Week 11 - Tempo run

The weather was very spring-like today, so I ventured outdoors (like many other people) and went out to the park. I started off fast (first mile was in 7:04) and slowed over time to about an 8:00/mi pace. It felt nice to run outdoors, and seemed a lot more natural than the ol' treadmill.

I finished my run of 6 miles in 47:17 (7:53/mi pace). Not bad, but I wasn't able to stay under 8 minutes very easily. I know I need to be patient and the speed will come with more time and work, but I really want to do this next marathon in under 4 hours.

Next up is Saturday's Columbus Distance Classic, a half-marathon in Columbus, OH. I aiming to finish in under 1:45. They have a pacer for that speed, so I'm going to try to hang with them for as long as possible. Hopefully I'll have good news to report with my next post.

Week 11 - short run

Today I went running. Well, sort of. I had debated whether or not to run, and when I got down to the gym and found they had a towel shortage, I was even less enthused to run. But I soldiered on, and got going anyways. A couple minutes in, I decided I didn't really want to do this. Part of it was that it was late when I started, and also the fact that I didn't want to drive how all sweaty and gross (or I could have just drip-dried in the locker room after a shower).

So, I rapidly increased the treadmill speed since I wanted to at least get a mile out of my efforts. I did finish that lone mile in a very fast 7:10, but my lungs voiced extreme displeasure. I was feeling short of breath for almost 20 minutes afterwards, and even used my inhaler once I got into my car and realized it wasn't getting better. So note to self, don't do that again.

Week 11 - Speed run

Since I skipped over my long run this past weekend, I decided to push myself a little extra during today's run. I skipped over the planned "speed run" since those seem to do nothing but quickly tire me out and run an overall slower pace.

So, I set out for a 7 mile run at a good clip, and that's exactly what I did. I finished the run in 54:20, around a 7:46/mi pace which is excellent for me for that distance.

I hope to get another, shorter run or two in this week before Saturday morning's half marathon. These next few weeks are going to be very important for my marathon training.

Week 10 - Long run

No long run this week. Was I injured? No. Was I busy? Not really. I woke up and thought about it, but just wasn't feeling like running today. At times lately it seems that running has been more of an obligation than something I look forward to doing, especially on the weekends when the weather has been less than ideal. So today I finally just took off.

Next weekend, on April 1st I am heading down to Columbus, OH to run in a half-marathon. That should be a good indicator of where I'm at with my training.

Weekly Total: 9 miles
Yearly Total: 183.1 miles

Week 10 - Tempo run

A simple 5 mile tempo run today. Finished in 39:14, a 7:51/mi pace. Not bad.

Week 10 - Speed run

Not much to today's speed run. I was in a hurry, so I cut things short. Plan called for 8 repeats of 800m (1/2 mi). I did about 4, at around a 7:10/mi pace. It was rough to keep up. I ended up doing 4 miles total in 32:12 (an 8:03/mi pace). Not too bad, but nothing spectacular.

I'm sort of giving up on the speed runs as the plan has them. They are just too hard, and I'm afraid that I'll end up doing more damage (i.e. injuring myself) than they are worth. I think some 400m repeats are achieveable, but these 800 and 1600m repeats are for the birds. Oh well, only 6 more to go anyways.

Week 9 - Long run

This week's long run was a challenge, both physically and mentally. The weather conditions were so-so, with temps in the upper 30s with some sun and a wind that provided quite a chill at times. Averages are around mid 40s this time of year, but spring seems to be getting off to a slow start.

Anyways, the plan called for 18 miles, but I was just hoping to get beyond 13. Early on, things were not looking good as me knee starting hurting around mile 5. But I struggled through it and kept on going. I made it all the way out to 8 miles before I decided to turn around and head back. Being 8 miles from where you started can be quite the incentive to run all the way back, especially when it was that cold.

So I kept going, and slowed with each passing mile. I could feel the blisters developing on both feet, which was a big factor in my slowness. There really wasn't a point in walking, because that would have been just as hard on my feet. I made it back to right before where I parked, and called it a day. 15 miles in 2:19:06, a 9:16/mi pace. Not bad considering a 9:09 is the 4 hour marathon pace (my target this time around), but far off the pace from last weekend's 15K. I guess I should just be happy to be able to knock out that many miles after all the troubles I've been having lately.

Weekly Total: 24.3 miles
Yearly Total: 174.1 miles

Week 9 - Tempo run

Today's tempo run turned into sort of a speed tempo run. After having done a personal best with my 10K on Tuesday, I decided to try for a best at the 5K today since my schedule called for a 3 mile run.

I started off at an 8 min/mi pace, and kept kicking it up during my run. I was struggling at times to keep up, but I just kept pushing. I finally managed to finish the 3.1 miles in 22:58 (yes, a record for me). That is a 7:24/mi pace, which I'd love to do in a marathon, but am probably very from off from. But one can always dream.

Week 9 - Speed run

Today was the beginning of the second half of my marathon training. I was still a little sore from Sunday's 15K run (not used to running those hills), so I held back a bit. I did half of what the plan called for, so I did 6 repeats of 400m at a 6:53/mi pace. Following that, I did 3 more miles at increasingly faster paces. My brain is always thinking away while I'm running, and I quickly realized I had a good chance to finish 10K in under 50 minutes, which has been a goal of mine for a while.

So, I kicked it into high gear for the last mile and change and hit the 10K mark (6.2 mi) at 49:47. That beat my mark from Sunday's race by just over a minute (thanks to the lack of hills on the treadmill). It was a satisfying workout and a good way to start the backend of my training program.

Week 8 - Long run (a race)

This week, I skipped the typical solo "long run" and signed up for the Shamrock 15K, a race put on by the Summit Athletic Running Club. This is the first time I've done this distance in a race, so I was guaranteed a PR (always nice). The weather conditions could not have been much better (with the exception of the light rain), as it was 60 degrees, a very rare thing in these parts this time of year.

The flyer for the course said it was "very challenging" and after looking at the elevation chart they had posted, I could see why. It looked like a stretched out letter U, as we were running down into the Cuyahoga River Valley and back out. So needless to say, the "going down" part was pretty easy, it was the "coming back up" part that was a challenge.

Things were going good (I was keeping under an 8 min mile pace) until mile 5 or so. I hit the 5K mark at just under 24 minutes, which I was happy with. But during mile 5, we rounded a corner and there was about a 1/4 mile stretch that was seriously about a 60 degree incline. You could hear people just gasp when it came into sight. I just had to put my head down, lean forward, and take it on. I made it to the top without walking (though my run wasn't much faster than a walking pace), and this pushed me out of the 8:00/mi pace, to which I would not return.

There were more inclines after that, but nothing close to the difficulty of that one. I crossed the 10K mark at 50:50, a best for me (I hope to break under 50 minutes next time I race a 10K). During the last mile, my kick came on strong as usual, and I passed 6 or 7 people on my way to the finish line. Which of course, left my wondering as usual, with such a strong kick, am I holding back too much during the race?

I ended up finishing in 1:16:02, an 8:10/mi pace. Not too bad, though I had hoped to slip under an 8:00/mi pace. That put me in 9th out of 16 in my age group, and 104th overall, out of 233. It was an enjoyable run, and nice to get back to a little race experience. I think my next race will be a half-marathon in Columbus, OH in about 3 weeks.

Weekly Total: 20.8 miles
Yearly Total: 149.8 miles

Week 8 - Tempo run

I was aiming to get back on schedule today which called for a 10 mile run, and thought I had a good shot at it until my knee starting aching. I did manage to complete 6.5 miles in 54:12 (8:20/mi pace) before I shut it down. My knee kept hurting while I tried to walk it off, though it felt better after I stretched for a bit and feels fine now.

I had sort of written off Sunday's troubles to running on an uneven surface (the grassy side of the towpath), but today was just a straight forward treadmill run. Not a good sign.

My next run, I believe, will be on Sunday. The Shamrock 15K is being run in Stow, OH and the weather is supposed to hit 60 for the first time this year, though I'm hoping the rain will hold off. I might try to squeeze a short, quick run in before that, but we'll see.

Week 8 - Speed run

I returned today, a mere one day following yesterday's pitiful showing. Fortunately, things went smoothly today. I didn't even bother looking at my schedule to see the recommended run. I just wanted to get in a good run with minimal pain. And that's what I did. I ran 5 miles in total, some of it was speedwork (I think I did two 800m repeats at 7:03, before cutting back and doing some more speed near the end). I didn't want to push too hard, but I wanted to get in some miles. I think I finished the 5 in around 43 minutes. Nothing record-setting, but not bad for a day-after run.

Week 7 - Long run

Today's run was a disaster, pure and simple. I got up early, the weather was decent, and I was looking forward to it. I got out there and the towpath was damp so I ran a lot on the grass on the side. I somehow ran my first mile in 7:22, which is very fast for me though it did not seem like I was going that fast. I was feeling good until mile 4 when my left knee really started aching. It got so bad that I had to stop, and that was about it. I ended up walking most of the 3 miles back to my starting point. I tried running brief spurts, but the pain returned quick and heavy.

If I had not already registered for the Flying Pig Marathon, I would be having some serious hesitations about going forward. I had similar pain last year when I was training for Akron, but I cut back and it eased. However, I'm not feeling confident about my conditioning so far, and I don't know if I can afford to cut back. I'm going to try to keep up and hope for the best.

Weekly Total: 14 miles
Yearly Total: 129 mile

Week 7 - Tempo run

This week's tempo run went fairly well. The plan had called for 8, but I settled for 6. I ran it a day late since my left knee has been bothering me for a while now, and on Monday night my right ankle seems to have twisted itself a bit and has been a little tender. The extra day off seems to have helped as I felt a bit better today, and had no problems to speak of with running. Finished my 6 in 49:20, carrying an 8:20/mi pace for most of it, before I sped up the last mile. Tried a different treadmill that usual as the gym has been crazy lately, and it worked out well.

No idea what this week's long run will be. Weather looks bad, so I might be in for the dreaded treadmill long run. Not looking forward to it.