Marathon Training Thread - Week Ending 10/10

Congrats to all the Chi runners who gutted it out there. Man, i hate the heat so i don't envy you guys. I totally understand the desire to want to quit midrace -- so hats off to you guys for sticking it out there and positive splitting.

Abu Seyame: That was one magnificent performance you gave us.

marmite: You must be really bummed out with the injury. I know i would be. And i would certainly be exuding one heckuva negative attitude. But you seem like you can handle the disappointment. Stick it out and come back stronger. Maybe your central governor is forcing you to take some downtime to rest up after your countless 90+ mile weeks. And i got my PhD the same year as you did, btw.

Pablo and Another: great that you are back at it. I took off the entire past 14 days except for one 4 miler.

My lower abs and adductors are aching and i suspect a sports hernia. But so far no diagnosis. I hope rest takes care of this but who the hell knows. Right now, i am enjoying the downtime but i am hungry to come back!

1st time poster-

Figured I would keep this thread alive since a lot of you guys ran Chicago this morning-

Goal Race: NYC Marathon

Time: Sub 2:40

Monday: Easy 60 minute bike at gym, sore from 22 miles yesterday.

Tuesday: 8 miles easy, around 750-8:00 pace

Wednesday: 10 miles. First 8 at 740, last 2 6, 5:55. Felt strong last 2! Stretch.

Thursday: 15 miles, Central Park. 4x2mile, on lower loop. 11:45, 11:40, 11:30,11:35. felt strong, could have pushed harder but would have been hurting bad.

Friday: 10 miles easy, 73minutes in Central Park.

Saturday: 8miles, 64 minutes. Easy pace.

Sunday: Staten Island, NY Half Marathon : 1:15:56. Goal was marathon goal pace (6:00), went a bit faster. Felt easy through 7miles around 555-600 pace. Last mile in 5:20 feeling strong. Post race went straight into a 6mile cooldown and felt fine- much better than 2 weeks ago post-Jersey City Half where I was stiff and beat up after a 1:15:30.

I am thinking a sub 2:40 in NYC on Nov 7 may be possible after all, but who knows- NY has some tough hills and after 20 miles of running anything can happen. 3 more weeks of hard work and I am hoping a 2:39:59 is in the works!

Great job to everyone in Chicago today!

NoleRunner - I don't know how much solace I can be, but simply put...that's the marathon. In my opinion, that's the one major drawback to the marathon as opposed to 5k/10k/half, etc...if you just don't have it on race day (or if the weather decides to intervene), there is no "do-over" next weekend, you just have to chalk it up to a learning experience and wait for the next one. I really hope you're not kicking yourself over this, because, obviously, your fitness was there...but outside forces prevented you from reaching your goal. It's a tough pill to swallow, but you have to move on. The fact that you called it a day at 17 probably saved you more than you can imagine. You can at least come back after a few weeks of recovery and salvage some residual fitness from this cycle. Have you thought about running the Jax marathon? If I were you, I'd think real hard about doing that one. You could easily take a couple weeks VERY EASY right now, and do a "mini-cycle" for Jax and really go for it there.

BTW, I was also tracking your running partner...he appeared to succumb to the heat as well.

CTA - I usually take more time off, but I've got a pesky little race in 27 days (NYC Marathon). I have no clue how bad that will be. I'm sure once I hit 1st Ave. or the Bronx I'll be wondering I am doing this....

Goal: Chicago

Goal Pace: 2:40

Final Race time: 2:46:43 ( 20 sec off my PR of 2:46:23)

Hey guys, I guess I wasn't the only one that had a tough race yesterday. Apparently, I suffered a heat stroke around mile 24. I somehow still finished even though I could no longer walk/run straight and was completely cross-eyed. I have never suffered like I did yesterday.

If you haven't seen my splits, they were as follows:

Split time of day time diff min/mile

05K 07:49:27AM 00:18:53 18:53 06:05

10K 08:08:21AM 00:37:47 18:54 06:05

15K 08:27:13AM 00:56:39 18:52 06:05

20K 08:46:06AM 01:15:32 18:53 06:05

HALF 08:50:15AM 01:19:41 04:09 06:06

25K 09:05:05AM 01:34:30 14:49 06:07

30K 09:24:27AM 01:53:53 19:23 06:15

35K 09:44:50AM 02:14:16 20:23 06:34

40K 10:06:51AM 02:36:17 22:01 07:05

Finish 10:17:18AM 02:46:43 10:26 07:40

Like Nole, I went back and forth about whether to run a conservative race and try to negative split. Doing so would probably have brought me in around 2:43. The problem is that I didn't come here and train my butt off all summer for a 2:43. I wanted a 2:40, so I went for it.

The first 15 miles were amazing. I felt incredible and the pace felt so easy. I was knocking off 6:05's like I ate them for breakfast. I saw my wife around mile 16 and still felt good. She even told me after the race that she had never seen me look so good. I was easy, fluid, and she just knew I had it in the bag. All of my training was paying off and this was going to be my day.

However, shortly after, I noticed that I wasn't sweating. My arms were bone dry. Mile 17-18 is when we started to get in the sun with no protection. Around here, I purposely knocked down my pace to 6:15 or so in order to try to save something for the end. It was too late though. I was in trouble. I was walking some by mile 23, but holding it together. I thought I could still get in around 2:43. Mile 24 I went to try to walk for about 20 seconds and tripped over my feet. Whatever happend after this point, I have no idea. I got to the finish, stopped, tried to walk, and just fell. I do remember my legs just being totally locked up. I was carted off to the medic tent, given an IV and incredible treatment. They said I had a heatstoke and severe deyhdration. I drank at least one gatorade and water at each station. However, the doctor there told me the likely culprit was the low humidity. Because I had been training in high humidity and then went to heat with low humidity, my body freaked out and couldn't absorb the fluids.

I second guessed my tactics a lot yesterday. In hindsight now, however, I don't question them at all. I was ready for this race and went after my goal. Obviously, I didn't make it and tortured myself like I never have before, but I think this is a better outcome than questioning what I could have done if I would have grown some balls.

I'll live to fight another day. To say that I was only 20 seconds off my PR from 2008 isn't so bad. Sure, I was really fit yesterday, but it just wasn't meant to be....yet.

Chicago Battle Report

Goal: low 2:30s

Finish: 2:35:34 (9 minute PR)

Splits from the website:

05K 07:48:57AM 00:18:24 18:24 05:55 10.14

10K 08:07:04AM 00:36:30 18:06 05:50 10.29

15K 08:25:19AM 00:54:45 18:15 05:53 10.22

20K 08:43:34AM 01:13:01 18:16 05:53 10.21

HALF 08:47:33AM 01:17:00 03:59 05:51 10.28

25K 09:01:47AM 01:31:13 14:13 05:52 10.23

30K 09:20:04AM 01:49:31 18:18 05:54 10.19

35K 09:38:32AM 02:07:59 18:28 05:57 10.1

40K 09:57:39AM 02:27:06 19:07 06:10 9.75

Finish 10:06:07AM 02:35:34 08:28 06:13 9.67

This was my 3rg marathon after ING Atlanta in 2007 (2:44) and Chicago 2008 (2:52). The key was adjusting my goal time to the weather. I was a casualty 2 years ago and wasn't going to spend the last 10K staggering around the course with every muscle seizing up like 2008. Held the 5:50-5:55 pace all the way to the last few miles then gutted it out. VERY pleased. Never felt comfortable but never felt awful until the end. Drank and drank and drank tons of Gatorade and Water yet still felt cramps coming in the upper hammies at the end. Another tough, hot Chicago! Congrats to all!

Hat's off to everyone who ran Chicago. Marathoning is never easy and even tougher when the weather is against you. It does make for some memories though!!

My week went well.

Mon lift 60mins

Tues 6 miles

Weds 5 miles then lift 60 mins

Thurs 6 miles

Fri off

Sat 9 miles

Sunday 16 miles

Things might be looking up for a semi-decent (for me) effort in Richmond next month. This was my first three days running in a row in over ten weeks. And, except for the 16 miler, other runs were harder-than-average efforts. Eighteen miler is on tap for next Sunday then the Army Ten on the 24th.

To all weekend racers: Rest up and enjoy a little recovery/down-time.

marmite: sorry to hear about the toe. heal well.

Congrats to all who endured Chicago. I did it in 2007 and blew up - 35 minutes over goal!!

Goal Race: Columbus 10/17

Goal Time: sub 2:42 (I'm only kidding myself - I really want a sub 2:40, but that will be a fine line between achievable and death)

M: 8.5 easy (7:10)

T: 12 w/8 at MP (8 - 6:08 avg)

W: 5.5 easy (7:32)

T: 9.3 w/6 x 800 (2:33 avg)

F: 6.7 easy (7:18)

S: 13 easy (6:54)

S: 5 easy (7:23)

Week: 60

First step back week in 2 months. Feel very fresh and ready to go. Forecast is looking good for Columbus so that is encouraging.

Bison - I will keep you company through December. I am running a 2nd marathon (Disney in January). I did Huntsville in 2007 (after blew up at Chicago) and enjoyed the event. I'm sure you're well aware of it's draw.

Oh - and, I'm only doing the 2nd marathon because my wife is doing it (her 2nd - her 1st was '07 Chicago) and I want to be there with her! So, depending on how Columbus goes - I may race it or... or nothing - I'm racing it. I can't enter and not race!

Hey guys,

Thanks for all the support on this thread. I didn't hit my goal, but am proud of how I ran and after talking to a lot of other people, and reading the posts on here, realize maybe I'm being a little too hard on myself and that the weather played a bigger factor then I am giving it credit for. I convinced myself that after training all summer in 90+ heat and humidity, at 1:00 every afternoon, that it didn't matter how hot it got. Well, I think it probably made the difference between breaking 2:40 and running 2:40:44. It was a 5:00 PR, and significantly better then Boston (2:49) so I guess I can't be upset. Now I'm excited to take 2 weeks completely off, let some injury issues heal up, race my Turkey Trot at Thanksgiving and Cross Club Nationals, and then focus on 5k-1/2 marathon in the winter/spring. I coach the Manhattan Track Club and the guys on my team ran great. Finished 44th (2:25:44), 51st (2:27:05), 64th (2:28:30), 83rd (2:31:22), another guy in 2:36 who for some reason disappeared from the results... as I have apparently (as of like 5 minutes ago... maybe because my 35k split is missing?), 155th (2:38:45), 170th (2:39:34), 188 (2:40:44), and 535th (2:55:51). Felt bad for that last guy. It was his first and I he was at 1:20:00 at the half. Things obviously did not go well the last half. Haven't spoken to him yet.

Here is the blow by blow: Felt ok all week. Not motivated at all. Ran 8, off, 7 (2.5 up, 2 at MP, 2.5 down), 5, 4, 3 leading up to the race. Carbo loaded big time starting on Thursday and made sure I was drinking a ton of Gatorade and water all week.

Morning of the race had 1/2 a plain bagel, a glass of OJ, coffee and about 3/4 of a banana. Felt pretty good jogging around before the race... the injury issues were under control!

I decided to go with a 4 gel strategy. 1 15 minutes before, and then one at 10k, 20k and 30k. Also planned to get in as much fluid as possible and at almost every station took both a gatorade, and 2 waters (one for the head, and one to drink from). I think this made a HUGE difference. For the 1st of my 3 marathons, I was peeing pale yellow at the finish. My other 2, in MUCH cooler weather, I was peeing almost brown. My wife also hit me up with 10oz Gatorade bottle at about 20k, and I drank about 3/4 of that through the next 2 miles. Could have used another at 20, but somehow I missed her. For all I know, that could have been my 45 seconds there.

Now for the race itself. Met up with Nole, 3 Central Park track club guys, 2 of my teammates, and 2 other friends. So we had a good group to shoot for the same time. One of the CPTC guys did a lot of the work, and I can't thank him enough. Especially since I stepped on his heals about 3 times in the first 5 miles. I had to be so annoying. Plan was 6:10, 6:03, 5:57-6:00 the rest of the way.

1- 6:10. Spot on. Did NOT feel easy. Hammy/hip was a little funny... awkward leg kick, but I have had worse. Know that I just need to get through 10k-15k and it usually feels fine after that.

2- 5:58. A little fast. Not comfy yet. Same hammy/hip issues.

3- 6:03. Still not comfy, but through 3 spot on. Same hammy/hip issues.

4- 5:51. Knew we picked it up, but didn't think that much. Legs and breathing starting to settle and the thoughts of "how am I going to keep this up" start to subside.

5- 5:56. Pretty much perfect.

6- 6:00. In a groove. That mile went by REALLY fast... gaining confidence.

7- 5:53. Whoops

8- 6:01. Consciously tried to slow it down.

9- 5:53. Argh. Can't get in a proper rhythm. Either a little too fast or a little too slow. Doesn't help there is a group right in front of us that is all over the place with their pacing. My group (I was running with like 7 friends) is looking decent. At this point, I'm a little nervous that the 5:51, 5:53, and now my 3rd 5:53 in 9 miles is going to come back. But those miles are done... just need to concentrate on the next ones.

10- 5:58. Nice spot on. Starting to work, but legs are numbing to the pace and aerobically I feel fine. One of the guys on my team drops back, and one starts to pull ahead.

11- 5:53. Feeling better. Thinking 2:37-40 is in the cards, but now I really need to slow things down and watch it. The 2 CPTC guys go with the pack ahead of us, and I decide to bide my time.

12- 6:00. Get the crowd amped. Throw up the arms to tell them to make some f***ing noise. Feeling a little rejuvenated. RIght around now I think Nole starts to think about dropping back. I slow down with him, but he lets me go after a bit.

13- 6:02. Now starting to concentrate. Know I will need to get tough. Also notice that it's getting warm... though not too bad.

14- 5:55. Work my way back to the 2 CPTC guys. Figured it was better then flying solo.

15- 6:00. Still cranking, but don't think I can keep up 6:00 pace. Pass one of the CPTC guys (the guy who did most of the work up to that point) as he stops and stretches. Unfortunately, don't see him again.

16- 6:07. Consciously slowed down. Figured if I can run the last 10 at 2:40 pace 6:06-7 per miles) I'll have 2:38-9 wrapped up. This was my goal pace when I started the segment. Looked at the map enough ahead of time where I think I kind of know where I am. Thinking its a normal run now... 10 miles isn't really all that far.

17- 6:00. Over compensate as it's getting tough and noticeably hotter. With each mile that goes by, I am getting more confident.

18- 6:09. Put head down. Remember thinking don't worry about the last 2 miles. Just break up the race into 2 5ks and then worry about what's left.

19- 6:07. I could really pull this off. Ok, this is where I died in ny. Every mile I make without collapsing is better then there.

20- 6:10. Still going. Did I really just get through the mile in 6:10? I'm gonna do it! I can run 2:38.

21- 6:10. Hot damn. My legs are shot.

22- 6:40. Stop and stretch. Drop a few f bombs. How do I get TO 22 and then mess up. NOOO. Realize that may have just ruined everything. So frustrated to have gotten that far and then die. I mean, if it was the last 10k, OK... but with 7k to go? COME ON!

23- 6:32. Get what i thought was a second wind... Then i check the watch. Guess I really am dying. Shortening the stride seems to help.

24- 6:44. The nail in the coffin. Stop and stretch (just a few seconds) and wonder if i will make it to the finish. Really notice the heat now.

25- 6:37. Exactly the same as 23. At this point I'm thinking "is it mental? Do you just need to get tough?" Sitting here writing this now, I still don't have that answer. I mean, I thought I was speeding it up, but it wasn't nearly as fast as I thought.

26.2- 7:42. Well, I remember thinking I need to close in like 5:30 to break 2:40. I knew I couldn't do it. Was demoralized. I really let myself down. To make things worse for the 3rd time, I felt like I was getting a little bit of a 2nd, or perhaps now, more like a 4th wind. Turns out I cranked out 6:18 pace for the last 2.2K... Not quite Abu territory, but respectable. I lost my race in miles 22 and 24/25. 10 seconds faster in each of those miles, and who knows, maybe I could have found 10 more seconds in that last 2.2K. I think I probably could have.

I'm a little beside myself thinking about it... I am not good at letting things go. If I ran sub 2:40, I could retire happy. Now I may need to give NYC a try next year. Of course, NYC is a tougher course, and conditions could be variable again. We'll see. Right now I am going to try and get it out of my head. I ran tough, never completely folded, and coached a great team. I ran my 3rd marathon in 11 months, and went from not running a step for 2.5 years prior to Jan 2009, with my longest race ever being 3 10ks, to having a respectable marathon PR. I know this should make me happy, and with 2 kids, a full time job, coaching a team of 10, etc, I don't know if I can expect much more. But I never want to short change myself... and think there are improvements to be made. Honestly, I wouldn't change a thing with my training. I think just having another year under my belt will give me what I need. Will try and be consistent 70-90 miles a week in the winter and spring, without the super long run. We'll see though.

Looks like my team finished 2nd in the Team Results! Had we split ourselves up into 2, which we were going to do but never bothered, we would have finished 2nd and 6th. Not bad for a bunch of Manhattan working stiffs!

pablo wrote:

BlaznBison - I'd say given your recent mileage, and your 32:low 10k recently, sub-1:12 is definitely in the cards. Which half marathon are you running?

Running the Middle Half in Murfreesboro. It's a fast course but not very deep around my goal time. There's usually a few guys sub 1:10, and then a bunch of runners 1:15+. B&B guy from Twin Cities is a semi-regular long run partner of mine...small world.

What kind of shoes do most of you wear for the half? I bought some Asics Hyper Speeds for the marathon but decided I really don't like them that much. I train in Kinvaras, so I could use those, but I'm thinking about my Asics Piranhas. I ran 3x5k in them last week and was fine, but for a 10k, they put a hurting on my calves. With the half being a slower pace, think these could manage?

I actually use the Hyper Speeds for the 5k to HM and they work great for me. I use the Asics Tarthers for the 30k - marathon. They actually weigh about the same as the Hyper Speeds but provide a little more cushion so they would be perfect for a half too. I would steer you away from the Piranhas for the half UNLESS you have already done at least a 10 mile run in them. Those are as minimalist as they come and could prove to be a problem for that far of distance.

Here is the full recap of the complete Chicago Marathon training cycle.

Last Week:

M- 7 T- off W- 8.5 (2mi MP= 6:15,6:09), Th- 6 F- 5 Sa- 4 Su- 27.2 - Total= 58mi/6d

Weeks of training -- mileage totals:

March: 28, 18, 53, 56

April: 53, 24, 51, 60

May: 50, 56, 59, 44

June: 32, 66, 62, 55

July: 81, 65, 64, 51 (achilles aggravated)

Aug: 47, 42, 66, 18, 5

Sept: 42, 53, 57, 76

Oct: 57, 58

Total= 1549mi - 31 wks - 50mi/6d

Marathon Splits and Commentary:

1- 619 - Started way back in the field b/c I showed up late, so I was doing a lot of weaving. Probably 3k runners ahead of me at the start

2- 616 - weaving and getting annoyed

3- 615 - it is hard to pass people downtown with all the turns

4- 617 - starting to clear up

5- 628 - begin talking to another young guy, helps to calm me down after the annoyance of weaving in and out of runners

6- 628 - another mile with the same guy, going too slow though

7- 608 - politely tell my new friend I am going to speed up and I start clicking off miles at my goal pace

8- 609 - legs feel tired and achy, a bit worried if I would be able to hold pace

9- 612 - took my first GU

10- 608 - legs still don't feel good but I keep clicking off 610's

11- 611 - mindset is improving as I get near the half

12- 607

13- 608

14- 605 - surprisingly my legs continue to feel better and better, coming to life around half-way

15- 611 - take 2nd GU

16- 605 - I can tell the heat is starting to get to the runners ahead of me

17- 559 - getting more and more pumped up as I am really streaming by runners now

18- 603

19- 559 - Not sure how I am running this fast considering I could barely do 2x4mi at this pace last week, feels easy though

20- 605 - take the AccelGel I grabbed on the course and it goes right through me....thought I might have to stop and use the portapotty- Suck in!!

21- 614 - start feeling the heat, plus I have to go to the bathroom. A little worried I'm about to crash

22- 607 - saw my fiance at 21mi and the bathroom urge passed, feel good again and continue to pick off people by the dozen

23- 608

24- 614

25.2- 713 (5:48/mi) - approaching my apartment which is on Michigan Ave -- Adrenaline is pumping, really moving now and the crowds are amazing

26- 545

Finish- 2:41:25, 196th place

After glancing back at my training numbers I am ecstatic with the result yesterday. I probably could've pushed the envelope a little more and went for sub-2:40 but I really didn't know what to expect as a result of my inconsistent preparation. After three marathons though, it is clear that I am made to run this distance. All three of my attempts have been even or negative splits. Perhaps I am just not racing hard enough!?

Nevertheless, this race was an incredibly positive finish to a frustrating training cycle and definitely has renewed my appetite to break my PR (2:33:55) in the Spring. Now the question is where to do it.

Once again, thanks for all the support and I look forward to following the rest of the crew who will be racing in the upcoming weeks.

The problem with Chicago is that if its sunny and warm. Once you get past the half way mark you are out in the open and you just bake. No shielding from the sun nothing....

I'm surprised you guys all did so well in the last half considering the conditions. In '08 I positive split by 12 minutes and struggled to run 8:30/miles.

3TM, nice race. I don't think New York can have such warm conditions. Its 4 weeks later in the year, sun is less strong, and a hot day in early November is 70F if that.

Wow, congrats to all the Chicago marathoners! Those were some excellent times. I really enjoyed reading all the race recaps. It's getting me very excited for my race.

I took it pretty easy this week and it seems that my ankle is responding well. I'm hoping this trend continues, although, I feel like I won't be where I initially wanted. My training during this cycle has been extremely inconsistent, so I have decided to adjust my goal time.

Goal Race: Philadelphia

Goal Time: 2:40

Mo - Off

Tu - AM: 10 miles including 3 x 2 miles (11:15, 11:32, 12:09); PM: 11 miles easy

We - 8 miles easy

Th - 10 miles easy

Fr - Off

Sa - 21 miles easy

Su - Off

Total - 61 miles

Awkward Turtle - My God man...I've suffered heat stroke before, and as you now may know, it's not pretty. I commend you for gutting it out and finishing the race. I will warn you though, you've got to be extremely careful with the recovery from something serious like that. For me anyway, it was a HUGE psychological issue coming back into running, I just never felt "normal" for a couple of months after that happened. You certainly made some serious strides this time around and it will pay off when you get to a marathon with some decent weather!

music is happiness - I was tracking you as well, and once I saw your first couple of splits, I figured you had adjusted accordingly. To only have a 90 second positive split on a GOOD day would be a good marathon, let alone a day like Chicago. A major congrats on the 9 minute PR, you ran smart out there and it paid off!

Mike in HC - You seem to be rebounding into form at the right time, I assume nothing is nagging you now?

3TM - Awesome report! Don't beat yourself up about the race...it's a 5:00 PR in horrible conditions, you couldn't really ask for more. Not to mention you have lingering problems with the hip/hammy in training, but you're always able to at least block it out come race day. You're progressing my friend, and believe me, you'll retire with your 2:3x marathon!

blaznbison - Wow, small world. If/when you see him again, let him know that he was the one that pulled me to a 4:00 PR, and for that I thank him. FWIW, I have a pair of the Pirahnas, and I won't race anything over 10k in them. Definitely not a half. Race the half with the shoes you plan to wear for the marathon, if they are the Hyperspeeds, then wear those. I know a handful of people wore the Kinvara's for the marathon and seemed to love them, though personally, they look like more of a lightweight trainer to me. I wore the Adidas Adios at Twin Cities and absolutely loved them, if you're a neutral runner (and it sounds like you are), I'd recommend at least trying on a pair.

Abu - You're right, you really have this whole marathon thing nailed. You gave a great report of how a marathon should be run. Looking back on it now, do you think starting far back in the Corral helped you pace better overall? Just from looking at your splits, it does.

P.S. I can't believe you overcame the...uh...bathroom issues, when those start for me, it's a downward spiral.

Goal - 2:26

results from chicago, debut marathon...

got out faster than planned and payed for it, ran with a good group from 5ish - 16ish

splits -

1 - 528

2 - 1102(534)

3 - 1635(533)

4 - 2204(528)

5 - 2740(535)

6 - 3310(529) - caught group of 5-6 guys, and decided to roll with since i felt good

7 - 3839(528)

8 - 4411(531)

9 - 4940(529)

10 - 5510(529)

11 - 6038(528)

12 - 6608(529)

13 - 7138(529)

13.1 - 7215 - wanted to be around 113

14 - 7705(526) - pack picked it up stuck in the back

15 - 8236(530)

16 - 8812(535)

17 - 1:33:51(538)

18 - missed mile

19 - 1:46:02(12:11 18/19)

20 - missed/didnt wanna see split - started havin to walk at times - vision started being blurred - start wanting to drop out

21 - 2:01:35 (15:33 20/21)

22 - 2:10:09 (8:33)

23 - 2:18:42 (8:33)

24 - 2:27:08 (8:26) - hate marathon

25 - 2:35:25 (8:16)

finish - 2:46:06 (10:41 last 1.2)

last 10k was about 54 minutes (8:42/mile pace)

very dissapointing first marathon

didnt eat enough food for breakfast (1/2 a bagel)

was not expecting it to be 85 degrees, and also did not know there was no shade the 2nd half of the race...

only real positive things i can take from it is i ran pretty good for 18miles, decent through 20

never would have expected this shitty of a performance

might take some time to get motivated to do another, best shape of my life wasted

Ok, it's time for a full race report with splits.

Mile 1: 5:34 - Felt easy and relaxed, but I could already tell (even on the warm up) that the weather was going to be a big factor for me.

Mile 2: 5:35 - Just getting into the pace and enjoying the crowds.

Mile 3: 5:35 - Still just kind of getting into the groove and trying to figure out who I'm going to try to work with. Starting to feel a bit warm.

Mile 4: 5:29 - Started working with a little group but maybe went a bit too quick. Not a big deal. Still felt ok.

Mile 5: 5:33 - Right where I want to be at this point in the race.

Mile 6: 5:30 - Perfect. I wanted to start speeding up very gradually at this point. Felt like the effort was very manageable. However, I was sweating pretty heavily.

Mile 7: 5:31 - Still perfect pace. Running with a nice pack of people, including many of the top women.

Mile 8: 5:39 - Not sure what happened on the pace as I didn't feel like we changed anything. But not too concerned. Overall pace is still good, and I feel ok.

Mile 9: 5:32 - Took first gel. Feeling ok, but warm. Pace is still good.

Mile 10: 5:30 - Right on pace. Running with a good group. However, a bandaid that I had on my left foot was rolled up in my shoe and stabbing me in the arch. Felt like I was stepping on a rock every step.

Mile 11: 5:36 - Stopped to fix my shoe issue. Probably stopped for about 10-15 seconds. Got back up and settled in with a group that included one of my teammates. We started trying to work together.

Mile 12: 5:32 - Started dropping my teammate as I wanted to start moving up a little bit. However, my hips started feeling pretty tight, like I could get full range of motion.

Mile 13: 5:34 - Got pumped up by the big crowds downtown, but consciously tried to keep things under control. Feeling very warm now and sweating very heavily.

Half - 1:12:52

Mile 14/15: 11:11 - Missed mile 14 somehow. Starting to feel a little rough. Hips are not moving smoothly, and sun is beating down.

Mile 16/17: 11:25 - Missed another mile mark, this time because I was drinking fluids and taking a gel. Feeling pretty rough and hoping that the gel will improve things.

Mile 18: 5:47 - Starting to really hurt. This was when I realized that I was no longer sweating and knew I was in big trouble. My left calf started to grab every few steps, and I had to be very careful so as not to cause it to completely blow up. Getting very concerned.

Mile 19: 5:50 - Still holding it together, but just barely. Temperature is rising fast, and I'm totally dehydrated. Now all the muscles in my legs and feet are getting in on the action. My arches are cramping very badly, along with the calves.

Mile 20: 6:00 - This is when I decided to finish. I made a conscious decision to gut it out, regardless of time. In order to keep my legs from completely blowing up on me, I had to change my stride to a short little shuffle. I'm in bad shape.

Mile 21/22: 12:30 - Missed another mile mark because I think I was pretty much incoherent at this point. Completely dehydrated, cramping everywhere. My arms, neck, and back are cramping. Body is basically shutting down. But I'm not stopping.

Mile 23: 6:33 - Still holding it together. Somehow my calves are staying under control, though almost every step I feel them spasm. I'm running a pace that I think I can hold to the finish.

Mile 24: 6:39 - Running on pure spite and stubbornness. My body is done. I'm just trying to survive to the finish. Somehow, I'm still passing guys.

Mile 25: 6:38 - Can feel the end now. Hurting very, very badly, but with the end almost in sight, I know I can finish. Still managing the cramps somehow.

Last 1.2: 8:03 - Just gutting it out. Got passed by a few elite women. Didn't care. Once I saw the turn onto Roosevelt I knew I was going to live through it. That's all I wanted. I made the turn, basically stumbled up the bridge and turned onto Columbus. I was just trying to put one foot in front of the other when my teammate pulled up next to me and said, "Let's go." I thought I was gonna die, but I said to hell with the cramps and started "sprinting" (I'm sure it was like 6:00 pace, but it felt fast as hell). It hurt on a level I've never experienced. I finished and started falling over before a volunteer grabbed me. I was escorted to the medical tent because I think I looked pretty bad and was not totally coherent.

I ended up spending the next hour and a half in the medical tent because they were pretty concerned about me. Everything from the waist down was cramping severely. I had like seven people working on me, trying to work out the cramps. They put five ice bags on me to cool me down. They made me drink lots of water and Gatorade, and they made me eat pretzels to get some salt. I was a mess. My vitals were bad. About 30 minutes after the race my HR was still 120, and my BP was 98/50. Finally, after about 45 minutes, they were able to get the cramping to stop. However, I was not allowed to leave because they were still worried that I would pass out. After nearly 90 minutes in the tent, they finally decided I was ok to leave. I cannot thank those medical people enough. They were freakin' awesome. I don't know what they get paid, or if they get paid at all, but they deserve more than they're getting. And I told them as much before I left. I was a mess for the rest of the day. My body was just torn up. I've never felt like that before. I felt sick for basically the rest of the day, and I barely slept Sunday night. In retrospect, the whole thing wasn't all that fun.

Despite the fact that I did a lot of damage to myself and didn't really even come close to my goal, I think there are some really important things that I can take away from Sunday's experience.

1) Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor. While I'm proud of the fact that I persevered, it probably wasn't the smartest thing I've ever done. Lesson learned.

2) Never, ever, ever run a marathon on a day when there is even an outside chance that it will get above 65 degrees. My body simply can't handle it, given my propensity for heavy sweating.

3) Take salt and potassium tablets during the race. I took water and/or Gatorade at every aid station, but I was not able to retain the water in my muscles because my electrolytes were depleted. I think this would have made a big difference.

4) Most importantly, I learned how deep my well is. Last year, when I ran my first marathon in 2:28, I didn't really face any adversity. I had a little stomach issue that caused me to take a brief bathroom break, but other than that, I felt pretty fantastic for the whole race. I never hit a wall. I was closing at the same pace I'd started the race. After the race I kept thinking about how much easier the marathon was than I expected. Not this year. This year I had to actually fight through it. I had to hurt on a level that I'd never experienced before. This is important because now I know what I can really handle. And on a good day, when my body feels good and the weather cooperates, I can take it to a whole new level. And that excites me.

Now I just have to repair all of the damage that I did. My body is very upset at me, and I'm more sore than I've ever been in my life due to all the cramping. But it'll pass. And when it does, I'll get back on the horse and start looking at next year. My goal hasn't changed.

[quote]pablo wrote:

Mike in HC - You seem to be rebounding into form at the right time, I assume nothing is nagging you now?

Hey Pablo,

I still get a little soreness in the heel post-run but if I can handle a couple eighteen milers with the Army Ten in the middle of the next three weekend runs, I hope to run well enough to post a report and at least not be embarrassed!!! These times are incredible.

Also thanks to D2runner0609 and mrb for the reports.

To D2runner0609, you'll get over it in a week or three. Many of us have been there and it is a pretty helpless feeling when you've put in the time and effort only to find nature throwing you a curveball. I ran Marine Corps on Oct 31, 2004 and it was the hottest day of the month. At least I didn't go to the hospital that day, though many did.

Try to think of it as 'The best shape of my life SO FAR wasted'.