After the Chicago Marathon, I decided to spend late fall into winter focusing on shorter distances - specifically the 5K. It’s easy to fall into a cycle of back-to-back marathon training blocks, trying to juggle both speed work and high mileage. While higher mileage can benefit newer runners, I eventually hit the point where focusing on speed would be more beneficial for my efficiency, mechanics and essentially progress longer term. So for the past few years, I’ve dedicated the winter and spring post-marathon to getting faster, spending more time on the track - which I’ve come to love.

On December 8th, I ran the Trials of Miles 5K in Montclair, NJ (a hometown race, if you will). I ran a 15:49 (5:06/mile) - feeling a bit disappointed with that result, as I think my training was indicating a bit faster outcome. I felt like I was missing this additional layer of fitness I needed to sustain that hard of an effort.

4 weeks later, on January 4th, I ran it back and raced the Frozen Penguin 5K in NYC. I ran 15:38 (5:02/mile). Though that was still not a PR for me, I felt proud of the effort this time around. The course and conditions were similar: sub freezing temps, rolling hills, and a headwind through the first half of the race. However, I felt more in control throughout the race and I closed really well.

Over that four-week period, I ramped up my training and recovery: 1) I added cross-training on the bike back into my routine. ~3-4 hours per week, mostly easy aerobic work 2) added more hill workouts – more running in Central Park and incline efforts on the treadmill. In my first 5K, I felt my pace drop pretty drastically on some of the inclines so I wanted to make sure that I had the firepower to get up and down the course in Central Park 3) I took my recovery a lot more seriously. The holiday stretch was particularly long this year, and while I was still getting my runs in, I naturally took the foot of the gas with recovery and cross-training.

While I still think I had more to give on these races, both happened to be in brutal conditions but I learned a lot and still got a ton of reps in at quicker speeds than ever before which always pays off eventually. After the Frozen 5K, I started to shift gears toward my spring race, Project 13.1 in Rockland Lake State Park.

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