Hills for breakfast, hold the gnats

December 26, 2024

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Location:

Snoqualmie,WA,

Member Since:

Jan 31, 2008

Gender:

Female

Goal Type:

Boston Qualifier

Running Accomplishments:

Marathon PR: 4:17 at Portland Marathon, Oct. 2007

5K PR 24:37 2009

10K PR 52:58 2010

Have run 22 marathons to date.

No injuries, ever. :)

Short-Term Running Goals:

Qualify for Boston (4:05 for my age/gender) - or, perhaps, to use my desire for a BQ as a way to get in the hated speed work so I don't just get slower and slower over the years. This goal is "under (re)construction" right now, until I figure out whether it is truly what I want. :)

Long-Term Running Goals:

To continue learning about myself and about running, and to enjoy being a fit, happy runner for life. To always know why I am running and the best way to get the most (both mentally and physically) out of my runs. To keep a sense of humor and remain optimistic about myself as a runner. To enjoy running more and more with every passing year.

Personal:

Baby boomer generation. Jogged a little in my 20's and 30's. Started running seriously in 2002. Low-carb runner since January 2010.

I love long runs and cold, cloudy weather. I don't believe in "junk miles." I am an optimist. I adore dark chocolate, fog, my family, and knitting -- not necessarily in that order.

"As every runner knows, running is about more than just putting one foot in front of the other; it is about our lifestyle and who we are." -- Joan Benoit Samuelson

Favorite Blogs:

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Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	0.00
Brooks ST3 Lifetime Miles:						891.35
Vibram Five Fingers KSO Lifetime Miles:						23.77
Brooks ST3 II Lifetime Miles:						965.17
Lunaracers II Lifetime Miles:						198.23
Mizuno Wave Universe 3 Lifetime Miles:						104.14
Asics Piranha Lifetime Miles:						536.83
RunAmocs (Softstar) Lifetime Miles:						16.23
Piranha II Lifetime Miles:						219.53

Mon, Apr 13, 2009

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00

I'm not feeling too bad this morning, though I definitely have some junk in my throat. I think this one will pass quickly; I compare it to the cold I had in February that knocked the life out of me for nearly a week. This doesn't feel anything like that. (Thanks, Carolyn, for telling me about yours.)

I did promise myself yesterday, at around mile 16 (that was when my shoes started to "squish") that if I finished the miles, and if I didn't feel well by nighttime, I could skip today's run. That was the deal: long miles for additional miles. Because goodness knows, I was tempted to go home so badly that even stopping by for some dry shoes may have ended it.

I'm just rambling here... (A mental subsitute for running?) I have read many marathon training plans that suggest long runs up to 20 miles, or long runs up to 3 hours, and I am very conscious of my abnormal practice of going beyond that. Confession time: I was running yesterday for nearly 4.5 hours. That's some slow running, chugging along like the proverbial tortoise. But what I really want to say is how impressed and inspired I am by Bonnie's run of the same distance. Someday, when I am fitter, and when it's not pouring, and when I'm not coming down with a cold... I want to be like her, and combine the distance of my race with a progression of pace. I look forward to Eugene and I feel really positive about this training cycle, but I also feel like I have a lot more improvement to pursue.

One last bit of mental flotsam: do you all know about Ed Whitlock? He was the first (only?) 70+ y.o. person to run the marathon in under 3 hours. His training comprises 2-3 hours every day of running a ~400m circuit through a cemetery in his neighborhood, around and around...

Comments

From Carolyn in Colorado on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 11:04:06 from 71.229.164.25

I think you have definitely earned a day off. And I hope you nip this cold in the bud and that it doesn't turn into anything significant.

I have also been wondering a little bit about the length/duration of long runs when training for a marathon. My long run on Friday took about 3.5 hours. And I know a lot of training plans only have one 20-miler. But my plan has another 20-miler this week, and a 23-miler the week after that. That's not to mention the 20-miler I missed the week I was in Utah.

But I think those training plans with just one 20-miler or one 3-hour run are geared towards first-time marathoners whose goal is just to finish the race.

I believe we've had a discussion about the number of 20+ mile runs in a marathon training program before. But we haven't talked about the duration of those runs. (Now I'm rambling.)

From Snoqualmie on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 11:12:52 from 67.171.56.164

I don't know which of my training books it was, but at least one of them says "up to 3 hours" for marathon training. That would leave me with at least 6 miles of terra incognita, plus the fatigue of racing. Hm.

From Bonnie on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 13:16:28 from 128.196.228.134

Thanks for being impressed by my run Sno ... I am equally (maybe even more) impressed by the fortitude you showed in yours - running for that long with squishy shoes is down-right rockstaresque.

Dean and I were talking last night about my splits, and although I didn't actually mean to speed up it just happened. Dean said the same thing happens to him when his legs get tired, he gets faster. I think it is just the "horse to barn" concept ;-).

I think that the "runs over 3 hours" rule was specific to those people who are going to be out running a marathon for 2.5 hours or a less. If we are going to be out for 3.5 hours or more then we have to be able to demonstrate we can be on our feet for that long - in my opinion. Especially if you can run the miles at a pace that you can recover from by your next workout (which is the most important thing - we don't want to do anything that mucks up the rest of our training or takes too long to recover from). So, for you, if 20 miles takes 4 hours then you should run 20 miles (since you WILL be done in 4 or less hours!!!). If 22 miles takes me 3.5 hours then I should run 22 miles (since I hope to be out for 3.5 hours). This is just my take on it. Greg doesn't specify this - he just wants me to run 22 miles, but I am pretty sure that many of his elite athletes run 24+ miles, because they can do it 3 hours ...

From Snoqualmie on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 13:28:47 from 67.171.56.164

So you are saying that the longest run be the *time* of your marathon goal? Dang, girl, you're going to make my Garmin obsolete if you keep this up! :D

From Snoqualmie on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 13:29:35 from 67.171.56.164

Clarify question.. the time of the marathon goal rather than a percentage of the distance?

From Bonnie on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 13:36:16 from 128.196.228.134

Well, it could be coincidental, but for me (and several of my friends) it has just worked out that way - time on feet rather than the number of miles over 20 miles. This is really for us slower runners. I really think the whole "not running more than 3 hours" truly is based on how many miles over 20-something should elite marathoners train without sacrificing other workouts. For us slower people we *have* to be able to get used to being on our feet for 3.5 hours or more ... so, in my opinion, it come down less about how far you go (though hopefully you can go at least 20-21) and more about how long you are on your feet. This is not precise ... just a possible rule of thumb. If you are someone (like you seem to be) that can run endless amount of miles and not have them adversely affect further training, then by all means run as many miles as you can. I am not at all sure I could run 4 hours without reducing the volume and/or intensity of my next weeks training significantly.

From Carolyn in Colorado on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 13:57:37 from 198.241.217.15

I'm going to agree with Bonnie on this one (always a smart move).

I have somehow come by the impression that the length of the longest run(s) in marathon training are meant to train you to spend the length of time on your feet that you will spend in the marathon. Assuming that you run the training run at a slower pace than you will run the marathon, the distance that you will run in that training run is less than marathon distance.

I agree that the 3 hour rule probably applies to faster runners than we are (and probably whoever wrote that was only thinking of men as well).

From JD on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 15:22:53 from 64.65.159.206

Thanks for that tidbit about Ed Whitlock. With his daily runs through the cemetery, he's essentially running circles around mortality.

From Snoqualmie on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 15:41:24 from 67.171.56.164

It just drips with irony, doesn't it?

From Metcalf Running on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 16:33:37 from 71.219.132.113

Sorry you are not feeling well. I'm sure that a bit of rest will have you back to normal!

From april27 on Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 22:30:04 from 99.188.251.180

Sorry you aren't feeling well. And I hope I'm running at 70!

I can't believe you ran for that long!

I always love reading your blogs b/c of all the comments I learn so much!

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