Marathon Training - Week 8 - Pre-13.1 Miler
The rumors of my demise have been marginally exaggerated. It's been a bumpy ride over the last few weeks but I think I'm on the upward angle again.
My last post had me coming off a great 9 mile weekend run and getting ready for a 10 miler that weekend. I didn't get a very good run that weekend because I had to take my dog into the vet because we thought he'd sprained his knee. Well that 'sprain' turned out to be a venomous bite of some sort and over the course of a very long next week of very expensive and gut wrenching nights and days of intensive care we ended up having to put him down. That experience is one of the worst I've had to go through, and being the decision maker that had to choose to end the life of one of my best friends is something that I'm still struggling with coming to terms with. But as a result of all that I didn't get any runs in for a week after my failed 10 mile run and then coming back from that week I didn't do very well during the next week's run. So I went from a great 9 mile run to a failed 10 mile run, a week off, a poor week of training, and then attempted to do 12 miles last weekend.
12 miles. That alone seemed like a huge milestone and it would have been my first 'double digit' run if I had finished it. But it wasn't to be. I got started and got 5 miles into my run without alot of issues. At the 5 mile mark I walked for a few minutes will I took my 'gu' and rehydrated. But for whatever reason, I never could get restarted. I'm not sure if it was mental, or physical, or what but I never got restarted and ended up walking the 5 miles BACK to my house. Not the effort I wanted to put forward.
BUT THERE IS HOPE!
So far, this week has been a great running week. I got a good run in Tuesday and finished a 6 mile run on Wednesday which I hadn't been able to do for a few weeks. Yesterday's run was good as well and I'm optimistic about my chances to finish my 13 mile planned run tomorrow. I think part of my issues are running my 'long' runs by myself so I looked up a local running group that is training for a marathon around the same time mine is and I'm going to meet up with them this weekend and see how that run goes. I'm hoping that running with other people might be what it takes to keep me going or restart me going during my run. I'm really hoping that I'm able to finish 13 miles or what is essentially a half marathon.
This is a big mental milestone. If I can get 13 miles under my belt I think that's going to give me the motivation and prove to me that I'm able to do this. If I'm not able to do this weekend or at the very least get close I'm going to start to feel that I'm falling behind. If the most I've ever been able to complete is 9 miles with about 10 weeks left I'm going to start to be concerned with my ability to finish the full marathon.
We'll see how tomorrow's run goes. It'll be interesting if nothing else.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Marathon Training Week 5 - Mid-Week Recap
Marathon Training Week 5 - Mid-Week Recap
I continue to struggle to find the time to do the things I want to do but I have kept up my running. This week I haven't hit all my distances 100% but have felt pretty good running.
Tuesday's run was suppossed to be 3 miles but only ended up being 2. I believe I ran too close to eating dinner because I never really felt right running and I kept getting side stitches no matter how I adjusted by breathing or pace. At 2 miles I felt like my shorts might be chafing and I had had a side stitch for over .5 mile without being able to get rid of it so I just called it a run. I was a bit bummed, but I believe even with the issues I was having I could have finished the run if it was a race.
Yesterday was the midweek run of 5 miles this week. I went out to a new park that has an 8k 'trail' run and actually had a great run. I met a friend out there who isn't as far along as I am with running but he was able to keep up with my pace for the most part. We got 2.5 miles in before he was dying and needed to walk. Not wanting to run off an leave him we walked for 3 minutes before getting another 7 minutes or so in before another quick walk. At that point we were close to a 'loop' and I got him to run out the remainder. He ran 3.5 miles in about 40 minutes which I was really impressed he was able to keep up and do. Given the walking I believe we kept up a pretty decent pace. I kept running and did another side trail and when I was circling back around my car it was just over 50 minutes so I decided to call it. I ended up being about .4 miles short of my mileage but felt great overall and given the walking I'm sure I could have finished the run 'on pace'. Not sure how often I'll go back out to this park but it's nice.
I'm finding that I am needing to break up my running routine some. The same 1 mile course was fine when it was 2-3 miles at a time for 8-10 a week. But doing the same look for 20-30 miles a week is going to drive me insane.
Feeling good overall. Can't wait for the extra work that I've picked up to die down so I can get back to sleeping a more regular schedule and relaxing. With everything going on I'm struggling sometimes to cope with the added stresses which isn't something I normally struggle with. Luckily I haven't fallen off the eating wagon this week so hopefully we'll be able to see some progress this next weigh-in.
That's all for this update. Might try to update again after my run tonight, but I'll definitely get my 10 mile update in if I don't before.
I continue to struggle to find the time to do the things I want to do but I have kept up my running. This week I haven't hit all my distances 100% but have felt pretty good running.
Tuesday's run was suppossed to be 3 miles but only ended up being 2. I believe I ran too close to eating dinner because I never really felt right running and I kept getting side stitches no matter how I adjusted by breathing or pace. At 2 miles I felt like my shorts might be chafing and I had had a side stitch for over .5 mile without being able to get rid of it so I just called it a run. I was a bit bummed, but I believe even with the issues I was having I could have finished the run if it was a race.
Yesterday was the midweek run of 5 miles this week. I went out to a new park that has an 8k 'trail' run and actually had a great run. I met a friend out there who isn't as far along as I am with running but he was able to keep up with my pace for the most part. We got 2.5 miles in before he was dying and needed to walk. Not wanting to run off an leave him we walked for 3 minutes before getting another 7 minutes or so in before another quick walk. At that point we were close to a 'loop' and I got him to run out the remainder. He ran 3.5 miles in about 40 minutes which I was really impressed he was able to keep up and do. Given the walking I believe we kept up a pretty decent pace. I kept running and did another side trail and when I was circling back around my car it was just over 50 minutes so I decided to call it. I ended up being about .4 miles short of my mileage but felt great overall and given the walking I'm sure I could have finished the run 'on pace'. Not sure how often I'll go back out to this park but it's nice.
I'm finding that I am needing to break up my running routine some. The same 1 mile course was fine when it was 2-3 miles at a time for 8-10 a week. But doing the same look for 20-30 miles a week is going to drive me insane.
Feeling good overall. Can't wait for the extra work that I've picked up to die down so I can get back to sleeping a more regular schedule and relaxing. With everything going on I'm struggling sometimes to cope with the added stresses which isn't something I normally struggle with. Luckily I haven't fallen off the eating wagon this week so hopefully we'll be able to see some progress this next weigh-in.
That's all for this update. Might try to update again after my run tonight, but I'll definitely get my 10 mile update in if I don't before.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Marathon Training - Week 4 , 9 mile run
Marathon Training - Week 4 , 9 mile run
I missed Thursday's blog entry. I ran 3 miles. I struggled with the motivation to get out of the house and tried to rationalize not going for some time, but in the end my better judgment edged out and I went for the run and it turned out to be a decent run.
Now onto the main event, the long Saturday run. I can't properly describe the anxiety that I had about this run coming up to it. The last long run I successfully did was the 6 mile run on the first week. The next attempt at a longer run was 7 miles and that week was so hot or something that the run was terrible and I was left with this horrible 'I'm never going to be able to do this' feeling that I haven't fully been able to shake over the last few weeks.
Anyways, this morning I woke up and stretched out a bit and went for a run. I packed a gel packet and a took a water bottle and started out feeling great. I ran down the road for 4 miles or so and then stopped and took a gel packet and washed it down with about half a bottle of water. At the turnaround I was feeling really great. After the brief walk while I took some gel, my legs felt decent but got a little tight at times. Miles 5 and 6 were pretty good and Mile 7 and 8 were a bit of a struggle but I was able to keep running 'on pace'. My iPod ran out of battery just after 8 miles and it was at 1:22 which was a 10:19 pace. So I figure I finished the run somewhere under 1:33:00 which is everything I could have hoped for.
I didn't have any significant chafing, and I felt like I might have been getting a blister on my left foot but it hasn't developed. My heels are sore to walk on barefoot and my "index" toes are a bit sore and I think I've got some under-nail bruising. Legs still feel pretty good and while my knees are a little sore I think overall I'm doing great.
I'm full to the brim of 'Maybe I can do this after all' and I'm not as all concerned about next weekend and the distance it entails. I'm a month out from running 13 miles and essentially the half-way point but I think that if I can keep up the training I might be able to do this.
Anyways, having a great 4th. I'm glad that everything went as planned with my weekend so far. Maybe there is something to this training plan afterall.
I missed Thursday's blog entry. I ran 3 miles. I struggled with the motivation to get out of the house and tried to rationalize not going for some time, but in the end my better judgment edged out and I went for the run and it turned out to be a decent run.
Now onto the main event, the long Saturday run. I can't properly describe the anxiety that I had about this run coming up to it. The last long run I successfully did was the 6 mile run on the first week. The next attempt at a longer run was 7 miles and that week was so hot or something that the run was terrible and I was left with this horrible 'I'm never going to be able to do this' feeling that I haven't fully been able to shake over the last few weeks.
Anyways, this morning I woke up and stretched out a bit and went for a run. I packed a gel packet and a took a water bottle and started out feeling great. I ran down the road for 4 miles or so and then stopped and took a gel packet and washed it down with about half a bottle of water. At the turnaround I was feeling really great. After the brief walk while I took some gel, my legs felt decent but got a little tight at times. Miles 5 and 6 were pretty good and Mile 7 and 8 were a bit of a struggle but I was able to keep running 'on pace'. My iPod ran out of battery just after 8 miles and it was at 1:22 which was a 10:19 pace. So I figure I finished the run somewhere under 1:33:00 which is everything I could have hoped for.
I didn't have any significant chafing, and I felt like I might have been getting a blister on my left foot but it hasn't developed. My heels are sore to walk on barefoot and my "index" toes are a bit sore and I think I've got some under-nail bruising. Legs still feel pretty good and while my knees are a little sore I think overall I'm doing great.
I'm full to the brim of 'Maybe I can do this after all' and I'm not as all concerned about next weekend and the distance it entails. I'm a month out from running 13 miles and essentially the half-way point but I think that if I can keep up the training I might be able to do this.
Anyways, having a great 4th. I'm glad that everything went as planned with my weekend so far. Maybe there is something to this training plan afterall.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Marathon Training - Week 4 - 4 mile run
Marathon Training - Week 4 - 4 mile run
Yesterday was my long "weekday" run. The way my training program is set up it slowly increments and eventually the Wednesday runs gets a little longer culminating in a 10 mile Wednesday run on the same week as my longer 20 mile run on Saturday.
Anyways, yesterday was slated for a 4 mile run and that is what I completed. I slowed down my back to a "comfortable" pace and ran to a neighborhood close to my house and back. I ended up doing it in 42 minutes or so for around a 10:30 pace. The pace was pretty comfortable to maintain and I think I could keep that up for a longer run so we'll see if I can't end up with a run similar to that this weekend.
I'm not sure if it was my shorts or what but I ended up with some chafing after my run last night. That doesn't happen often but it's annoying as hell when it does, I haven't noticed it much today so I am still planning on running my planned run tonight but we'll see. I don't really want to slather up vasoline or whatever you do for longer runs just to go out and run 30 minutes here and there, but if it becomes and issue I might have to.
I've been thinking that the shorts I use for running are more "athletic" shorts and less running shorts. I'm looking to maybe get a pair or two of shorts that are more tailored to running but at my local track store those shorts are 30-40 bucks a pair. That's alot to pay for a pair of shorts I'm not even sure will do anything. Maybe I need to just bite the bullet.
Does anyone out there run with specific running shorts? If so what brand and where did you get them.
Yesterday was my long "weekday" run. The way my training program is set up it slowly increments and eventually the Wednesday runs gets a little longer culminating in a 10 mile Wednesday run on the same week as my longer 20 mile run on Saturday.
Anyways, yesterday was slated for a 4 mile run and that is what I completed. I slowed down my back to a "comfortable" pace and ran to a neighborhood close to my house and back. I ended up doing it in 42 minutes or so for around a 10:30 pace. The pace was pretty comfortable to maintain and I think I could keep that up for a longer run so we'll see if I can't end up with a run similar to that this weekend.
I'm not sure if it was my shorts or what but I ended up with some chafing after my run last night. That doesn't happen often but it's annoying as hell when it does, I haven't noticed it much today so I am still planning on running my planned run tonight but we'll see. I don't really want to slather up vasoline or whatever you do for longer runs just to go out and run 30 minutes here and there, but if it becomes and issue I might have to.
I've been thinking that the shorts I use for running are more "athletic" shorts and less running shorts. I'm looking to maybe get a pair or two of shorts that are more tailored to running but at my local track store those shorts are 30-40 bucks a pair. That's alot to pay for a pair of shorts I'm not even sure will do anything. Maybe I need to just bite the bullet.
Does anyone out there run with specific running shorts? If so what brand and where did you get them.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Marathon Training - Week 4, 3 mile run
Marathon Training - Week 4, 3 mile run
Today was a pretty good run. I decided that I was going to go out and try and do some "speed" training and just see how quick I could run the 3 miles. I felt really really good for the first mile and clocked a very fast first mile. I kept up the pace for another half mile or so but by mile 2 I was slowing down and battling side cramps because my breathing got off pace.
I finished the whole run in under 28 minutes which is pretty quick for me compared to my normal runs and I'd be giddy to finish a 5k in under 28 minutes.
It's amazing the ups and downs you go through over just one run. It's funny that you can start and feel great, then feel terrible, then want to quit, then in a matter of moments feel great again. It's really sometimes a roller coaster but I guess that's why you develop such mental stamina from being a long distance runner.
Today was a pretty good run. I decided that I was going to go out and try and do some "speed" training and just see how quick I could run the 3 miles. I felt really really good for the first mile and clocked a very fast first mile. I kept up the pace for another half mile or so but by mile 2 I was slowing down and battling side cramps because my breathing got off pace.
I finished the whole run in under 28 minutes which is pretty quick for me compared to my normal runs and I'd be giddy to finish a 5k in under 28 minutes.
It's amazing the ups and downs you go through over just one run. It's funny that you can start and feel great, then feel terrible, then want to quit, then in a matter of moments feel great again. It's really sometimes a roller coaster but I guess that's why you develop such mental stamina from being a long distance runner.
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