Week Minus 4 - Tempo (8 miles)

Garmin Link
8.22 miles
1:04:50
Target:
- 1 mile easy (actual: 8:14);
- 7 miles @8:00 (actual: @7:50)

Today I was feeling the effects of every-other-day training for the last 5 workouts. Keeping below an 8:00 pace was more of an effort today for 8 miles than it was Sunday for 17. Legs were hurting for the first mile or two. I will have 2 days off before the final 20-miler, so hope I can rest/heal enough before then so that the long run is not too punishing at an 8 minute pace. Would like to have another confidence-building long run (like last weekend) before the marathon.

Interesting article in NY Times yesterday - again referencing Christopher McDougall's Born to Run - but this time discussing human beings' evolutionary suitability for distance running: Human Body Built for Distance.

Week Minus 4 - Speed Intervals (8 miles)

Garmin Link
8 miles
1.5 mile warmup
10 X 400m @1:35 target (1:26.5 actual!) 400m RI
1.5 mile cooldown

Good workout today. It rained and drizzled until mid-morning, and I was able to get out to the track at about 11:00. These 400 meter sprints (not quite sprints, but close) are much easier mentally than the longer ones, even though there were 10 reps. My time was substantially under the target - almost 10 seconds/rep faster. Slowest was 1:31 (first one); fastest was 1:19 (last one).

Got talking to another runner, and it turned out that she is on the same "Run Less, Run Faster" training program. She had done a number of marathons, including Boston, and was able to give me some advice. I realized that one thing I haven't thought about at all is hills, which is a big factor in the Boston course, and somewhat less for Philly. I guess it is a bit premature to be worrying about Boston....

Week Minus 5 - Distance (17 miles)

Garmin Link
17.01 mile (Target: 15 miles @8:10 pace)
2:14:44
7:55 pace

This wasn't the longest run or the fastest, but it was the longest under an 8:00 pace. Felt pretty good, too - good enough to add an extra two miles over the target at the end. Nothing hurting too much. Foot felt better than on the two previous runs - quite a relief, since I was afraid it could develop into something worse. Next weekend is the last 20-miler before the marathon, and after today's run I'm going to feel comfortable aiming for an 8:00 pace - my target for the marathon, four weeks from today.

Decided not to do the NERR run, mostly so I could get an earlier start. Passed their start point a few minutes before they were about to begin, and I was already at 11 miles. Also, I would have been tempted to race as fast as possible, instead of maintaining the 8:00 pace.

Had a bowl of oatmeal and an apple before running, and Gu packets at 6 and 12 miles. Think that helped keep energy up. Did not feel exhausted afterward, and got home early enough to take Doug to an Autocross that Matt Grubel was competing in. Now it is 6:30 and I'm tired and legs are aching a bit. If I'm still sore on Tuesday, I might skip the speed intervals this week. It's important that I keep from getting injured or worn down again before the marathon.

Week Minus 5 - Speed Intervals - 6 miles

Garmin Connect
6.36 miles
warmup (1.5 miles)
3 X 1600m @6:41 target (6:35 actual) 400m RI
cool-down (1 mile)

Decided to squeeze in the speed workout that I missed on Monday before the 15-miler this weekend. Left foot started hurting immediately, and I almost quit out of caution after half a mile. Warmed up for another mile, and foot was getting better, so began the speed work.

Today I was at the track. It is cool enough now that I can start to run at lunch time for the shorter workouts, and the track works well for speed. Had no trouble meeting the target, although my one complaint about the Forerunner is that I cannot tell how I'm doing on the intervals until after the run, so it is hard to gauge and adjust my speed between intervals.

15-miler planned for Sunday. Haven't yet decided if I will sign up for the 25K NERR Marathon Tuneup, or just run on my own. The organized run will guarantee that I get out there and finish it, but it also means I have to ride my bike down and wait for the race to start - plus spend $20-25 bucks - and no t-shirt this year! Tony and Cole won't be racing after all, either.

Week Minus 5 - Tempo - 12 miles

Garmin Link
12.43 miles (20K)
1:38:16
7:54 pace
(7:47 pace for 1st 18K)

Felt somewhat healed up after a week off. The first couple of miles were much more comfortable than what I am used to. Kept up a faster pace than usual - 8:00 was the target for 10 miles. Left ankle (or upper foot?) started hurting again for the last mile and a half - I slowed way down. The first 18K (or about 11.2 miles) averaged 7:47. Last mile and a half of that was 7:40.

Forerunner was accidentally still set to metric and no mile splits from my last speed interval run, and I forgot to reset it before starting out.

I have been feeling so much anxiety about the marathon that I decided a couple nights ago not to run it. I probably still will - I paid for it - but am getting too mental about it. I'll just keep training and see what happens.

Week minus 6 - Speed Intervals

6.9 miles
10-20 minute warmup
1000m @4:03 (actual 4:08)
2000m @8:26 (actual 8:58)
2 X 1000m @4:03 (actual 4:13, 4:09
(400m RI)

Had a setback Saturday morning. A quarter mile into my planned 15-mile run I decided to bag it. Legs were hurting and I didn't want to aggravate them. Decided to rest for the weekend.

Didn't exactly tear things up on my speed workout this morning, either. I just feel easily tired and winded for some reason. My shin splints aren't going away, and I have a new sharp pain in my right foot. I also feel mentally fatigued. Just get tired of running whenever I think of the miles ahead.

I have a short (6-mile) run scheduled for Thursday, which I might skip if legs are still hurting. I really want to force myself to do the 20-miler scheduled for next weekend, if only for morale reasons. Then the following weekend there is a 25K (15-mile) marathon tuneup race that I'm looking forward to. It was fun last year, and this year Tony and his son Cole will be running.

Tried out the new Nike Lunarglides today. They are a little large for me, but I think they will work out. My old shoes had a lot of miles on them, so maybe the new ones will be a little easier on my body.

Barefoot in Central Park and Other Interesting Links

Saw a NY Times blog post about Christopher McDougall, who wrote Born to Run, the book that got me thinking about barefoot running techniques. (It is also an fascinating adventure story, although the gonzo writing style was a little much for my taste - I recommend it.)

Also found the McMillan Running Calculator, which recommends paces for different types of workouts based on your times for various races. It also calculates predicted times for many race distances. There seems to be a lot of useful information there on training, although I haven't dug into it yet.

Week Minus 7 - Tempo (12 miles)

Garmin Link
12.02 miles
1:35:51
7:59 pace
(10 miles @7:51 plus 2 miles @8:35)

Feeling much better about the program today. (Thanks for the encouragement, Dad.) The target was for one easy mile plus 10 miles @8:00 pace. It feels good to have exceeded the pace pretty easily. But it's still scary to think that my goal is to continue that pace for another 14.2 miles. I guess I should just trust the training program and see what happens.

This was my first afternoon run since the springtime. Suited up to run this morning, but it was raining, and the forecast was for sunny weather in the afternoon at about the same temperature (65 degrees.) It turned out to be beautiful fall weather, but very windy. Got hit by a small falling tree branch near Hunting Park Avenue, and remembered a news story a few months ago about a runner who was killed by a falling branch a couple of miles up river.

Now I have two days off, and a fifteen mile run @8:20 scheduled for Saturday. Since I did not make 20 miles last weekend, I'm thinking of extending Saturday's run. 20 miles would put me just over 40 miles for the week - something I've rarely done.

Week minus 7 - Intervals (8.17 miles)

Garmin Link
1.5 mile warm-up
6 X 1200m @4:55 (4:57 actual) 3 min. RI
1.5 mile cooldown

I was happily surprised to see that today's speed intervals averaged only a hair over the target (4:57 vs 4:55 - or 6:40min/mi). Usually the speed runs are hardest for me, so maybe that is good sign for the rest of the week. Legs were hurting significantly, but I don't feel it so much when moving fast.

Wednesday's run may be challenging (1 mile easy, 10 miles @8:00/mile). But I've got to get back to that sustained 8:00 pace for long runs pretty quickly if I have any hope of doing it for the marathon.

Week minus 8 - Distance (fail) 13 miles

13.01 miles (20 miles target) Garmin Link
1:50:24
8:29 pace (8:30 target)

Another disappointment today - was supposed to make 20 miles, a distance I've done 3 times in the past couple of months without a problem. Today I pooped out at 13 miles. Forgot to bring Gu packets, which I usually eat every hour on a long run. Maybe I just ran out of juice. Or maybe I'm just a little burnt out physically and mentally. Next weekend is a 15-miler, which I should be able to handle, before trying another 20-miler the following week.

Week minus 8 - Tempo (6.21 miles)

6 mile run:
1 mile easy
4 miles @7:29/mile (7:24 avg actual)
1 mile easy

Ran with Chris this morning. First run this fall with weather in the forties. Had a hard time getting the speed going for the 4 tempo miles. The first two were about 7:47, but we made up for it with the second two, which were about 7:00 each. I have definitely lost some ground, whether it is from lackadaisical training (and injury) over the last couple of months, or from running too hard at the PDR, I don't know.

20-miler on deck for Saturday. Only have to maintain an 8:30 pace, and have previously done this distance @ 8:22.

Week minus 8 - Speed Intervals (8.91 miles)

Garmin Link
warmup
1600 @6:41 (7:03 actual) 400m RI
3200 @13:42 (14:36 actual) 800m RI
2 X 800 @3:13 (3:22, 3:34 actual) 400m RI
cooldown

After 8 days off, and several irregular weeks, my times are way off. Don't feel like I've fully recovered from cratering at the PDR.

Eight weeks left before the marathon, so I'll do the best I can with the last eight weeks of this program.

2009 Philadelphia Distance Run

13.1 miles Garmin Link
1:38:25
7:31 pace

Splits:  5 Km   10 Km  10 Mi     Finish
Times:   21:44  44:57  1:13:55   1:38:25
Pace:     7:00   7:15  7:24         7:31 

After laying off for almost two weeks, today was the PDR. I attempted a run last Monday, but stopped after .6 mile because of calf pain. Could have run through it, but wanted to try to let it heal up before today's race. That did seem to work.
Had very little pain during the race - could feel it, but not enough to slow me down.

[Photo by Alethea: Tony, me, Kim and Chris before the race.]

When I registered for the race in the spring, had just finished the 10-mile Broad Street Run at a 7:10 pace, so was hopeful that I would continue to get faster over the summer. So I registered with a (very optomistic) expected finish time of 1:30 or a bit under 7:00/mile. (As it turned out I did not make that kind of progress over the summer, and today was just aiming to match last year's time of 1:40.) The 1:30 estimate put me in the first corral, which turned out to be a big mistake. The corral 1 people took off very fast, which made it hard to judge my own pace. Mile 1 was 6:19 - way faster than I wanted to go at that point. I tried to slow down, but it was harder than you might think. It is a morale killer to have seemingly everyone passing you for mile after mile.

So my pace continued to be too fast for the first half of the race, although it seems that I slowed down pretty much continually. By the ten mile point I was whipped. The last three miles were the most grueling I've experienced. Was lucky at least that the weather was perfect - sunny and about 60 degrees. Finally made it with a finish time a minute thirty five faster than last year's.

But after crossing the finish line, I found that although I wasn't dizzy, I couldn't seem to keep my feet under me. Kept stumbling sideways when I was trying to move forward. Finally someone pulled me out of the way and I flopped down next to the barrier and tried to catch my breath. One of the race volunteers sat with me, and after a few minutes, I saw Chris finish and yelled at him, hoping I could walk off with him. I still couldn't walk straight, so they took me off on a stretcher. Quite embarrassing. After about 20 minutes, and a liter of water via IV, they let me go. Chris came with me, and even got some friends to offer me a ride home. I feel bad that I imposed on him when he should have been resting and celebrating the end of the race.

After being released, I hung out for a while with work friends Chris, Tony, Amy, Alethea and Kim. Tony had his best time in years, and his and Amy's son Cole, who is just 15, finished his first PDR in 1:55. After a while, I felt OK riding my bike home. Have been taking it easy the rest of the day - lots of liquids, and a little bit of walking around the park.

Wearing Down - 2 hours, 14 miles

14.00 miles Garmin Link
2:00:20
8:35 pace

Got out for a run yesterday morning, although I had to push myself. This bronchial infection just hangs on and makes me feel run down. Plus, my left leg is still hurting, my pace has gone way down, and I continue to be behind in my mileage. Discouraging.

I think I'm at a crossroads with my leg pain. Have been reading a lot about the benefits of barefoot or minimally shod running, and the new theory that cushioned running shoes and orthotics actually cause more problems than they solve.

Just finished Born to Run last night. In the course of the this great true adventure story about American ultra-marathoners connecting with a remote tribe of Mexican runners, the author makes the case against running shoes. His thesis in a nutshell is that barefoot forces you to develop the structures in your feet and adapt a more natural stride.

Yesterday I consciously tried the "barefoot" style, which is more or less the same as Chi Running - upright stance, relaxed, short steps, heels up. Concentrating on this, plus some leg pain even after four days off, kept my speed down, and naturally, despite my intentions, today the leg hurts more than ever.

I might invest in a pair of Vibram Five Fingers and slowly try some "barefoot" running at the track while continuing my standard cushioned training until the marathon. Then I'll make a decision about whether to really concentrate on the the barefoot style or give up on distance running or what.

Fall Loop - 13.5 miles

13.53 miles Garmin Link
1:54:25
8:27 pace

Back in Philly. The weather turned much more pleasant while we were gone. Temp was 59 on the way out this morning and 61 on the return. Did the full East Falls loop from work, going out West River Drive and returning on Kelly Drive. Right shin and left hip were hurting the whole way. That was a disappointment since this is my first run in a week. Time was also slow. Probably still recovering from bronchitis that kept me in bed Saturday morning.

Hope I will not be too sore to do a 20-miler on Friday, but the way I feel now, 8 hours later, am not optimistic.

My buddy Tony Robertson recommends the new Nike Lunar Glides. Since the New Balances I got last month have been kind of a bust, I might go out after dinner and try on some Nikes.

Lake Union/University/Ballard/Fremont

13.27 miles Garmin Link
2:02:43
9:15 pace

Left the hotel at 4:30 and started north along the lake. I originally had planned to follow a route I found on the Internet, but the map on the website was hard to use on the iPhone while running, so I gave up, and just tried to find my way around the lake. It was very dark, and not well lit, especially after I turned west and found the rec path going through Fremont and then northwest into Ballard. Turned around at 6.6 and tried to retrace my steps back. Did not start to get light until about the 8 mile point.

Yesterday I did 45 minutes on the stairmaster, and could really feel it in my calves today - very tender.

Travel Day Half Marathon - 13.1

13.1 miles Garmin Link
1:47:46
8:13 pace

Had my sights on a 20-miler this morning, but woke up an hour late and settled for 13 miles. Neglected to have my usual two bananas ready before the run, and I think that made a difference in energy level. Ate a Gu packet after 7 miles, but it was still a struggle from mile 9 on. Slightly cooler and less humid (both in low 70s) than the worst weather lately, but still not terribly comfortable for a long run.

Am looking forward to better weather in Seattle. Found a route online for a half marathon distance around Lake Union that I can catch right outside our hotel. Hoping I can do at least this distance on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, and make up some of my miles. Then I'll repeat week minus 9 of the training program when I get back.

Week minus 9 - Tempo - 6 miles

6.37 miles
3 miles @ 7:07 (target 7:14)

73 degrees, 86% humidity

This was something of a messed up run, although successful in the sense that we beat the target time for the important three miles. First, for some reason the Forerunner did not register the first mile (although it did register the time.) Not sure what happened. Maybe it had not completed picking up the satellites when we started out and somehow picked them up at exactly 1 mile.

We managed to get through the warmup and speed part of the workout, despite the awful humidity, but stopped for water and walked a quarter mile at the 4.5 mark. We picked back up at a jog at 4.75, and I made it to 6.37 before throwing in the towel again a few blocks from work. If Chris hadn't been with me, I'm sure I would have given up sooner. The humidity just kills me, even if the temperature isn't terribly hot.

Week Minus 10 - Distance - 14 miles

14.02 miles Garmin Link
1:53:32
8:05 pace
Target: 13 miles @ 8:15 pace

Redeemed myself somewhat today by exceeding both distance and pace targets. It was possibly more humid than ever - you couldn't see the tops of the buildings this morning for the mist in the air - but the temperature was a bit cooler - 67 degrees - and that helped a lot.

I went back to my Nike Shox, and that seemed to help the leg pain. Maybe these two new pair of New Balances aren't going to work out.

Very happy with the time. Getting a few 20+ mile runs under the belt puts a run like this in a different perspective, and it is easier to be mentally and physically strong at the end. The last two miles were the fastest by far - 7:53 and 7:45.

Week minus 10 - Tempo FAIL

8.25 miles Garmin Link

Chris was having some toe problems and didn't run yesterday, and I should have followed his example. Shinsplints(?) have started up again, especially in left leg, and were especially bad for the first mile. The weather has warmed up again, and was very humid, which seems to be my Achilles heel. The target was to run miles 2-7 at a 7:44 pace. I just could not get the speed up to where I wanted, and only hit 7:44 for the 5th mile. Found myself stopping at this point, and walked for half a mile. It was so humid that sweat was literally dripping from both hands onto the ground. Jogged the final 3.25 miles back to the office at a slow pace.

One problem with the Forerunner is that sometimes when it gets hot and humid, in between my body heat and all the sweat, the touch controls stop working. I wasn't able to shut off the timer until after I returned to the office and could towel down.

Shins are still hurting this morning, so I may skip the 13-mile run scheduled for tomorrow. My times for the long runs are weeks ahead of schedule, so I don't think it would be much of a training loss, except that it puts my total mileage that much further behind target.