So the plan last night called for a 6 mile run at whatever pace I wanted. I felt pretty good, so I thought I'd run the majority of the six miles (on the treadmill, of course) at a 10 minute mile pace. Based on a treadmill pace conversion chart, this equates to a 9:52 mile since I've got the incline set to 1%. Shouldn't be a problem, I thought. I'm 8 weeks into my training plan; I should be able to do that no problem. Just throw on my iPod, shuffle some tunes and grind through.
This is where my plan started to go wrong. Let me start by saying that I normally don't do warm up or cool down. I know it would probably help me out In the long run if I did, but on the treadmill I like to set it and forget it. So I set the mill for 6.0 mph start up the iPod and start running. About 2 minutes in, my iPod cuts out. I look down and see the apple logo. Great. Ok, aparently it decided to reset itself for some reason. So I took it off my arm and attempted to get Nike+ started again. Having risked being thrownto the ground as I tried to run and futz with said iPod a the same time, I got it working and continued on. A couple minutes later it does it again. Frustrated at this point, I take the iPod off and toss it aside. (Throughout the run I would glance down at it from time to time and it was continuing to cycle through resets.)
At this point I'm only about a half mile in and could have stopped, thrown in a DVD and been set. Unfortunately once I start I don't like to stop until done. Fine, I decided. Mental toughness run. 6 miles on the treadmill, music, no DVD, just me, my head and my legs. Yeah, about that.
About a mile in I started having pain in my lower legs again. Not just on the inside of the right leg, but along the shin on my left leg as well. Great! The pain wasn't bad, more of a distraction, but it did have me worried a bit. Was I pushing too much? Too far too fast? Gut it out and we'll see where this goes, I said. Expect some pain in the marathon, this will be good practice for getting through it. Pain is just weakness leaving the body. Strangely enough, the pain (discomfort?) came and went. By the end of the run it was all good. This is an encouraging sign.
Normally during the course of a run in which pushing a bit and I get to the last mile I tell myself "Ten more minutes. You can do anything for ten minutes." Last night it was "20 minutes..15 minutes...10 minutes, well you get the idea.
And I did it. 6 miles@6 mph with a 1% incline. I'd say that's not too bad, especialy considering all I had to watch was the progress around the simulated track on the treadmill.
We'll see how tonight (an EASY) 3 miler goes. And then it's 13 on Sunday. That's pretty much the farthest I've ever run, so it will be interesting. I really hope Yoda's not dead. Oh, that's my iPod name, btw. Becuase it's green, and small, and awesome. I tried to restore it this morning before work and couldn't get it to restore. I'll try some more stuff tonight and tomorrow. Sunday will be long and cold without my Jedi Master along for the run.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Sometimes You Feel Like a Nut
The plan for today was an easy (?) 12 miler. It's a build week this week after the step-back 7 miler last weekend. I planned on getting up and out early having an easy paced run.
Instead I woke up to one of the classic themes in literature and storytelling: Man vs. Nature. Or rather, me versus a temperature of 8 degrees, and about 1/2 inch of snow on the ground. I looked out the window and thought "No way, not gonna do it. There's no way I'm going to run around that track 96 times to get in my 12 miles. I may be nuts (my wife would nod her head enthusiastically here), but I'm going to run outside."
So I layered up: Tights (or girl pants as my 5 year old daughter likes to call them) and sweatpants. A long sleeved wicking shirt, a medium weight pullover, and a light windbreaker type shell. And of course my stocking cap and gloves. I thought it might be a bit light, but I didn't want to wear too much and sweat a lot with the cold temp. Overall, it turned out to be just enough.
I also strapped on the YakTrax I got last year for the added traction. Luckily nearly all of the ice on the roads had melted this week, and all I had to worry about was the new fallen snow. If I thought there had been ice, I would have opted for the spikes my sister got me this past Christmas instead. I thought the YakTrax worked out well today.
I started out easy (honestly I kept it mostly easy the whole run) and hadn't considered how cold the falling snow (did I mention that it was STILL snowing during the run? Yeah, it was.) would make my face feel. I started wishing REAL
early that I hadn't shaved that beard off a few weeks ago.
I felt pretty good, and planned on gelling at 5 and 10 miles. I also decided to try a packet of GU2O in my water bottle. My sister had given it to me to try, and I thought it would be a good time to experiment with an electrolyte replacement option as opposed to just water. I actually
walked when I took my gels, partly because the pace team in the marathon will be walking through the aid stations, and partly because I had to open the cap of my water bottle to drink as it was mostly frozen. This is what it looked like when I was done with my run:
As you can see, it was more like a snow cone than actual liquid.
I was a bit concerned about the lower leg pain I'd been having during/after runs the last couple weeks, but my treadmill run last Friday night went fine, and there was little to no pain at all during/after my snowy run this morning. Perhaps my legs have quit protesting with the realization that I really AM going to keep running, no matter their protestations. This makes me VERY happy.
With the slower pace and the shorter stride my Nike+ stats were wacked out. It showed me running 15.5 miles at a sub 9 minute mile pace. I wish! In actuality, according to Garmin, I went 12.01 miles in 2:17:38, with an average pace of 11:28
per mile. A couple interesting things to note: the time was nearly the same time (only 2 seconds different) than my half marathon time last May, and my pace was nearly the same pace (only 1 second slower) than I hope to run in the marathon. Overall, not bad especially with the somewhat adverse conditions.
I did end up with a couple blisters on the insides of my feet along the arch, so I'll be keeping en eye on that and either trying some body glide on those spots, or hoping the develop into calluses over the next couple weeks.
Hopefully next week will go as well as this week seemed to, minus the lower leg drama.
Instead I woke up to one of the classic themes in literature and storytelling: Man vs. Nature. Or rather, me versus a temperature of 8 degrees, and about 1/2 inch of snow on the ground. I looked out the window and thought "No way, not gonna do it. There's no way I'm going to run around that track 96 times to get in my 12 miles. I may be nuts (my wife would nod her head enthusiastically here), but I'm going to run outside."
So I layered up: Tights (or girl pants as my 5 year old daughter likes to call them) and sweatpants. A long sleeved wicking shirt, a medium weight pullover, and a light windbreaker type shell. And of course my stocking cap and gloves. I thought it might be a bit light, but I didn't want to wear too much and sweat a lot with the cold temp. Overall, it turned out to be just enough.
I also strapped on the YakTrax I got last year for the added traction. Luckily nearly all of the ice on the roads had melted this week, and all I had to worry about was the new fallen snow. If I thought there had been ice, I would have opted for the spikes my sister got me this past Christmas instead. I thought the YakTrax worked out well today.
I started out easy (honestly I kept it mostly easy the whole run) and hadn't considered how cold the falling snow (did I mention that it was STILL snowing during the run? Yeah, it was.) would make my face feel. I started wishing REAL
early that I hadn't shaved that beard off a few weeks ago.
I felt pretty good, and planned on gelling at 5 and 10 miles. I also decided to try a packet of GU2O in my water bottle. My sister had given it to me to try, and I thought it would be a good time to experiment with an electrolyte replacement option as opposed to just water. I actually
walked when I took my gels, partly because the pace team in the marathon will be walking through the aid stations, and partly because I had to open the cap of my water bottle to drink as it was mostly frozen. This is what it looked like when I was done with my run:
As you can see, it was more like a snow cone than actual liquid.
I was a bit concerned about the lower leg pain I'd been having during/after runs the last couple weeks, but my treadmill run last Friday night went fine, and there was little to no pain at all during/after my snowy run this morning. Perhaps my legs have quit protesting with the realization that I really AM going to keep running, no matter their protestations. This makes me VERY happy.
With the slower pace and the shorter stride my Nike+ stats were wacked out. It showed me running 15.5 miles at a sub 9 minute mile pace. I wish! In actuality, according to Garmin, I went 12.01 miles in 2:17:38, with an average pace of 11:28
per mile. A couple interesting things to note: the time was nearly the same time (only 2 seconds different) than my half marathon time last May, and my pace was nearly the same pace (only 1 second slower) than I hope to run in the marathon. Overall, not bad especially with the somewhat adverse conditions.
I did end up with a couple blisters on the insides of my feet along the arch, so I'll be keeping en eye on that and either trying some body glide on those spots, or hoping the develop into calluses over the next couple weeks.
Hopefully next week will go as well as this week seemed to, minus the lower leg drama.
Friday, January 23, 2009
Sometimes You Feel Like a Runner
There are times when you go for a run and everything's clicking. Your legs feel good, your feet feel light, you just feel RIGHT.
Last night was not that night. After my easy 3 miler on Tuesday night, I was supposed to follow up with an easy 6 miler for my midweek run. As per usual, I hopped on the treadmill after the kids were on bed and set it at 5.5 mph. That's about a 10:54 pace, faster than my goal race pace for the marathon, but slower than I usually run my weekday runs. Right from the beginning I wasn't feeling it. I just felt like my legs were heavy, I couldn't find a good rhythm, and (this was of the most concern to me) I was having more lower leg pain than any point up to now. Maybe it was just the treadmill blahs or something. I mean, sure, I had an episode of Dexter (awesome show) in the DVD player to keep my mind occupied, but there were times I was hoping Dex would just kill ME and put me out of my misery.
Now there was a point (between mile 4.75 and 5.5) where I felt pretty good. I know it seems like a short part of the run, but I'll take what I can get. And there is the fact that I COULD have stopped at any point (it's not like I was 3 miles into the country and HAD to make it back somehow. Perhaps last night was not about having a good run, but about building mental toughness. I stayed with it, gutted it out even while in pain (a bit) and not feeling it.
Maybe that was the important part of last night's run. At this point I'll take what I can get.
Huge shout out to my sis (also in training for the marathon). She's a bit concerned about her mileage (or lack of it) based on her coach's training plan. Don't worry; you'll be AWESOME.
Last night was not that night. After my easy 3 miler on Tuesday night, I was supposed to follow up with an easy 6 miler for my midweek run. As per usual, I hopped on the treadmill after the kids were on bed and set it at 5.5 mph. That's about a 10:54 pace, faster than my goal race pace for the marathon, but slower than I usually run my weekday runs. Right from the beginning I wasn't feeling it. I just felt like my legs were heavy, I couldn't find a good rhythm, and (this was of the most concern to me) I was having more lower leg pain than any point up to now. Maybe it was just the treadmill blahs or something. I mean, sure, I had an episode of Dexter (awesome show) in the DVD player to keep my mind occupied, but there were times I was hoping Dex would just kill ME and put me out of my misery.
Now there was a point (between mile 4.75 and 5.5) where I felt pretty good. I know it seems like a short part of the run, but I'll take what I can get. And there is the fact that I COULD have stopped at any point (it's not like I was 3 miles into the country and HAD to make it back somehow. Perhaps last night was not about having a good run, but about building mental toughness. I stayed with it, gutted it out even while in pain (a bit) and not feeling it.
Maybe that was the important part of last night's run. At this point I'll take what I can get.
Huge shout out to my sis (also in training for the marathon). She's a bit concerned about her mileage (or lack of it) based on her coach's training plan. Don't worry; you'll be AWESOME.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Round and Round
Well, it was a bit cool yet yesterday (24 degrees not counting any windchill) at about 1pm, which was the time I had designated to do my easy, step back 7 miler. I figured that if it was going to be at all warm enough to run outside, the middle of the day would probably have the best chance. So asked myself was it worth it to brave the cold, or should I either run on the treadmill or go to the school and run around the indoor track?
I opted for the indoor track. My wife went with me and walked while I did my run, so even though we were doing our separate thing, it was kinda nice to be doing it "together". If that makes any sense.
The track is an 1/8 mile track, so it was to be a glorious 56 times around to get my seven miles in. I'm not sure how many times I lost count and either jumped ahead in my count or ran the same lap twice, but Nike+ ended up with a distance of 7.4 something. Which, I figure, is probably about right given its propensity for being off a bit.
The run itself was pretty non-eventful. Easy run, no problems. A bit of shin pain, but once I got a few miles in it seemed to go away. This seems a bit curious to me, but as long as it's going away, hey fine by me.
Guess that's about it for now. This week sees one of my mid-week runs go from 5 to 6 miles, and my long run next weekend is 12 miles. I figured that in 4 weeks, I'll be running farther than I've ever run before. So that should be interesting. Until then I'll just keep plugging away at it and hope things go well.
I opted for the indoor track. My wife went with me and walked while I did my run, so even though we were doing our separate thing, it was kinda nice to be doing it "together". If that makes any sense.
The track is an 1/8 mile track, so it was to be a glorious 56 times around to get my seven miles in. I'm not sure how many times I lost count and either jumped ahead in my count or ran the same lap twice, but Nike+ ended up with a distance of 7.4 something. Which, I figure, is probably about right given its propensity for being off a bit.
The run itself was pretty non-eventful. Easy run, no problems. A bit of shin pain, but once I got a few miles in it seemed to go away. This seems a bit curious to me, but as long as it's going away, hey fine by me.
Guess that's about it for now. This week sees one of my mid-week runs go from 5 to 6 miles, and my long run next weekend is 12 miles. I figured that in 4 weeks, I'll be running farther than I've ever run before. So that should be interesting. Until then I'll just keep plugging away at it and hope things go well.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Choices
So I had a choice to make last night when it came to my run. I could either do some "speedwork" on the treadmill, or I could do my 5 miler at my usual 10 minute per mile pace on the treadmill. Unfortunately the choice wasn't run outside or run inside. The temperature/windchill here has put the temp WAY below zero the last few days so running outside was not really an option for me.
Because I was afraid the speedwork may have caused further problems with the shin pain I've been having (and I'm not even so sure it's the shin necessarily, but more like the bone? on the inside of my leg (tibia?fibia?)) I elected to go with the 5 miles at the "normal" treadmill pace. I hadn't rum that far at that pace since my training for the Pig last year, so it was a bit of an experiment. And (I could be stretching the definition here) since my goal pace for the marathon is 11:27/mile, doesn't a 10 minute mile qualify as speedwork? Maybe? Kinda?
With the aid of a pretty good episode of Dexter, the miles went by fairly quickly and I felt pretty good afterwords. I took my pulse ok the treadmill afterwords and it was 135. Not sure how accurate that is, but it seems like it was quite a bit off of my calculated "target" heart rate. Maybe that means I'm getting In better shape after all?
Now my choice for my long run this weekend seems to be run inside or run outside? The temp is supposed to be ok, and it's only 7 miles (step down week) so I'm hoping for outside. Inside would either mean the treadmill (dreadmill?) again, or 56 laps around the indoor track uptown at the school. Hmmmm. I REALLY hope it's decent outside.
As if the marathon itself isn't enough motivation to keep running, I joined a couple challenges on Nike+. The first is kind of a throwaway ( run 10k every month on 09), but the second one is a bit better (rum 300 miles in 09). I haven't calculated how many miles my marathon training include, but it should get me off to a good start towards that one. I've (and you heard it here first) decided I'd like to try to run 1000 miles this year. It seems like a lot, but it's only like 21 or so miles a week.
Uh oh. Did I really just put that out there?
And call me weird or sick, or whatever, but I was actually looking at the websites for the Chicago and New York marathons yesterday. And actually considering them.
Maybe I should finish one first.
Later.
Because I was afraid the speedwork may have caused further problems with the shin pain I've been having (and I'm not even so sure it's the shin necessarily, but more like the bone? on the inside of my leg (tibia?fibia?)) I elected to go with the 5 miles at the "normal" treadmill pace. I hadn't rum that far at that pace since my training for the Pig last year, so it was a bit of an experiment. And (I could be stretching the definition here) since my goal pace for the marathon is 11:27/mile, doesn't a 10 minute mile qualify as speedwork? Maybe? Kinda?
With the aid of a pretty good episode of Dexter, the miles went by fairly quickly and I felt pretty good afterwords. I took my pulse ok the treadmill afterwords and it was 135. Not sure how accurate that is, but it seems like it was quite a bit off of my calculated "target" heart rate. Maybe that means I'm getting In better shape after all?
Now my choice for my long run this weekend seems to be run inside or run outside? The temp is supposed to be ok, and it's only 7 miles (step down week) so I'm hoping for outside. Inside would either mean the treadmill (dreadmill?) again, or 56 laps around the indoor track uptown at the school. Hmmmm. I REALLY hope it's decent outside.
As if the marathon itself isn't enough motivation to keep running, I joined a couple challenges on Nike+. The first is kind of a throwaway ( run 10k every month on 09), but the second one is a bit better (rum 300 miles in 09). I haven't calculated how many miles my marathon training include, but it should get me off to a good start towards that one. I've (and you heard it here first) decided I'd like to try to run 1000 miles this year. It seems like a lot, but it's only like 21 or so miles a week.
Uh oh. Did I really just put that out there?
And call me weird or sick, or whatever, but I was actually looking at the websites for the Chicago and New York marathons yesterday. And actually considering them.
Maybe I should finish one first.
Later.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Winter Long Run Fun
I was able to do my long run outside this morning. I wasn't sure if it was going to happen or not, as we had a bit of ice on the roads yesterday. So I got up at 6:45 and checked the road out front to see how it looked. All good. Awesome. Apparently I should not be doing any kind of thinking in the mornings as I didn't consider that the country roads where I normally run my route may be a bit more slick than the roads I'm town. But I'm getting ahead of myself a bit.
My intention was to run the reverse of my normal route to shake things up a bit. This would entail running out a bit to the bike trail, running a couple miles there, then doing a loop out on the country roads. Through town I noticed there was some ice on the road, but nothing I couldn't work around. I got to the bike trail and it was a sheet of ice. Ok. There's a 5 mile loop along a path through the wooded area near the bike trail, I'll just run on it for a ways. Yeah,well, the ground was frozen and uneven and I was afraid of breaking a ankle. Not to mention that about 200 yards in, there was a little running water/ice i would have to cross. Ok. I'll just turn around and to back, run through the country and play it by ear. Needless to say, the country roads were a bit icy so I either had to run mostly on the shoulder ( which I did pretty frequently) or work my way around the ice. Either way, the important thing is that I was able to get my long run in outside.
Did I mention it was a balmy 19 degrees out? There was a bit of wind and that made it seem colder. I may have dressed one layer too lightly, but I didn't want to overdo it and be completely wet and miserable.
Overall, I finished the 10 miles with an average pace of 10:52 per mile. Not too bad considering I felt good going into the last mile and ran I at a 9:55 pace. I hope the fact that so far all of my training has been at faster than race pace won't come back to bite me in the end.
That being said, my goal (aside from finishing period) is to run the marathon on 5 hours. Well, actually 4:59. Of faster. I plan on running with the 5 hour pace team and then maybe picking it up the last mile to come in under 5 hours. Of course, all of this is pure speculation at this point.
On a final note, my speedlaces came in the mail yesterday so I was able to put them on my shoes and break them in on my run today. I must say I was very pleased.
Until next time.
BTW, did I fail to mention the gel I took at the 7 mile mark that was more like chewing taffy, and the frozen water in my bottle that I tried to wash it down with? Yeah, I guess I did.
My intention was to run the reverse of my normal route to shake things up a bit. This would entail running out a bit to the bike trail, running a couple miles there, then doing a loop out on the country roads. Through town I noticed there was some ice on the road, but nothing I couldn't work around. I got to the bike trail and it was a sheet of ice. Ok. There's a 5 mile loop along a path through the wooded area near the bike trail, I'll just run on it for a ways. Yeah,well, the ground was frozen and uneven and I was afraid of breaking a ankle. Not to mention that about 200 yards in, there was a little running water/ice i would have to cross. Ok. I'll just turn around and to back, run through the country and play it by ear. Needless to say, the country roads were a bit icy so I either had to run mostly on the shoulder ( which I did pretty frequently) or work my way around the ice. Either way, the important thing is that I was able to get my long run in outside.
Did I mention it was a balmy 19 degrees out? There was a bit of wind and that made it seem colder. I may have dressed one layer too lightly, but I didn't want to overdo it and be completely wet and miserable.
Overall, I finished the 10 miles with an average pace of 10:52 per mile. Not too bad considering I felt good going into the last mile and ran I at a 9:55 pace. I hope the fact that so far all of my training has been at faster than race pace won't come back to bite me in the end.
That being said, my goal (aside from finishing period) is to run the marathon on 5 hours. Well, actually 4:59. Of faster. I plan on running with the 5 hour pace team and then maybe picking it up the last mile to come in under 5 hours. Of course, all of this is pure speculation at this point.
On a final note, my speedlaces came in the mail yesterday so I was able to put them on my shoes and break them in on my run today. I must say I was very pleased.
Until next time.
BTW, did I fail to mention the gel I took at the 7 mile mark that was more like chewing taffy, and the frozen water in my bottle that I tried to wash it down with? Yeah, I guess I did.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Why Apollo, you ask?
So after my last post many of you are probably thinking "Why did he name his Garmin virtual training parter? And why Apollo of all things?"
It may seem obvious that this is a reference to the Apollo of Greek mythology and the Pythian games held In his honor and the fact that he was an accomplished runner (even though the fact that he was the son of Zeus surely helped him out with this). While this may seem obvious, it would be wrong.
See I was thinking of another Apollo. An Apollo perhaps even more recognized than the Apollo of myth.
Who could this be, you ask? Who could possibly surplant the Apollo of legend, nay, of myth?
Apollo Creed.
You see, Apollo Creed was the trainer who helped Rocky defeat the vaunted (though by their second bout, softened by his celebrity status) Clubber Lang. Sure, he was no Mick, but he gave Rocky the one tool he needed to defeat Clubber.
The Eye of the Tiger. The will to survive. To recover the passion he had lost and needed to regain in order to defeat his nemesis. Clearly you can put the analogy in place from here, no?
Alhough at this point the analogy really falls apart, because by the second bout Rocky had already been beaten by Clubber (Clubber clearly being the marathon in the scenario). I've yet to be deafeated by the marathon, and am counting on Apollo to never let that happen in the first
place.
Anyway, runs this week so far:
On Tuesday I ran a tempo run on the treadmill. 3 miles at a 1% incline at a 9:40 pace. Felt good, yet a bit challenging. A bit of shin pain, but nothing to write home about.
Thursday I ran 5 miles (again on my old friend, the treadmill. It's just so dark and cold by the time I get arou d to running). Did this run at a bit easier pace (10:54), but still faster than my goal race pace. Kept the 1% incline, and felt REALLY good afterwards. Like I could have kept on coin for quite awhile. One weird thing, though. For the first 3.5 miles there was some pain ( more discomfort than pain really) but after that point it went away. Weird, huh?
Anyway, I have an easy 3 miler tonight and then a 10 miler on tap for Sunday. I'll let you all know how those go.
Oh,yeah. And I hit the 500 mile mark on my Nike+. How awesome is that?
It may seem obvious that this is a reference to the Apollo of Greek mythology and the Pythian games held In his honor and the fact that he was an accomplished runner (even though the fact that he was the son of Zeus surely helped him out with this). While this may seem obvious, it would be wrong.
See I was thinking of another Apollo. An Apollo perhaps even more recognized than the Apollo of myth.
Who could this be, you ask? Who could possibly surplant the Apollo of legend, nay, of myth?
Apollo Creed.
You see, Apollo Creed was the trainer who helped Rocky defeat the vaunted (though by their second bout, softened by his celebrity status) Clubber Lang. Sure, he was no Mick, but he gave Rocky the one tool he needed to defeat Clubber.
The Eye of the Tiger. The will to survive. To recover the passion he had lost and needed to regain in order to defeat his nemesis. Clearly you can put the analogy in place from here, no?
Alhough at this point the analogy really falls apart, because by the second bout Rocky had already been beaten by Clubber (Clubber clearly being the marathon in the scenario). I've yet to be deafeated by the marathon, and am counting on Apollo to never let that happen in the first
place.
Anyway, runs this week so far:
On Tuesday I ran a tempo run on the treadmill. 3 miles at a 1% incline at a 9:40 pace. Felt good, yet a bit challenging. A bit of shin pain, but nothing to write home about.
Thursday I ran 5 miles (again on my old friend, the treadmill. It's just so dark and cold by the time I get arou d to running). Did this run at a bit easier pace (10:54), but still faster than my goal race pace. Kept the 1% incline, and felt REALLY good afterwards. Like I could have kept on coin for quite awhile. One weird thing, though. For the first 3.5 miles there was some pain ( more discomfort than pain really) but after that point it went away. Weird, huh?
Anyway, I have an easy 3 miler tonight and then a 10 miler on tap for Sunday. I'll let you all know how those go.
Oh,yeah. And I hit the 500 mile mark on my Nike+. How awesome is that?
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
9 Miles is a long freaking way....
And it's more than a little daunting that in just over 3 months I'll be running almost 3 times that distance. But one step at a time.
Last Sunday was my longest run in, oh, 8 months. It really wasn't so bad except for the last mile and a half. That's when things started to get rough. The previous weekends long run was supposed to have been a step down week with an easy run of five miles. Well, the universe seemed to conspire against me on that day and so I ended up skipping the run altogether. No problem. I'd already done 7 two weeks ago so 9 is only a couple more, right? Apparently my body remembered it had gone 7 and thought that should be it.
I took gel at the 1.25 mile mark, and then again at the 6 mile mark. Each seemed to help a bit and didn't upset my stomach, so that was good. I probably didn't drink enough water, so I'll have to keep that in mind for next time.
Initially my shins had been a bit sore from running a pretty run with my sister on an indoor track during which we pushed the pace a bit. For those of you who know me (and I'd be more than a little surprised if there was anyone reading this who doesn't) you know that I'm not the smallest guy (right now I weigh about 215). That's a lot of pressure to be putting on my legs when you really pound it out. Surprisingly my shins didn't give me any problems during the long run. Sure they were a little sore, but that's to be expected. My quads, however, burned! Especially that last 1.5 miles. No worries, just a good kind of burn.
My goals for the run were:
1: run the whole thing (check)
2: finish the run (check)
3: maintain an 11 minute mile pace, thereby beating Apollo (my Garmin virtual training partner), (check).
The end result : 9 miles with an avg pace of 10:42.
Mission accomplished.
Last Sunday was my longest run in, oh, 8 months. It really wasn't so bad except for the last mile and a half. That's when things started to get rough. The previous weekends long run was supposed to have been a step down week with an easy run of five miles. Well, the universe seemed to conspire against me on that day and so I ended up skipping the run altogether. No problem. I'd already done 7 two weeks ago so 9 is only a couple more, right? Apparently my body remembered it had gone 7 and thought that should be it.
I took gel at the 1.25 mile mark, and then again at the 6 mile mark. Each seemed to help a bit and didn't upset my stomach, so that was good. I probably didn't drink enough water, so I'll have to keep that in mind for next time.
Initially my shins had been a bit sore from running a pretty run with my sister on an indoor track during which we pushed the pace a bit. For those of you who know me (and I'd be more than a little surprised if there was anyone reading this who doesn't) you know that I'm not the smallest guy (right now I weigh about 215). That's a lot of pressure to be putting on my legs when you really pound it out. Surprisingly my shins didn't give me any problems during the long run. Sure they were a little sore, but that's to be expected. My quads, however, burned! Especially that last 1.5 miles. No worries, just a good kind of burn.
My goals for the run were:
1: run the whole thing (check)
2: finish the run (check)
3: maintain an 11 minute mile pace, thereby beating Apollo (my Garmin virtual training partner), (check).
The end result : 9 miles with an avg pace of 10:42.
Mission accomplished.
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