Marathon Training Update - Week 6

Woohoo! I made it through back-to-back high mileage weeks without a single injury. ITB problems, have you missed your flight? Achilles tendonitis, thanks for picking up your belongings and leaving the trays in the upright and locked positions. This Laminator plane has just taken off and is scheduled for a comfortable and relaxing three week taper before landing safely on marathon Sunday on November 2nd. Thank you very much for staying with us and yes I will enjoy the rest of my flight.

Week #6 (10/6-10/12)

What I Planned:

Recovery Run: 7 miles at recovery pace

Interval Run: 8 total miles with 4 interval miles at 5:59 min/mi pace

Marathon Pace Run: 12 miles at 7:03 min/mi pace

Easy/Recovery Run: 8 miles at easy pace

Staten Island Half Marathon Race: 13.1 miles at race pace

Total week 6 distance: 48 miles

What I Ran:

Recovery Run: 7.2 miles at 8:12 min/mi pace

Interval Run: Skipped due to severe side stitches after 1st interval

(Became a general aerobic run of 7.28 miles at 7:22 min/mi pace)

Marathon Pace Run: 12.3 miles at 7:00 min/mi pace

Easy/Recovery Run: 8.2 miles at 7:30 min/mi pace

Staten Island Half Marathon Race: 13.1 miles at 6:32 min/mi pace

Total week 6 distance: 48.1 miles; avg pace – 7:12 min/mi

How I Ran:

The week started off with a recovery run at an easy pace. I took the opportunity to run this one with the Flyers running group. Unfortunately, even my recovery pace was apparently too fast for those who turned up to run that day. As a result, after about halfway, I had to ditch the group and run by my lonesome, which made me look somewhat speed-snobbish which I really wasn’t trying to be.

I was looking forward to the interval run the next day for a few reasons. First, I had never attempted to run sub 6-minute intervals before so I felt it was a good speed test for me. Second, I had never done 4 (count’em 4) one-mile intervals in a single session. The most I’ve ever done is 3, but because I felt as if my stamina has improved quite a bit since the start of marathon training, I wanted to see if I could handle one extra interval. Third and finally, this was to be my last interval run before the marathon, which meant that if my fast-twitch muscles didn’t show up for work, they would have to pack it in until after the big day. The first interval started off well, as I ran a strong 5:51 for the first mile. And then somewhere in the middle of the second one, I developed a severe side stitch on my left side that forced me to stop and regroup. I walked to the end of the track to give my muscles a chance to relax, but when I tried to run fast again, the stitch came back, stronger than ever. I repeated this cycle a few more times until I convinced myself that this twitch just wasn’t going to allow a speed session workout. So as much as it pained me psychologically to do so, I aborted the speedwork and just covered the planned distance at a steady pace. Looking back, I think the main culprit for my stitches had to be the big late lunch I had that day. It was too big of a meal at too late of a day to fuel my run. Lesson learned.

In contrast, the midweek long run at marathon pace turned out surprisingly well as I completed two loops of the park at 7:00 min/mi pace. I was even able to hammer out the second loop somewhat faster than the first. I attribute some of this success to my frustration at not completing my intervals the day before. In the end, I think this run will probably prove more useful to me in gearing up for the marathon because it provided my body with some familiarity of running long distances at marathon pace.

After another recovery run, which was rather uneventful, we arrived at today, Sunday, Oct 14th. While a significant portion of the running community is probably drawn to the grand spectacle that is the Chicago Marathon, yours truly ran a half-marathon in the borough of Staten Island. Although I had planned for this race to just be a last test run prior to the marathon, it became anything but as I somehow ended up running my best time ever in a not-so-flat course on a warmer-than-expected day on my way to a PR by 1:44! I’ll post a full race report tomorrow when I can devote to it the time it deserves but suffice it to say that I think I must have borrowed some elite runners’ legs out there today.

Hope everyone had a great racing and training weekend!