Marathon Minus-6

Marathon week is here!  I will try to post as much as I can this week as I gear up for the trip to New York.  I'm already having a hard time thinking about much else.  After nearly 4 months of preparation the end is in sight.

Ran a total of 14 miles this past week.  That's a far cry from what I've been accustomed to, but it's fine.  I'm not focusing on running a lot of miles right now.  I'm fully trained and need to just try to stay healthy for the next few days.  Of course, I'm trying to fight off a cold right now that I picked up over the weekend.  It's taken me down a few pegs, but nothing that I can't get through.

For the sake of following me on race day, the ING NYC Marathon website has a lot of info.  The site is www.nycmarathon.org.  To follow me during the race, visit the Mobile Spectator App TrackMyRunner site.  You can either buy an iPhone app ($3 - and from the reviews not worth it) or check a website during the race for free to see how I'm doing.  Or you can sign up for $3 and get text messages.  Not going to advocate for any of this, but I wanted to get the word out just in case.

Today is Halloween and I've not indulged too much in the sweets.  Had a good day, despite nursing the cold.  Stopped at a local running store and picked up some new socks and a case of GU.

Here's to kicking this cold, which is #1 priority right now!

Week_16: Under 2 Weeks to NYC Marathon

Missed posting last week, which is a shame because it was a very good week.  I logged over 50 miles and did my third and final 20 mile run, and even ran a 1 mile fun run with Grady and Charlie.  It was a race through a course that pretty much encompassed our neighborhood and both boys did great.  The excitement on the 3 year old's face indicates more future racing, I imagine.

The 20 miler was fantastic.  I felt fresher during the second 10 miles than I did on the first.  Even though I was trying to keep my pace nice and slow I ended up running sub marathon pace for the better part of the last 10 miles.  I still managed to keep my heart rate steady and around 140 for the entire run.  I think this may be a sign that a sub 4-hour marathon is finally within reach.

As for week 16, it was a busy one at work and I had to scramble to get a couple of runs in Mon-Thrs.  I only did two runs of 4+ miles during these days, sneaking away for a trail run on Tuesday and a treadmill run on Wednesday.  Friday I had the time to go out and do an 8 miler.  The route for the 8 mile run was hilly (as they all are around here) but I felt great; I ended up averaging 8:27.

Yesterday I did 12 miles nice and easy and again felt good.  Averaged 9:24 per mile and took in the scenery as I went along.  This brings me two weeks away from race day.  Following my plan, I'll do 4-6-4-4-8 this week.  That will be the last week of substantial mileage.

All signs are good right now.  No areas of concern physically, other than the usual soreness.  I have areas more tight than others, like my right hip flexor.  These spots are like old friends that accompany me for the beginning stages of my runs and then drop off along the course as I get more and more warmed up.  Mentally I'm ready to go.

Getting to the starting line of the the New York marathon may turn out to be my biggest challenge.  Saturday it involves a long train ride, successfully making it to the expo and picking up my packet, possibly getting to another meet & greet for Hope for the Warriors to get another bracelet for entry to the Staten Island pre-race charity tent.  Sunday I'll need to take the subway to the Staten Island Ferry, then the ferry across the river, then from debarkation point to the right place and corral over in the marathon village.  My race start time is 10:10 am on Sunday, which is pretty late compared to any other race I've ever done.  Logistics plan is simple but presents a few hurdles prior to the race.  I'm sure it'll all be more than worth it.

Week_14

Fourteen weeks down, and 4 to go.  Another very encouraging week of training for the race.  Did 12 miles this morning and barely broke a sweat.  Did it in 9:37 min/mile pace, too.  Would have been an even better time if I hadn't had to make an emergency stop at mile 3.5.  Thankfully, I was a few steps from a secluded path.  It's nice to have to work to keep at a slower pace.

Did 28 miles this week.  I skipped one 6 mile run due to this being my son's birthday week.  I say birthday week because we tend to celebrate these events over several days, culminating in a party on the weekend.

My shorter runs this week were 5, 6, and 5 miles at 8:28, 8:49, 8:26 minutes per mile, respectively.  Each run felt good.

Next week is the last high mileage week, as I play to run 5-10-5-10-20.  After this, it'll be a couple of weeks of taper, then I'll be ready.  I feel ready right now.

Starting to get really pumped for the trip to New York in four weeks!

Chinese Blogs?

Sometimes I like to click on "next blog" and see what comes up.  You never know what you're gonna get.  Today, I got a bunch of Chinese blogs.  How did the electrons line up my blog with a bunch of China blogs?

week_13

Thirteen weeks down, and five to go.  The race is five weeks from today.  Everything is on track for success in New York on 6 November.

Week 12 was an uneventful 34 miles (2x five mile runs, 2x six mile runs, 1x 12 miles.)  I did run six on Saturday and 12 on Sunday, which is the first time in a while I've done a long run following anything other than a rest day.  My five and six mile runs were all at faster than marathon pace.  Funny how 34 miles is an easy week for me at this point.

Which brings me to week 13, this past week.  I felt pretty good this week, though I did blow out my running shoes.  I put about 160 miles on them in September, and they were rode hard and put away wet.  A lot of time they were put on wet the next day, too.  Not sure if Zappos is going to give me a new pair for the way these things failed.


I ran every day from Tuesday trough Friday, going 5-10-5-10, respectively.  Did Friday's 10 miler at an average pace of 8:52, which is slightly better than what I think my MP will be.

Picked up new shoes last night at VA Runner, and had everything set up for this morning's run.   I got up and got out the door around 5:20am for the 20 miler.  For some reason I couldn't find my Gatorade mix, so I went out with water only to drink.

It was cold today.  Probably in the 40s when I started out.  Wind was blowing a bit, too, so it was chilly.  I loved it.  Dark and cool and nobody else around.  I didn't see a car for the first 2 miles, and probably less than 20 the entire time I was out.

Everything was going well until I hit the 5 mile marker, on the Marine Corps Base where I usually recharge my water.  The water bull wasn't there, which was not a big concern.  However, I noted my watch was running out of space to hold data, so I started deleting old runs.  In so doing I accidentally deleted the first 5 miles of my run!  Erased, from existence.  Frustrating.

However, nothing could get in my head today.  Perfect running conditions, and I took it easy en route to a 9:43 minute mile average for the whole 20 miles.  Got home, took a hot shower, drank an O'Doul's and was at church by 9:30am.  Of course the day was pretty much spoiled by the way the Steelers played, but I'm getting used to the 2011 Steelers disappointing play.  I hope they can figure out how to stop the run and cause some turnovers again like last year.

"Easy" week coming up with 5-6-5-6-12, followed by one more week like this past one.