Today validated that much of the hard work is paying off in my training. I did the "distance" of the marathon today. Last year, I attempted this run, and only I failed miserably at it. The last 5-6 miles I really struggled. So I really wanted to nail this run this time. I knew it would give me confidence for the marathon race next month. To actually race this distance, is quite a work of art. A friend of mine did a similar training run, doing the distance in 2:34 one month before he raced a 2:24. He believes it really helped him, and my coach also began training me this way last year when he started with me. I think this year I have begun to adapt well to his training style, and the results are certainly showing. I've had occasional "off" races, but I've had very good races and a consistent pattern to my training that is developing my running engine to a higher threshold. Today, I woke up to a cool, crisp breeze and the weather was pleasantly not hot and humid. After training in much of these arduous conditions, not to mention a terrible half marathon race last weekend in va beach that was completely full of humidity, I was pleasantly surprised by the cool and less humid weather. The Va Beach Rock N Roll Half Marathon last weekend was just plain awful. I was a complete idiot for one thing-I went out wayyyyyy too fast and underestimated how humid it was. After a 5:02 first mile, I went through 5K in 15:54, 10K in 32:24, 10M in 53:12, and I crawled home in 1:11. It felt somewhat like a hard training run, so I tried to stay positive about it. But I was pissed and bitter, the conditions were terrible. Humidity is awful-I actually think I can handle heat pretty well though(just look at the rockville twilighter result when it was scorching that evening). But I told myself that it was a lesson to start out slower especially in really bad conditions. I think also though I was a bit tired from all the training I had been doing. That week was a down week mileage wise-but I still did a 3 mile tempo earlier that week in 15:03, which I felt good about, but certainly I knew going into the race that I'm trying to run the marathon well here, not the half. I had also done back to back 3 x 120 mile weeks in a row-the highest consistent volume I've done. The mileage during the race week was 70, which felt really nice to recover a bit-it was a much needed break. Going into this week I did easy runs until I felt a bit more "normal" again, according to my coach. Then the attempt would be made on the 26 mile training run today.
I woke up this morning to pleasant weather-it finally cooled off(FINALLY!!), and there was a nice breeze in the air as the humidity cleared. I drove out to Whites Ferry, to where my favorite 10 mile loop was. I was to do 2 loops, and then add on an out and back 6 mile. This was great because I could loop back to my car, grab water/fuel and keep things going. I went alone. I needed to do this alone. I mentally visualized the way I should run a marathon race. Patience, patience, patience. Start out slow. Build.
I started out gently, and gradually let my body naturally build into the pace. I was able to start out mid to low 6's, and kept low 6's for the first 10 miles, coming through 61 min. The second loop I started running faster, going through the 2nd 10 miles in 57 min, so it progressed really well. I was amazed at how efficient I ran. The last 6 I couldn't believe how strong I felt, and did an out and back along the rolling dirt road, finishing the run in 2:33. I think the last 6 miles I felt somewhat like He-Man when he got his sword back(yes for those of you youngsters reading, this is cheezy, but hey, this was epic if you grew up in the 80s!):
2:33. Shit, that's a new PR, isn't it? I thought to myself. The run came out to a bit over 26 actually, so I might have damn ran the exact 26.2 distance-at least as close as possible. At any rate, I consider this an unofficial new marathon PR. But I think this just tells me how now I am beginning to catch up. Perhaps I can race a 2:22 next month. I can't get caught up in the trials pace(2:18), I need to run my own race if I am going to conquer this. I must start out slow that first mile. The mental training is now what I must do. The physical is mostly done at this point. I have a quick 20 miler next weekend, and then the taper begins. My coach has trained me well the last year. Now I must mentally train myself to relax and run my own race. This is the most important part of running, to enjoy it. It truly is a journey.
