Of Mice and Marathons

AM: 7 miles easy, averaged 8:20. Warm and humid.

PM: 6.5 miles, averaged 7:39 w/ 1 mile pickup toward the end (6:57)

Evening - 7 miles, averaged 7:38. Did some good strides, but they winded me a bit, so I knew I was beat. Felt exhausted today, not all of which is from running pretty much straight for 14+ weeks with almost not cutback weeks other than an occasional slight dip. Was very surprised to see the averaged pace when I checked my data.

My run left me feeling better after a tough afternoon. Coach Dodge was really trying to talk me into taking a day off, but I told him to kiss off.

AM: 7 miles, averaged 8:04. Felt pretty hungry after, which means my eating and diet should be returning to post-end-of-semester normal. 

PM: Jefferson High - 7 miles steady, averaged 7:19. Did some strides on the way back. Trying to keep from getting stale.

AM: 7 miles, averaged 8:03. Tried to frighten a chihuahua, but the little critter kept coming after me. Stupid owner looking on, doing pretty much nothing.

PM: 5.5 miles, averaged 8:00. Went to check on the flooding on the Wabash trail. It was all the way to the golf course, which is quite a distant from where it was when I did the Hanson's workout a few weeks ago. It will probably take a while to straighten out, but the water does seem to be receding.

One of the many versions of my long run loop - 16.25 miles, averaged 6:57.

About 11 miles were what I have been calling marathon pace (6:30-6:59), but since that sounds silly two weeks out, we will say 4 since that's when I said "Okay, run 4 miles at or a bit faster than goal pace." Miles 1-3 dropped from 8:10 to 7:00 then, 4-10 were in the 6:50s, then the pushed it on the downhill to get some more downhill practice, so mile 11 was very fast MP @ 6:19, then pretty flat for 3 miles 6:36, 6:33, 6:31, then the last 2.25 around 7-7:10. Legs responded well, but they aren't quite ready for the marathon (thankfully because it's too soon).

North side - 6.5 miles, averaged 7:40

Not sure if my father is going to come see me race in two weeks. You can bet I'm pretty happy currently.

AM: Old Standby - 6.5 miles, averaged 8:04. Did a couple strides.

PM: North side - 5.5 miles, averaged 7:28. Felt like a had a good tempo to my stride this afternoon: relaxed, but tall. High cadence, feet landing under my center of mass. It's been quite a few days. 

AM: Old Standby - 6 miles, no watch. Felt sluggish. 

Last pre-marathon workout tomorrow.  I'll probably run at 5k pace until failure. Just kidding, Bam. Long 10k tempo, I think. Maybe just 5 if the energy level isn't there. Last buildup I did 4 x 1 mile @ HMP, which was good but it got me more in the mood to run a half rather than the full. Not tapering too much until after tomorrow. 

PM: North side - 5 miles, averaged 7:54. Did a couple strides.

Last chance workout. I was going to do a long 10k (6.25 miles) a goal pace, but Coach Bam suggest 6 x 1k @ HMP w/ 1k floats at MGP. Clearly he no longer thinks of me as a hobby jogger because when I suggested 6.25 miles last buildup at MGP he said that was for big boys so do 5 or do 4 x 1 mile @ HMP.  I did some math last night and realized I would probably be running 7.44 miles at 10-15 seconds average below marathon pace. 

65 degrees w/ 73% humidity to start 76 and 55% when I finished. It wasn't easy, but I imagine I will be running in the 30s or 40s in northern Maine this time of year. I bailed on the last k float because I was done. Effort was high at the end. I still got in 6.8+ miles at 6:24 pace, which is about 11 seconds fast than my A++ goal, so that's good. 

2.75 up and 2 down w/ 6 x 1k @ HMP w/ 1k float @ MGP

Average mile pace for ks (HMP, GMP)

Set 1: (6:14, 6:33)

Set 2: (6:08, 6:36)

Set 3: (6:10, 6:33)

Set 4: (6:10, 6:35)

Set 5: (6:13, 6:39)

Set 6: (6:26, bailed)

Headed to Toledo to see Megan. Should be a couple easy, short runs on soft trails.

Wildewood - 4.25 easy with Megan on some soft trails

I was just thinking how 60-65 miles used to be a big week. I've got pretty comfortable at 75-85. After the marathon and some days off I'll build back up and keep it there.

Day off. Checked the 10 day forecast. Should be in the 40s to start and into the 60s for a high. Time will tell, but northern Maine isn't exactly known for its scorching temps at any time of the year.

Medium long run loop - 13.1 in 1:33:36 (7:09 average). Upper range AT mile at mile 10 was 6:28. A bit fast, but I had to pick it up through a light toward the beginning. I think I've got a good idea where 6:35-6:40 pace is.

Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms. Wish I got to see mine today. Had a great weekend in Toledo with Megan's family thogh. I'm worried the scale with start snickering if I get on it in the morning so I will weight/wait until Wednesday. 

Evening: 6 miles nice and easy, averaged 8:18. Thankful for all the blog advice. Feeling very taperish this afternoon. 

North side - 6 miles, averaged 7:22. Too fast for the weather and the period before a marathon, but my legs are coming back.

Beautiful day. 81 degrees and sunny. Was feeling tired and sluggish. Ran pretty slow to get going, which was fine. Form feels quirky. Decided to run the last mile at marathon goal pace, and although it was warm I was trying to sense the pace and hit a certain number even though I knew I would be working a bit harder with the heat. The bad news is the effort was pretty high. The good news is I was 30 seconds off target. The last mile split was 6:08. Whoops. Working the wrong system, but it's too close to the race to have much effect. I assumed that the high effort was more due to heat than pace. I guess I will wear my watch that is set up to read current and average pace for the race. 

6.25 miles, averaged 7:39

The weather looks cooler than it did several days ago. I can't complain about this:

North side - 5.25 miles, averaged 7:50. Fat and flat is the new lean and mean. I did manage some low 4-minute, peak-paced strides in my Kinvaras. I love and hate those squishy blue beauts.  

I'm a bit obsessive about my nutrition, so I am getting something here and bringing it with me. If the TSA take it, well, I guess I will be eating gels on fruit for dinner. 

North side - 3.5 miles, averaged 7:46. One restrained stride at the end. 

Weather still looks good for Sunday. I may need to bring my hat and gloves for the warmup. Things are getting warmer here. Not so much in Northern Maine.

2.5 miles. Ran back and forth on the flat part of my parents road. Did a half a mile barefoot on the grass with some "strides" around goal pace. 

This one is for Coach Bam. Today I ran a strong marathon. I'll write more when I am done with my family time.

 I didn't walk! Onset of side cramps, but the old evil Gatorade helped me through. I think I may buy stock to show my appreciation. Strong finish: Mile 24=6:19, Mile 25=6:20, Mile 26=6:22, .22=1:14 (5:44 pace). The final miles were slightly rolling and flat. Course was aided, but there were some hill climbs and some of the downhills threw me more than aided me. I wasn't well prepared for those. I think I ran at the right effort even though the last miles were fast. The effort felt right throughout the race and tough from mile 19 or 20 on, but my legs responded (thankfully). This is sort of turning into a report . . . and I have some hot tubbing to do!

Thank you to Sasha for continuing to operate this blog. It means a lot to me and my running.

It's a good feeling to go from being a 3:09 marathoner to being a 2:52 marathoner in 5 and 1/2 months. Boston 2014!   

RACE REPORT

I was fortunate to stay at a ski house of one of the families who used to live on my parents' street. The race route goes by Sugarloaf Mountain, a famous ski resort in Maine and the house was about 6 miles from the start of the race at a campground where I used to go with a friend and his grandparents. Pretty nostalgic warming up on the campground entrance I hadn't seen since middle school.

After reading one of Paul's old race reports I realized I needed to eat more before a marathon (I also learned this from training when I did my 24 miler; I had a veggie wrap for lunch and it was perfect). The night before I ate a meal I brought from Indiana, which I eat the night before every race and most long runs. On the morning of the race I ate a granola bar (couldn't find my standard Cliff bars), a banana, and an orange. I decided to eat one more banana about an hour and a half before the race. I think my pre-race nutrition was helpful and a contributing factor to my success. I took 3 gels in the first 18.5 miles and called it good after that. Do the math on your longest long run calories wise and subtract what you expect in to burn in the marathon. This is what you need for calories. Of course there's more to it, but I'm guessing the simple equation isn't a bad bet.

Keep in mind the race was not closed to traffic completely or partially. Yehaw! I shouted at one car and gave it the not-very-nice form of a wave when it got a bit too close.

Warmed up for about 6 minutes after spending some time trying to get a satellite on my watch (tall, "cathedral" pines didn't help). 31-32 degrees at the start (not sure what the finishing temp was but I doubt it was more than mid-40s). Lined up a bit behind the line as some folks were in a hurry to go out fast. I knew I would catch them, so I relaxed. I double checked my watch. It had gone into power save mode. Tried to find a satellite, but they began the countdown. I heard "10...9...8...then 5...4" and so on and then the gun fired (I couldn't hear most of the countdown). I just hit start and figured I was manually splitting anyway and I know where my effort is supposed to be. At first I feared not having my Garmin crutch, but I quickly focused on running my race. I went out around what I thought was 6:45-6:50 and got an update before the first mile marker from a pack of guys who confirmed our pace. My watch must have found a satellite on the way because it straightened out eventually.

It was a chatty group those first few miles. One guy in particular. Helpful at first but after 3-4 miles I had to drop those guys because he was driving me nuts. I ran with one guy from those miles until mile 17 or 18 I think.

My single-serving running buddy and I ran with the lead woman for miles 6-10 I think. The 2 mile climb at 8-10 ate me up pretty good. I'm not used to hills like that. I was breathing, but I knew I had some downhills to reward me after mile 10. We dropped the lead woman sometime after 10 but before the halfway point. We hit some hammy screamers after the uphills. I was running 5:30 and still breaking (Coach Krong's advice in my head here, but it was very hard to keep my feet under me with those grades. Earlier a gent did compliment me on my cadence. Great race moment). The bike pacer for the lead woman had earlier told me not to trash my quads as we were going into the downhills. Easy for a cyclist to say (who was breathing harder than me on the uphills). Hit the half in the 1:27 range according to plan.

My friend and I decided around 11-13 miles we were going to slowly catch the next group of guys at about mile 16 or so. I said 18 or so that I wouldn't be anxious about passing them and getting passed in the last 10k. We caught them somewhere around 16 or 17 I think. My buddy (whoever he was) took off, and I ran with 3 guys until mile 21 or 22 when one of them took off. I dropped the last 2 or 3 as they stopped at a water station. I was grabbing cups but not stopping and trying not to slow down. I ran pretty much alone after 21-22. I had some side stitches that ruined my race last fall and they were right there to greet me at mile 21-22. I starting grabbing Gatorade. Magic stuff. After about 3 stations I got rid of them. I decided to turn it on once I I reeled in one last guy just before mile 23 (I know this is correct because I have video my mom took as she was driving by at that time). I don't know what he did in the last 5k, but I put 3+ minutes on him between pushing the pace and him struggling. No one passed me all race (as I recall) but I caught at least 4 in the final 10k and numerous along the way.

Those final miles felt as hard as my previous marathons, but my fitness (or something) carried me through. I split long for few of the last miles, which belies the average pace I was running. 24-26 average paces were 6:19, 6:17, 6:11 (1.03 miles! Ouch!). I hit the partial hard and saw the clock ticking 2:52:50 and pushed in at 2:52:54 with my fist pumping (video to follow). I felt pretty much dead but my form was still solid, and I was upright and felt incredible. I actually had run a strong marathon (aside from some egregious tangent running, which was not helped by an open course + inexperience. I'm still learning).

The rich chocolatey goodness: 6:09 (very short, 6:50 pace), 7:34 (long, 6:53 pace), 6:46, 6:37, 6:41, 6:36, 6:33, 6:43, 7:11 (hill!), 6:49 (hill), 6:24, 6:20, 6:35, 6:3, 6:21, 6:20 (I messed up here, 6:05 average. Think this was the steep downhill. Must have been), 6:30, 6:34, 6:36, 6:42, 6:45, 6:34, 6:32, 6:19, 6:20, 6:22, 1:14 for .22 (5:44 pace)

I feel the aided course helped me but not as much as I expected because I didn't realize the early climbs would be so hard. I don't have an official map, but I think the net drop is 1000 feet (not insignificant by any means).

A++ goal and my BQ by 12 minutes. 16 minutes and 19 seconds off the PR board.

Garmin Activity

We drove back from just before the finish line turn to mile 5 or 6 where we were staying. I was confused about how far we had gone. I thought we were getting close, but we weren't even to Sugarloaf, which is about mile 8. As it turns out, 26.2 miles is a long way to run. I also got to re-experience the course when we went home that afternoon. A long, beautiful beast of road race distance the marathon is.

I'm taking 5-6 days completely off to recover, reflect, and get some academic work done. Thanks everyone.

Day off #1. Legs a bit creaky, but stairs are quite doable. Tomorrow will be the real test. Race report is up. It's long as they tend to be.

Day off #2. Legs feel pretty good. A bit sore with a touch of tightness in some areas of the quads and hips, but I passed the stair test just fine. There's no doubt a ton of under-the-hood damage, so I am sticking with my (at least) 7 days completely off, other than a little walking. Did about a mile of that after I dropped off the rental. Felt good.

Thanks to MaineRunning for taking and uploading these videos. I'm in the first 10 seconds or so. Sugarloaf Finish

Day off #3. Today I felt an urge to go running, but I'm being sensible. Much work to be done academically. But in between all the other stuff I am getting plans together for the rest of the summer and fall, filling in some shorter races and some potential trail races (gasp!). 

Day off #4. 55 degrees and cool. Really wanted to get out before the heat comes in. I think my schedule for base building I constructed in my head is equivalent to .25 cross training miles. That will be good for today.

Day off #5. More cooler weather. The Jason is anxious, but abides.

Day #6. Walked to the farmer's market. Not much this early, but I did get some kale and disappointing hummus. Refueled with a blueberry muffin and grabbed a coffee. Did a bit over 2.5 miles.

Ordered a pair of Salomon trail shoes last night (my gift to myself for achieving my A++ goal last Sunday). Plan is to spend as much time on the trail as possible this summer to stay out of the sun and keep to soft surfaces.

Day #7. Looks like showers and cooler in the morning. Good day to get back at it. Slowly.

North side - 6.25 miles, averaged 8:14

Vinton Woods in reverse, shorty version - 6.25 miles, averaged 8:01. Feels a bit like a jungle out there.

Had to Shoo Goo my Kinvaras, but I think they are good for a few hundred more miles. They aren't holding up in a few areas, but I like the shoe enough on recovery days (and it's a peach of a sockless shoe) that I'll probably keep at least one pair in the rotation.

Nothing. Lazy and grumpy. Cooler this weekend and next week. I think I'll mix in a trail run this weekend (~10-11 miles) and do some mini-doubles next week to ease back into things. I'm much happier when I'm running, so it seems the thing to do. I've just been worried I'll break something getting back into things too quickly, but it's pretty much easy running for the next 4 weeks anyway.

Evening: Pouring some libations to the Bamster. His wit, shenanigans, and training advice will be greatly missed.

Ran to the trail head on 9th and down the Heritage Trail and back - 7.75 miles, averaged 8:14

It's weird to see the golf course after the flooding and the city's abandonment of it. Basically it looks like a field. My private track (the 1+ mile paved section where I do intervals) is a bit sandy. I imagine it will be a few weeks before I am ready for anything fast, but I think I will hit the track a bit this summer to change things up and wait for some of the sand to wash away.

Afternoon: Walked 2.25 miles from campus. CityBus seems to having some trouble deciding how it  wants to deal with the construction and it's anyone's guess if they will use the regular stop or the temporary one.  Guess I should feel lucky to be 28 and fit, unlike the old guy with an impossible body type who also missed the bus and had to wait another half hour. If I had access to a shower I would commute run.

Evening: Fink Cemetery/Fire Cracker Loop - 10 miles, averaged 7:38. Sweaty, but felt great.