeling good and strong enough to go ahead and write the plan. So pacing wise, the plan is to run the speed sessions hard with good form, and then the other easy/long run days will all be run slower than I think I should be as I'm still rounding into endurance shape. So this plan has less pace goals written onto paper, and is going to be more about what I know should feel right based on effort.


Length of plan

The next step was determining how long the plan should be. I based this on race availability. The goal is to toe the line for some 5ks, but only plan to race the first mile. So I tried to find some local races that historically have a few runners that go sub-6 so that I have a few people to attach myself as pacers if possible. I'll fully disclose with everyone at the start line so as not to drag them out to a pace they don't want to do for a full 5k. I also want to find things that are close locally and relatively inexpensive. Because we're ultimately talking about a 5-6 min race. But doing these with other runners will provide a level of adrenaline and desire that I'm just not going to get in a time trial.

So race wise, I've pencilled in the following based on my schedule. I doubt I'll do all of them, but at least they're available if I choose to do it and the conditions are right.

9/14/24 - Dolittle 5k (do a mile)
10/12/24 - Hoot Hoot Hustle 5k (do a mile)
Disney trip
11/2/24 - Pumpkin run (do a mile)
11/10/24 - Madison 10k (do the 10k)
11/28/24 - Neighborhood Thanksgiving 5k (do the 5k)
12/1/24 - Last Call 5k (do the 5k)



The workouts

The plan starts today. For the first few weeks, I'll stick with 5 days per week, as that's a step up from the four days per week that I've been more consistent with. And I'd like to keep up with the LIIFT More workouts, but will keep them isolated to upper body, and only on Sat/Sun. As for speed days, I'll do them on Wednesdays and Sundays. Most of the easy days will stay at 45 min in length until the volume of the plan increases and once we get past Disney in mid-October.



For me, I can do mile pace at about 600m in length in around 2 min (2:08 is 5:43 pace). So I based all the distances off of that to give me goals for 30s, 60s, 90s, and 120s (or around 150m, 300m, 450m, and 600m). If you were to translate the plan for your own use, then that's what you would do. 150m written is 30s for you.

For Daniels vets, there will be a lot of familiar workouts. There's the sets of 150+150+300, or the 4x150+2+300+4x150, or some variety of inbetween. They're pretty simple workouts, and essentially as the weeks pass the length of time you run at pace extends either on a per interval basis (like 150m vs 600m) or from a total volume standpoint (like 11 min of mile pace versus 16 min of mile pace).



After a short four weeks, I'll have my first check in at the DoLittle 5k. I'll play this one by ear. It may be too soon to see where I'm at, or I'll be feeling alright and it can serve as a measuring stick for future performances. By then end of the four weeks, I'll move into six days per week, but the overall volume will still pale in comparison to what I've done for years (more like 4-5 hrs per week instead of 7-9 hrs per week).

The vast majority of workouts will stick to the mile pace scheme. A few workouts will appear here and there touching on either Daniels threshold pace or Daniels interval pace.



Once we roll into October, I found a local race supporting the nearby elementary school. The timing works well as we'll be heading to Disney the next week, and who knows what training will be like down there. So reaping some of the hard work of training in a race right before we leave could be useful knowledge before I head into the back half of the training plan.

Once I get back from Disney in late October, the plan's focus will shift. I'll move from primarily mile pace, to more variety of pacing around 3k-10k pace. This will serve as an entrance into preparing myself for more aerobic racing at the longer distances. I'll do a half mile repeat 5k workout, and then the Rat-A-Tat McMillan workout (400m at 10k w/ just 15 sec RI).

During this time, I'll aim to do one last mile race at the Pumpkin run, and then aim for running the Madison Marathon 10k.




The plan will wrap with three more weeks of 5k specific training, before heading into my own double 5k weekend. With the plans to race on Thanksgiving and then race again a few days later at Last Call. The goal is to treat these like my own mini Olympic qualifying and finals races.


Goals

So let's set some goals for this training plan.

1) Be consistent with the training.
2) Be flexible with the training when life dictates it.
3) To run a mile under 6 minutes again. Current PR is 5:42 from May 2020. Second fastest is 6:02 during the Bunny Head 5k time trial in May 2017. I did a 3 x 1 mile 5k workout in November 2023 before Disneyland in 6:03 (3rd fastest ever), 6:13, (9th), 6:14 (10th). So I know I've got sub-6 still in me.
4) To run my first official sub-20 5k. My current official PR is 20:06 (Disney 2018). I've run twice under 20 min at 19:27 (during 2018 Disney 10k) and 19:29 (Bunny Head Time trial in May 2017). I'm confident under the right conditions I can pull it off.
5) To run the Madison 10k in under 42 min. My PR is 39:54 at Disney 2018. But that's the only time I've run under 42 min. My other 10k times hover around 42:03, 42:11, 42:46... So I'd like to see if I can hit under 42 min when that's the goal, and not trying to go sub-40 again.

I may not hit all these goals, but it helps to settle in my mind what the purpose of the training is aimed towards. Ultimately, I had fun doing the Daniels 1500m / 2 mile training last go around, and it doesn't require a huge time commitment. So I think it's the right plan for right now.

 

[flav]

It is great that you found your new inspiration!
Looking forward to reading you… and maybe to following your example.

 

[DopeyBadger]

15 Weeks to go

That week where I returned to training in over 8 months and it hit me like a ton of bricks!


8/12/24-8/18/24
Mon (8/12): 5 miles @ Easy (8:57 min/mile, 142 bpm)
Tues (8/13): OFF
Wed (8/14): 4 sets (150m +150m + 300m)
Thurs (8/15): 5 miles @ Easy (Treadmill, 129bpm)
Fri (8/16): OFF
Sat (8/17): 5 miles @ Easy (8:51 min/mile, 142 bpm) + LIIFT More
Sun (8/18): 4 x 0.75 miles @ LT + 2 sets (75m + 75m + 150m)

Total Run Miles - 27.5 miles
Total Run Time - 4:03 hours
Total Strength Time - 0:27 hours
Total Training Time - 4:31 hours


Monday

Conditions - Scattered clouds, Wind 3mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 80°F + 61°F; FL - 80°F
End: Temp+Dew = 78°F + 61°F; FL - 80°F

Can't remember anything specific. It was toasty, and I did my standard 5 mile route. Had to run on Monday because I had to help out with costumes on location on Tuesday.



Wednesday

Conditions - Broken clouds, Wind 15mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 79°F + 62°F; FL - 79°F
End: Temp+Dew = 78°F + 66°F; FL - 79°F

The first planned speed session in months! I had headed home from work thinking it was 8 x 150m and was mentally prepared to attack the workout. So imagine my surprise when I opened the training plan to see I had given myself a 150+150+300 to open up. Man sometimes you write things a little bigger than your appetite on the day of. But I decided to see what would happen.

1.5 mi WU + 5 4 sets of (150m + 150m + 300m) @ R pace (5:42 min/mile) + 1 mi CD






A little sporadic, but not too bad. The first three reps were nearly spot on (5:44, 5:45, and 5:46). I should have checked the weather before leaving though, and I could tell it was warmer. T+D was 142, so should have adjusted 3.5% to something more like 5:55 pace goal. That first 300m rep was a challenge, but doable. Way overcooked on the second set. Ran a 5:07 and 5:11 without much effort and knew I was digging a hole at that point. So it came as no surprise when I hit a 6:05 on the next 300m rep. So when I ran a 5:02 on the opening of the third set, I had to have a talking to with myself that I was causing future self some problems if I didn't tone it down. So the second 150m in the third set came in a 5:51 and I felt like I had righted the ship. The third 300m was 5:53 which is pretty much spot on goal pace. The fourth rep opened up at 5:36 and 5:35, but I could tell my form was starting to suffer. So I decided that the fourth 300m was going to be the end of the workout. Ran it in 6:05, which isn't too far off goal, and decided to call it. Body just didn't seem like it wanted to go for that fifth rep set. The average T+D adjusted pace for the 150m was 5:17 and 5:45 for the 300m. So that's in a good place for an opening workout. Body felt ok afterwards.





Thursday

It was raining outside, and so I opted for the treadmill. It also forced me to keep it super easy. I watched the new Amazon Prime "Jackpot" movie with Awkwafina. I really like her, and she was her usual self.





Saturday

Conditions - 🌧 Light intensity drizzle, Wind 7mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 68°F + 65°F; FL - 69°F
End: Temp+Dew = 69°F + 65°F; FL - 69°F


It was raining again, but not too bad. A light drizzle that at times was quite nice. Body felt decent and nothing extra to say.

Did a LIIFT More workout immediately afterwards.



Sunday

Conditions - Overcast clouds, Wind 13mph to 20mph
Start: Temp+Dew = 67°F + 62°F; FL - 68°F
End: Temp+Dew = 68°F + 63°F; FL - 68°F

A relatively easy scheduled workout:

1.5 mi WU + 5 4 x 0.75 mi @ LT w/ 3 min rests + 6 x 150 @ R 2 sets (75+75+150)+ 1 mi CD

The rep length of the LT was short (about 5 min) and the resting intervals were longer than normal (3 min instead of 1 min). So a much more manageable workout. Or so I thought...






The lactate threshold goal pace is 6:39, but with T+D is around 6:51 pace. Of course, I didn't check this in advance AGAIN. Really got to get back into the habit. But I just decided to try and latch onto a pace that felt maintainable and do that. The body was definitely fighting me on this one and I was gasping. Did the reps in 6:57, 6:53, 7:00, and 7:04. As I started to see the slip in form and pace, I decided to skip the fifth rep and move to the R pacing. Instead of 6 x 150m, I did 75+75+150 instead. Did them in 5:36, 5:27, 5:26, 5:42, 5:19, and 5:33. So the kick was still there, just not the endurance to hold around a 7 min/mile.

I'm under no illusion that my fitness is as good as it was earlier this year, or longer ago. But definitely still working through that phase where my body and mind's pacing are off. Which I'm comfortable with. The goal is to put in good hard effort workouts, and hope that in several weeks I'll start to turn the Titanic boat around. Not a quick fix. Next week I double up on the R workouts. With some 450m reps, and some additional 300m reps. It's also G's Moana play, so I moved the schedule around so that I can make all four shows. It was a good reintroduction, and I look forward to the progress as I continue forward.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Amphibia Costumes - Anne Armor - Part 3

While the costume didn't explicitly call for it, I felt it lacked detail. The Darcy armor is very clearly flat, and lacks any kind of depth. But the Anne armor at least leaves a little to interpretation about depth. So I decided to run with that interpretation and add a little more detail that may not actually exist in the costume itself.

The first thing we did is add some edging around where we were going to have the blue vinyl tubing piping. I did this not only because I felt like it would add something to the armor, but also logistically because it would help frame where the blue piping would go. I've also found that the Barge All-Purpose cement doesn't hold well to already painted surfaces. So I could create a space that wasn't going to be painted for the blue vinyl tubing to go. So I cut small strips of 6mm foam. I placed them based on my measurements approximately where they should be on the costume, and then made sure to leave about 2.3cm of space for the vinyl tubing.




The next debate was whether the swirl detail should be raised like the edging (highest layer), if it should be painted on (same layer), or carved in (lowest layer). I felt like it would look best raised, and G thought carved. It's her costume, so we did it her way. I drew the swirls on with pencil, and then used the Dremel to carve it in. I did my best to smooth it out, but the carving tool tends to chop up the EVA more than I think it would with wood.




The last step was the upper portion. Again, I decided to take a little bit of liberty, and made this upper part entirely raised. I felt like it would again give it some extra depth. But more importantly, I felt like I could broaden the shoulders a bit more because I think the shoulder pieces are a little heavier than intended and may need additional reinforcement. For this upper piece, I laid the pattern out on top, but instead of making it from the several pieces like originally, instead I tried to do it in two much larger pieces to reduce the appearance of seams. A real clean look.






I liked how it turned out. I took the Dremel to all the edges to smooth and transition them out. Next up was the shoulder pieces. There are very few images of Anne's shoulders in the calamity form, but on a single occasion she turns sideways to give us a general idea as to the pattern on the shoulder. So I ran with that.



I did a 1/3, 1/3, 1/3, but in retrospect, I think it should have probably been a 1/4, 1/2, 1/4. But I know no one's going to notice the difference, especially since you can only see the pattern for a few frames in the entirety of the whole show. I carved out the lines with the Dremel just like the torso armor.



I then painted three layers of Flexbond onto the shoulders, hand armor, and torso.



Next - -Anne Armor - Part 4

 

[DopeyBadger]

Amphibia Costumes - Anne Armor - Part 4

I taped off the sections where the blue tubing was going to go.






The next big debate was around the color of the armor. G and I went back and forth about it for a few days. We have two gold colors we like (Alclad Pale Gold and Gold Titanium). The alclad silver candy base is expensive to work with because it takes so many coats to get good coverage. So my preference was to use the Black or Pale Grey Glossy base coats instead. We took the paint swatches outside to get an outdoor look at them.




The far left is the silver candy, second was black, third was grey, and then fourth was a matte black. So it was between the second and third base. For both the Pale Gold (top) and Gold titanium (second row) the black glossy just showed through a little dirtier. So we preferred the third base (Pale Grey Glossy). The coverage was great. It took only two coats to get nice coverage. Could have possibly only done a single coat.







I gave it an overnight to dry. The next question was what should be pale gold and what should be gold titanium. Again, G and I went back and forth on this. The torso of Anne's costume appears to be a single color. Most similar to Pale Gold. But I thought painting the different levels of the costume the two different colors would provide it more depth. On this one, G deferred to me and my vision. I started by painting on the Pale Gold to the upper layers. The following pictures are after a single layer of paint!







WOW! What a difference. Compare that to my experience with Hot Metal Violet which took upwards of 6-7 layers to get a good consistent coverage, and this paint covers in a potential single layer. Just goes to show how much paint choice can affect the length and cost of these projects. After putting on the Pale Gold, I then went back and added Gold Titanium as the softer color in other areas.




Again, it only took a single layer to almost get complete coverage. I taped off the piping so that I can go back and paint it with Pale Gold.




This particular image was after two layers of Pale Gold and two layers of Gold Titanium. I was pretty pleased with the coverage overall. Since a single bottle ($7) did pretty much everything here. Way better than the Hot Metal Violet from the Darcy costume.



So now I just have to wait on a little more paint to be able to finish up the gold painting. We had planned on doing the swirls and crevices on the shoulders in black, but we both think the unpainted look is really clean. So we're leaning towards leaving them as is.

Next - -Anne Armor - Part 5

 

[DopeyBadger]

Amphibia Costumes - Anne Armor - Part 5

As for a quick update on the vinyl tubing. The tubing is really stiff and hard to put into the correct desired shape following the costume. It's also really hard to cut (it actually broke a pair of my scissors). So I did some digging to see if there was an easy way to shape it. Some people recommended using a hair dryer or a heat gun, but the outcome was mixed. I did find one person that recommended placing it in a pot of hot, but not boiling, water. Leave it in there for 30-60 seconds and it would soften it up enough to be malleable. Then put it in the desired shape and when it cools, it'll hold that general new shape. So I decided to give that a try. As you can see prior to heating them up, they're quite stiff to shape.




I found an old saucer pan that had enough depth for the vinyl tubing. We don't really use it for cooking anymore anyways. I placed two towels over my kitchen island, and then made sure to wear a respirator, eye protection, heat gloves, and used tongs. I heated up the water to just below boiling, and then placed the tubing in the water for 30-60 seconds. It didn't take long, but I could see the tubing expand out of shape. I removed it from the water (making sure it drained the hot water back into the pan), and then set it on the towels on the island. Then I just did some simple shaping for the different lengths of tubing I needed. I also took the opportunity to cut the tubing if I needed to. Sometimes in half lengthwise, and sometimes just a single slit down the side to open it up. All in all it was very successful.

I did worry about the tubing I had already painted, but the paint didn't come off because of the water (only because of contact).

Before hot water bath:


After hot water bath:


So now that I was able to shape the pieces of vinyl tubing, now I can go back and paint all of them the blue, so that they're ready to be placed on the costume.

Next - -Anne Armor - Part 6

 

[DopeyBadger]

One thing I was going to say, was comparing the Ms Marvel bengal bracelet, and the Anne armor is literally night and day. The Ms Marvel bengal bracelet was made using Rub'n'Buff Metallic Gold paint. I would take an old sock and rub the paint onto the prop piece.



But compare that to the shine and cleanliness of the airbrush Alclad, and it's hands down in the favor of airbrushing.

 

[Sleepless Knight]

I may not hit all these goals, but it helps to settle in my mind what the purpose of the training is aimed towards. Ultimately, I had fun doing the Daniels 1500m / 2 mile training last go around, and it doesn't require a huge time commitment. So I think it's the right plan for right now.

When I learned that not overdoing it in training made running a lot more fun, it completely altered my feelings about running overall. In the past, training was the "necessary evil" that I had to put up with and/or endure to not be completely out of my depth come race day. Since then training has become part of the process that prepares me to have a more enjoyable race. So the fun plan sounds like the perfect plan for right now.

 

[nancipants]

Hoot Hoot Hustle is an amazing race name.

 

[DopeyBadger]

When I learned that not overdoing it in training made running a lot more fun, it completely altered my feelings about running overall. In the past, training was the "necessary evil" that I had to put up with and/or endure to not be completely out of my depth come race day. Since then training has become part of the process that prepares me to have a more enjoyable race. So the fun plan sounds like the perfect plan for right now.

Totally!

Hoot Hoot Hustle is an amazing race name.

Agreed! Not surprisingly with an owl as the mascot!

 

[DopeyBadger]

14 Weeks to go

That week where I started feeling more normal already.



8/19/24-8/25/24
Mon (8/19): 5 miles @ Easy (8:57 min/mile, 140 bpm)
Tues (8/20): 5 miles @ Easy (9:01 min/mile, 135 bpm)
Wed (8/21): (4x30s)+(3x90s)+(4x30s)
Thurs (8/22): OFF
Fri (8/23): OFF
Sat (8/24): 5 miles @ Easy (9:14 min/mile, 140 bpm)
Sun (8/25): (6x60s)+(6x30s)

Total Run Miles - 26.0 miles
Total Run Time - 4:01 hours
Total Strength Time - 0:00 hours
Total Training Time - 4:01 hours


Monday

Conditions - Scattered clouds, Wind 8mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 74°F + 59°F; FL - 74°F
End: Temp+Dew = 74°F + 59°F; FL - 74°F

Left ankle was a bit troublesome. Kind of stiff and felt like it needed to crack/release. But it didn't really want to do it. The feeling faded after more than a mile. Likely caused by my shoe being a little loose on the faster intervals on Sunday.





Tuesday

Conditions - Broken clouds, Wind 3mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 71°F + 54°F; FL - 70°F
End: Temp+Dew = 70°F + 55°F; FL - 70°F

Left ankle was still achy, but better than Monday. It was nice to have a low T+D for a break. Always nice to see how things feel once the temps calm down. Looking forward to the end of summer and start of cooler fall temps.





Wednesday

Conditions - Clear sky, Wind 8mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 73°F + 52°F; FL - 72°F
End: Temp+Dew = 72°F + 52°F; FL - 72°F

Another mile paced speed day. The goal workout was (4x30s)+(3x90s)+(4x30s). Again, I was a little in shock the 90s reps were coming so soon. But at the same time, I was only doing 3 reps. I had a workout saved on my watch from a previous run through of an 8 rep set. So I felt like if I could do 8 reps back in the day, I should hope to pull together 3 reps.





Goal pace under good conditions is a 5:42 min/mile, and with these lower temps was only adjusted to 5:49. I tried to be cautious with the first set of four 30s reps. I ran them in 5:39, 5:27, 5:28, and 6:01. That was the easy part (relatively speaking). Then came the first of three 90s reps. I gave it a good effort, but wasn't completely hunched over at the finish. I did the first one in 6:21. I knew that was too slow. So I put in even more effort on the second rep, and finished that one in 6:03. The lungs were taking a beating for sure. I pushed even harder on the third rep and was able to scrape together a 6:01 finish. So at best an adjusted 5:55 or so between those last two reps. Not terribly far off the 5:42 goal, but leaves something to be desired. Finished off the last four 30s reps at 5:20, 5:47, 5:18, and 5:21. Not shocking but it's just easier to maintain that pace for 30s over 90s. The adjusted average pace was 5:26 and 6:01. So still some work to do, but if the ultimate early goal is simply to break 6 min again, then having some 90s reps under my belt at that pace is a good place to be in Week 2 of the plan.




Thursday/Friday/Saturday/Sunday

Finally made it to Moana Jr. show week! I took Thursday and Friday off from running to make the evening shows. The kids did great. The Pua and Hei Hei costumes held up great throughout the performances. The best compliment I can get on my stuff is that Maui wanted to take the hook home as a souvenir, Moana took her necklace and heart prop, and Hei Hei wants to borrow the costume for Halloween. It's abnormal for us to let the kids take things from the shows since we loan them out to other theaters, but since these were my personal items, I decided to let them have them (or borrow in the case of the Hei Hei costume since it's far too expensive to gift). But it truly shows how much they enjoyed the effort I put into them. Additionally, Steph did a phenomenal job with the rest of the costumes for the cast of 75 (!) and things really came together well. We're already talking about next year with the Adult/kid's show of Wizard of Oz, and the children's show being Alice in Wonderland. I've already been working on some ideas, and am looking forward to it.





Saturday

Conditions - Few clouds, Wind 5mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 77°F + 67°F; FL - 78°F
End: Temp+Dew = 80°F + 67°F; FL - 78°F

Had intended on getting an early jump on the run since it was going to be hot, but I got sidetracked trying to find luggage to fit the costumes for Disney. So ended up being warmer than intended, but not too bad. Another easy day checked off.






Sunday

Conditions - Broken clouds, Wind 9mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 77°F + 71°F; FL - 78°F
End: Temp+Dew = 79°F + 71°F; FL - 78°F

The goal was a 6x60s + 6x30s run at mile pace. This would be a few less reps of 30s but an extra 2 reps of 60s compared to a similar workout last week. Additionally, because the 60s reps were stacked, this also added an additional layer of difficulty compared to last week. Again, the goal was 5:42 pace, but adjusted was more like 5:57 pace.






I again tried to start out conservatively so that I wouldn't crush myself late in the workout. Especially since it was fairly hot out. The first two reps were in 6:07 and 6:10 pace. Which wasn't terrible all things considered. I opened the legs up a bit more for the next four reps though and hit them at 5:40, 5:39, 5:50, and 5:56. So converted based on temps, those were more like 5:25, 5:24, 5:35, and 5:41. So a marked improvement from earlier in the week and to last week. There's something to be said to make 60s reps feel easy, try doing 90s reps, and then going back to 60s reps. If you can almost do 90, then 60 feels that much easier by comparison. Once the 30s reps started happening the legs were starting to feel it, but at no point was the quality or form compromised. But I was drenched and ready to be done by the end for sure. The 6x30s reps were done in 5:47, 5:10, 5:33, 4:58, 5:51, and 5:05 pace. Which is sub-5 adjusted pace on three of those.

So all in all, like I said, the legs are starting to feel a little more normal again. The endurance is still lacking, but I'm extending on my power profile to further and further distances at this point. It's still early, but I'm liking the early responses my body is giving me. This week has a 2x600m (or 2 min) rep set, and then revisiting T pace over the weekend. I've also got to be more diligent with getting strength workouts in. But at the same time, the clock is ticking towards the Disney trip. Now that Moana Jr is finished, I've got to buckle down for the next 7.5 weeks to finish everything out.

 

[The Expert]

The show cast photo looks fantastic, and I'm so glad to hear your hard work was appreciated. I can't believe Steph made 75+ costumes?!? I can't imagine. Congrats all around!

 

[DopeyBadger]

The show cast photo looks fantastic, and I'm so glad to hear your hard work was appreciated. I can't believe Steph made 75+ costumes?!? I can't imagine. Congrats all around!

Thanks! Thankfully Steph had lots of help, and she was a core of four there almost every night. Maybe 10-12 of them in total in the costume room. I think most kids had a single costume, and some had two. So maybe 120 costumes in total. Steph was definitely the idea person on the repeated costumes. And you can't even see that every water kid had 1-2 fans as well (to make it look like waves). It was a lot of work.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Some additional Moana Jr photos:

 

[DopeyBadger]

13 Weeks to go

That week where I wondered what the heck was I thinking?




8/26/24-9/1/24
Mon (8/26): LIIFT More
Tues (8/27): 5 miles @ Easy (9:19 min/mile, 137 bpm)
Wed (8/28): (4x30s)+(2x120s)+(4x30s)
Thurs (8/29): OFF
Fri (8/30): 5 miles @ Easy (9:28 min/mile, 136 bpm)
Sat (8/31): 5 miles @ Easy (9:23 min/mile, 134 bpm)
Sun (9/1): (4x30s) + (4x1 mile at LT) + (4x30s)

Total Run Miles - 28.1 miles
Total Run Time - 4:20 hours
Total Strength Time - 0:27 hours
Total Training Time - 4:47 hours




Monday

I missed all the LIIFT More workouts last week, so I made up for lost time by doing one on Monday. I had extra time to do so, so I did.




Tuesday

Conditions - Broken clouds, Wind 6mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 86°F + 72°F; FL - 93°F
End: Temp+Dew = 85°F + 73°F; FL - 93°F

A nice and easy run. Knew it was quite warm out. We were under a heat advisory on Monday and Tuesday. So I was aiming for low and slow. Save myself for Wednesday.





Wednesday

Conditions - Overcast clouds, Wind 13mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 71°F + 67°F; FL - 72°F
End: Temp+Dew = 70°F + 66°F; FL - 72°F

I really started to wonder to myself what was I thinking when I wrote this plan. I mean I'm following what I did in 2020, but man it sure seems like these longer R reps are coming faster than what I remember. At the same time, doing the longer stuff should hopefully make the shorter things feel easier. So today's workout was (4x30s)+(2x120s)+(4x30s) with 120s reps being the longest recommended length per Daniels. Goal pace was 5:42 which was adjusted to 5:52 based on the weather.





I tried not to overdo it on the 30s reps knowing that the beast of 120s was coming. I didn't do as well as I had hope though at 5:41, 5:14, 5:08 and 5:20. But I'll live with it. Then came the first 120s rep. I was overcome with emotion as I was running it. Maybe a little too amped up, and I started to get short of breath sooner than anticipated. So that one was a bit of a fight. Managed a 6:10 or 6:00 adjusted. But then I settled myself down mentally and relaxed. The second one I ran much more composed and measured. I started the rhythm breathing early and often, and just tried to relax my body as much as possible. Then as I was coming towards the last 30s or so of the rep, I ratcheted up the effort and went for it. Ran the second one in 5:53 or 5:43 adjusted. So that one felt better and was right on target. Just got to stick with that as best I can. Once the 120s reps were done, then I let the legs do what they wanted on the last four 30s reps. Did them in 5:11, 4:50, 5:00, and then cooled the jets at 5:56.

All in all, did the 30s reps in 5:08 adjusted and the 120s reps in 5:51 adjusted. So I'm quite pleased with the outcome. That's three weeks of R reps with the first at 60s (5:45 adj), then 90s (6:01 adj), then 60s again (5:38 adj), and now 120s (5:51 adj). So I'm in a good place for trying to hit that sub-6 mile at some point soon and hopefully better towards the end of the plan.





Thursday

I didn't like how my left glute was feeling, so I decided to move Thursday's easy run to Friday instead.





Friday

Conditions - Broken clouds, Wind 5mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 74°F + 68°F; FL - 75°F
End: Temp+Dew = 76°F + 67°F; FL - 75°F

Glute was essentially a non-issue. Nice and easy run mid-day.

G and I went to the UW football game against Western Michigan. We had free tickets from my work. It was her first football game that she'll remember (she went a handful of times when she was a baby back when we had season tickets). She had fun, but the game overall was kind of boring. No real big plays, nothing terribly exciting. Seems like some of the student traditions have been lost to time. But it was nice to spend some quality 1-on-1 time sharing something that I used to do quite frequently years ago.




Saturday

Conditions - Clear sky, Wind 8mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 80°F + 57°F; FL - 80°F
End: Temp+Dew = 73°F + 64°F; FL - 80°F

Nice and easy run. Nothing to note.





Sunday

Conditions - Few clouds, Wind 5mph to ?
Start: Temp+Dew = 69°F + 50°F; FL - 68°F
End: Temp+Dew = 62°F + 52°F; FL - 68°F

G decided she didn't want to be my scooter partner on the run, so I waited until Steph got home from work. So it was a little later in the evening and I had to break out the Tracer2 for the first time this season. The workout was (4x30s) + (4x1 mile at LT) + (4x30s). Goal LT pace is around 6:40 or so, so with the T+D around 6:45. It was beautiful weather by the way. Nice to almost be down into sub-100s. I did 0.75 mile LT reps in 6:48 adj pace about 1.5 weeks ago.






I really started off the 30s reps slow. Probably too slow. As I did them in 6:30, 6:26, 5:45, and 6:05. But I was trying to stay conservative for the LT reps. Had a neighbor wave to me as they drove by, and then they stopped the vehicle up ahead and wanted to chat running. I've seen him once or twice, but he just wanted to introduce himself and chat running for a bit. So we exchanged histories and tips and stuff. He did seem thrown off that I was training for a mile, and then asked if I was a speed guy then. And I said, nah I do the long distance stuff like marathons and Dopey as well. All about diversifying over the year.

After that I locked in and aimed for my LT reps. Stayed relaxed and did my best to focus throughout. Hit the first in 6:44 and was pleased with myself. Then did 6:51. A little slower, but still holding strong. Then did 6:56. Slipping a little, but not too bad. Then asked myself if I could do two more (knowing I only had one left), and felt like I could. So I aimed to start slow and finish fast. And I did well at that and was able to pick up the pace in the latter half to cruise to a 6:57 finish. So the goal was 6:45 pace, and I did them in 6:52 adj. So about where I was 1.5 weeks ago with the 0.75 mi reps.

I didn't have any desire to push myself, so I cruised on the final 30s reps at 6:53, 6:43, 6:48, and 6:36 pace.

All things considered a good week and continued progress. My speed is improving, but my endurance is definitely still lacking. This weekend is the DoLittle 5k, but I'll probably pass on running it. I'll just do some more R or T reps instead. I'm also jumping up into six days per week instead of 5 days per week as the plan starts to ramp up. Still aiming for the Hoot Hoot in 4.5 weeks.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Amphibia Costumes - Anne Armor - Part 6

Let's catch back up on armor progress! I was really hopeful I was going to complete the Anne Armor over the Labor Day weekend since I had a whole four days to work on it. But things snowballed here and there, and that just didn't happen. But let's see what progress was made since the last update through this past weekend.

The armor had been mostly painted at the end of the last update. I had to wait for new paint to arrive to finish it off. I did one more coat (making it three?) on the lower middle half gold (Gold Titanium). Then I took the painter's tape off the raised areas and did them in the Pale Gold (which isn't pale but more yellowish) to match the other raised areas. After that dried overnight, I did two layers of Alclad II Aqua Gloss (ALC-601) to finish it off.







It definitely has a beautiful shine to it.

To pivot, we also last left off having boiled, shaped, and painted the vinyl tubing.



I did several more layers after this image was taken and did so on all the pieces. The overall coat was good during the daytime. But once I put the LEDs underneath it, it looked awful. Way too splotchy and wasn't the clean even color look I was going for. For as much effort as I was putting into the costumes, I couldn't move forward with these. And I hate doing something more than once. So this was a setback.

I knew that this method wasn't going to get the look I wanted, so I took some time researching other options. Of course on this initial go around, I had just done something and thought it might work. But this time I wanted to see if others had done something similar. After a little bit of searching, I found someone dying plastic tubing for a water display project they were doing. They were using Rit DyeMore (link) which is used on synthetic fibers ("polyester, acrylic, acetate, plus blends that contain those fibers"), but also has been used by others on plastic toys and plastic tubing. So I wanted to give that a try. I figured dying it could allow me to create a single homogeneous color without the splotching. The other key was finding the right tubing. I had a fear that using the same tubing I had used meant that the blue dye would potentially keep the tube see through. And then you'd see the LED on the other side when the lights weren't on, which wasn't desirable. So I needed to find a 3/4 inch ID, 7/8 in OD, plastic/vinyl tubing, that was flexible, and frosted so that when dyed blue it would have an inherent desire not to be see through. It took about an hour of searching, but I found what I thought might be a good match on Amazon (link). I ordered the tube, and three colors of Rit DyeMore (Kentucky Sky, Sapphire Blue, and Tropical Teal).

The tubing was spot on. It was frosted, the right size, and quite flexible. It was also significantly lighter than the material from Home Depot which was an added bonus. So I followed the Rit DyeMore instructions. I added enough water to an oven safe pan (that I didn't plan on using with food anymore) that would cover the tubing. I warmed the water to simmering but not boiling. Then I added a good bit of the Kentucky Sky Rit DyeMore bottle (maybe 1/4 of the bottle?). Stirred it around to mix it up. I pre-wetted the tubing and then placed it into the simmering water with dye. I was wearing gloves and a respirator. I moved the tubing around with disposable plastic forks. I checked the tubing every few seconds to see if the color was adhering, and slowly but surely it was. The directions are indescriment on how long to do this for. It says clothing can take an hour, whereas a toy can take a minute. So I just kept checking and each time it was a little bluer. It probably took 4-5 min in total. Once it reached a satisfactory color, then I took the tube out with tongs, and placed it in a plastic tub with room temp water in it. This is supposed to be successively done until the dye stops coming off the item, but in the case of the tube, it never came off. So just the initial dunk was enough to call it done. I did this two more times on the remainder of the tubing. Here are the results:




I also took a piece of the smaller vinyl tubing meant for the gloves and did the same to it.






The process worked really well. It had a nice even coat of blue during the daytime. Like G pointed out, it was probably a tad too purple blue, but I felt like it was close enough to call it good. But the real clincher was seeing what it looked like with the LEDs on. At first we tried the smaller tubing with the 5mm single LED that we'll be using on the gloves.




Nice clean color, but a similar issue as to before that it only travels about 8cm or so.

Then we tried the 480 LED/m lights.




The white was good, but you could definitely see the LED strip because of how bright it was. But the blue was absolutely great.



Nice even color, could barely see the LED strip itself. Felt like we had a real winner. So we decided to move forward with this.

Next - -Anne Armor - Part 7

 

[DopeyBadger]

Amphibia Costumes - Anne Armor - Part 7

Now that we had a settled upon color for the LED lights (blue) as well as the tubing looking good, it was time to start assembling these things together. The strip of blue LEDs is not completely flexible. It can be bent in the Z-plane, but not in the X or Y axis. So I had to cut it up and piece it together through soldering. The cutups had to be kind of accurate in their angles. So it took some trial and error to get the shapes right. It was a tedious process.




I did find some heat shrink wrap tubing that was large enough to cover over the LED strip, so I did that on the soldered areas. I just one by one built each strand strip, leaving some wiggle room for assembly. Because of the design, I had to assemble some of the pieces once they were already affixed to the costume.






But I kept checking the LEDs every so often to make sure all the connections were still good. Eventually I got all of the torso pieces assembled, and then I moved to the plastic/latex dyed blue tubing to place over the top. I used the Barge cement glue to attach the LEDs to the foam costume.






Next - -Anne Armor - Part 8

 

[DopeyBadger]

Amphibia Costumes - Anne Armor - Part 8
Attaching the plastic/latex tubing to the foam armor proved more difficult than anticipated. I initially tried the Barge cement glue, but it didn't stick to the tubing very well. I then tried hot glue, but that stuck even worse (as in not at all). I pulled out the old Google machine and decided to do some research. Turns out it's really hard to glue plastic due to its constructed nature and takes some very specific types of glue. After some reading, I settled on trying a variety of different plastic super glues to see which would work. Because if there was one consensus online, it was that no one glue was the best for all types and you don't know until you try. I headed over to Ace and purchased three different ones: Gorilla Micro Precise Super Glue (link), Loctite Plastic Bonding System (link), and Loctite Vinyl, Fabric, and Plastic (link). Each of them had a variety of instructions on use and what they could be used on. But all of them were supposed to be relatively quick acting (under 10 min).

The plan was to put each of the three through two different tests. The first was gluing the tubing to itself, and the second was gluing the tubing to an unpainted piece of EVA foam. The Loctite VFP took the early lead on the tube to tube adherence. But after some tugging it came apart. However the other two, Gorilla and Loctite PBS both adhered quite well. I could pull really hard on them and they weren't coming apart. Not full strength, but really hard. The Loctite PBS dried completely clear, and the Gorilla dried slightly white. So the Loctite PBS was the best choice for tube to tube.

The same couldn't be said for the tube to foam test. Initially again, the Loctite VFP took the early lead and somewhat adhered to the foam, but after some gentle tugging it came apart. The Loctite PBS didn't adhere at all for tube to foam and came apart instantly. So I tried the Gorilla super glue and it adhered well at first. I let it sit a little longer, and then the bond was quite strong. I could rip it apart if I tried hard, but I suspect no one will tug that hard on the bond of the two. So I felt good about it.

So I ended up going with Gorilla Super Glue for tube to EVA foam, and Locative Plastic Bonding System for tube to tube.







Same as before, but at each step I would check the LEDs to make sure everything was still working.




Some of the seams still have to be cleaned up, but you can see where we're headed with it. But you can see the look compared to the cartoon:



Here is it at night:




Here it is in daytime:






I felt like maybe it was too strong of light. So I tried replacing the AA Energizer Max batteries with the Energized Rechargeable. For those following along long term, the 8x Max batteries have a combined voltage of 12V, whereas the 8x Rechargeables have a combined voltage of 9V. So the rechargeables are dimmer.





I personally liked the rechargeables better, but G prefers the Max. The beauty is the batteries are interchangeable and not a final decision. So we can finish the whole costume and then easily switch out the stronger/dimmer ones on a whim.

Lastly, I attached the LEDs to the sides of the shoulder pieces.



It's coming together nicely. In my mind's eye I can start to see all the pieces assembled, and I'm liking the final product. So we're getting close, but not quite there yet.

Next - -Anne Armor - Part 9

 

[Sleepless Knight]

Seems like some of the student traditions have been lost to time.

I've noticed that in going back to games after I'd been out of college for a while. Seems like some traditions just kind of "fell to the wayside" while newer ones took their place. That's always a mixed bag of sorts for me. Some of the new traditions are fine, but losing the old ones feels like it hurts sometimes.

I personally liked the rechargeables better, but G prefers the Max. The beauty is the batteries are interchangeable and not a final decision. So we can finish the whole costume and then easily switch out the stronger/dimmer ones on a whim.

I agree with you. The rechargeable batteries give off a less "harsh" light and it's possible that the Max lights may dominate more than you would like in party photos. But nice on the ability to not have to make a final decision.

 

[DopeyBadger]

I've noticed that in going back to games after I'd been out of college for a while. Seems like some traditions just kind of "fell to the wayside" while newer ones took their place. That's always a mixed bag of sorts for me. Some of the new traditions are fine, but losing the old ones feels like it hurts sometimes.

So true!

I agree with you. The rechargeable batteries give off a less "harsh" light and it's possible that the Max lights may dominate more than you would like in party photos. But nice on the ability to not have to make a final decision.

Exactly.