Week_7

Seven weeks down and 11 to go before the race on 6 November in New York.  After seven weeks, I'm on track and making good progress toward my goals.  I ran 37 miles this week, punctuated by a strong 17 mile run on Saturday, 20 August.

I've been making corrections all summer to my running strategy.  Diet, rest, and weather are the dominant factors in my running performance, and when I deliberately plan before I run I enjoy success.  When I don't plan well I feel the burn.  That's why this is training, and why it's important for me to train before I try to run 26.2 miles in under 4 hours.

Saturday, 20 Aug: 17 mile run.  2hr 44m 23sec (9m 40sec per mile pace.)  This was to be a 16 mile run, but due to miscalculating my route slightly it ended up 17.  I felt as if I could have run all day.  I didn't sleep all that well the night before, though I did eat 3-4 pieces of pizza and drink 4 beers.  I drank a lot of water and Gatorade on Friday, too.  So when I woke up at 5am Saturday I felt pretty well prepared.

Upon waking I ate 1/2 of a bag of Jelly Belly sport beans, had some Gatorade, and a Thomas' 100% whole wheat mini bagel.  I put Gatorade in both of the 10oz bottles I carry on my hydration belt, and took 3 Endurolytes pills.  I packed three GUs and the other 1/2 of the Jelly Belly's with six more Endurolytes pills.  I was out the door and running at 5:23am to 61 degrees and 100% humidity.

The moon was high as I knocked out the first several miles; the sun would not rise until close to 6:30.  I started conservatively and set an easy pace for the first six miles.  Miles 1 and 2 were at around 9:45/min and 5-7 were my slowest miles at around 10 mins each.

There are lots of hills on the route I use for my long runs, which makes for good training.  I ate a GU and drank some Gatorade at the hour mark, then took 3 of the Endurolytes at the 9 mile mark with some more Gatorade.  I was determined not to cramp or dehydrate.  Took the second GU just before mile 12.

I had to work to maintain a slow pace for the rest of the run, as I felt great.  I wanted to stay close to 9:45-10 pace but felt myself charging up hills and coasting down hills at faster paces.  When I figured out I was going to finish 16 miles before I got home I immediately planned to run the last mile vs walk.  I ended up charging up the last hill before being home; this is a hill that routinely kicks my butt and on the days when I struggle I loath walking up it as the folks out for 2-3 mile jogs pass me.  I got to mile 17 and felt awesome.

The experience of doing 17 miles and feeling good validates my strategy and gives me great confidence at this stage.  As further evidence of how well this went, I followed up nearly 3 hours of running with 90 minutes of shoveling playground mulch into a wheelbarrow and carrying it from the driveway to the backyard.

Thursday, 18 Aug: 8 mile run. 1hr 14m 03sec (9m 15sec per mile pace.)

Tuesday, 16 Aug: 8 mile race pace run. 1hr 11m 41sec (8m 57sec per mile pace.)

Sunday, 14 Aug: 4 mile run. 36m 57sec (9m 13sec per mile pace.)

Week_5 & Week_6

This post serves as the update for both week 5 and week 6 of my ING NYC Marathon training.  Six weeks into an 18 week training schedule, and I'm feeling more confident each week.  Though the humidity continues to be tough, I've done a decent job of accounting for how it affects me.  Time of day, nutrition, and pace are the best ways to control things until the weather improves, and in a few weeks all the effort is going to pay off.  Everything I read says training in heat and humidity makes you stronger when the weather breaks.  I was in Palm Springs, CA this past week, and though it was 105 degrees every day, the dry weather was much preferable to the swamp feeling of the East Coast.  Running 7 miles at 6am when it's 75 and 40% humidity is awesome.

Week 5 summary:  32.68 miles.
Mon Aug 1: 7.18 mile run, 1:07:20, 9:22 pace.  Did part of this run on a trail with significant hills, and part on a track.  Went out at 11:45am in Quantico, and though it wasn't as bad as it has been, it was super hot on that track.

Tues Aug 2: 4.5 mile trail run, 41:55, 9:24 pace.  Ran at 8am with a group, on a trail with good hills.  Did 100 push ups and 50 pullups at the 1/2 way point.

Wed Aug 3: rest

Thur Aug 4: 7 mile run, 1:06:48, 9:32.  Went out at 4pm due to a busy day.  Thursdays are proving difficult for me to get out during any time in the day, and I need to commit to getting out early (before 7.)  It wasn't too hot, but was indeed humid.  I knew I had a 14 mile run facing me in 12 hours, and running 7 miles without a lot of time to rehydrate and rest before a longer run is not a good plan. 

Fri Aug 5: 14 mile run, 2:44:28, 12 min pace.  This was not fun at all.  I didn't set myself up well for the run, and in 100% humidity it was pure pain.  First five miles went well enough, and after two slow miles, I was able to pick it up again for 8 and 9.  Just after mile 9, I started experiencing cramps in my calves.  Uh, oh.  Not a good sign.  I hadn't taken any Endurolytes prior to the run, which most likely played a role in the cramps.  Also, doing 7 miles less than 12 hours from starting a 14 mile run was a negative factor.  I drank up my water, and ate GU and carried on.  I ended up walking a great deal of the last 4 miles, averaging a 15 min mile pace over that stretch.  Not a proud way to finish up the effort.

I was a mess for the remainder of the day on Friday.  My calves, hamstrings, and quads cramped in concert, taking solos and combining to inflict unified pain.  All day long my toes cramped.  I went to work and my speech was distorted by my strained vocal chords and water in my ears.  Not a pretty sight, indeed.

Week 6 summary: 28 miles. (step back week)

Mon Aug 8: 7 mile run, 1:01:26, 8:46 pace.  Sunday I traveled to Palm Springs, CA, and on Monday morning I got up at 5:30am for a 7 mile run.  The desert air was dry, and I shook out the travel stiffness with two easy miles to start.  I looped around the downtown area and went along a bike lane that took me around the town through some neighborhoods.  I tried to picture who might live in such a place.  Nice, irrigated yards in front of low slung luxury houses at the base of a desert mountain.  I ran with great ease considering I was working on little sleep in a strange place.  Nothing like getting a good run in on a work trip before starting the week.


Tues Aug 9: 4 mile run, 34:14, 8:33 pace.  Again felt great running in the dry air.

Wed Aug 10: rest.  Travel day.  Long flights back from California to DC.

Thur Aug 11: 7 mile run at race pace, 59:52, 8:32.  Failing to lean from week 5, I didn't get out for this 7 miler until nearly 4:30pm.  This was a race pace run, so I was to keep it between 8:45 and 9:05 per mile.  I felt very good, though, and had a lot of stress built up from work to burn off.  Each mile was pretty much the same, and I was able to keep an 8:30 pace the whole way.


Fri Aug 12: 10 mile run, 1:37:50, 9:46 min pace.  Took my Endurolytes, filled up the water bottles, had my GUs, and went out at 9:45am.  Took it easy, up and down some hills, out and back.  Didn't suffer at all, and each mile felt good.  Unlike the recent problems with the longer runs, I didn't feel bad at all at miles 6-8.  This gives me a confidence boost headed into week 7.

Overall, things are good.  Getting the support from family that I need, and managing to keep the training schedule manageable. My weekly mileage will climb steadily during the next several weeks.  The long runs are reaching the peak, with 16 miles and 17 miles as the long runs for the next two weeks.  The 19 and 20 milers are only 4 and 5 weeks away, respectively.  The weather favors me for the September and October training.

Week_4 revised

Due to the obscene weather around here, and it's impact on my distance running, I repeated week four.  This was actually a very good move for me, considering I started training a week early to give myself some flexibility.  So now I'm back on track, and logging the right number of miles to peak at the right time.  Also, I now fully understand the implications of going for a run in Virginia in the summer.

So I'm going to skip the details of my first attempt at week four.  The heat/humidity factored to destroy my first attempt at 13 miles on Friday, 22 July.  I tried to go out at 7am and found myself physically drained and mentally agitated six miles into the run.  I stopped the agony and vowed to regroup.  So after some consideration, I decided to take the rest of the weekend off from running and get back at it on Monday the 25th.

So Monday I got up and ran 6 miles in my neighborhood at 6 am.  The air temperatures are cooler at this time but the humidity has been running between 85-100%.  I followed the advice of some of the stuff I've been reading lately, particularly the Runners World articles on how to handle the heat, and I went a little slower and more deliberately.  Finished in 55 minutes for a 9:13 average, with each mile split deviating only slightly from this.  Lots of hills around where I live, so I always consider the terrain when I loot at my stats on runs from home.

Tuesday I went out at work in the afternoon and did 3 miles in 8:57, 8:12, 8:07 for 25:18 overall.  I have been feeling really good on the short run days, and breeze through them feeling better as I go along.  It's good to get out during work and burn off some frustration, too.

After taking a break on Wednesday, I was out the door at 6 am again on Thursday for a six mile race pace run.  Due to repeating week 4, this was my third Thursday in a row running 6 miles at race pace.  I did it from home and headed to a track a short distance away, counting the to and from distances as well.  I felt pretty good and was able to do it in 52 minutes for a 8:43 overall average pace (8:53, 8:50, 8:46, 8:37, 8:37, 8:33).  I like the negative splits.

Friday was the test.  Got my GUs and Jelly Belly sportbeans, filled up my water bottles and strapped on my hydration belt and headed out the door at 6:20am for a 13 mile run.  Considering the heat and humidity I was willing to settle for averaging 10:30 per mile, and finished up at 2hrs and 12mins for a 10:10 average pace.  I took it easy, and covered some hilly terrain.  Felt great for the first six or seven miles, before the environmental factors really kicked in.  The out and back course covers a lot of hills, and finishes with three miles that each take a lot of effort.  I ended up walking up a good part of the last hill, as at 8:30am I was toast.  Finished strong, though, and proudly ended the run on my feet!  Looking at my splits, my biggest learning point is to avoid the 9:20 miles during this time of year and this stage of my long runs.  I want to keep them closer to 9:45, which is where the majority of the splits were.

I was as well prepared for this long run as I could have been; I was hydrated, rested, and fueled up.  I got back home and was soaked with sweat as if I'd been in a pool, so my wife hosed me off in the back yard.  I grabbed a big cup of ice water and sank into a plastic chair on the patio to enjoy a few minutes of regained confidence.

Week 4: 28 miles run.  I didn't run yesterday (Sunday) due to a 6 hour drive, which ended with us realizing our home air conditioning was broken.  So I take a bye on the first run of week #5.  This week I will step it up a bit with a 14 mile run on Friday.  Have to run 7 today!  Feeling better and getting better.