Today was the last long run before Philly -- 8 miles, as per the plan that I've done soooo well in following. It wasn't a great run or a terrible run. It was 8 miles, I ran it. End of story. I fell off of my plan and struggled for most of October, but the last two weeks have given me a measure of confidence back.
Now, I'm starting to get freaked out about the weather. The forecast is fluctuating wildly. Yesterday, the forecast predicted a 60 percent chance of rain on Sunday, which would be bad news -- I've never really done a long run in the rain. I've gotten rained on and misted on, but going out and running 26.2 in mostly rainy conditions is not something that fills me with cheer.
One day later, the outlook is much better. Weather.com says cloudy with a low of 51 and a high of 57. That's ok, and I know most people would take that in a heartbeat, but I'm signed up for marathon in late November in Philadelphia...I want it to be cold!! Give me a starting temperature in the 30s and I'll be a happy man. But, most importantly I'll be doing my "no precipitation" dance!
The good thing for me if that forecast holds (and it probably won't!), is that it will make gear selection really easy. No need for a long-sleeve shirt, jacket, gloves, etc. It'll be ok, I know it will. I'm just a worrier. I'll have concerns about the weather no matter what it is, so for my own sanity I probably just shouldn't look at it until Thursday or Friday morning so I know what to pack.
I'm ready. As physically ready as I'm going to get, and with some confidence restored after two solid weeks and last week's 20-miler. Mentally? Ok. I wouldn't quite say I'm excited and "looking forward to it" is probably still a bit too strong, but I'm not quaking in fear, either. I want to get started, and I want to get it over with. I am DEFINITELY looking forward to a huge omlet and lots of bacon at my favorite Philadelphia brunch place, Little Pete's, after the race.
Showing posts with label long run. Show all posts
Showing posts with label long run. Show all posts
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Saturday Long Run: So You're Telling Me There's a Chance...
If you read this blog regularly, you know I'm having a crisis of confidence regarding the upcoming Philadelphia Marathon because I haven't done as good a job getting my base miles in as I should have.
If you don't read this blog regularly, I'm having a crisis of confidence regarding the upcoming Philadelphia Marathon because I haven't done as good a job getting my base miles in as I should have.
I'd been debating what do with my long run today. Taper? Or try to get one more 20-miler in? I asked for and got lots of advice here, on dailymile, and on the Runner's World Philadelphia Marathon forum, and opinions ranged from "do it -- there's plenty of time to rest" to "No, at this point you're not going to gain any fitness and you run the risk of injury by not being rested on race day." Thanks again to everyone who gave me advice.
I decided to try for 20 miles, but set up my route as an 8-mile out and back so that I could easily stop at 16 if I didn't feel like going on. I wanted 20, but I know at this late stage it wasn't worth killing myself for. The second I stepped on the trail, though, I had the feeling that this could be a great run. I felt light, I felt fast, I felt strong, I felt like a Kenyan, I felt like a marathoner again...I felt so distracted by how great I felt that I guess I forgot to hit "start" on my Garmin for (I'm guessing) about 3/4 of a mile. That's ok, I know where the 8-mile mark is, it just meant my time would be an estimate.
I felt great all the way up, and if I'd had my four-bottle hydration belt, I would have gone all the way to York and back. Of course, if I'd had my four-bottle hydration belt it would have annoyed the daylights out of me. I started to tire around mile 13, but I had been eating sports beans every two or three miles throughout the run and I think that really helped.
I got back to Hanover Junction with my GPS reading 15.83, which is weird since I'm certain I ran more than .2 miles before starting it. I'm a bad distance estimator but not THAT bad, and I know that at least two songs had played before I noticed it wasn't running. I refilled my bottles, stretched my calves and quads out, and headed south. My new plan was to run a mile down and a mile back, so I could stop at 18 if I needed to. I was tired, but still felt good, and so I kept on going for two miles, and circled back and ran a little past Hanover Junction till my Garmin actually read "20.00."
(I ran 20 and lived to tell the tale and look like a dork.)
It was definitely my best long training run ever. I ran the whole 20 miles without walk breaks, though I did make three quick stops: a restroom break at about mile 10, the refilling break at 16, and a quick stop to photograph some cute goats at about mile 18.5. It took me 3:29:39, two minutes faster than last time, which means I probably was going faster last time and burned myself out, forcing me to walk.
I had no leg cramps during the run and my post-run stretching, which was very surprising and very welcome. I don't think I could have run 26.2 today without some walking breaks, but I feel like this puts me in line to at least equal my performance at Shamrock. Given the bad base miles situation I've gotten myself in, I'll gladly take that at this point.
Overall, I couldn't have asked for a more beautiful morning for this run, and I couldn't have hoped to feel any better during it. I may regret this 20-miler on 11/20, but right now I feel my confidence needed the boost more than my legs needed the third week of tapering.
If you don't read this blog regularly, I'm having a crisis of confidence regarding the upcoming Philadelphia Marathon because I haven't done as good a job getting my base miles in as I should have.
I'd been debating what do with my long run today. Taper? Or try to get one more 20-miler in? I asked for and got lots of advice here, on dailymile, and on the Runner's World Philadelphia Marathon forum, and opinions ranged from "do it -- there's plenty of time to rest" to "No, at this point you're not going to gain any fitness and you run the risk of injury by not being rested on race day." Thanks again to everyone who gave me advice.
I decided to try for 20 miles, but set up my route as an 8-mile out and back so that I could easily stop at 16 if I didn't feel like going on. I wanted 20, but I know at this late stage it wasn't worth killing myself for. The second I stepped on the trail, though, I had the feeling that this could be a great run. I felt light, I felt fast, I felt strong, I felt like a Kenyan, I felt like a marathoner again...I felt so distracted by how great I felt that I guess I forgot to hit "start" on my Garmin for (I'm guessing) about 3/4 of a mile. That's ok, I know where the 8-mile mark is, it just meant my time would be an estimate.
I felt great all the way up, and if I'd had my four-bottle hydration belt, I would have gone all the way to York and back. Of course, if I'd had my four-bottle hydration belt it would have annoyed the daylights out of me. I started to tire around mile 13, but I had been eating sports beans every two or three miles throughout the run and I think that really helped.
I got back to Hanover Junction with my GPS reading 15.83, which is weird since I'm certain I ran more than .2 miles before starting it. I'm a bad distance estimator but not THAT bad, and I know that at least two songs had played before I noticed it wasn't running. I refilled my bottles, stretched my calves and quads out, and headed south. My new plan was to run a mile down and a mile back, so I could stop at 18 if I needed to. I was tired, but still felt good, and so I kept on going for two miles, and circled back and ran a little past Hanover Junction till my Garmin actually read "20.00."
(I ran 20 and lived to tell the tale and look like a dork.)
It was definitely my best long training run ever. I ran the whole 20 miles without walk breaks, though I did make three quick stops: a restroom break at about mile 10, the refilling break at 16, and a quick stop to photograph some cute goats at about mile 18.5. It took me 3:29:39, two minutes faster than last time, which means I probably was going faster last time and burned myself out, forcing me to walk.
I had no leg cramps during the run and my post-run stretching, which was very surprising and very welcome. I don't think I could have run 26.2 today without some walking breaks, but I feel like this puts me in line to at least equal my performance at Shamrock. Given the bad base miles situation I've gotten myself in, I'll gladly take that at this point.
(This friendly goat came over to say "hi", or probably "Hey old man, let me out of my cage.")
Overall, I couldn't have asked for a more beautiful morning for this run, and I couldn't have hoped to feel any better during it. I may regret this 20-miler on 11/20, but right now I feel my confidence needed the boost more than my legs needed the third week of tapering.
(While I was stretching at Hanover Junction after the run,
the sky was the deepest blue I've ever seen.
My crappy cell phone camera doesn't do justice how beautiful it was.)
the sky was the deepest blue I've ever seen.
My crappy cell phone camera doesn't do justice how beautiful it was.)
Thursday, November 3, 2011
One Last Long Run? Or Not?
After weeks of not being able to get enough midweek runs in, I did ok this week:
Monday: 3 miles in 29:29 -- It was dark, the sidewalks were clogged with trick-or-treaters, and my headlamp battery was dying. Other than that, it was a good run.
Tuesday: 8 miles in 1:18 -- Good hilly run on Tuesday night through Manchester and Mt. Wolf.
Thursday: 5.36 miles in 55:32 -- This one was really, really tough. I think I undid myself by hitting the steep hills really early in my run today. I was also running at lunch and it was 57 degrees, which is a pleasant running temperature, but is also much warmer than the early-morning or late-evening temperatures I've been running in over the past few weeks, when it's usually been in the 30s or low 40s.
I'm debating what to do with the long run this Saturday. My 20-miler was two weeks ago, and I'm debating trying for another. Officially, I'm supposed to only run 12, but why listen to Higdon now when I've ignored his wisdom for two months? (Next week's long run, in the last weekend before the marathon, is 8 miles)
Another 20 miler would be a good confidence boost, and I don't really have the expectation of a great marathon -- just finishing will suffice -- which I expect/hope will mean running 20ish miles and mixing in some walk breaks to get through the last six.
On the other hand, I don't think the length of my last real long run, whether it's 15-16 or 20, will make or break my marathon. I broke it in October when I lost my willpower at the worst possible time.
Monday: 3 miles in 29:29 -- It was dark, the sidewalks were clogged with trick-or-treaters, and my headlamp battery was dying. Other than that, it was a good run.
Tuesday: 8 miles in 1:18 -- Good hilly run on Tuesday night through Manchester and Mt. Wolf.
Thursday: 5.36 miles in 55:32 -- This one was really, really tough. I think I undid myself by hitting the steep hills really early in my run today. I was also running at lunch and it was 57 degrees, which is a pleasant running temperature, but is also much warmer than the early-morning or late-evening temperatures I've been running in over the past few weeks, when it's usually been in the 30s or low 40s.
I'm debating what to do with the long run this Saturday. My 20-miler was two weeks ago, and I'm debating trying for another. Officially, I'm supposed to only run 12, but why listen to Higdon now when I've ignored his wisdom for two months? (Next week's long run, in the last weekend before the marathon, is 8 miles)
Another 20 miler would be a good confidence boost, and I don't really have the expectation of a great marathon -- just finishing will suffice -- which I expect/hope will mean running 20ish miles and mixing in some walk breaks to get through the last six.
On the other hand, I don't think the length of my last real long run, whether it's 15-16 or 20, will make or break my marathon. I broke it in October when I lost my willpower at the worst possible time.
Friday, October 28, 2011
Too Late, He Hit the Panic Button
I know you're getting tired of hearing this, but I had the best of intentions this week. I knew this was probably my last chance to pound the midweek miles and still have a chance to taper properly. I ran a tough 4-mile hill workout on Monday, and was fired-up to get out again on Tuesday night. The crisis of willpower that's haunted me over the last month was over.
But then, I started coughing. By the end of the day my throat was swollen and hurting quite badly, and I knew a run was out of the question. On Wednesday afternoon, my doctor hooked me up with a ProAir inhaler and prednisone, both of them steroids, and they made a huge difference almost immediately. Though I felt much better, I still felt like I had too much tightness in my chest, so I put my run off until this morning.
Since a winter storm (in October!) is barreling toward us as we speak, scheduled to drop 6-10 inches of snow tomorrow, I decided to make this my long run, which was scheduled to be 12 miles. I ran 12 miles in 2 hours. Not bad, in and of itself.
For a variety of reasons, most of which have been under my control, I clearly haven't done what I've needed to do to be ready for this marathon. For most of October, nailed my long runs but managed only one or at most two midweek runs.
As I prepped for Shamrock, my level of focus was just so much better. I've trained for both marathons during two of the busiest times of work I've ever had, but while I used work stress as motivation and looked forward to my nightly runs in January and February, in October it became a reason not to run. In hindsight, I think my IT band injury was the best thing that happened to me. I was running very good 16 or 17 milers, right on schedule, and then WHAM!, I could barely even do 5 right after the injury. It made me work really, really hard to get back. I didn't get all the way there, but under the circumstances, I think I did the best I could.
This time? I did a great job staying ahead of schedule all summer and had some great long runs in September and October, and maybe I rested on my non-existent laurels a bit too much during the week and I definitely feel a little burned out on this running thing right now. I certainly took advantage of every possible excuse. I guess it helped that I hurt my knee in late January, a month and a half before the race. This fall, I ignored the warning signs till it was almost certainly too late.
I have to run 26 on November 20th. I ran just 16 this week. And even with my 20-mile long run last week, I still got only 26 miles total last week. If I were a wiser man, I would probably switch to the half marathon. I'm just going to do the best I can on race day, even though it won't be very good even by my Shamrock Marathon standards. With a little bit of walking, I made it through 20 miles just one week ago. As long as I don't let my endurance decrease any further, I think I can finish this race in the approximation of one piece.
My plan? Officially I should be tapering, but I'm going to try to have a last tough week of midweek runs, and then get a last good long run of 18-20 miles. I'll try to follow that with another good week of shorter midweek runs, and then my last long run is scheduled for 8 miles. To make up for the abbreviated taper, I'll do probably do two 2-mile runs and a walk during the last week instead of the two 3-mile runs.
Wow, that was a downer. In summary: Cats...playing football!
But then, I started coughing. By the end of the day my throat was swollen and hurting quite badly, and I knew a run was out of the question. On Wednesday afternoon, my doctor hooked me up with a ProAir inhaler and prednisone, both of them steroids, and they made a huge difference almost immediately. Though I felt much better, I still felt like I had too much tightness in my chest, so I put my run off until this morning.
Since a winter storm (in October!) is barreling toward us as we speak, scheduled to drop 6-10 inches of snow tomorrow, I decided to make this my long run, which was scheduled to be 12 miles. I ran 12 miles in 2 hours. Not bad, in and of itself.
For a variety of reasons, most of which have been under my control, I clearly haven't done what I've needed to do to be ready for this marathon. For most of October, nailed my long runs but managed only one or at most two midweek runs.
As I prepped for Shamrock, my level of focus was just so much better. I've trained for both marathons during two of the busiest times of work I've ever had, but while I used work stress as motivation and looked forward to my nightly runs in January and February, in October it became a reason not to run. In hindsight, I think my IT band injury was the best thing that happened to me. I was running very good 16 or 17 milers, right on schedule, and then WHAM!, I could barely even do 5 right after the injury. It made me work really, really hard to get back. I didn't get all the way there, but under the circumstances, I think I did the best I could.
This time? I did a great job staying ahead of schedule all summer and had some great long runs in September and October, and maybe I rested on my non-existent laurels a bit too much during the week and I definitely feel a little burned out on this running thing right now. I certainly took advantage of every possible excuse. I guess it helped that I hurt my knee in late January, a month and a half before the race. This fall, I ignored the warning signs till it was almost certainly too late.
I have to run 26 on November 20th. I ran just 16 this week. And even with my 20-mile long run last week, I still got only 26 miles total last week. If I were a wiser man, I would probably switch to the half marathon. I'm just going to do the best I can on race day, even though it won't be very good even by my Shamrock Marathon standards. With a little bit of walking, I made it through 20 miles just one week ago. As long as I don't let my endurance decrease any further, I think I can finish this race in the approximation of one piece.
My plan? Officially I should be tapering, but I'm going to try to have a last tough week of midweek runs, and then get a last good long run of 18-20 miles. I'll try to follow that with another good week of shorter midweek runs, and then my last long run is scheduled for 8 miles. To make up for the abbreviated taper, I'll do probably do two 2-mile runs and a walk during the last week instead of the two 3-mile runs.
Wow, that was a downer. In summary: Cats...playing football!
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Saturday Long Run: To the Pain
Between an insane work schedule, bad weather, and some kind of minor respiratory bug, I've had a pretty uninspiring two weeks of running. Even during the week before, when I pulled off a 19-mile long run, I'd had a week where I just didn't get my midweek garbage miles in. I say all this not to make excuses, but as constructive criticism of myself because all my failings caught up with me yesterday on the trail.
With a goal of 20 miles, I set out from Hanover Junction, taking the trail north toward York, since I'm familiar with the rest stop locations and the elevation changes along this part of the trail. I look forward to seeing the sights on more southerly parts of the trail, but a 20-mile long run is not, in my opinion, the time to explore. It seemed like my perfect running weather, low 40s and overcast. The forecast called for the sun to come out, so I had my trusty visor, but the sun never showed up.
I made a key equipment-selection mistake that I suspect contributed to my undoing. Violating a common-sense rule that every runner -- including me -- has heard over and over, I set out on my long run with two untested pieces of gear. The first was a new long-sleeve Nike running shirt, which I purchased last week. Despite the cold temperatures, I was sweating profusely within two miles. There's nothing wrong with the shirt. It's very comfortable, in fact. I just forgot who I am. I love to be cool/cold while running. I run in shorts and a tank top when the temperature is the 40s. This shirt seems considerably warmer than the cotton long-sleeve shirts I wear for (or at least the start of) my colder weather runs. This shirt will be great in December, January, February, but it just wasn't cold enough, by my standards, yesterday. I took it off just past two miles. Despite my miscalculation, I would become very glad that I had brought it.
My second mistake was a new hydration belt. I know that on a cool morning I can go 15-16 miles with the two bottles on my old Nathan hydration belt, but I thought that I shouldn't push that to 20. Though I can refill bottles at Hanover Junction, I wanted to run 10 miles to York and back, thinking this would be psychologically easier than a loop course with a break at either Hanover Junction or my car, if I parked somewhere else, and had to stop and start again. So on Friday night, I purchased a new four-bottle Nathan hydration belt. And while a differently-mapped course with a refilling stop might have been a pain, it would have been less annoying than bouncing around of the two bottles on my back and the constant re-adjusting of the fit of the belt. I'm very unhappy with this product. I'm going to elaborate further in a product review later in the week. Luckily, with the long-sleeve shirt tied around my waist, I could get the belt to fit tightly over it, so one equipment problem solved another.
(Equipment Fail. Taking the giant cat along probably wasn't smart, either.)
Still, my main challenge was that my legs just didn't feel strong yesterday. On my 19-miler two weeks ago, I stepped onto the trail and felt like the wind. Yesterday, I stepped onto the trail and felt like I was made of lead. Still, I pressed forward at my usual pace, and by mile 4 or 5, felt looser and more comfortable. I ran 10 miles north, which was my worst tactical mistake of all, which brought me just past York College but not all the way to the trailhead in downtown York.
After turning back south at King's Mill Road, I quickly began to tire. I really feel like I bonked just as badly as I did on last week's 13-miler, but since I'd run 10-miles north in my infinite wisdom, I was now doing so with 7 miles to run to get back to my car. My quads were on fire. Though the York County Heritage Rail Trail is a straight north-south course with no branches, somewhere I took a wrong turn, because at about 15 miles, I realized I was no longer in south central York County. I was in Hell.
After 16.5 miles, I started mixing in walking breaks. I ended up taking three, three-minute walking breaks spaced out a little over a mile apart. Unlike my walking breaks during the marathon, though, these seemed to help. My last walking break ended with a little over a mile to go. Running hurt, but I also knew that the more I ran, the faster this misery would be over.
With a mile to go, I saw a familiar friend ahead. But why was Pooka, our big friendly black cat, on the trail? Was I hallucinating? Had I actually died, and this was my spirit animal? That's disappointing. I would have hoped for an eagle, wolf, or some other cool animal. I think, in a weakened voice, I think I actually called out "Poooooooooka help me!" Luckily, I was the only one on this part of the trail because, of course, it was just one of the billions of other cats in the world.
Half a mile to go. A quarter mile. A tenth. In a final indignity, Garmin made me run about a tenth of a mile past Hanover Junction to get meet my goal. I collapsed on the porch of the old train station (which is now a museum and rest stop on the trail) to do my IT band stretches. With Garmin reading "20.00", I felt exhausted, but exhilarated; relieved that I'd finished, but angry at myself because I know that I could have done better these past few weeks and that the race is 6 miles longer than this brutal run. I had nothing left. Dead, but in my pain and exhaustion, more alive than I've felt in weeks.
Lessons learned/Notes:
(The best part was when I got back to my car.)
With a goal of 20 miles, I set out from Hanover Junction, taking the trail north toward York, since I'm familiar with the rest stop locations and the elevation changes along this part of the trail. I look forward to seeing the sights on more southerly parts of the trail, but a 20-mile long run is not, in my opinion, the time to explore. It seemed like my perfect running weather, low 40s and overcast. The forecast called for the sun to come out, so I had my trusty visor, but the sun never showed up.
I made a key equipment-selection mistake that I suspect contributed to my undoing. Violating a common-sense rule that every runner -- including me -- has heard over and over, I set out on my long run with two untested pieces of gear. The first was a new long-sleeve Nike running shirt, which I purchased last week. Despite the cold temperatures, I was sweating profusely within two miles. There's nothing wrong with the shirt. It's very comfortable, in fact. I just forgot who I am. I love to be cool/cold while running. I run in shorts and a tank top when the temperature is the 40s. This shirt seems considerably warmer than the cotton long-sleeve shirts I wear for (or at least the start of) my colder weather runs. This shirt will be great in December, January, February, but it just wasn't cold enough, by my standards, yesterday. I took it off just past two miles. Despite my miscalculation, I would become very glad that I had brought it.
My second mistake was a new hydration belt. I know that on a cool morning I can go 15-16 miles with the two bottles on my old Nathan hydration belt, but I thought that I shouldn't push that to 20. Though I can refill bottles at Hanover Junction, I wanted to run 10 miles to York and back, thinking this would be psychologically easier than a loop course with a break at either Hanover Junction or my car, if I parked somewhere else, and had to stop and start again. So on Friday night, I purchased a new four-bottle Nathan hydration belt. And while a differently-mapped course with a refilling stop might have been a pain, it would have been less annoying than bouncing around of the two bottles on my back and the constant re-adjusting of the fit of the belt. I'm very unhappy with this product. I'm going to elaborate further in a product review later in the week. Luckily, with the long-sleeve shirt tied around my waist, I could get the belt to fit tightly over it, so one equipment problem solved another.
(Equipment Fail. Taking the giant cat along probably wasn't smart, either.)
Still, my main challenge was that my legs just didn't feel strong yesterday. On my 19-miler two weeks ago, I stepped onto the trail and felt like the wind. Yesterday, I stepped onto the trail and felt like I was made of lead. Still, I pressed forward at my usual pace, and by mile 4 or 5, felt looser and more comfortable. I ran 10 miles north, which was my worst tactical mistake of all, which brought me just past York College but not all the way to the trailhead in downtown York.
After turning back south at King's Mill Road, I quickly began to tire. I really feel like I bonked just as badly as I did on last week's 13-miler, but since I'd run 10-miles north in my infinite wisdom, I was now doing so with 7 miles to run to get back to my car. My quads were on fire. Though the York County Heritage Rail Trail is a straight north-south course with no branches, somewhere I took a wrong turn, because at about 15 miles, I realized I was no longer in south central York County. I was in Hell.
After 16.5 miles, I started mixing in walking breaks. I ended up taking three, three-minute walking breaks spaced out a little over a mile apart. Unlike my walking breaks during the marathon, though, these seemed to help. My last walking break ended with a little over a mile to go. Running hurt, but I also knew that the more I ran, the faster this misery would be over.
With a mile to go, I saw a familiar friend ahead. But why was Pooka, our big friendly black cat, on the trail? Was I hallucinating? Had I actually died, and this was my spirit animal? That's disappointing. I would have hoped for an eagle, wolf, or some other cool animal. I think, in a weakened voice, I think I actually called out "Poooooooooka help me!" Luckily, I was the only one on this part of the trail because, of course, it was just one of the billions of other cats in the world.
Half a mile to go. A quarter mile. A tenth. In a final indignity, Garmin made me run about a tenth of a mile past Hanover Junction to get meet my goal. I collapsed on the porch of the old train station (which is now a museum and rest stop on the trail) to do my IT band stretches. With Garmin reading "20.00", I felt exhausted, but exhilarated; relieved that I'd finished, but angry at myself because I know that I could have done better these past few weeks and that the race is 6 miles longer than this brutal run. I had nothing left. Dead, but in my pain and exhaustion, more alive than I've felt in weeks.
Lessons learned/Notes:
- No new gear on long run or race day (duh!)
- Don't set up a course where I'm 10-miles away from my car (duh!), especially on the trail where there's not really a good way to have someone pick me up if I need it.
- Walking the water stations during the marathon would probably be a good idea.
- I have one more long run next week, technically supposed to be the 20-miler that I took today, before tapering. Then the taper is 12, then 8 miles in the two weekend before race day.
- The focus from here on out really needs to be on getting good, consistent, short runs in during the middle of the week. My schedule is going to be brutal the next few weeks, but I think I need to get in three 4-6 mile runs between Monday and Thursday each week.
- I didn't feel like my 2:45am peanut butter sandwich helped me. As much as I dislike .eating before a run, maybe I can't that much earlier than my run. I also ate one pack of Sports Beans. I think, since I prefer them to GU or Clif Bars, that I probably want to eat at least two packs during the marathon if I want them to help.
- This is my second-longest run ever, but I feel like my 19-miler two weeks ago was definitely a better run. I could have gotten 17 or 18 today without the walk breaks, but there was no way I was getting to 19 or 20.
(The best part was when I got back to my car.)Saturday, October 15, 2011
Saturday Long Run: The Incredible Bonk
After 17, 18, and 19-mile long runs the past three weeks, I was ready for a step-back week. 13 miles was the prescription. Technically, it was supposed to be last week, but I traded my 19-mile since I didn't have afternoon plans last week, so it wouldn't matter if it took me forever to run 19.
Well, my step-back run stepped up and slapped me right in the face. I completed the 13 miles, and my pace was fine, but my legs just felt exhausted the whole way. I don't mean to complain here, only to analyze, but I'm having a bit of trouble figuring out why last week's run was so good and this week's was so bad.
I ate the same not-so-good dinner (pizza) the night before both runs. I did more midweek running this week (6 on Tuesday and 2 on Thursday -- still not quite as much as I think I should be doing) than last week (4 on Tuesday), which I thought would be an advantage. I may be getting sick, or maybe it was just the long runs of the last 3 weeks and lack of sleep this week as a result of work catching up with me, or maybe it was that it seemed a little warmer out there than the forecast said it was, and I wore a shirt that I think is not as ventilated as my favorites.
I'm not terribly worried...except next Saturday is the big 2-0. Ruh-roh.
Well, my step-back run stepped up and slapped me right in the face. I completed the 13 miles, and my pace was fine, but my legs just felt exhausted the whole way. I don't mean to complain here, only to analyze, but I'm having a bit of trouble figuring out why last week's run was so good and this week's was so bad.
I ate the same not-so-good dinner (pizza) the night before both runs. I did more midweek running this week (6 on Tuesday and 2 on Thursday -- still not quite as much as I think I should be doing) than last week (4 on Tuesday), which I thought would be an advantage. I may be getting sick, or maybe it was just the long runs of the last 3 weeks and lack of sleep this week as a result of work catching up with me, or maybe it was that it seemed a little warmer out there than the forecast said it was, and I wore a shirt that I think is not as ventilated as my favorites.
I'm not terribly worried...except next Saturday is the big 2-0. Ruh-roh.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
I'm addicted to LSD. Wait! That's not what I mean!
LSD=Long, Slow, Distance. It's pretty much what I do.
19 miles on Saturday, probably could have gone further if I'd eaten something before my run. I ran (most of a) a marathon in the spring. Give me a cool, dry day, sufficient water and delicious orange Gatorade, and I feel like I could probably grind out a marathon now if I had to. (I'm glad I still have a month to go, though!)
One thing I can't seem to do right now is go fast, or at least what passes for fast in my world. Like I said, give me a cool, dry day and I can run a long time. But this evening was misty and warmish, and so I didn't want to be out there that long, even though as discussed endlessly here I knew I needed to get more midweek miles in.
I decided I was going to run a 5K at race pace. The problem? I haven't raced since May, when I scored a 23:55, my second-best time ever, at HACC Dash. My PR is 23:43, from December's Jingle Bell 5K. Tonight: 27:10. Ouch.
That's a lot closer to my personal worst: 29:38, where I ran a deliberately conservative race at the Orioles Advocates 5K in 2008 because I knew I was under-trained, than my PR.
Oops. That's what I get for going so long without racing and for not doing any speed training. I'm not particularly worried about it now -- the Philly and Shamrock Marathons are my running focus, but I definitely want to work on chipping away at my 5K PR and a sub-6:00 mile next year.* Still, it was 3 midweek miles that were better than no miles at all.
* It turns out that we probably won't be running Jingle Bell this year, which means I may not have another attempt at a 5K PR this year.
19 miles on Saturday, probably could have gone further if I'd eaten something before my run. I ran (most of a) a marathon in the spring. Give me a cool, dry day, sufficient water and delicious orange Gatorade, and I feel like I could probably grind out a marathon now if I had to. (I'm glad I still have a month to go, though!)
One thing I can't seem to do right now is go fast, or at least what passes for fast in my world. Like I said, give me a cool, dry day and I can run a long time. But this evening was misty and warmish, and so I didn't want to be out there that long, even though as discussed endlessly here I knew I needed to get more midweek miles in.
I decided I was going to run a 5K at race pace. The problem? I haven't raced since May, when I scored a 23:55, my second-best time ever, at HACC Dash. My PR is 23:43, from December's Jingle Bell 5K. Tonight: 27:10. Ouch.
That's a lot closer to my personal worst: 29:38, where I ran a deliberately conservative race at the Orioles Advocates 5K in 2008 because I knew I was under-trained, than my PR.
Oops. That's what I get for going so long without racing and for not doing any speed training. I'm not particularly worried about it now -- the Philly and Shamrock Marathons are my running focus, but I definitely want to work on chipping away at my 5K PR and a sub-6:00 mile next year.* Still, it was 3 midweek miles that were better than no miles at all.
* It turns out that we probably won't be running Jingle Bell this year, which means I may not have another attempt at a 5K PR this year.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Saturday Long Run: Brian Runs 19 Miles and Encounters the Wall
I felt it as soon as I took my first step -- an electricity that seemed to rise up from the trail itself, burning away my doubts. This run could be amazing.
After painful calf cramping on my last two long runs, and a week where I generally ignored my midweek running -- I limited myself to four miles on Tuesday not out of laziness but due to exhaustion from one of the busiest and most stressful work weeks I've had in the last five years -- I had been extremely doubtful that I could run the 19 miles that Hal Higdon had ordered me to run this weekend.
I'd driven south the Hanover Junction access point on the York County Heritage Rail Trail, knowing that I needed to choose a less hilly setting to have any chance at reaching my goal, but I was not optimistic until that moment when I stepped out on the trail. I felt light. I felt fast. I was Kenyan. An extremely slow, pale Kenyan, but a Kenyan nonetheless.
My plan was to turn around at mile 5, refill my bottles at Hanover Junction, and then head south 4.5 miles and back. However, I felt so good at mile 5 that I kept right on going. I contemplated going all the way to the trail head at York, but a quick assessment of my water and Gatorade supply made me think that was a bad idea. So, I turned around after about 8.2 miles.
I started to struggle a bit at about mile 15, but after a refilling stop at Hanover Junction, with 16.4 miles under my belt, I felt I could run a bit farther south and turn around to bring me back to my starting point with 20-mile mark. But then, I met an old friend from Shamrock: The Wall. I crashed pretty hard at just under 18 miles. I turned around and struggled northward and stopped at 19. I was sore but not injured, but my legs just couldn't go one more step and I felt like I would be risking injury to press on in pursuit of a (in this case) meaningless mile.
So, I probably fell a little short of the "amazing" I felt I could achieve at the beginning of this run. I'd have loved 20 and it would have been a huge confidence boost (probably to the point that I'd be unbearably cocky and everyone would hate me), but this was my second-farthest run ever, and I'm really happy with it. I think the cool conditions at the start made it a pretty good simulation of the marathon, and I think I repeated a key tactical mistake that I also made at the Shamrock Marathon.
A few brief lessons learned/confirmed:
After painful calf cramping on my last two long runs, and a week where I generally ignored my midweek running -- I limited myself to four miles on Tuesday not out of laziness but due to exhaustion from one of the busiest and most stressful work weeks I've had in the last five years -- I had been extremely doubtful that I could run the 19 miles that Hal Higdon had ordered me to run this weekend.
I'd driven south the Hanover Junction access point on the York County Heritage Rail Trail, knowing that I needed to choose a less hilly setting to have any chance at reaching my goal, but I was not optimistic until that moment when I stepped out on the trail. I felt light. I felt fast. I was Kenyan. An extremely slow, pale Kenyan, but a Kenyan nonetheless.
My plan was to turn around at mile 5, refill my bottles at Hanover Junction, and then head south 4.5 miles and back. However, I felt so good at mile 5 that I kept right on going. I contemplated going all the way to the trail head at York, but a quick assessment of my water and Gatorade supply made me think that was a bad idea. So, I turned around after about 8.2 miles.
I started to struggle a bit at about mile 15, but after a refilling stop at Hanover Junction, with 16.4 miles under my belt, I felt I could run a bit farther south and turn around to bring me back to my starting point with 20-mile mark. But then, I met an old friend from Shamrock: The Wall. I crashed pretty hard at just under 18 miles. I turned around and struggled northward and stopped at 19. I was sore but not injured, but my legs just couldn't go one more step and I felt like I would be risking injury to press on in pursuit of a (in this case) meaningless mile.
So, I probably fell a little short of the "amazing" I felt I could achieve at the beginning of this run. I'd have loved 20 and it would have been a huge confidence boost (probably to the point that I'd be unbearably cocky and everyone would hate me), but this was my second-farthest run ever, and I'm really happy with it. I think the cool conditions at the start made it a pretty good simulation of the marathon, and I think I repeated a key tactical mistake that I also made at the Shamrock Marathon.
A few brief lessons learned/confirmed:
- Try harder to put the "S" in LSD -- I ended up at 19 miles in 3:19:36, putting me at a 10:28 pace, which is not far off my usual long run pace. As slowly as I was shuffling those last 2-3 miles, this means I was probably going way too fast somewhere along the route. I don't think my lame-o Garmin keeps accurate speed on the trail, but I have to do a better job of making sure I feel like I'm going slow. This was my undoing at Shamrock, too.
- More midweek miles are needed -- I didn't really hit the wall until mile 22 at Shamrock. I think more midweek runs, including back-to-back days, which are not my SOP when not on a training plan, gave me more endurance even though my longest pre-race training run was 18 miles.
- That Reebok visor I bought in the summer? Awesome. This seems like it was the first really sunny long run day in at least a month. It warmed up toward the end of the run (It was in the low 50s when I started, but was probably around 65 by the end), but this was the sunny, cool dry run where I think the visor is perfect. I definitely need to bring it to Philly.
- EAT BEFORE YOU RUN 19 MILES, IDIOT. I hate feeling "full" when I run, but the 3:00am peanut-butter sandwich would have probably helped me get that last mile in.
- There's no such thing as too much BodyGlide.
- When starting from Hanover Junction, there's more shade running north toward York. If I do other long runs on the trail, and I plan to, I might get a belt with more water bottles, so that I can run all the way to the end of the trail and back without running out of fluids.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Saturday Long Run: 18 Miles
I ran 18 miles in 3 hours, 7 minutes, and 47 seconds. Afterwards, I decided that running is stupid and no one should ever do it.
Shortest. Post. Ever.
I kid, I kid. I specialize in the long, rambling blog post and we all know it. And this one is really rambling, even by my standards. Sorry about that!
I had a much nicer day for a long run than I did last week. It was in the low 50s when I started and remained cool and overcast for the duration. Though it was a bit humid at the start (but nothing like last week!), it seemed to get cooler and less humid as the run continued. Perfect! I was trying to get an early start to beat the rain, and I did.
Despite the cool weather, however, I just wasn't feeling this as I started out. My stomach didn't feel great and my legs felt tired. It was a bad week of running -- I just didn't get my midweek mileage in. That explains my dead legs. The stomach troubles I attribute to something I ate the night before at the Revolution game. I suspect the turkey wrap, which I thought would be the perfect pre-long run dinner. (Or the best I could do at the Revs game).
After a mile or two, though, I felt fine. The temperature was comfortable; my Shuffle was rockin', and the miles were flying by. My plan was to run my usual 10 mile route, followed by a similar 8-mile route (which is identical but doesn't have the extra loop down toward Mt. Wolf). However, since it was cool and I wasn't sweating as much and drinking water and Gatorade as fast as last week, I decided to put off my refueling stop and extend the first "leg" of my run as much as I could. So I added some loops through Mt. Wolf and as I headed up the steep Chestnut St. hill going back toward my starting/refilling point in Manchester, I was approaching mile 14.
This was where things started to go wrong. I think this hill needs be expunged from my long run routes. My calves, which have been my weakness lately, started cramping up constantly after I ran up this hill. I was stopping to stretch at least every half mile for the rest of the way. The same thing had happened at this point in my run last week, when I climbed the same steep hill going up to mile 12 of 17. I'm not afraid of hills, but this hill is much steeper than anything Philly (I think) or Shamrock (I know) has to throw at me. Luckily, I had fewer post-hill miles to go, and was able to finish my 18.
I was pretty significant pain when I got home, and basically fell down on the floor in the kitchen before I could summon great resolve (sarcasm!) needed to make some chocolate milk (the recovery drink for when you don't by recovery drink mixes) and peel a banana (gotta keep those potassium levels up!). However, after sitting for a couple minutes, I was able to comfortably do my stretching and foam rolling, which I wasn't able to do last week after my long because my quads were cramping so badly. A little soreness today, but overall I feel better than I did last weekend.
This long run was definitely a success. I was scheduled for 18 miles, and achieved it without injury. The cool weather and my Shuffle (especially the new Blink-182 album) made the first 14 miles relatively enjoyable. Mentally, I'm not sure I was as psyched up for this as I could have been. Because of the cool weather and the possibility of having split it over 2 days because of bad weather I don't think I respected the distance as much as I should have. Hence, two beers and french fries at the Revs game the night before; and then during the run I never had that moment of determination that I had in last week's disgusting run: "I am going to finish this run no matter what." I mentioned that I felt after my gross 17 last week that I'd won a race -- mentally, I probably rested on my laurels when I could ill afford to so and took every excuse not to get my midweek miles in.
The Philadelphia Marathon is only 49 days away. I can't lose focus now. Next week is scheduled to be a step-back week, 13 miles, followed by 19 and 20 miles the next two weeks. However, due to a very busy Saturday in two weeks, I think I'll try the 19 next week and step back the following week. (If anyone reading this has reasons why that's a terrible idea, I'd love to hear 'em.). I'm hoping to run that 19 somewhere a bit flatter to get a real gauge of how far from being ready I am. 18 was as long a distance as I got in training for Shamrock, and though I definitely hit the wall badly on race day, at no point were my calves cramping like they have been on these last two long runs.
Shortest. Post. Ever.
I kid, I kid. I specialize in the long, rambling blog post and we all know it. And this one is really rambling, even by my standards. Sorry about that!
I had a much nicer day for a long run than I did last week. It was in the low 50s when I started and remained cool and overcast for the duration. Though it was a bit humid at the start (but nothing like last week!), it seemed to get cooler and less humid as the run continued. Perfect! I was trying to get an early start to beat the rain, and I did.
Despite the cool weather, however, I just wasn't feeling this as I started out. My stomach didn't feel great and my legs felt tired. It was a bad week of running -- I just didn't get my midweek mileage in. That explains my dead legs. The stomach troubles I attribute to something I ate the night before at the Revolution game. I suspect the turkey wrap, which I thought would be the perfect pre-long run dinner. (Or the best I could do at the Revs game).
After a mile or two, though, I felt fine. The temperature was comfortable; my Shuffle was rockin', and the miles were flying by. My plan was to run my usual 10 mile route, followed by a similar 8-mile route (which is identical but doesn't have the extra loop down toward Mt. Wolf). However, since it was cool and I wasn't sweating as much and drinking water and Gatorade as fast as last week, I decided to put off my refueling stop and extend the first "leg" of my run as much as I could. So I added some loops through Mt. Wolf and as I headed up the steep Chestnut St. hill going back toward my starting/refilling point in Manchester, I was approaching mile 14.
This was where things started to go wrong. I think this hill needs be expunged from my long run routes. My calves, which have been my weakness lately, started cramping up constantly after I ran up this hill. I was stopping to stretch at least every half mile for the rest of the way. The same thing had happened at this point in my run last week, when I climbed the same steep hill going up to mile 12 of 17. I'm not afraid of hills, but this hill is much steeper than anything Philly (I think) or Shamrock (I know) has to throw at me. Luckily, I had fewer post-hill miles to go, and was able to finish my 18.
I was pretty significant pain when I got home, and basically fell down on the floor in the kitchen before I could summon great resolve (sarcasm!) needed to make some chocolate milk (the recovery drink for when you don't by recovery drink mixes) and peel a banana (gotta keep those potassium levels up!). However, after sitting for a couple minutes, I was able to comfortably do my stretching and foam rolling, which I wasn't able to do last week after my long because my quads were cramping so badly. A little soreness today, but overall I feel better than I did last weekend.
This long run was definitely a success. I was scheduled for 18 miles, and achieved it without injury. The cool weather and my Shuffle (especially the new Blink-182 album) made the first 14 miles relatively enjoyable. Mentally, I'm not sure I was as psyched up for this as I could have been. Because of the cool weather and the possibility of having split it over 2 days because of bad weather I don't think I respected the distance as much as I should have. Hence, two beers and french fries at the Revs game the night before; and then during the run I never had that moment of determination that I had in last week's disgusting run: "I am going to finish this run no matter what." I mentioned that I felt after my gross 17 last week that I'd won a race -- mentally, I probably rested on my laurels when I could ill afford to so and took every excuse not to get my midweek miles in.
The Philadelphia Marathon is only 49 days away. I can't lose focus now. Next week is scheduled to be a step-back week, 13 miles, followed by 19 and 20 miles the next two weeks. However, due to a very busy Saturday in two weeks, I think I'll try the 19 next week and step back the following week. (If anyone reading this has reasons why that's a terrible idea, I'd love to hear 'em.). I'm hoping to run that 19 somewhere a bit flatter to get a real gauge of how far from being ready I am. 18 was as long a distance as I got in training for Shamrock, and though I definitely hit the wall badly on race day, at no point were my calves cramping like they have been on these last two long runs.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Saturday Long Run, The Non-Epic Triumph of Humanity over Humidity
Since the dawn of time, man has struggled to overcome uncomfortable humidity...
I had been dreading today's long run for several days.
17 miles was what Hal Higdon had assigned for the weekend, and as I said last week, I'm definitely getting outside my comfort zone (Getting? Come on. Ok, I'm well outside my comfort zone). On a cool crisp day like last weekend, no problem; I felt like I could I have run forever last Saturday.
But this weekend brought a return of somewhat summer-like conditions. An overcast 65F, which I admit isn't bad compared to July, but with 97% humidity. Warm and humid is the bane of my existence -- at least my running existence.
So I worried. I made contingency plans. I accepted defeat. But I still had a choice.
I could bow to humidity once again, or I could stab it in its warm, wet, sticky, gross
heart.
I could keep complaining and writing whiny blog posts, or I could shut the hell up and run 17 miles, humidity be damned.
And as long as "shut the hell up" allows for the pathetic whimpering noises that I was making for the last two miles, that's exactly what I did.
It took me 2 hours and 59 minutes (a 10:31/mile pace for those keeping score at home) to finish, but it was not a victory without cost. I'll be reminded by my aching calves and quads, as I limp around Lincoln Financial Field tomorrow, that running is stupid and the guy that (according to legend) invented the marathon died while inventing the marathon. But costly or not, I consider it a victory nonetheless. .
It may have been 97% humidity out there, but anything short of 100% just wasn't going to be enough today.
I've gloated enough. More than enough. I'm sure my IT Bands will go all IT Band Syndrome on me as my karma balances out next week. I'm sure it will somehow be even more humid, if that's even possible, on my 18-miler next week. I'm sure my Shuffle will get stuck on "Britney Spears Mode".
But for now, I'm thrilled. After being so nervous about this run over the past few days, I felt like I had won a race when Garmin said "17.00" as I turned back into the high school.
In the endless struggle of man vs. humidity, man wins.
I had been dreading today's long run for several days.
17 miles was what Hal Higdon had assigned for the weekend, and as I said last week, I'm definitely getting outside my comfort zone (Getting? Come on. Ok, I'm well outside my comfort zone). On a cool crisp day like last weekend, no problem; I felt like I could I have run forever last Saturday.
But this weekend brought a return of somewhat summer-like conditions. An overcast 65F, which I admit isn't bad compared to July, but with 97% humidity. Warm and humid is the bane of my existence -- at least my running existence.
So I worried. I made contingency plans. I accepted defeat. But I still had a choice.
I could bow to humidity once again, or I could stab it in its warm, wet, sticky, gross
heart.
I could keep complaining and writing whiny blog posts, or I could shut the hell up and run 17 miles, humidity be damned.
And as long as "shut the hell up" allows for the pathetic whimpering noises that I was making for the last two miles, that's exactly what I did.
It took me 2 hours and 59 minutes (a 10:31/mile pace for those keeping score at home) to finish, but it was not a victory without cost. I'll be reminded by my aching calves and quads, as I limp around Lincoln Financial Field tomorrow, that running is stupid and the guy that (according to legend) invented the marathon died while inventing the marathon. But costly or not, I consider it a victory nonetheless. .
It may have been 97% humidity out there, but anything short of 100% just wasn't going to be enough today.
I've gloated enough. More than enough. I'm sure my IT Bands will go all IT Band Syndrome on me as my karma balances out next week. I'm sure it will somehow be even more humid, if that's even possible, on my 18-miler next week. I'm sure my Shuffle will get stuck on "Britney Spears Mode".
But for now, I'm thrilled. After being so nervous about this run over the past few days, I felt like I had won a race when Garmin said "17.00" as I turned back into the high school.
In the endless struggle of man vs. humidity, man wins.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Saturday Long Run Redemption
15 miles.
2:37:26 (10:29 mile pace.)
It was miserably humid and my calves hurt like crap (what does that even mean?). In short, it wasn't fun at all, but this was the comeback run I needed to feel like I'm back on track.
From here on out, I'm going to be like the Mike Vick of running. My days as a loose-cannon, devil-may-care distance runner are over. I'm going to have a positive attitude and stick to the Novice 2 plan as much as my work schedule allows me from here on out. What Hal Higdon says, goes. If I may continue this analogy, Hal Higdon is probably Roger Goodell, my wife would be Tony Dungy, and I'll say that Pooka the Cat is Andy Reid.
In making this comparison please don't think that I'm claiming that I'm fast.I also think I'll skip the whole going to prison part of learning my lesson, though.
2:37:26 (10:29 mile pace.)
It was miserably humid and my calves hurt like crap (what does that even mean?). In short, it wasn't fun at all, but this was the comeback run I needed to feel like I'm back on track.
From here on out, I'm going to be like the Mike Vick of running. My days as a loose-cannon, devil-may-care distance runner are over. I'm going to have a positive attitude and stick to the Novice 2 plan as much as my work schedule allows me from here on out. What Hal Higdon says, goes. If I may continue this analogy, Hal Higdon is probably Roger Goodell, my wife would be Tony Dungy, and I'll say that Pooka the Cat is Andy Reid.
In making this comparison please don't think that I'm claiming that I'm fast.I also think I'll skip the whole going to prison part of learning my lesson, though.
(Yes, my arms are a different color than my head. What's it to you?)
The most interesting thing about this run was that it overlapped with a local 5K. I ran in this particular 5K last year, but with a 15-mile run scheduled for today I didn't think I could make it work out. I learned midway through my run that the 5K route had been altered due to flooding from only intersecting with my roughly-planned route at two spots to overlapping with it quite a lot. It was an interesting brain teaser to plan my route on the fly, trying to think of how many loops through the neighborhoods I had time for to make sure that I would avoid the 5K runners. But anyway, if the local fire department could put on a 5K every long run weekend for me to have to run around, it will make my long runs a lot more interesting. Thanks guys!
I ended up with perfect 15-mile route. Sadly, my comfort zone today was really only 12 or 13 miles, those last two were excruciating. If I'm the Mike Vick of running, maybe I can find the Vince Young of running to run the last third of my marathon for me. No? Crap.
(And of course, Go Eagles!)
I ended up with perfect 15-mile route. Sadly, my comfort zone today was really only 12 or 13 miles, those last two were excruciating. If I'm the Mike Vick of running, maybe I can find the Vince Young of running to run the last third of my marathon for me. No? Crap.
(And of course, Go Eagles!)
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Saturday Long Run: Four-Mile Failure
I was scheduled for 14 miles today. I stopped at 10. The big, black clouds and increasingly booming thunder that was being down on Manchester just gave me an excuse. There was no way I was going to be able to finish 14 miles today.
My confidence is kind of shaken right now. I'm not sure if I should try 14 again on Monday or just wait until next week's long run, which is 15 miles. I know that 'm probably over-reacting to one bad long run, but I'm not sure I could have gone 11 today, much less 14.
I don't want to panic. There are a few extenuating circumstances that I have to be sure not to repeat this coming week and beyond:
1. I ran 10 humid miles on Saturday, and then we were without power on Monday and Tuesday. Since we didn't have plumbing and I had to go and work from my parents' house, I didn't get out for a run either of those mornings. Of course, both days were cool and beautiful. I got out 10 in on Wednesday, but didn't have time on Thursday. I need to get more than one midweek run in or I'm setting myself up for failure.
2. I need to eat healthier on Friday nights. Pizza, beer, ice cream the night before long run isn't going to cut it. I know...pretty obvious, right?
3. I need a little bit of luck. One of these weeks I'll have a Saturday morning that's not oppressively humid, right?
4. PT Exercises. I do my IT band stretching and foam rolling before every run, but I need to get back to doing the step-ups, step-downs, balance exercises and core exercises. In October 2010, I bombed pretty badly on my 7-mile leg of the Baltimore Marathon Relay. That bad run was a wake-up call that I was a long way from ready for the Philly Half. I came back strong and ran the best race of my mediocre career. There's a lot of work to be done, but I have the benefit of time.
My confidence is kind of shaken right now. I'm not sure if I should try 14 again on Monday or just wait until next week's long run, which is 15 miles. I know that 'm probably over-reacting to one bad long run, but I'm not sure I could have gone 11 today, much less 14.
I don't want to panic. There are a few extenuating circumstances that I have to be sure not to repeat this coming week and beyond:
1. I ran 10 humid miles on Saturday, and then we were without power on Monday and Tuesday. Since we didn't have plumbing and I had to go and work from my parents' house, I didn't get out for a run either of those mornings. Of course, both days were cool and beautiful. I got out 10 in on Wednesday, but didn't have time on Thursday. I need to get more than one midweek run in or I'm setting myself up for failure.
2. I need to eat healthier on Friday nights. Pizza, beer, ice cream the night before long run isn't going to cut it. I know...pretty obvious, right?
3. I need a little bit of luck. One of these weeks I'll have a Saturday morning that's not oppressively humid, right?
4. PT Exercises. I do my IT band stretching and foam rolling before every run, but I need to get back to doing the step-ups, step-downs, balance exercises and core exercises. In October 2010, I bombed pretty badly on my 7-mile leg of the Baltimore Marathon Relay. That bad run was a wake-up call that I was a long way from ready for the Philly Half. I came back strong and ran the best race of my mediocre career. There's a lot of work to be done, but I have the benefit of time.
(Sometimes, you're just better off staying in -- or hiding under the -- bed.)
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Saturday Long Run: Return to Humiditytown
It was really, really humid this morning. The kind of humid that makes me think it's time to find another hobby. The kind of humid that makes me question the existence of good in this world. The kind of humid that makes me right write posts complaining about humid it is. The kind of humid that makes me screw up homophones.
Hal Higdon called for 9 this week. Since I've done such a great job of listening to him so far, even this week, my first full week "on program", I just ran my usual 10-mile route through Manchester and Mt. Wolf. I had a slow pace again today, but unlike Monday's unexplainable bonk, I'm just going to attribute this one to slogging through 100% humidity.
(Yours truly at my finishing point, Humiditytown Middle School)
Did I mention that it was really, really humid? It was 73 degrees at the start of my run, which is quite warmer than it's been for my morning runs the past two weeks but nothing special overall for the summer, but the humidity must have been AT LEAST 1000% if not infinitely more. It was very overcast, which allows me to forgo the visor, but I was still disgusting and sweaty within half a mile.
Since words are powerless to convey exactly how much I was sweating, let's again use the power of MS Paint to try to capture the level of disgustingness (That's not a word, spell check? Screw you!) we're talking about here (click to enlarge):
Good luck on your runs, everyone. I'll be inside playing video games. (And best wishes to anyone in Irene's path.)
Hal Higdon called for 9 this week. Since I've done such a great job of listening to him so far, even this week, my first full week "on program", I just ran my usual 10-mile route through Manchester and Mt. Wolf. I had a slow pace again today, but unlike Monday's unexplainable bonk, I'm just going to attribute this one to slogging through 100% humidity.
(Yours truly at my finishing point, Humiditytown Middle School)
Since words are powerless to convey exactly how much I was sweating, let's again use the power of MS Paint to try to capture the level of disgustingness (That's not a word, spell check? Screw you!) we're talking about here (click to enlarge):
Good luck on your runs, everyone. I'll be inside playing video games. (And best wishes to anyone in Irene's path.)
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