Training Log: 24.4

Saturday, 4/19: 20 miles in 2:47:52 or 8:24/mi (PMP +:19); Long Run

The longest scheduled run of my training program is done. I may do yet one more 20 miler or a little more, but as far as my plan goes...I have reached high camp, spent time in the death zone, and am in striking distance for my summit attempt 5 weeks from today. FIRST called for this run to be done at PMP + 30, and I was under that, but not brutally so. Mission accomplished.

I learned a few things, as one is supposed to on these long runs. First, I got up and ran on the day and at the time that the real race will be. This turned out to be quite pleasant. Weather couldn't have been better. Warm, not too windy, slightly cloudy but with a high ceiling so it was nice and bright. Lovely Spring morning.

Second, drinking about 8 oz of water for every 4 miles or so seems to be tolerable and keeps me reasonably hydrated. I lost 3 lbs. on this run, but that's not terrible, I don't think.

I believe I will need an eating strategy slightly better than the one this morning. I should have slightly more food than I am used to for breakfast, I think, but not a whole lot...maybe an extra banana or something. I felt fatigued at the end of this run, especially mile 19 and 20, and my pace dropped in the second half (alas, no negative split today...).

Since I do Type II diabetes (why I "do" it rather than "have" it is something for another post, I eat and exercise to manage blood glucose. No hammer gels. :) But I clearly need to eat something around the 10 mile mark and probably the 20 mile mark too. My blood glucose was good when I finished today, 91, which means I didn't bonk...but I think a little boost along the way is definitely called for.

Finally...my feet feel good. No hot spots. My muscles are sore, but my joints feel fine.

Training Log: 24.3

Friday 4/18: Bike commute to work. 32 minutes x 2, tempo pace

It's my first ride to work of the season; it's so nice outside, it was impossible to pass up on this Friday morning! The picture above is pretty close to the model that I ride, but not quite exact. The make is the same (Raleigh), but the model I have is now about 7 years old and not in production any more.

Riding the commuter bike makes for a good workout because it is easily 10 pounds heavier than my road bike without any cargo. A much more upright seating position means more wind resistance, and I don't have clipless pedals on this bike. I also carry my backpack and a change of clothes in my wheel-mounted bag. The route is 9 miles one way. And it takes me anywhere from 30-35 minutes, depending on traffic and wind. I tend to mash the whole way to maximize the benefit.

It's a great way to get a "sneaky" workout...an hour of solid effort on the bike without eating up a huge chunk of family or work time.

Training Log: 24.2

Thursday, 4/17: 7ish miles, about 8:15 avg. pace

It was 70 degrees and mild today, a perfect Spring day for a run. I ran with my friend and colleague John Monberg around campus after we both finished teaching this afternoon.

We did a big loop, starting out about 8:30/mi but worked our way up to a good 8:00 per mile pace. I didn't pay strict attention, but it was a good workout for sure.

Training Log: 24.1

Monday, 4/14: 10 miles in 1:17:44 or 7:47/mi (PMP -:18); Long Tempo Run

A solid effort today. I don't seem to have lost much fitness/speed. I felt ok throughout, and had only a mild cough afterwards. I am glad to feel whole again. If I can build on this throughout the week, I will feel pretty confident.

Finally clear of chest cold

I've had a week off, though not on purpose. I was feeling pretty wheezy all week last week. Better today, so I am eager to get back on track.

It's been a bad week of training to miss, I think. Since we had a travel weekend, I also missed my day to do a weekend long run...and this is the one thing that I feel like I can't let slip any more.

Here's my plan. I have 6 weeks to go until the marathon. I will do at least three long runs the next three weeks: 20, 18, and 22. Tapering thereafter. I will also do long-ish tempo runs (6-8 miles minimum) during those weeks.

In effect, this has me repeating the missed week 7 rather than skipping ahead, but I feel like I want to punish the feet and joints a little more to be sure I am properly calloused, etc. on race day. Mentally, this is go time. I don't want to overtrain, but I also want to go into the race feeling confident. This past week hasn't helped, except that maybe now I won't get sick close to race day...

Training Log: 23.2

Thursday 4/10: Bike 60 minutes, 18.6 miles (Hilly loop)

Accidentally overwrote this post!...the gist: WINDY! Tough day! Warm and enjoyable, though. Good workout

Training Log: 24.1

Sunday, 4/6: 9 miles in 1:11:33 or 7:57/mi (PMP -:08); Long/Tempo Run

Back in Michigan, where Spring has arrived! I was, once again, less than 100%; I never quite shook the chest-cold...then the trip to New Orleans and the accompanying sleep deprivation and airplane viral loads took a bit of a toll. I woke up not quite feeling sick, but feeling immuno-compromised.

Anyway, this run should probably have been longer. But it wasn't. It was fast enough. Especially since my breathing was a bit labored. Hopefully, I'll be back to full strength this week.

Training Log: 23.2

Thursday, 4/3: 6ish miles, who's counting? I'm in New Orleans!

It was 80 degrees and humid today in New Orleans, perfect weather for a run. Of course, that's mid-summer in Michigan. And it was truly a pleasure to be running in something other than a bracing wind. To top it off, I had the good fortune to run with colleagues!

We ran about 5 1/2 together, and I did about a half mile up and back extra or so...so we'll call it 6 even. Our pace was comfortable but not sluggish - we talked about training and racing and gear and all that stuff. Awesome.

Training Log: 23.1

Monday, 3/31: 6 miles in 48:30 @ 8:05/mi (PMP), pacing run

It was relatively warm today, and I was hoping to run outside. But there was a deluge. So my run moved inside, and a long run became a pacing run.

I'm heading out of town tomorrow, so I am not sure how my schedule will go this week. But I'll be in a warm spot, so I am hoping to get out at least once.

Training Log: 22.1

Saturday 3/29: Bike, outside! about 60 minutes @ 19 mph. (hilly loop)

Hurray! I got back on the horse today. Outside on the bike, actually moving through space, for the first time since the Fall. And for the first workout of the week. This is my normal loop - about 18.6 miles (I forgot to reset my computer today, but I have ridden it a lot). The many small climbs make it function like an interval workout if I am trying to maintain a decent tempo. So we'll call this our interval workout for the week.

My cold lingered, migrated to my chest, and I was coughing and feeling under the weather most of the week. I decided to rest and get better rather than try to squeeze in runs punctuated with periodic expulsions of lung butter. I missed working out this week though, in part because it was also a fairly stressful work week. So getting on the bike felt really good. My toes were cold (it was about 45 degrees) but it was sunny.

I would have had a faster avg. speed but there was a big headwind for the first 7 and last mile. That was the coldest part too.

Training Log: 21.2

Saturday, 3/22: 9 miles in 1:10:02 or 7:47/mi (PMP -:18); Long/Tempo Run

After taking most of the week off to recover from my cold, I felt well enough today to get back on the road. We had 6 or 7 inches of snow yesterday and last night, despite the fact that we passed the vernal equinox. So it was cold but sunny, and the roads were mostly clear by this afternoon.

I was not quite 100%; I had just a bit of chest congestion and that ferro-alveolar (yes, I made that word up) taste that comes from exerting oneself to the point of mild exercise-induced asthma. Still, I was able to keep up a steady pace once I got going. I figured that doing 9 miles at a good tempo pace would be a good way to get back on track.

Achoo!

Not much running or biking this week because I seem to have picked up a rhinovirus on my trip to Minnesota. I hit it early with the Zinc swabs, so I am hoping to be back in business soon.

Training Log: 21.1

Monday, 3/17: 6 miles in 48 minutes or 8:00/mi (PMP - :05)

I'm in St. Paul today for a brief research trip, so it was an early morning session on the hotel treadmill. I was grateful for the central time zone, since getting up at 6 to run felt like getting up at 7:00 for me. Jeff, also on this trip, joined in the fun too. We had a nice view out of our window, potentially, but it was dark outside. I ran on the right-hand side unit. The picture below shows an older model than the one they had there, which was pretty nice.

Training Log: 20.3

Friday, 3/14: 6ish miles in 50 minutes

I accidentally deleted this post...don't want to write it all out again. The gist: nice day! Spring! Ran on campus with John. Fun!

Training Log: 20.2

Tuesday 3/11: Hard intervals on the trainer, 60 minutes;

Spin 10, 2 x (5 x 2 min max effort, 2 min RI w/ 5 min RI in between sets), Spin 10

Good workout. There's something wrong with my trainer though. It's leaking hydraulic fluid and it is making a bad squeaky sound. Winter is almost over though, so if I have to get it serviced (if it is, indeed, serviceable, I can do it soon).

Watched the Paris-Nice Prologue while riding too. Felt bad for those guys, as it was cold, rainy, and windy. I can relate to that!

Training Log: 20.1

Sunday, 3/9: 15.1 miles in 2:10:03 or 8:36/mi (PMP +31).

Today's long run was a struggle. I felt slow, tired, and angry for most of it. Sick of running in the cold. Last 7 miles into a 10mph headwind; cold, cold, cold. Definitely one of the worst training runs I've had.

Still, I was on the prescribed pace for today's long run. That's good I suppose. I mapped out a course of 18 miles, but ended up walking the last three because I developed a big blister along the side of my left foot. I could have toughed it out, but my foot would have been pretty torn up. Better to slow down and train another day, I figured.

Summary of today: ugh.

Training Log: 19.3

Saturday 3/8: 4.2 miles in 34:00, recovery run (with benefits)

10 minutes warmup @ 9:05/mi
2 miles @ 6:58/mi
10 minutes cooldown @ 9:05/mi

This was mostly a recovery run, with a longish WI built in@ a little over a minute below PMP. I'm not big on intervals, as the astute reader of this blog will attest. I mainly wanted to use this week to rest a little more than usual.

Today marks 11 weeks to go before the race. And tonight we turn the clocks ahead for Daylight Saving Time. I told myself way back when I began that I would treat that day as a milestone (it extends the training day, after all and I felt that it would be a nice moment as my runs got longer that the days got longer too). Sadly, they won't be getting much warmer in the short term. I was hoping for that too.

I got a reminder yesterday about the real reason I am doing all of this. Not the marathon, that's just my latest motivational goal. The real reason I am running and riding is all about living longer than I would otherwise, given the genetic strikes against me. As of more than a year ago now, I'm ahead of diabetes and heart disease and I plan to stay out front.

Training Log: 19.2

Friday, 3/5: 7.4 miles in 60:00 @ 8:05/mi (PMP), pacing run

I like it when a workout is easy to understand: one hour at planned marathon pace. Today's training run simulates the first hour of the race. Felt good. In fact, I felt better and better as I went along, which is a nice sign.

Come to think of it, I felt best on Sunday's half-marathon effort during miles 7 and 8 too, but that was partially because they were among the least windy. The last 4 miles were especially unpleasant. If I had been paying more attention to wind, I would have ran the opposite way on my loop course.

No such worries on the treadmill this evening, of course.

Training Log: 19.1

Sunday, 3/2: 13.1 miles in 1:45:51 or 8:04/mi (PMP -1).

Much better. I was shooting for 8:30/mi, but I basically had this one on autopilot. I only looked at the watch twice. One at 5 miles and once at 10 miles. It was basically the same pace for those two splits 39 minutes and change each time. This means I ran the last 3.1 a little slower than PMP...so I had better learn to take it out more steady or I will likely see my per mile avg. drop after the halfway mark.

Good to know. Trying to train smarter.

Two other factors worth noting, though...

1) the last 3 miles were into the brunt of a cold, stiff headwind. It was really tough coming in. I didn't feel especially fatigued, but it was not pleasant either.

2) I need to drink water on these long training runs; that likely made a difference too. Plus, it will be good to practice to get the stomach ready for race day.

Question: What % of the U.S. Population Has Completed a Marathon?

At breakfast today, Les was wondering how common it is in the U.S. for someone to have completed a marathon. Turns out it is pretty rare.

In 2006, the most recent year for which I could find trustworthy numbers about marathon finishing rates, about 410,000 people completed marathons according to a Running USA/RRIC report. That's up from the previous year estimate of around 395,000, by the way.

The U.S. population estimate for 2006, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, was 299,398,484.

This means that about .001 (that's one one thousandth) of the U.S. population completed a marathon in 2006. A select group.

One more little nugget...median finishing time for U.S. male marathon finishers in 2006 was 4:15:34.