Ran a 10k in June (3 Viewers)

[SteelCurtain]

Sand, tri-man 47, Bentley, prosopis - Thanks guys!

My longest races before this was I did a half marathon in Sept and October. The October one went so well, I signed up for the marathon. I found a 25K race at Thanksgiving to run as a part of my training. Before all that, it was a few 8 mile road races and a bunch of 10K's.

I woke up this morning a bit sore but I'm still heading to a disney park. I figure the walk will do me good. Fly home tonight.

Thanks again for all your support. Can't wait to hear your race reports in 2011.

 

[SteelCurtain]

Regardless, I grinded through it to the end to finish my first marathon at 3 hours 39 minutes! YES! This ended being an 8:22 per mile pace.

Damn, dude. That is one heck of a first marathon effort.What kind of shorter race effort were you doing - 5k, 10k, etc. before this?

Awesome, just awesome!!! So glad you could stay injury-free during the race.

Yeah, I didn't mention it totally.....the IT band was tender. It was there and I felt it but I don't think it really inhibited me in anyway, shape or form during the race. Thankfully the FBG's advised me on how to try to minimize it in the weeks leading up to the race.

 

[2Young2BBald]

Sand, tri-man 47, Bentley, prosopis - Thanks guys!

My longest races before this was I did a half marathon in Sept and October. The October one went so well, I signed up for the marathon. I found a 25K race at Thanksgiving to run as a part of my training. Before all that, it was a few 8 mile road races and a bunch of 10K's.

I woke up this morning a bit sore but I'm still heading to a disney park. I figure the walk will do me good. Fly home tonight.

Thanks again for all your support. Can't wait to hear your race reports in 2011.

Awesome report & race, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! Hopefully you have some warm weather down there to aid in the recovery as well. You're gonna wear that giant Mickey medal to the park to take in lots of congrats, right? Enjoy

 

[Ned]

Sand, tri-man 47, Bentley, prosopis - Thanks guys!

My longest races before this was I did a half marathon in Sept and October. The October one went so well, I signed up for the marathon. I found a 25K race at Thanksgiving to run as a part of my training. Before all that, it was a few 8 mile road races and a bunch of 10K's.

I woke up this morning a bit sore but I'm still heading to a disney park. I figure the walk will do me good. Fly home tonight.

Thanks again for all your support. Can't wait to hear your race reports in 2011.

3:39 for your first?! AWESOME STUFF!!!

 

[pmbrown_22]

Great race Steel. That first one is always a big hurdle for most runners and you ran a great race to boot.

--------------------

Somewhat of a big update for me guys. I went out last night for a 16 mile run with 8 at MP in the middle. In a Wraith-like moment, I ended up coming home after only 4.5 and am done for awhile. I am not sure what it is, but I am taking this week off and will not be doing a Spring marathon. I will probably do the half, but I just don't feel like training. I think the past two years is starting to catch up with me. It is starting to feel like a second job and I am not enjoying it as much. I am stressing too much over something I was doing to relieve stress. I think I am going back to just running for the heck of it and trying to lose weight and stay in shape. I know that some of you will say that I should not do this and that I am so close to a BQ, but at this point for me it is not worth the added stress. I am stressed at work right now and don't need anything else that I feel is adding to the stress. I will still be updating my stuff out here and the Bourbon Chase is still a go, and probably a fall marathon, but my body is telling me to take a break.

All of your opinions are welcome and appreciated.

Have a great day all.

 

[Ned]

Great race Steel. That first one is always a big hurdle for most runners and you ran a great race to boot.

--------------------

Somewhat of a big update for me guys. I went out last night for a 16 mile run with 8 at MP in the middle. In a Wraith-like moment, I ended up coming home after only 4.5 and am done for awhile. I am not sure what it is, but I am taking this week off and will not be doing a Spring marathon. I will probably do the half, but I just don't feel like training. I think the past two years is starting to catch up with me. It is starting to feel like a second job and I am not enjoying it as much. I am stressing too much over something I was doing to relieve stress. I think I am going back to just running for the heck of it and trying to lose weight and stay in shape. I know that some of you will say that I should not do this and that I am so close to a BQ, but at this point for me it is not worth the added stress. I am stressed at work right now and don't need anything else that I feel is adding to the stress. I will still be updating my stuff out here and the Bourbon Chase is still a go, and probably a fall marathon, but my body is telling me to take a break.

All of your opinions are welcome and appreciated.

Have a great day all.

I say kudos. This is just a hobby - don't let it control your life. Especially if it's no longer any fun for you. The bolded part is key - I am a different person after I get my run in for the day. The moment that stops will be the day I stop running.

 

[gruecd]

SteelCurtain - Congrats on an awesome marathon debut! My first one was 3:45, so you've got me by six minutes! Looking forward to watching your progress in the future.

pmb - I know you're struggling to find your mojo right now, but can I make a suggestion? Go ahead and take this week off, but don't bail yet on the spring marathon. Like I've said before, I really believe that the key to my marathon success has been the cumulative, exponential benefit of stacking multiple training cycles on top of each other. Maybe just do something less stressful than Pfitz; run the mileage, but don't worry about paces, speedwork, etc. You're soooo close to the BQ; I just want to see you get it. LMK if there's anything I can do to help.

 

[2Young2BBald]

Great race Steel. That first one is always a big hurdle for most runners and you ran a great race to boot.--------------------Somewhat of a big update for me guys. I went out last night for a 16 mile run with 8 at MP in the middle. In a Wraith-like moment, I ended up coming home after only 4.5 and am done for awhile. I am not sure what it is, but I am taking this week off and will not be doing a Spring marathon. I will probably do the half, but I just don't feel like training. I think the past two years is starting to catch up with me. It is starting to feel like a second job and I am not enjoying it as much. I am stressing too much over something I was doing to relieve stress. I think I am going back to just running for the heck of it and trying to lose weight and stay in shape. I know that some of you will say that I should not do this and that I am so close to a BQ, but at this point for me it is not worth the added stress. I am stressed at work right now and don't need anything else that I feel is adding to the stress. I will still be updating my stuff out here and the Bourbon Chase is still a go, and probably a fall marathon, but my body is telling me to take a break.All of your opinions are welcome and appreciated.Have a great day all.

First off trust the real marathoners and not me, but from my perspective, good for you. I hated my one and only marathon try because, like you said, it felt like work. I let some mousy ##### get in my head that I HAD to do a marathon, so I did. Now, I probably won't do another unless one of my kids or my wife wants me to support them to do one. The whole thing made me realize, it has to be fun or it is not worth doing. Go find something crazy to race, something with a beer mug and BEER as the medal, something that makes you sore at the end from laughing instead of fatigue. You'll BQ some day, you are too stubborn not to from what I can tell. Recharge the batteries for a short while and, when the time is right (and it will be FUN), get after it. The finish line is not the end, its should be where the fun starts.

 

[The_Man]

Great race Steel. That first one is always a big hurdle for most runners and you ran a great race to boot.--------------------Somewhat of a big update for me guys. I went out last night for a 16 mile run with 8 at MP in the middle. In a Wraith-like moment, I ended up coming home after only 4.5 and am done for awhile. I am not sure what it is, but I am taking this week off and will not be doing a Spring marathon. I will probably do the half, but I just don't feel like training. I think the past two years is starting to catch up with me. It is starting to feel like a second job and I am not enjoying it as much. I am stressing too much over something I was doing to relieve stress. I think I am going back to just running for the heck of it and trying to lose weight and stay in shape. I know that some of you will say that I should not do this and that I am so close to a BQ, but at this point for me it is not worth the added stress. I am stressed at work right now and don't need anything else that I feel is adding to the stress. I will still be updating my stuff out here and the Bourbon Chase is still a go, and probably a fall marathon, but my body is telling me to take a break.All of your opinions are welcome and appreciated.Have a great day all.

Steel, what a great debut marathon! Awesome, awesome job.PMB - do what you have to do. This is supposed to be fun, not a burden. But I kind of echo Grue's thoughts, that maybe the right thing to do right now is quit racing marathons but keep running them. There's nothing that says you have to push through each cycle to make it better than the last.I am just getting back in the swing myself after slacking off big-time for all of December. Did 8 that felt pretty good on Saturday, and a nice easy 10 yesterday that I felt good about cranking through in tough conditions.My Pfitz 18/55 begins today - with a rest day. So I nailed that one! Tomorrow is 8 miles, with 4 at Half Marathon pace - that's going to be 7:15 for purposes of this training cycle. Ouch. Don't know if I'll be quite up to that speed yet, so I'll just do the best I can.

 

[tri-man 47]

The whole thing made me realize, it has to be fun or it is not worth doing. Go find something crazy to race, something with a beer mug and BEER as the medal, something that makes you sore at the end from laughing instead of fatigue. You'll BQ some day, you are too stubborn not to from what I can tell. Recharge the batteries for a short while and, when the time is right (and it will be FUN), get after it. The finish line is not the end, its should be where the fun starts.

The risk in a thread like this is the subtle pressure to keep racing and to keep upping the stakes/mileage. (Back in the late 90's when day trading of stocks was the rage, I saw the same thing in an investment thread where the impetus was to keep active and make trades.) We read about guys attacking longer events (marathons and tris) and pursuing new PRs, and it creates pressure to do the same. Don't feel like you need to give in to that pressure. If you want to back off, then back off! Pick some fun races, as 2Y suggests. Do some neighborhood 5Ks where you can cheer on the back-of-the-pack as they celebrate their accomplishment. Marathon training is a huge commitment and, I believe, it calls for effort that is beyond what our bodies were designed for. The time commitment, too, is a big challenge for those of you with young families. So lay low. Having some rest time is good for the body and mind. Get back at it when you're ready.

 

[gruecd]

Marathon training is a huge commitment and, I believe, it calls for effort that is beyond what our bodies were designed for.

I can agree with everything else you said, but I don't agree with the bolded. The human body is a highly adaptable machine.

 

[pmbrown_22]

Strangely, I agree with what has been said by everyone. I know that I will probably not be able to really take a step back and try something different, but I want to try. I think I will probably end up running a full marathon come spring, but I have to tell myself differently right now in order to heal up a bit. Not just physical. This is a mind, body, soul thing and I have to figure a few things out. I am going to try and re-invent myself and work on my core, speed and strength. For me, that is what it is all about. I have to feel better about myself right now and not being able to complete my runs because I am tired really affects me, so I have to start someplace.

In fact, I am already itching to go out for a run. It will be rough for me not to this week, but I know deep down it is what I need. For me, I never started running to qualify for Boston or run any special race. That has just been a bi-product of hard work and effort that I have put in. I want it to be fun not only for me, but also my family. They are a big reason why I am doing it. If it so happens (and it probably will) that I try and shoot for a specific time, I know that I can do it from previous efforts. If I can look back at the end of it all and say "Man, my 3:17 PR is damn good and I had a blast doing it", all the better.

 

[Sand]

Great race Steel. That first one is always a big hurdle for most runners and you ran a great race to boot.--------------------Somewhat of a big update for me guys. I went out last night for a 16 mile run with 8 at MP in the middle. In a Wraith-like moment, I ended up coming home after only 4.5 and am done for awhile. I am not sure what it is, but I am taking this week off and will not be doing a Spring marathon. I will probably do the half, but I just don't feel like training. I think the past two years is starting to catch up with me. It is starting to feel like a second job and I am not enjoying it as much. I am stressing too much over something I was doing to relieve stress. I think I am going back to just running for the heck of it and trying to lose weight and stay in shape. I know that some of you will say that I should not do this and that I am so close to a BQ, but at this point for me it is not worth the added stress. I am stressed at work right now and don't need anything else that I feel is adding to the stress. I will still be updating my stuff out here and the Bourbon Chase is still a go, and probably a fall marathon, but my body is telling me to take a break.All of your opinions are welcome and appreciated.Have a great day all.

Do what you want to do. Late last year I made the decision not to try and do a marathon because my biking was going so well I wanted to keep that going for next year. Haven't been on the bike in a month. Screw it. I have been running instead. I'm up to 35 miles a week for a half marathon. That's probably enough for a marathon. For whatever reason that is what interests me right now. After the half marathon I'll probably be doing biking and a lot of swimming and not much running. Whatever way the wind blows.Do something else for a while. Kayaking, cycling, hiking, whatever. The desire will come back. I was really worried that I wouldn't want to run much before this half. The desire came back with a vengeance.BTW, speaking of Bourbon, are we set there? Everyone fully paid up? Paid the final payment? The spreadsheet shows us a couple hundred shy, but it may not be up to date. We don't have information in the spreadsheet for Chad or Randy (are either of those guys in here?) Prolly should do that at some point.

 

[Sand]

Sand, tri-man 47, Bentley, prosopis - Thanks guys!

My longest races before this was I did a half marathon in Sept and October. The October one went so well, I signed up for the marathon. I found a 25K race at Thanksgiving to run as a part of my training. Before all that, it was a few 8 mile road races and a bunch of 10K's.

What kind of times were you hitting for these? I'm curious as I keep noodling with the idea of a marathon at some point and wanted to have realistic expectations - if I ever gave one a shot.

 

[pigskinliquors]

I've got some questions about my heart rate and bike cadence. I feel more comfortable using a bigger gear at a lower cadence, but wonder if I am giving up some speed. To analyze this, I can comfortably run at race pace with my heart rate pegged at 162 no matter the distance (other than hills, etc). But, on the bike I cannot seem to get may heart rate above 145. For my cadence, I tend to average about 78 to 80, which I know is quite low. Would trying to increase cadence up the heart rate a bit and add speed, or would I be "burning matches" (to quote PSL) that I might want to save for the run in tris? I know a power meter would help me figure this out and I'll likely get there some day as it integrates with the Garmin 310XT. I'll be riding an hour to an hour and a half tomorrow and thought I'd mess with cadence a bit if it could make some difference. I've done trainer rides where I try to get my cadence up around the 90s, but I feel like I am burning out quick. Thoughts?

I also have similar differences in my HR, though those differences get minimized for longer races (i.e., centuries). You don't want to "burn matches" but if your HR is that low, you are likely not burning any matches. Have you done any interval work on your bike? If so, you should see your HR increasing with each interval. If not, you likely aren't pushing it hard enough. Cycling allows you to control your HR as you can change effort without changing overall speed (i.e., short coasts will bring HR down quite a bit). I'd try to add one killer bike workout a week (either longer or much faster) to see if you can increase HR a little, but gain speed. You have plenty of energy left in you if your HR is that low. Tap into it to see what happens!SteelC: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GREAT first marathon. You rocked it!PmBrown: Best of luck with your quest to take it down a notch. I am also hoping to do it for the first half of this year, and only hope I'm able to keep the promise with myself. _________________I have to go pick up kiddo's at the bus stop right now, but will soon post a hilarious story about why I won't be doing P90x for a little while

 

[prosopis]

I did 2 miles today and I plan on repeating my speed work on Wednesday. I did not feel good about it last week so hopefully I can get it in two days. I am gonna rest the legs tomorrow.

Pmbrown- I hear you and what triman wrote really applies to me. It kills me to read the times in here and realize I am no where close. It really does set me up for failure when I start thinking I have to compete with some of the times in here. I personally am trying to just do what I can do. It is easy to say but it is hard to do that though. Do what is best for your family. I think that is always the right thing.

 

[gruecd]

What up, everybody? Saturday night's birthday extravaganza was a blast, or at least I think it was a blast. My memory is a little hazy after midnight. Felt pretty rough around the edges yesterday, although a mid-afternoon run helped to clear the cobwebs. In any case, AWESOME win by the Pack yesterday. Already looking forward to next Saturday night and beating the Falcons in primetime! Hell, I think I might even cheer for the Bears next weekend against Seattle, just so the Packers can go back to Soldier Field and avenge that sloppy 3-point loss from back in Week 3.

Had a basketball game last night, beating one of the other (previously) undefeated teams and improving to 4-0. Personally, totally stunk it up out there. Last week I blew three easy buckets on passes from the same guy. This week, the same guy made two more awesome passes to me, and both times I fumbled the ball away. I was so worried about finishing that I didn't even catch the stupid thing. So now it's all in my head, and it's really frustrating me. I know it doesn't really mean anything in the grand scheme of things, but it's a total "ego buster," and it's embarrassing. I mean, catch the stupid ball and make a layup. I feel like Rick Ankiel back in the 2000 World Series.

Anyway.....decided against running 34 miles or even 34 kilometers for my birthday and settled for a fast 8 instead. First four in 30:57 (7:44 average), last four in 29:01 (7:15). King crab legs for dinner, then settling in to watch the football game. I don't have a rooting interest in the game, so I just hope it's a good one!

Hope you all had a great day!

 

[Sand]

A quick update. No running today due to the ice. So I searched around the house. After a month of looking I found my bike! Turns out it was sitting on my trainer in the basement - who knew. Repeated and old workout that asks for 120% of my FTP 4x for 1' and then a fifth at what I have left. Managed 4 1' repeats at 310watts and then hit 375 on the last one. That's 30w better than what I did before I laid off the bike for a month.

BnB and PSL, oh mighty experts on all things cycling, how in the world can I get better by 30w after a month layoff? Makes no sense to me.

 

[tri-man 47]

After a month of looking I found my bike! Turns out it was sitting on my trainer in the basement - who knew.

Yup, just a typical FBG losing stuff inside his mansion. Last year, I thought my son had moved out. Turns out he was just chillin' over in the east wing for a couple of weeks. Yup.

 

[FUBAR]

Awesome job Steel!

 

[FUBAR]

Marathon training is a huge commitment and, I believe, it calls for effort that is beyond what our bodies were designed for.

I can agree with everything else you said, but I don't agree with the bolded. The human body is a highly adaptable machine.

We were designed to hunt animals by outrunning them.

 

[Ned]

After a month of looking I found my bike! Turns out it was sitting on my trainer in the basement - who knew.

Yup, just a typical FBG losing stuff inside his mansion. Last year, I thought my son had moved out. Turns out he was just chillin' over in the east wing for a couple of weeks. Yup.

Did 3 yesterday in the new kicks. Tons of cushion and felt good until the last mile when the balls of my feet started to burn. Hoping it's just an adjustment period for my feet.

 

[The_Man]

The Pfitz 18/55 Chronicles

Entry One

Today was my first day of the 18-week training schedule leading up to a May 15 marathon on a rail trail where I'll try to run a Boston qualifying time of 3:20. At least, that's the current BQ standard; it seems likely to change by 2012, in which case a 3:20 might leave me on the outside. We'll just have to wait and see on that. After doing my first marathon following the Higdon Intermediate I plan, I'm doing the Pfitz 18/55 plan for this one. It seems to be a more rigorous program, and unfortunately, I've only averaged 15 miles per week over the last 10 weeks since the marathon. But I did ratchet it up to 28 miles last week, and I'm going to give it a shot. As Grue has suggested, I might dial back the speed work a little, particularly in the early stages as I rebuild my fitness -- combining speed with increased mileage is the thing that led to my one injury over the last 18 months of being a runner.

Today called for 8 miles, with 4 miles at Lactate Threshold. I'm not really sure what that is, so I'm going to run LT runs during this training cycle at the half-marathon pace the McMillan Running Calculator says is associated with a 3:20 full Marathon time - 7:15 per mile. I have to admit, I was pretty intimidated about this workout, just because I do feel like my conditioning is bad.

I laid out all my running gear next to my bed last night, then fell asleep watching the BCS game. I had a strange dream in which I was in a movie where the villains (executives from some large, evil corporation) were planning to use Santa Claus as an unknowing deliverer of either an atomic bomb or horrible virus (I think it changed from one to the other during the dream). As he flew around the world on Christmas Eve giving out gifts, he would also be spreading death. In the movie, I was the only one aware and had to get to the North Pole in time to stop the plot. Tina Fey was the woman who worked for the company, but ultimately became aware of the plot and switched sides to help me stop it. I woke up during the big climactic scene at Santa's workshop. It was exactly 5 a.m.

At this point, if I had been "running" like I've been running for the last 10 weeks, I would have gone back to sleep and told myself that I'd do the run tonight instead. And then after work, I would come home, crack a beer, and not run for yet another day. However, I am a PTA Board member - a volunteer role that ranges in its reward from being mildly annoying to outright miserable - and we have a Board meeting tonight. So I couldn't even lie to myself that I would run tonight. That, plus it was Day One of the new program, and if I couldn't even do Day One, then it certainly didn't mode well for the next 125 days to follow.

So I forced myself up and out onto the street. I am committed to following the Pfitz plan very closely, so I did what it said, and started with a 2-mile warm-up. I hardly ever warm-up, so I actually enjoyed this though I probably ran them too slow - like a 9:33 pace. Then it was time for the 4 fast miles. Ugh. While I knew my time goal was 7:15, my real goal was just to run at my HM effort. First two miles were 7:26 and 7:28 and then I kind of hit my stride and felt I could run faster without having to increase my effort level. Did the last 2 in 7:05 and 7:06. So my overall pace was 7:16 -- not quite doing it by the book, but good enough for me. Then, in another departure from my past training, I did 2 cooldown miles. I did them super slow and easy and was pleasantly surprised that they were at an 8:59 pace -- they felt way easier than the two, slower warm-up miles.

So, I'm off and running with Pfitz.

Day one: Rest

Day two: 8 miles with 4 at LT

Day three: Rest -- I'm sure I'm going to nail that one and be three for three!

 

[SteelCurtain]

Sand, tri-man 47, Bentley, prosopis - Thanks guys!

My longest races before this was I did a half marathon in Sept and October. The October one went so well, I signed up for the marathon. I found a 25K race at Thanksgiving to run as a part of my training. Before all that, it was a few 8 mile road races and a bunch of 10K's.

What kind of times were you hitting for these? I'm curious as I keep noodling with the idea of a marathon at some point and wanted to have realistic expectations - if I ever gave one a shot.

The 8 mile road races were between 1:05 and 1:10 for the race....its a hilly course though. So, I was doing between 8:07 and 8:45/mile paces.

In the 10Ks, I usually did them in 48 to 52 min.....so about 7:45 to 8:25/mile paces.

I saw that you ran 12 miles in 8:12/mile pace. If you can do that in a training run that you can pretty quickly ramp up to a marathon. I don't want to say its easy, but for you....definitely doable.

Without sounding like an idiot, I don't think the challenge of the marathon is THAT bad. I think the challenges (for me) were three fold:

A. The mental challenge. Trying to find the mental capacity and the inspiration to go running for 2-3 hours on a random weekend by myself. It would be much easier if you had a friend that wanted to run with you. Challenge with that is that you are then trying to coordinate your schedules. I was able to "entertain" myself with my IPod and podcasts. I don't think I could have run this marathon without Bill Simmons' podcasts. I can only listen to music for so long.

B. The time commitment. You need to commitment significant time on weekends (and during the week) to keep up your training. I had training runs at 9 p.m. at night in the dark and 20 degrees. Not ideal. I went for a 10 mile training run in a heavy rain. In that case, it was my fault for delaying to Sunday afternoon and it started pouring.....but I had to run. So run I did. If you are married, you almost need your spouse to buy into this training regimen so they know you'll be gone for several hours every weekend.

C. Physical Issues. For the first time, my body had pretty significant injury issues. I used to "abuse" my body in workouts and it just took it. I realized that with the distances that I was putting out and my age (turning 40 next month), I had to listen to my body and I had to try to show some restraint. Assuming I do another marathon (and I expect to), I'll absolutely be more sensitive to my body and listening to it.

You are already running essentially half marathons at a good pace. It would probably take you 6 weeks to build your mileage up and you'll be ready for a marathon! You can do it (if you want to)!!!!!

 

[SteelCurtain]

The Pfitz 18/55 Chronicles

Entry One

Today was my first day of the 18-week training schedule leading up to a May 15 marathon on a rail trail where I'll try to run a Boston qualifying time of 3:20. At least, that's the current BQ standard; it seems likely to change by 2012, in which case a 3:20 might leave me on the outside. We'll just have to wait and see on that. After doing my first marathon following the Higdon Intermediate I plan, I'm doing the Pfitz 18/55 plan for this one. It seems to be a more rigorous program, and unfortunately, I've only averaged 15 miles per week over the last 10 weeks since the marathon. But I did ratchet it up to 28 miles last week, and I'm going to give it a shot. As Grue has suggested, I might dial back the speed work a little, particularly in the early stages as I rebuild my fitness -- combining speed with increased mileage is the thing that led to my one injury over the last 18 months of being a runner.

Today called for 8 miles, with 4 miles at Lactate Threshold. I'm not really sure what that is, so I'm going to run LT runs during this training cycle at the half-marathon pace the McMillan Running Calculator says is associated with a 3:20 full Marathon time - 7:15 per mile. I have to admit, I was pretty intimidated about this workout, just because I do feel like my conditioning is bad.

I laid out all my running gear next to my bed last night, then fell asleep watching the BCS game. I had a strange dream in which I was in a movie where the villains (executives from some large, evil corporation) were planning to use Santa Claus as an unknowing deliverer of either an atomic bomb or horrible virus (I think it changed from one to the other during the dream). As he flew around the world on Christmas Eve giving out gifts, he would also be spreading death. In the movie, I was the only one aware and had to get to the North Pole in time to stop the plot. Tina Fey was the woman who worked for the company, but ultimately became aware of the plot and switched sides to help me stop it. I woke up during the big climactic scene at Santa's workshop. It was exactly 5 a.m.

At this point, if I had been "running" like I've been running for the last 10 weeks, I would have gone back to sleep and told myself that I'd do the run tonight instead. And then after work, I would come home, crack a beer, and not run for yet another day. However, I am a PTA Board member - a volunteer role that ranges in its reward from being mildly annoying to outright miserable - and we have a Board meeting tonight. So I couldn't even lie to myself that I would run tonight. That, plus it was Day One of the new program, and if I couldn't even do Day One, then it certainly didn't mode well for the next 125 days to follow.

So I forced myself up and out onto the street. I am committed to following the Pfitz plan very closely, so I did what it said, and started with a 2-mile warm-up. I hardly ever warm-up, so I actually enjoyed this though I probably ran them too slow - like a 9:33 pace. Then it was time for the 4 fast miles. Ugh. While I knew my time goal was 7:15, my real goal was just to run at my HM effort. First two miles were 7:26 and 7:28 and then I kind of hit my stride and felt I could run faster without having to increase my effort level. Did the last 2 in 7:05 and 7:06. So my overall pace was 7:16 -- not quite doing it by the book, but good enough for me. Then, in another departure from my past training, I did 2 cooldown miles. I did them super slow and easy and was pleasantly surprised that they were at an 8:59 pace -- they felt way easier than the two, slower warm-up miles.

So, I'm off and running with Pfitz.

Day one: Rest

Day two: 8 miles with 4 at LT

Day three: Rest -- I'm sure I'm going to nail that one and be three for three!

I'm pretty excited to hear your chronicles with this training. What is your previous best marathon time? How many total marathons have you run?

 

[The_Man]

I'm pretty excited to hear your chronicles with this training. What is your previous best marathon time? How many total marathons have you run?

Excited might be a strong word - though I'm sure the descriptions of my bizarre and vivid dreams are very worthwhile! But thanks for the encouragement. We can be friends starting Saturday at about 7:30 p.m. Unless the Ravens lose, in which case I might need another 12 hours to get over it. Only one marathon to date - 3:25:25 last October. The usual suspects around here talked me into doing it, then provided alternate doses of support and HTFU as needed to get me through. I have a fair amount of natural distance running ability, but I never really took advantage of it. The Higdon Intermediate I plan got me to the starting (and finish) line of that first marathon healthy, and now I'm eager to go beyond "just finishing" to see what kind of time I can put up with a more focused and intense approach to training.In a perfect world, I'll qualify this May for Boston 2012, then maybe I'll run another fall marathon, and then make Boston my last marathon. But I have a feeling I might need another good training cycle to hit a BQ (definitely, if they tighten the qualifying times) so I might end up gunning for the BQ then.

 

[pmbrown_22]

Sand, tri-man 47, Bentley, prosopis - Thanks guys!

My longest races before this was I did a half marathon in Sept and October. The October one went so well, I signed up for the marathon. I found a 25K race at Thanksgiving to run as a part of my training. Before all that, it was a few 8 mile road races and a bunch of 10K's.

What kind of times were you hitting for these? I'm curious as I keep noodling with the idea of a marathon at some point and wanted to have realistic expectations - if I ever gave one a shot.

The 8 mile road races were between 1:05 and 1:10 for the race....its a hilly course though. So, I was doing between 8:07 and 8:45/mile paces.

In the 10Ks, I usually did them in 48 to 52 min.....so about 7:45 to 8:25/mile paces.

I saw that you ran 12 miles in 8:12/mile pace. If you can do that in a training run that you can pretty quickly ramp up to a marathon. I don't want to say its easy, but for you....definitely doable.

Without sounding like an idiot, I don't think the challenge of the marathon is THAT bad. I think the challenges (for me) were three fold:

A. The mental challenge. Trying to find the mental capacity and the inspiration to go running for 2-3 hours on a random weekend by myself. It would be much easier if you had a friend that wanted to run with you. Challenge with that is that you are then trying to coordinate your schedules. I was able to "entertain" myself with my IPod and podcasts. I don't think I could have run this marathon without Bill Simmons' podcasts. I can only listen to music for so long.

B. The time commitment. You need to commitment significant time on weekends (and during the week) to keep up your training. I had training runs at 9 p.m. at night in the dark and 20 degrees. Not ideal. I went for a 10 mile training run in a heavy rain. In that case, it was my fault for delaying to Sunday afternoon and it started pouring.....but I had to run. So run I did. If you are married, you almost need your spouse to buy into this training regimen so they know you'll be gone for several hours every weekend.

C. Physical Issues. For the first time, my body had pretty significant injury issues. I used to "abuse" my body in workouts and it just took it. I realized that with the distances that I was putting out and my age (turning 40 next month), I had to listen to my body and I had to try to show some restraint. Assuming I do another marathon (and I expect to), I'll absolutely be more sensitive to my body and listening to it.

You are already running essentially half marathons at a good pace. It would probably take you 6 weeks to build your mileage up and you'll be ready for a marathon! You can do it (if you want to)!!!!!

I think you nailed the challenging aspects really well. One idea that I do is to listen to books on my ipod downloaded from the library. Nothing like listening to a story for 3 hours while you are doing those long weekend runs. Especially if it is a good book. I am a big geek and listened to the Harry Potter series while running and training for last years spring marathon. Was not too difficult to focus when I needed to but always had the story to take my mind of the pain and tiredness in my legs.For me...Day 2 of my mini-vacation and I am already itching to run again. This break will not last long as I just know that I need to run to be better.

 

[IvanKaramazov]

Wow, I've blown this thread off recently and missed all kinds of stuff.

Steel -- Awesome race. I'm glad everything went well and that the IT issued didn't ruin it for you. Sounds like you had a great time.

pmb -- I can't give you any advice here, but taking a week off an reevaluating then seems like a good idea. If you still feel the same way about training next week, there's no shame in taking a break from marathoning.

The_Man -- Good write-up. I'm looking forward to reading these.

_________________________

On a note related to the last two comments, my "official" training for Fargo starts next week. I'm going to be doing more or less the same program that I did for Twin Cities, so that's another reason for me to follow The_Man's Pfitz chronicles -- we're going to be in comparable spots in our respective training cycles and his workouts are going to make mine look not so bad by comparison. I have to be honest at the outset and say that I'm not as highly motivated for this one as I was for Twin Cities, and starting another training cycle right now strikes me as being kind of blah, but we'll see how things go.

 

[The_Man]

On a note related to the last two comments, my "official" training for Fargo starts next week. I'm going to be doing more or less the same program that I did for Twin Cities, so that's another reason for me to follow The_Man's Pfitz chronicles -- we're going to be in comparable spots in our respective training cycles and his workouts are going to make mine look not so bad by comparison. I have to be honest at the outset and say that I'm not as highly motivated for this one as I was for Twin Cities, and starting another training cycle right now strikes me as being kind of blah, but we'll see how things go.

As I've documented (perhaps over-documented), I've been extremely blah about running for the last two months. And it was even hard for me to get going today. But I already feel like now that I've got one run under my belt, I'm back in training mode and feel totally inspired and committed to my program. It's such a stark reminder to myself that I am totally driven by goals and structure, and that when I don't have those things to focus my attention, I just drift and get very listless.PMB, you're sounding good. Maybe you should tell yourself that you're injured or somehow forbidden from running for the next couple of weeks. By the time you're "allowed" to run again, you'll probably be dying to get back out there.

 

[pmbrown_22]

On a note related to the last two comments, my "official" training for Fargo starts next week. I'm going to be doing more or less the same program that I did for Twin Cities, so that's another reason for me to follow The_Man's Pfitz chronicles -- we're going to be in comparable spots in our respective training cycles and his workouts are going to make mine look not so bad by comparison. I have to be honest at the outset and say that I'm not as highly motivated for this one as I was for Twin Cities, and starting another training cycle right now strikes me as being kind of blah, but we'll see how things go.

As I've documented (perhaps over-documented), I've been extremely blah about running for the last two months. And it was even hard for me to get going today. But I already feel like now that I've got one run under my belt, I'm back in training mode and feel totally inspired and committed to my program. It's such a stark reminder to myself that I am totally driven by goals and structure, and that when I don't have those things to focus my attention, I just drift and get very listless.PMB, you're sounding good. Maybe you should tell yourself that you're injured or somehow forbidden from running for the next couple of weeks. By the time you're "allowed" to run again, you'll probably be dying to get back out there.

I am almost there now and may have just been in a bad spot on Sunday night. Great workout by the way. I think you will like Pfitz. It is a good program. I was even thinking yesterday of doing the 12/55 to get through this cycle and build again off that one. I think that would give me 3 weeks to ramp up again before I need to get back into it and go full force. Here's hoping because I may drive my wife and kids crazy if I am not running to take the edge off.

 

[pigskinliquors]

After a month of looking I found my bike!...

BnB and PSL, oh mighty experts on all things cycling, how in the world can I get better by 30w after a month layoff? Makes no sense to me.

Sand, was your bike 2Young's size? I can see losing it then, but a Tri-Man or Grue size bike would be difficult to lose! My best guess is that you are in better running shape then you were last month. I haven't followed your training very closely, but I typically can jump on my bike after long lay offs and have surprising results IF I'm in good running shape. When I'm in bad running shape, even if I've been on the bike, I'm typically weaker. I seem to have very little transfer of fitness from cycling to running though. _______________________

Here's my and :htfu: story. I'm still being a slug, and can't seem to find a way to get out of it. I hurt my calf and knee training for and attempting a HIM in early November. It took six weeks to recover, and within a week of running I got a nasty groin pull. Thus, I started P90x to try to prevent future injuries, and to kick off the New Year in some assemblance of shape. I loved my first 4 workouts, and headed to Dallas for the Cotton Bowl last weekend. We started our tailgate at 10 am, and did a nice consistent drinking/eating workout throughout the day, with a handful of jello shot intervals thrown in.

After drinking all the way through the game that ended somewhere around 10:30 (I think); I thought it would be a good idea to race a girl who was with us (a FBG 8.5!) from the exit of Jerry-World back to our Tailgate spot. Having not run hard for two months, at that moment it made perfect sense to sprint through 80,000 exiting people, in the dark, in a state of mind that made walking a challenging event. About half way there, with an approx. 10 yard lead, my right foot failed to see a small cylindrical metal thingabob sticking out of the ground. My right foot struck it, and with miraculous grace, I took approximately 15 yards to fall directly into an AC unit on the side of the building we were racing around. My right wrist took almost all of the fall, and I'm certain I hit it harder than any Aggie hit anything that evening. As I laid on the ground I couldn't stop laughing, neither could any of the people who saw it. I provided excellent entertainment, but unfortunately nobody caught it on video. After dusting myself off and confirming to my friends and all who were still laughing, in FBG fashion, I said "Game On" and whooped the girls ### back to the Tailgate. I knew my wrist was messed up then, but my whole body was pretty numb from the debauchery of the day. An ER doc was at the tailgate, and confirmed that I most likely had a really bad wrist sprain. When I woke up, I could confirm that it hurt like a Mother, and still have little range of motion in it, and a lot of pain.

Thus, now I can't do any of the lifting PX workouts, and am sitting here like a slug wondering how in the hell I'm going to get my ### back in shape. I will try to get in a short run today, but know I'm not going to be able to build much mileage with my groin the way it is.

 

[The_Man]

After a month of looking I found my bike!...

BnB and PSL, oh mighty experts on all things cycling, how in the world can I get better by 30w after a month layoff? Makes no sense to me.

Sand, was your bike 2Young's size? I can see losing it then, but a Tri-Man or Grue size bike would be difficult to lose! My best guess is that you are in better running shape then you were last month. I haven't followed your training very closely, but I typically can jump on my bike after long lay offs and have surprising results IF I'm in good running shape. When I'm in bad running shape, even if I've been on the bike, I'm typically weaker. I seem to have very little transfer of fitness from cycling to running though. _______________________

Here's my and :htfu: story. I'm still being a slug, and can't seem to find a way to get out of it. I hurt my calf and knee training for and attempting a HIM in early November. It took six weeks to recover, and within a week of running I got a nasty groin pull. Thus, I started P90x to try to prevent future injuries, and to kick off the New Year in some assemblance of shape. I loved my first 4 workouts, and headed to Dallas for the Cotton Bowl last weekend. We started our tailgate at 10 am, and did a nice consistent drinking/eating workout throughout the day, with a handful of jello shot intervals thrown in.

After drinking all the way through the game that ended somewhere around 10:30 (I think); I thought it would be a good idea to race a girl who was with us (a FBG 8.5!) from the exit of Jerry-World back to our Tailgate spot. Having not run hard for two months, at that moment it made perfect sense to sprint through 80,000 exiting people, in the dark, in a state of mind that made walking a challenging event. About half way there, with an approx. 10 yard lead, my right foot failed to see a small cylindrical metal thingabob sticking out of the ground. My right foot struck it, and with miraculous grace, I took approximately 15 yards to fall directly into an AC unit on the side of the building we were racing around. My right wrist took almost all of the fall, and I'm certain I hit it harder than any Aggie hit anything that evening. As I laid on the ground I couldn't stop laughing, neither could any of the people who saw it. I provided excellent entertainment, but unfortunately nobody caught it on video. After dusting myself off and confirming to my friends and all who were still laughing, in FBG fashion, I said "Game On" and whooped the girls ### back to the Tailgate. I knew my wrist was messed up then, but my whole body was pretty numb from the debauchery of the day. An ER doc was at the tailgate, and confirmed that I most likely had a really bad wrist sprain. When I woke up, I could confirm that it hurt like a Mother, and still have little range of motion in it, and a lot of pain.

Thus, now I can't do any of the lifting PX workouts, and am sitting here like a slug wondering how in the hell I'm going to get my ### back in shape. I will try to get in a short run today, but know I'm not going to be able to build much mileage with my groin the way it is.

Don't these drunken college students professors know how to handle their drink?

How I wish there were video of this. But I do hope you are feeling better soon, GB!

 

[Ned]

After a month of looking I found my bike!...

BnB and PSL, oh mighty experts on all things cycling, how in the world can I get better by 30w after a month layoff? Makes no sense to me.

Sand, was your bike 2Young's size? I can see losing it then, but a Tri-Man or Grue size bike would be difficult to lose! My best guess is that you are in better running shape then you were last month. I haven't followed your training very closely, but I typically can jump on my bike after long lay offs and have surprising results IF I'm in good running shape. When I'm in bad running shape, even if I've been on the bike, I'm typically weaker. I seem to have very little transfer of fitness from cycling to running though. _______________________

Here's my and :htfu: story. I'm still being a slug, and can't seem to find a way to get out of it. I hurt my calf and knee training for and attempting a HIM in early November. It took six weeks to recover, and within a week of running I got a nasty groin pull. Thus, I started P90x to try to prevent future injuries, and to kick off the New Year in some assemblance of shape. I loved my first 4 workouts, and headed to Dallas for the Cotton Bowl last weekend. We started our tailgate at 10 am, and did a nice consistent drinking/eating workout throughout the day, with a handful of jello shot intervals thrown in.

After drinking all the way through the game that ended somewhere around 10:30 (I think); I thought it would be a good idea to race a girl who was with us (a FBG 8.5!) from the exit of Jerry-World back to our Tailgate spot. Having not run hard for two months, at that moment it made perfect sense to sprint through 80,000 exiting people, in the dark, in a state of mind that made walking a challenging event. About half way there, with an approx. 10 yard lead, my right foot failed to see a small cylindrical metal thingabob sticking out of the ground. My right foot struck it, and with miraculous grace, I took approximately 15 yards to fall directly into an AC unit on the side of the building we were racing around. My right wrist took almost all of the fall, and I'm certain I hit it harder than any Aggie hit anything that evening. As I laid on the ground I couldn't stop laughing, neither could any of the people who saw it. I provided excellent entertainment, but unfortunately nobody caught it on video. After dusting myself off and confirming to my friends and all who were still laughing, in FBG fashion, I said "Game On" and whooped the girls ### back to the Tailgate. I knew my wrist was messed up then, but my whole body was pretty numb from the debauchery of the day. An ER doc was at the tailgate, and confirmed that I most likely had a really bad wrist sprain. When I woke up, I could confirm that it hurt like a Mother, and still have little range of motion in it, and a lot of pain.

Thus, now I can't do any of the lifting PX workouts, and am sitting here like a slug wondering how in the hell I'm going to get my ### back in shape. I will try to get in a short run today, but know I'm not going to be able to build much mileage with my groin the way it is.

Don't these drunken college students professors know how to handle their drink?

How I wish there were video of this. But I do hope you are feeling better soon, GB!

That's awesome.

 

[Sand]

After a month of looking I found my bike!...

BnB and PSL, oh mighty experts on all things cycling, how in the world can I get better by 30w after a month layoff? Makes no sense to me.

Sand, was your bike 2Young's size? I can see losing it then, but a Tri-Man or Grue size bike would be difficult to lose! My best guess is that you are in better running shape then you were last month. I haven't followed your training very closely, but I typically can jump on my bike after long lay offs and have surprising results IF I'm in good running shape. When I'm in bad running shape, even if I've been on the bike, I'm typically weaker. I seem to have very little transfer of fitness from cycling to running though.

I am in much better running shape than I have been in probably 20 years. My paces are going down and I am in the 35 miles/week range. So maybe the running is paying off...Oh, and at your drunken debauchery.

 

[SteelCurtain]

After a month of looking I found my bike!...

BnB and PSL, oh mighty experts on all things cycling, how in the world can I get better by 30w after a month layoff? Makes no sense to me.

Sand, was your bike 2Young's size? I can see losing it then, but a Tri-Man or Grue size bike would be difficult to lose! My best guess is that you are in better running shape then you were last month. I haven't followed your training very closely, but I typically can jump on my bike after long lay offs and have surprising results IF I'm in good running shape. When I'm in bad running shape, even if I've been on the bike, I'm typically weaker. I seem to have very little transfer of fitness from cycling to running though. _______________________

Here's my and :htfu: story. I'm still being a slug, and can't seem to find a way to get out of it. I hurt my calf and knee training for and attempting a HIM in early November. It took six weeks to recover, and within a week of running I got a nasty groin pull. Thus, I started P90x to try to prevent future injuries, and to kick off the New Year in some assemblance of shape. I loved my first 4 workouts, and headed to Dallas for the Cotton Bowl last weekend. We started our tailgate at 10 am, and did a nice consistent drinking/eating workout throughout the day, with a handful of jello shot intervals thrown in.

After drinking all the way through the game that ended somewhere around 10:30 (I think); I thought it would be a good idea to race a girl who was with us (a FBG 8.5!) from the exit of Jerry-World back to our Tailgate spot. Having not run hard for two months, at that moment it made perfect sense to sprint through 80,000 exiting people, in the dark, in a state of mind that made walking a challenging event. About half way there, with an approx. 10 yard lead, my right foot failed to see a small cylindrical metal thingabob sticking out of the ground. My right foot struck it, and with miraculous grace, I took approximately 15 yards to fall directly into an AC unit on the side of the building we were racing around. My right wrist took almost all of the fall, and I'm certain I hit it harder than any Aggie hit anything that evening. As I laid on the ground I couldn't stop laughing, neither could any of the people who saw it. I provided excellent entertainment, but unfortunately nobody caught it on video. After dusting myself off and confirming to my friends and all who were still laughing, in FBG fashion, I said "Game On" and whooped the girls ### back to the Tailgate. I knew my wrist was messed up then, but my whole body was pretty numb from the debauchery of the day. An ER doc was at the tailgate, and confirmed that I most likely had a really bad wrist sprain. When I woke up, I could confirm that it hurt like a Mother, and still have little range of motion in it, and a lot of pain.

Thus, now I can't do any of the lifting PX workouts, and am sitting here like a slug wondering how in the hell I'm going to get my ### back in shape. I will try to get in a short run today, but know I'm not going to be able to build much mileage with my groin the way it is.

Great story.....sounds like this was your day, evening, and the next morning.

 

[Third]

SteelCurtain - Great job on your first marathon! That is a darn quick time. I would love to do a Disney marathon - we were there in March for a week, and I got the bug to do at least a half through the parks at some point.

------------------

As for me, I had an interesting long run on Sunday. I had 10 scheduled, but my two training partners had 15, so I decided to run with them. Funny thing about group runs, I felt like the 15 with them would be easier than 10 by myself. I did 9 on Saturday, so at this point in my conditioning, 24 over two days is a lot of mileage for me.

We had snow in the forecast but didn't really expect it to hit until later in the evening. We started at 1 pm, and the snow started coming down quick at about the 7-mile mark. We don't get a lot of snow in Arkansas, but relatively speaking, this one was a pretty good shower. My legs were tired, the wind was howling, and snow was blowing sideways into our face for the final 8 miles...but we toughed it out. It was great from a mental prep standpoint.

 

[SteelCurtain]

SteelCurtain - Congrats on an awesome marathon debut! My first one was 3:45, so you've got me by six minutes! Looking forward to watching your progress in the future.

Wow....really? Not bad for a guy turning 40 in about 35 days! Of course, my marathon was extremely flat....and temps were in the 40's. So I had pretty good running conditions.

I'm holding off on committing to any other long races until I recover and go for a few jogs and see how I feel physically and mentally.

 

[prosopis]

The Pfitz 18/55 Chronicles

started with a 2-mile warm-up. I hardly ever warm-up, so I actually enjoyed this though I probably ran them too slow - like a 9:33 pace. Then it was time for the 4 fast miles. Ugh. While I knew my time goal was 7:15, my real goal was just to run at my HM effort. First two miles were 7:26 and 7:28 and then I kind of hit my stride and felt I could run faster without having to increase my effort level. Did the last 2 in 7:05 and 7:06. So my overall pace was 7:16 -- not quite doing it by the book, but good enough for me. Then, in another departure from my past training, I did 2 cooldown miles. I did them super slow and easy and was pleasantly surprised that they were at an 8:59 pace -- they felt way easier than the two, slower warm-up miles.

Your super slow warm up/ cool down is my speed part of a speed work out.

 

[SteelCurtain]

The Pfitz 18/55 Chronicles

started with a 2-mile warm-up. I hardly ever warm-up, so I actually enjoyed this though I probably ran them too slow - like a 9:33 pace. Then it was time for the 4 fast miles. Ugh. While I knew my time goal was 7:15, my real goal was just to run at my HM effort. First two miles were 7:26 and 7:28 and then I kind of hit my stride and felt I could run faster without having to increase my effort level. Did the last 2 in 7:05 and 7:06. So my overall pace was 7:16 -- not quite doing it by the book, but good enough for me. Then, in another departure from my past training, I did 2 cooldown miles. I did them super slow and easy and was pleasantly surprised that they were at an 8:59 pace -- they felt way easier than the two, slower warm-up miles.

Your super slow warm up/ cool down is my speed part of a speed work out.

Well, he can run that fast because he's The_Man.

 

[tri-man 47]

The Pfitz 18/55 Chronicles

started with a 2-mile warm-up. I hardly ever warm-up, so I actually enjoyed this though I probably ran them too slow - like a 9:33 pace. Then it was time for the 4 fast miles. Ugh. While I knew my time goal was 7:15, my real goal was just to run at my HM effort. First two miles were 7:26 and 7:28 and then I kind of hit my stride and felt I could run faster without having to increase my effort level. Did the last 2 in 7:05 and 7:06. So my overall pace was 7:16 -- not quite doing it by the book, but good enough for me. Then, in another departure from my past training, I did 2 cooldown miles. I did them super slow and easy and was pleasantly surprised that they were at an 8:59 pace -- they felt way easier than the two, slower warm-up miles.

Your super slow warm up/ cool down is my speed part of a speed work out.

Don't worry about that, my friend. Keep doing what you're doing. We're interested in hearing of your progress and always eager to help! Remember, you're out there running when many others are not. This thread is an anomaly (especially that crazy 'liquors' guy!).

 

[Ned]

Kind of a brain dump post tonight for whatever reason.....

In the midst of browsing the website for the DE marathon and their various facebook and twitter pages, I came across this article. It's dated back in November so maybe some of you have seen it, but all I can say is WOW. I cannot begin to fathom what this even means. Here I am hemmin' and hawwin' about doing one and these guys are talking about running 1,000.

On that note, I've officially registered for the DE marathon on 5/15. I don't know how I screwed up the scheduling, but I should've started training this week if I'm going to follow any 18 week plan. I'm going to follow the Higdon Intermediate II. The one thing I noticed was it has you peaking at 20 miles every other week on weeks 11/13/15. Is 20 really enough? Seems like an extra six on race day would be asking a lot.

I lucked out that the first week basically mimics what I've been doing all winter long with the Sunday run being 10 and I just so happen to be running the 10 mile race on Sunday. Hoping I can still do it as I'm oncall for work this weekend for a major project going in. I had a backup covering for me on Sunday morning, but she just so happened to have some friends coming in town and backed out on me.

 

[Sand]

On that note, I've officially registered for the DE marathon on 5/15. I don't know how I screwed up the scheduling, but I should've started training this week if I'm going to follow any 18 week plan. I'm going to follow the Higdon Intermediate II. The one thing I noticed was it has you peaking at 20 miles every other week on weeks 11/13/15. Is 20 really enough? Seems like an extra six on race day would be asking a lot.

As far as 20 being the tops, I have read articles that say as far as physiological changes that you are after 20 is the longest reasonable run length to get there. After that you are just increasing the chances of injury without inducing the changes you want.

 

[FUBAR]

Couldn't get out before we started to get freezing rain, so I hit the gym and the dreadmill. Figured I'd vary it up a little and listen to Stones to Schools, audiobook.

1/2 mile on the incline treadmill - first time I've ever used this thing, started at 30% and a walk to warm up, went to 50% and almost fell off the damn thing, went down to 20% and a slow jog to finish the warm up.

7 miles on the bike, 24 minutes.

Back on the incline mill for another 1/2 mile, at 30% jogged 1/4 at a 9 minute mile pace, walked 1/4 at 15 minutes at 50%. Didn't feel quite as weird this time but I think my back feels it more than anything else.

Then the normal dreadmill. 15 minutes, started at 7.5mph, dropped .3-.4 every quarter. 7.5, 7.8, 8.2, 8.5, 8.8, 9.2, 9.6, 10.0 felt pretty good.

Then did a few sets of pull downs and dips.

I hate the treadmill, varying it up like this keeps it interesting but I'm not sure it's the best way to train. Won't be doing it often.

 

[gruecd]

The one thing I noticed was it has you peaking at 20 miles every other week on weeks 11/13/15. Is 20 really enough? Seems like an extra six on race day would be asking a lot.

20 is plenty. I'll occasionally go 21-22, but that's about it. It's more about time on your feet. You'll be running your 20-miler slower than GMP, so you'll end up running 20 in a similar amount of time to what you'll be doing 26.2. Make sense?

 

[tri-man 47]

On that note, I've officially registered for the DE marathon on 5/15. I don't know how I screwed up the scheduling, but I should've started training this week if I'm going to follow any 18 week plan. I'm going to follow the Higdon Intermediate II. The one thing I noticed was it has you peaking at 20 miles every other week on weeks 11/13/15. Is 20 really enough? Seems like an extra six on race day would be asking a lot.

As far as 20 being the tops, I have read articles that say as far as physiological changes that you are after 20 is the longest reasonable run length to get there. After that you are just increasing the chances of injury without inducing the changes you want.

That said ...I've lost my stride at about the 20 mile point in the three marathons I've done. My intent this time through is to experiment with a training run or two where I run for the amount of time that equals what I expect in the race itself ...that'll probably be about 22-23 miles of slow pacing.

 

[FUBAR]

The one thing I noticed was it has you peaking at 20 miles every other week on weeks 11/13/15. Is 20 really enough? Seems like an extra six on race day would be asking a lot.

20 is plenty. I'll occasionally go 21-22, but that's about it. It's more about time on your feet. You'll be running your 20-miler slower than GMP, so you'll end up running 20 in a similar amount of time to what you'll be doing 26.2. Make sense?

IIRC, my 20 mile times when training for my previous marathons (it's been a couple years since I've ran one), were at a 9 minute pace so around 3 hours flat. My marathon times were between 3:25 and 4:00. The real difference is hitting the wall. It was suggested to me and it makes sense IMO, to run a few 100 yard pickups (not full out sprints) in the last mile of one of your 20 milers. If you can push it at that point, you're doing well.

 

[gruecd]

The one thing I noticed was it has you peaking at 20 miles every other week on weeks 11/13/15. Is 20 really enough? Seems like an extra six on race day would be asking a lot.

20 is plenty. I'll occasionally go 21-22, but that's about it. It's more about time on your feet. You'll be running your 20-miler slower than GMP, so you'll end up running 20 in a similar amount of time to what you'll be doing 26.2. Make sense?

IIRC, my 20 mile times when training for my previous marathons (it's been a couple years since I've ran one), were at a 9 minute pace so around 3 hours flat. My marathon times were between 3:25 and 4:00. The real difference is hitting the wall. It was suggested to me and it makes sense IMO, to run a few 100 yard pickups (not full out sprints) in the last mile of one of your 20 milers. If you can push it at that point, you're doing well.

Not only that, but you definitely want to include some marathon pace (MP) miles in a few of your long runs, too. For example, 20 miles with 12 at MP.

 

[Ned]

Great info guys. As usual.

 

[Darrinll40]

Doing a marathon was something I had always wanted to do….and I’m really pleased I did. It was a challenge (particularly the training – especially in the winter in the dark.) I also can imagine there will be a future marathon at some point. I also don’t think a 3 hour 30 minute marathon is out of the question. But for now…..my body is ready for a break. And I plan on giving it a break. Looking at the Disney marathon – I think it’s a great marathon to make it your first marathon. First, the course is super flat. What makes it stand out is that Disney makes sure that you are constantly entertained. Whether it be band, cheerleaders, characters, guys on a trampoline, accordion players, piano players, night club singer, the parks, etc, etc, etc. Also, the culture is not super competitive. So, you really can enjoy it and work on finishing to the best of your ability. The negative is that it is in January so your longest training runs will take place in the winter when the days are the shortest. Special thanks to all the FBG’s who have inspired me and helped me deal with my training questions and my injury issues. I really appreciate it and hope that someday we can run together in a race.

Fantastic race and write up SC. Sorry this is late, I haven't been on lately.My school board is now blocking FBG Forums, so I can't browse or post at work. I was feeling blah yesterday so I put off the 2 miler to today. I am repeating it tomorrow. Friday I will weigh in again and I am hoping that I actually lost this week.

 

[prosopis]

You may recall I was very discouraged one week ago with my 7 mile speed work out. I ended up repeating last weeks training. I did the 7 mile speed run and felt like I did much better. I was really happy with myself. I got home and plug the garmin in to compare last weeks run. There was not that much difference. Only 2 mins difference in total time. Hr was just 2 beats better as well. I really thought there would be a bigger difference. I know I felt a lot better doing it this week. I will finish off the weeks training and move on to next week.

Question for the experts. Is a 2 min improvement in 7 miles a big difference and I am just not seeing it that way?