09/17-09/23
Monday: 12 miles @ 7:17 pace
Tuesday: 11 miles @ 7:03 pace
Wednesday: 2-mile w/u, 3x2-mile @ HMP w/2min rest, 3-mile cool down. Splits - 5:30, 5:29 (10:59), 5:34, 5:28 (11:05), 5:30, 5:27 (10:58). Total: 11 miles
Thursday: off. Didn’t plan to take this day off, but I woke up too late to get the run in the morning and I got lazy after getting out of an appointment at 7:00pm.
Friday: 6 miles @ 7:07. Planned for 10, but had to cut short due to dad’s B-Day.
Saturday: 9 miles @ 7:05 pace + 4 striders
Sunday: 2-mile w/u, Half Marathon w/Smoove @ 1:17:41 unofficial on GPS, 1:19:18 official. 2-mile cool down. Splits on GPS - 5:51, 5:48, 5:50 (slowed for Smoove), 5:48, 5:44, 5:48, 5:53 (tied my shoes), 5:48, 5:48 (bathroom break), 5:53, 6:03 (overpass), 6:08, 5:53, (0.25 miles - 1:17. A bit long on the GPS because I had to double back on mile 8).Total: 17 miles
Total: 66 miles (I was shooting for mid-70’s this week)
The HMP workout was more difficult than I wanted and slower as well. I haven’t been able to hit HMP most of the cycle, but this is an improvement from earlier this cycle where I went 11:15, 11:25, 11:21, 11:25 w/the same rest. At this point, I can’t do anything about it.
Smoove pretty much summed up the HM, so I’ll just recap from my perspective. My stomach began acting up around mile 4 and by 7.5, I knew I wasn’t going to make it to the end. I tried to stop around mile 8 at a port-a-potty, but unfortunately, someone was using it, so I continued to run ran about 20meters behind Smoove until just short of mile 9 at the next port-a-potty. Lucky for me, someone was using that one as well. At this point, I began to panic because I really had to go and there were a bunch of runners/volunteers nearby, so I couldn’t just “go.” I ran a bit past the port-a-potty, stopped for about 10 seconds to think, and decided to double back and hope the person would be done. When I ran back, the person was gone, and I was able “to go” lol. I stayed in there maybe 60-90 seconds, I’m not too sure. I ran out of the port-a-potty and soon hit the 9-mile mark. After that, it was tough getting back into it and I was bonked from 10-12 miles. I was able to rally back a bit the last mile and hit close to the pace Smoove and I were running before the stomach issues. Overall, I had to stop to tie my shoes twice, at mile 6-6.5.ish and mile 11, and stopped for the bathroom a bit before mile 9. This was the first time so many bad things happened during a race, so I’m grateful for the learning experience and hope this doesn’t happen in 2 weeks. Dinner the night before was grilled chicken with a baked potato and finished eating around 8:30-8:45pm; nothing unusual for me. The pace itself didn’t feel too taxing considering the conditions, but after the “restart,” it was tough. Looking at the prior days, I did run maybe a bit too fast for my regular runs with the 7:0x’s and could’ve done myself a favor and gone a bit easier.
I’m still going to put myself in position for sub 2:30 for Chicago and try to go out 1:14high to give myself a shot. If it doesn’t work out, at least I know I tried. If things don’t go well, I also have the Houston half that I’m signed up for that I can switch into the full marathon, but I’d rather run the half to make an easier transition for track in March. If I had to guess, I'm probably in 2:32-2:34 shape, but I have no idea since this is my first marathon. My stomach is a legitimate concern for me as I have a sensitive stomach, so I’ll probably eat earlier the night before Chicago to give me more time to digest. Now, it’s time to just run easy and do 2-3 maintenance efforts to keep the metabolism going.
@ immunorunner, mikemike, Andy Dufresne – you guys are ready to roll! I can’t wait to maybe meet some of you guys and see how many of us reach our goals!
@Smoove - nice running with ya! I wish I could've finished and raced with you at the end - next time! Thanks for the company for 7.5 miles.