Another Sub-3 Marathon Thread

I'll go ahead and ask the obvious question - how were you feeling at the end of your two marathon pace 20 milers? And what are the weather conditions like where you live vs at Chicago?

I think you're there. Weather for Chicago is looking great. You've put in good mileage, have some very solid faster long runs, and have been doing long tempos. I would hang with the 3:00 pace group for the first half to 18 miles, sitting back and relaxing, and then see how you feel after that (i.e., whether you want to try to pick up the last 10k). One of the 3:00 pacers is named Josh. He'll get you there. He'll be at the pacer booth at the expo from 9-12 on Friday.

Another Sub-3 wrote:

Ok, so I'm still deciding on a pacing strategy for the weekend's Chicago Marathon. Usually I have this dialed in by now, but a really hot and humid summer made me a little less sure of my fitness heading into October. I'm thinking I'm in pretty good shape, though. My training went well, though, and I'm trying to gauge whether I can go sub-3. Here are the stats:

PR of 3:06 from last fall, finishing w/ some left in the tank

60-75 mile weeks

Four 20 mile runs, w/ two at 6:46 average pace

Weekly 6-8 mile tempos in the 6:10-6:20 range

Weekly track sessions

My long runs all all cut downs, so I start 20 at like 7:05 pace and finish at 6:20 for 6:46 overall

Haven't run any tuneup races, but my HM PR from a few years ago is 1:25 flat.

Thanks for you help!

I think you should have done more 20+ milers, I also think you are running your long runs too fast.

Having said that you should almost be there, although you might struggle in the last few miles.

Just pace it well and it's in the bag. Those 20-milers finishing at 6:20 alone are proof enough. Everything else looks solid as well. Don't get greedy, but sub-2:55 seems reasonable, even not accounting for heat/humidity factor.

This article originally rant in Running Times, which was 100x better than RW, so don't dismiss it.

Read it, live it, do it.

Go with a negative split, stick to your hydration/nutrition plan you've used throughout the training block.

Good luck

http://www.runnersworld.com/racing/learn-to-pace-like-a-pro

to scoop or not to scoop wrote:

I'll go ahead and ask the obvious question - how were you feeling at the end of your two marathon pace 20 milers? And what are the weather conditions like where you live vs at Chicago?

The first of those 20 milers was run in 85% humidity and was a little tough. I was really pleased given the conditions, but I had to work for it. The second was done on a cooler day with lower humidity and it was one of those awesome training runs were you feel so great and like you could run the marathon that day.

I should point out that though the two long runs above were my best, I rarely do them any slower than 7 minute pace, so though I know there's 15 seconds difference between 6:45 and 7 pace, it's not like all the rest of them were at 8 pace or something.

youcandoeet wrote:

I think you're there. Weather for Chicago is looking great. You've put in good mileage, have some very solid faster long runs, and have been doing long tempos. I would hang with the 3:00 pace group for the first half to 18 miles, sitting back and relaxing, and then see how you feel after that (i.e., whether you want to try to pick up the last 10k). One of the 3:00 pacers is named Josh. He'll get you there. He'll be at the pacer booth at the expo from 9-12 on Friday.

Thanks for the input. I'm definitely looking to negative split it, so going out with the 3 hour crew and trying to pick it up later is one of the options I'm considering. I'll look for Josh at the expo!

More detail: I said four 20 milers but one was actually 21.5. Also, I did a bunch of 18-19 milers. My cutback week long runs were usually around 16.

Relax, my friend. Barring odd race day issues, I don't see anything stopping you from sub 3. Good weather, good course.

Thanks, guys. It seems that the consensus is that I'm close or even there, I just need to not race like an idiot, start a little easy and chip away at the pace. I'll report back after the race!

THX1139 wrote:

Just pace it well and it's in the bag. Those 20-milers finishing at 6:20 alone are proof enough. Everything else looks solid as well. Don't get greedy, but sub-2:55 seems reasonable, even not accounting for heat/humidity factor.

I agree with the above remarks. I, too, am shooting for sub-3:00, but at New York. My mileage is similar to yours (60-75 mile weeks), but your long runs are faster than mine. You have done very well with those long runs. The hot/humid weather has been tough on me, and so I have finally put in a good 20+ mile run just recently (on Saturday). I went 23.25 miles at an overall 7:04 pace, and felt very good when done. All of the last nine were sub-7:00, and I finished the last few with 6:30s.

I think you should be a lock for sub-3:00. With this break in the weather, I am thinking I could go sub-3:00, too. I ran 3:02 in my qualifying race last November. Hot weather tends to mask one's true fitness, and I gather that is the case with many runners this year who are heading into fall marathons.

All the best to you...

What are some example of your track sessions - distance, time, rec...

It seems you are ready for 2:50, consider your long tempo ability. Good luck this weekend.

Another Sub-3 wrote:

The Obvious Answer wrote:

I think you should have done more 20+ milers, I also think you are running your long runs too fast.

Having said that you should almost be there, although you might struggle in the last few miles.

More detail: I said four 20 milers but one was actually 21.5. Also, I did a bunch of 18-19 milers. My cutback week long runs were usually around 16.

Slow 20 milers only show that you can run 20 miles slow.

Your long runs at, and faster than, MGP is VERY good sign you are in shape to go sub 3. I think you have that easy as long as you stick to a negative split pace plan. I would suggest starting around 6:45/50 then finish strong.

be sure to post your splits and race report back here. these threads are great for future sub-3ers to look and see how you felt before and how you did.

Did you get your sub 3?

Hi, guys, I'm just reporting back that, yes, I went sub-3 with a 2:58. I went with the plan of going out easy and picking it up in the second half. I left my gels in my gear check bag (!) and by the time I realized it, the gun was about to go off, so that really solidified my conservative start, because I was hesitant to push too much in the first half without fuel. Luckily, they handed out some on the course, so that turned out ok. My Garmin was going crazy the whole time, so I couldn't get an accurate read on the pace, which I think caused me to run a little slower. All said, though, I'm really pleased because I felt really great the whole way, finished strong and definitely feel that my mileage, my long runs, my paces etc. were enough to have run faster, maybe mid-2:50s. Obviously, I can't say for sure, but that's what my gut tells me. Oh, and great weather, too! Thanks for the advice and input!

nice work! a testament to good pacing. thanks for coming back with the update.

Based on the 20-miler and progression run you have done plus your mileage, yeah, you definitely could have dipped into something like 2:55.

Great job. That must've freaked you out a bit, leaving your gels in the gear check bag. I would've been walking around begging people for extras. Glad to hear it all worked out, and that you met your goal with room to spare.