Weekly Recap-2nd week of Limbo

Sunday
Pretty strong eight, could have easily gone to 10 but had to stop at 8 as I was slipping off mill being soaked through.

Followed up with 13 on bike.

Yep, I have a stomach bug. Well, at least I have an excuse for a crappy running week.

Saturday
5 miler. Stomach still hurt.

Friday
Went for 15, quit at 3. Was felling nauseous. Sore ankles also; I might be sick

Thursday
Off

Wednesday
Off

Tuesday
5 miler, with 20 miles on bike cross training

Monday
six miler

Weekly Recap-12 weeks to Appleton, WI (probably not)

Sunday
10 miler

Saturday
Off

Friday
8.5 miler

Thursday
Off

Wednesday
11.5 miler w/out fan. Slowed down 15 secs/mile. Made big difference. Felt good but did sweat through shoes.

Tuesday
Off

Monday
Seven miler

Post Marathon-Week 4

Sunday
1500 yards in pool, then hit pavement about 11:00 p.m. for quick four miler.

Besides the suffocating heat, and a gallon of sweat soaking through my shoes, it was nice to run outside.

Saturday
8 miler with 3 x 800 gradual hills. Slowed pace down my 15 sec / mile, made big difference. Still sweated through shoes, but breathing a lot less labored.

For long runs, drop it down 20-30 sec / mile, should allow me to go out to 15.

Friday
Up at 5:15, on mill at 5:30 to beat heat. Wanted to do 11, but 90% humidity made it hard to breath; it's like training at altitude. Did 7.

Cross Train: 60 minutes on stationary bike.

Thursday
Cross train: 15 on bike, 1500 yards in pool

Wednesday
Six miler.

Tuesday
Tried to do 11 at lunch, made it to 3. Tried to do 11 at night, made it to four.
Heat brutal. I'm way overweight.

Need to spend next 4 weeks reducing mileage and upping (big time) fat burning cross training. Then do five weeks hard running.

Monday
Five miler

Post Marathon-Week 3

Ran one day, 9 on Tuesday.

Ate at French bakery twice. Went out of town, ate three times as much as normal indian, greek, and chinese food.

Start new cycle Monday.

Post Marathon-Week 2

Sunday
11 miler

Saturday
I tried to do 10, quit at four, couldn't breath. I'm 75% sure that I'm going to skip a fall marathon. Really Serious. I run to PR, if I can't train to do that, I'm not interested.

Friday
6.5 miles durning lunch and an hour of cross traning (bike / swim) in the afternoon.

Thursday
Off

Wednesday
Hour of cross training during lunch and a 6 miler a night

Tuesday
Off

Monday
7 miler

Post Marathon-Week One

Ran one day, Saturday five miles. Felt OK.

I've been eating like a pig (pizza, ice cream, pastries, and everything else), and drinking bottles of wine. It's been nice, but time to get back to work next week.

I have committed to experimenting this cycle. Running six a days a week (high 60 miles) this summer is not attractive. I would risk it if the weather was guaranteed to be cold in September at the Wisconsin Fox Cities Marathon. But it could easily be 60s to 70s, even though they say average start temperature is 46 (heard that before).

No, I'm cutting my mileage down this cycle to high fifties / low sixties but adding cross training. I join local gym for swimming and biking. Well see how it progresses.

Marathon #11-Newport Oregon

Newport, Oregon

May 30, 2009

 

            This was my third serious effort to run a sub 3:10.  For my first attempt, at the Marine Corp marathon last fall, I didn't miss a single training run in the entire cycle.  I was in top shape and my weight was perfect.  However, like most my races, the day's weather was hotter than the seasonal average.  I fell off the 3:10 pace at mile 18; though by mile nine I knew it wasn't going to happen.

 

            I tried again at the Phoenix marathon in January.  With a flat course and dry desert air, I held a 3:10 pace all the way to mile 23 before faltering, although I did salvage a 3:13:20 PR.  I concluded that if it had been either 10 degrees cooler, or if I been five pounds lighter, I would have made it.  Not able to control the former, I decided to focus on the latter in preparation for this marathon.

 

I soon discovered that regarding the latter, I didn't have much control either, well self-control.  I live an ascetic existence during a normal 12 week training cycle, and therefore allow myself a week or two of culinary hedonism after each marathon.  I gorge on double cheeseburgers, pizza, pastries, beer, and two or three bottles of wine.  And that's just what I consume at the airport flying home from a race.

 

            I try to hold the weight gain down to five pounds, but this post race cycle coincided with the start of tax season.  With the extra stress and work, I continued to eat poorly and the five pounds soon became ten.  I immediately felt the effects when starting this cycle.  After long runs, I had muscle strain.  Speed workouts were worse; for half the cycle I was on the verge of shin-splints, which I haven't experienced in years.

 

            I was eventually able to loose the extra-extra five pounds I carried, but not the original extra five.  By race week, I was the same weight as in Phoenix.   Coincidentally, the weather projection was about the same.  Gun time temperatures were forecasted to be 50 degrees, however with significantly more humidity than Phoenix.  On the plus side, there was a thick fog forecasted from sunrise to 8:30 a.m. 

 

            All in all, I was doubtful about reaching sub 3:10.  But there was still hope, mostly tied to the course.  The race website stated, "Is our course really that flat? It really is! Almost half of our finishers record P.R.'s."  But conspicuously absent for the website was the standard hill elevation profile. 

            "Is it true a world record was set on our course? Yes, it is. Herb Phillips ... ran a 2:47:28 in 2004 breaking the single age (63) World Record (2:48)"

 

            But the most salient endorsement was from Runner's World magazine.  Of the top ten courses producing the most Boston qualifiers (BQ), Newport was listed as fourth.  In prior years, an astonishing 25% of participants ran their BQ time; the national average is 7%.  However, it would be revealed that the small town of Newport was concealing a deceitful little secret.

 

            We discovered the first clue the day before the race.  Though the majority of the course went out and back along a highway hugging a riverbank, the first four miles snaked through the town streets.  As my running mates and I drove around town, we encountered several rolling hills.  Some were only 10 feet, a couple others about 30 feet or so.  The heights aren't themselves bad, but the slopes were relatively steep.  The infamous Heartbreak Hill in Boston is 70 feet, but stretched out over 800 yards. However, it's just as fatiguing to tackle a 30 foot rise that crests in 150 yards.

 

Our puzzled self-queries began, "I think we run up this hill, isn't this Olive street?" Around a few more turns, "To get to the highway, don't we have to go over that hill there?"  In each case, we assumed we were reading the map incorrectly.  However, the true answer to the course's spectacular results wasn't revealed until we boarded the shuttle bus on race morning; it's one we never would have suspected.

 

"I can't believe how many turns there are through town," said a runner two seats behind me.

"They added some streets to make the course longer this year," said the one adjacent to him.

 

"Longer?! You're kidding."

            "No. They recertified the course this year and found it was short."

 

The Race Director confessed all the details at the post race awards ceremony.  To be a Boston qualifier, you have to recertify the course every ten years.  This was the 11^th annual Newport marathon.   When they remeasured, they found it was 4/10^th of a mile short.  Then with a cheeky grin the Director said, "Well, we suspected it for years as every other runner across the finish line would say, 'Hey, my GPS watch wasn't working."

 

4/10^th doesn't sound like much, but it equates to 3-6 minutes depending on your speed.  The majority of Boston qualifiers barely make it with just one or two minutes to spare; this explained the incredible high BQ percentage in prior years.  "Prior" being the keyword as this year's participates now faced the full monty.

 

So there I stood 20 feet from the start line:  Five pounds too heavy, completely warm just wearing a half-cut tanktop, and headed towards an array of rolling hills.  "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" The gun fired and we were off.

 

            At mile one, 10 seconds off pace.  Over a few more rolling hills and at mile two, 15 seconds off pace.  Up a steep 30 footer, and breathing a little hard at mile three.  Over the last steep hill at four and onto the highway not feeling very sanguine.

 

            At mile five I caught a break.  This course section drew near a hill covered with towering trees.  They completely blocked out the sun and I cooled off a little bit, and came back on pace.  My stride relaxed, and at mile eight I was 20 seconds head of pace.

 

            However by ten, the sun rose and cleared the trees.  A running mate told me after the race that it was about this point when he said to a third Houston running mate, "I bet Dave is cursing the weather right now."  I replied, "What a coincidence; I told myself at that point that John is probably telling Pete, 'Dave is probably cursing the weather.'," which I was.

 

            At the halfway mark, I was 45 seconds ahead of pace and exactly where I wanted to be on time.  However, my enthusiasm was nowhere near where I hoped it would be.  Ideally, you hit the midway mark feeling comfortable, and then you get a mental boost as you focus going toward the finish.

 

            Instead, I was suffering and fairly sure by 16, I'd be toast.  I tossed my shirt at 14.  The wind was a light eight miles an hour at my back.  As I was running 8 miles/hr forward, the net effect was a stuffy and hot air, and I was dehydrating.

 

At 15 I rounded the U-turn to the other side of the road heading back towards town.  Painful muscle cramps developed in my right leg.  The tightness on just one side was mostly caused by the significant slope to the road.  Unless you were running on the center line, your body was slanted slightly to one side.  However, my breathing was also a major factor.  I tend to lean forward at the waist when my breathing is off rhythm.  This also increased the strain on my quads as my legs worked harder to keep my body upright.

 

            At mile 16, I passed by John and Pete who were at mile 14 headed in the opposite direction.  John yelled, "Looking good DJ."  "On pace but hurting," I yelled back.  In fact, I was ready to throw in the towel.  But there's nowhere to hide on a marathon course.  If you call it a day on a 5-10k run, you're probably one or two miles away from where you parked your car.  After a 15 minute walk, you can be heading home.  If you step off a marathon course at the midway point, you have a 2 to 3 hour walk back.

 

            With no other options, I decided to push on to 18.  Still hanging on at 18, I committed to gutting it up another mile, maybe two.  Halfway to 19, my outlook unexpectedly changed.  The course turned directly into the light north wind.  This significantly improved my breathing, which helped me to get vertical; this in turn alleviated some stress on my legs.

 

            I couldn't believe that at mile 20, I was still on pace.  However I was quickly loosing the mental fight after being worn down by the course's midsection.  My goal was to hold on a little farther than in Phoenix, maybe to mile 24.

 

            At mile 22 I was still on pace, but I finally capitulated a half mile later.  As I limped along for the next three miles, I had no idea that I would cross the finish line just 6 seconds short of setting a new PR.

 

            I finished in 3:13:26, placing 59^th out of 685 finishers.

 

As far as not making 3:10, I can only say that if it had been either 10 degrees cooler, or if I been five pounds lighter, I would have made it.  My real frustration was failing to set a PR.  Running 15 seconds faster wouldn't have meant much.  Rather, I am disappointed that I didn't stay positive during the middle third.  Had I focused more positively, I could have shaved another minute or so from my time.

 

I did have the consolation of receiving a plaque at the awards ceremony, 3^rd place in the Hercules division.  At 6'2" and 185, most people scoff when I lament about how fat I am.  Some make comments of concern, like when my Mother ran into my neighbor at the grocery store, "Bruce said you look too thin; he said you look sick."

 

But I am a good 20-30 pounds heavier than the vast majority of runners in my time class.  Often this is because I'm 3-6 inches taller than they are.  But many are my height, just beanpole thin.  Some marathons have a division recognizing the extra challenge for us "big" guys, which is usually termed the Clydesdale class.  Newport used a kinder moniker, the "Hercules" division.

 

To qualify, you had to weigh 190+ at packet pickup.  My normal training weight is 185.  But with super carbbing and hydration during the preceding days, I thought I might make it.  When I expressed doubt about being a couple pounds too light 30 minutes prior to stepping on the scale, Pete suggested I drink a gallon of water to be safe.  Lucky that I downed a half-gallon water picture, as I made it with only one-half pound to spare, 190.50 lbs.

 

  I had a good chance to win, as last year's results showed a 3:16 for Hercules 1^st place (and that was on the short course).  The guy who won this year was thinner than I, but 6'4" and weighed in at 192.  Supporting my contention that I'm too heavy, he too had a sub 3:10 goal, but fell short by 3 seconds (3:10:03).

 

Well, I'm still convinced I will run a sub 3:10 in next few months.  I'll be in Wisconsin in September.

 

Newport Marathon-Received Award

Newport Quick results

Almost a PR, 6 seconds off- 3:13:28

Pre-Race

I relooked at the website, it's a 7:00 start.  For some reason, I was thinking I saw 8:00.

 

I'm not feeling it.  I can hold a 1:35 at the half no problem, but 3:10, I just don't see it.  I see possible ways to get it.

 

One, at Phoenix I got that rabbit about mile 5, she was running a 3:06 pace.  It felt good, but no doubt I built up some latic acid which hit about mile 21.  Perhaps if I stay back at a true 3:10 pace, I can push off the tightness until mile 24.  From there, I can handle 15 minutes of pain.

 

Two, there wasn't cold wind in Phoenix.  This run is forecasted to have a 15 mi/hr northwind.  That can make a difference.

 

Weekly Recap (Race Week-Newport, OR)

Off until race day.

Tuesday
7 miler with 2.5 at marathon pace.

Monday
7 miler.

Race week

As always, "Finally race week!" More than anything, I'm looking
forward to getting out of town.

As for running, I got all my training in and it went fair, but not
great. My weight is fair, but not great.

Actually, right now, I'm not feeling motivated. But maybe when I
breath in that cool north wind (hopefully), I'll get to focused.

Weekly Recap (2 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
Off

Saturday
13 miler. Humidity was awful- 90%.

Friday
Off-Did four mile walk to burn calories. Not happy with my weight. It's not bad, but still five pounds heavier than I prefer.

Thursday
Eight during lunch. I ran hard during Beach to Bay on Saturday, and then came back with 17 miler Sunday with an extra 1/2% incline through first 12. As a result, I've been feeling some leg strain. Hip flexors are a bit sore, quads a little off. Actually, I'm surprised.

Wednesday
Four miler during lunch, did five mile walk at night.

Tuesday
8 miler. Four mile evening walk to burn some calories.
I did my 17 miler with an extra 1/2% incline through 12. I'm feeling a sore and tight.

Monday
Off-Did four mile evening walk to burn some calories.

Weekly Recap (3 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
17 miler. Wind was out of the North, probably last time in next five months.

Saturday
Beach to Bay marathon relay. I ran leg four

Got hand off at 8:56. It was 81 degrees and 75% humidity.

4.71 miles in 32.36=6:55 /miler average.

Splits:
Mile 1.0-6.27
Mile 2.0-6.47
Mile 3.0-6.56
Mile 4.0-7.05
Mile 4.7-7.15 (pace)

Like most years, I came close to heat stroke.

Friday
Six miler

Thursday
Had 9 with 5 x 600 VoMax. Did 8 with 3 x 600. Heat was bad; I was totally soak after.

Wednesday
Did four mile recovery. Been going low carbs, with some extra long walks at night to reduce weight. It's working great, but lack of carbs are making workout hard.

This little four miler was tough; afterwards I sat down and ate two bowls of ceral.

Tuesday
11 miler with hills.

Went to do a four mile walk in the evening. About 1 1/2 miles into it, a jogger came by at a moderate pace and said in a gregarious voice, "Hot out tonight." I ran up next to him and ask how far he was going.

He said he had a two hour run; it turned out he was a triathlete. We exchanged names, he was Dr. Randy Fuentes. I told him that I had heard his name in marathon circles; he's been running seriously for about 15 years.

We jogged and chatted about three miles, and then our paths diverged at an intersection. I don't get to run with others much; it was nice.

Monday
Off-Did do a 4 mile walk to burn some calories.

Weekly Recap (4 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
Double: 5 in a.m. / 10 with 4 x 800 VoMax in p.m.

Saturday
6 with 4 x 200 strides in afternoon

Friday
Off

Thursday
20 miler. Good run. Still hot.

Wednesday
Off

Tuesday
15 miler. A real Mutha. The heat is suffocating.

Monday
Double: 9 during lunch, 5 evening.

Weekly Recap (5 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
Double: In afternoon, went for 8 at LT pace. By four, I almost heat stroked; had to quit. At night, did solid 9 with 5 X 600 VOMax.

Saturday
Off

Friday
Off

Thursday
18 miler. Soild run. Five pounds lighter would be nice.

Wednesday
7 with 3 x 200 strides

Tuesday
Six recovery

Monday
13 with hills

Weekly Recap (6 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
4 miler in afternoon / 6 milers at night with 5 x 200 strides

Saturday
8 miler

Friday
21 miler. Strength good. Aerobically, good. Need to lose 5lbs; hell let's make it 10.

Thursday
5 mile recovery

Wednesday
12 miler with 8 at LT

Tuesday
Off

Monday
14 miler.

Weekly Recap (7 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
Did 5 miler in a.m.; had a 11 with VO max in pm, but had to pass.
I feel like I'm verge of shin splints. Still have four weeks of serious training.

Weight not perfect, but not bad. Training not bad, but not perfect.

Will really try to focus last four weeks, and see if I can get into 3:10 shape.

Saturday
Double 5 miler in a.m. / 15 miler in p.m.

Friday
Off

Thursday
5 mile recovery

Wednesday
16 with 12 at marathon pace. Really moving. Run went well, but pretty beatup aferwards.

Tuesday
11 miler

Monday
Off

Weekly Recap (8 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
10 with 6.5 at LT

Saturday
seven

Friday
15 miler. Added hill work.

Thursday
Off

Wednesday
20 miler. Aerobically felt good. Strength good also. But I could feel the extra 5 lbs I'm carrying.

Tuesday
Off

Monday
8 miler

Weekly Recap (9 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
10 with 5 at LT

Saturday
Off

Friday
13 miler. That makes 45 in last three days.

Thursday
15 miler

Wednesday
17 miler

Tuesday
4 miler

Monday
6 miler

Weekly Recap (10 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
18 miler

Saturday
Off

Friday
Off

Thursday
Frustrating, frustrating, frustrating! Going fo 18, by 10 soaked, by 12 getting hard to breath, at 13.5, heart rate shot up. Really Frustrating.

On the bright side, my schedule actually has me off the next two days. A cold front is suppose to come through late Friday, and it should be 10 degress cooler late Sunday, when I can get back to gym. With some luck, get my 18 miler in.

Wednesday
Five

Tuesday
9 miler, extra 1/2% incline all the way through

Monday
14, ran well.

Carbbed Up

Went to San Antonio Friday. Ate my favorite food, Indian. After four trips back to the buffet, I was carbbed up.

Before leaving Sunday, ate my second favorite food, Dim Sum. After $ 40 of rice and bai, I was really carbbed up.

As a result, ran strong 9 mile LT run Sunday, then came back in less than 15 hours to post a strong 14 miler.

People assume that it's easy to lose weight with all the running; they don't understand that a large amount of carbs must be constantly consumed to pop the equivalent of an half-marathon every other day.

Weekly Recap (11 Weeks From Newport, OR)

Sunday
Strong 9 miler, with 5 at LT

Saturday
Off

Friday
It wasn't much, but the wind lightly blew out of the north. What a difference. Cruised a 11 miler and add some long, but gentle inclining hills.

Thursday
Came back and did a 12 miler, using portable fan on mill.

Wednesday
Was going for 12, sweated so much couldn't breath by 7.5.

Tuesday
five

Monday
With busy week pending, I was up at 5:00 a.m. and on mill by 5:20. Put in my 17 mile LR to hedge against getting tied down later in the week. Overall good.

I did bring an extra pair of shoes in case I soaked through first pair. Sure enough, had to switch at 14 1/2. Not only did it give me traction, but the shoe switch made my feet feel light, without the extra 1-2 pound of water weighing down my initial pair.

It's official, I'm skinny.

I don't believe in weighing oneself. Muscle mass, water retention, and
other factors can significantly swing your weight. Basing your fitness
level on your weight just isn't logical. Therefore, I generally refuse
to step on a scale.

I know that five years ago, before I started running, I weighed about
225, but I was lifting a lot of weights. Three years ago, I had to
weigh in before the Houston marathon for medical information. I told
them not to tell me the number, but later a running mate told me it
was 206.

Well, this week I went to get an annual checkup. Again, I told the
nurse not to tell me. But when reading the chart, the doctor let it
slip, 185.

No wonder friends I haven't seen in a while get a serious look of
concern when I bump into them. I'm 40 pounds lighter, but I wasn't fat
to begin with.

But as a general rule, Boston marathoners aren't "husky" persons.

Most people are shocked when I mention I'm too heavy, but for a future
sub 3 marathoner, I am. Need to loss 8-10 pounds.

Someone has to do it

PS: my resting heart rate was 51 beats per minute.

Weekly Recap (12 Weeks from Newport, OR)

Sunday
Five w/5 x 200 strides

Saturday
Eight

Friday
Five

Thursday
15 miler

Wednesday
Off

Tuesday
11 miler. The gym has gotten on me before about wiping down the mill after a run. I do take the provided paper sheets and give it a once over.

Well, today I put in a hard 11 and the mill, as well as a two foot radius around it, was soaked with sweat. Damn it, if they would keep the gym temperate below 80, I wouldn't have this problem. I gave it a once over, but according to management, not good enough. They really got on me. I tried to be alacritous, but really I was thinking "The Hell with You! "

Monday
11 Miler

Post Race-Final Recovery Week

Sunday
Off

Saturday
Off

Friday
Off

Thursday
11 miler. Was going to 15 but sweated so much shoes were sliding off mill. I actually switch to another mill at 11 thinking that would do the trick. I realized I was soaked through the shoe. I guess I will literally have to change shoes at the halfway mark.

What a bunch of crap. Guess I gotta do what I gotta do to get in my mileage.

Wednesday
Off

Tuesday
five

Monday
8 miler. Threw in a couple of hills. Heat was terrible.

Post Race-Week 6

Sunday
13 miler

Saturday
Seven Miler

Friday
Five Miler

Thursday
Six Miler

Wednesday
Off

Tuesday
7 miler-felt good. Was going to do ten by I was sweating so much after an hour that my feet started slipping off the mill.

Monday
8 miler

Not Running Well

First three weeks post race, I ran great. Then I got tied down with work, and also put on five pounds more than the usual post race five pounds.

Ergo, now running like crap. Not very happy at all.

Also, busy week comming; I'll be lucky to get in 35 miles.

But, I still have two weeks before beginning another cycle. I will work to turn it around. Work should slow in two weeks also.

Post Race-Week 5

Sunday
12 miler.

Saturday
Off

Friday
Five miler

Thursday
Hit pavement for 6

Wednesday
10 miler. Literally, almost heat stroked, even on treadmill. Was trenched at 5; could barely breath at 9.

Tuesday
6 miler-piece of cake

Monday
Off

Post Race-Week 4

OFF REST OF WEEK
I rarely let work interfer with training. This is an exception. With a mutli-million dollar asset transfer to prepare for a tax return, I have to put traning on back burner for 5-7 days.

Thursday
8 miler; again completely soaked. Will have to pull out portable fan for tomorrow.

Wednesday
8 miler; completely soaked

Tuesday
15 miler scheduled, stopped at 5. Bad humidity. Was soaked by 5. Couldn't breath well. Try again tomorrow

Monday
Hit pavement for 10 miler. Temperature wasn't bad (69), but humdity was terrible (92%).

Post Race-Week 3

Sunday
5 miler

Saturday
Off

Friday
10.5 miler.

Thursday
10.5 miler, with an extra 1/2% incline all the way through

Wednesday
Off

Tuesday
13 miler

Monday
11 miler with an extra 1/2% on the incline all the way through

Post Race-Week 2

Sunday
Seven

Saturday
Weather was nice. Hit pavement about 8:00 pm for six miler.

While running through the Lakes subdivision, I was headed toward a well lit four way stop intersection. As I approached, a car was coming in the perpendicular direction.

At my current pace, I was going to be halfway through the intersection by the time the car came to a stop at the sign. Clearly they would see me, pause a second until I completely crossed, and then go. I have enough running experience to know that wasn't going to happened.

I broke pace just a tad to be safe, and sure enough the car rolled right through the stop, never coming to a complete halt. When the car was halfway through the intersection, I was about a quarter way through. That's when they saw me.

I had both my arms high in the sky, with a disgusted angry expression on my face that clearly communicated, "What the F***!" That's when they stopped, two feet from me. Clearly able to see I was ready to kill someone, the driver just rolled down her window half an inch and said in a mouse voice, "Sorry, I didn't see you."

The words, "That's not a God Da** yield sign!" were about to leave my mouth, but the driver quickly accelerated away.

Before I was a runner, I wouldn't have seen the big deal myself. But now, things like dogs, drivers, extended un-trimmed trees/bushes, and household crap left on the sidewalk are just intolerable. Last night I even had to yell at two kids on bicycles. They clearly saw me running down the street, but swerved in front of me forcing me to stop.

If I ever go to jail for murder, it will either be because they touched my children, or threw off my pace during a run.

Friday
Off

Thursday
Ten miler

Wednesday
Seven Miler

Tuesday
Off

Monday
Six miler

Really Enjoy Running Post Marathon

The six-eight weeks following a marathon are my favorite training.

Only putting in 40-45 miles a week, you feel fresh almost every workout. Also, without LT, VOmax, Long Run weekly combinations, you don't feel any pressure to conserve. You can just let loose if you feel like it.

However, I've been really eating lots of junk. To help stay focused on my nutrition, I'm planning to run the Seabrook half-marathon on March 14th. I ran it last year and it was a great event.

The course is flat as a pancake, and the trail is great (level without a single pothole. It lots of fun to run through the pine woods on a packed down trail.

About 400-500 runners do the Saturday half (there's an another half and full on Sunday). I ran 1:35 last year and placed 7th overall out of 400+ (1st in my division). It's a great race for a local class runner to place in their division.

Post Race-Week 1

Sunday
7 miler. Felt fine.

Saturday
Off

Friday
Ready to do a five mile recovery run today.
Will finish off a bottle of wine that was a Christmas gift. Then get back to some serious training.

Thursday
Sore, but feeling better. Still eating junk

Wednesday
Still unable to run, but loosing up some. Still eating lots of junk

Tuesday
Both calfs and quads still very sore.

Monday
Pretty sore. Bad blisters on both feet. Don't see myself running until the weekend.

Downed a bottle of wine in the evening. Though nice, again this last marathon made it clear I'm overweight, well to be a top percentile marathoner. Most people ask me if I've been sick I look so thin. But I was a relative Paul Bunyon compared to the others in the "Preferred Class" corral on Sunday. To be honest, I could easily lose another 10 pounds to be in a "regional" class.

My goal is now to reach a 70% "age grade" scoring.

http://www.runbayou.com/Wavacalc.htm

"Age Grading" statically ranks your competitiveness based your age and gender. An age grade of 100% means you hold the world record for your age group.

Over 90% World Class competitor (based on age)
Over 80% National Class
Over 70% = Regional Class
Over 60% = Local Class

This last marathon gave me a 67.7% grade. A 3:06:30 takes me over 70%. That's my goal this year.

Marathon #10-Phoenix

Phoenix Marathon
January 18th, 2009

Four days before the race, I emailed my running mate:

"Good Enough

The weather is not as good as advertised on the race website, 'average start temperature 40 degree.' But the 49 degree gun time forecast is good enough, if the wind is out of the north. My weight is five pounds heavier than I wanted, but still the same as my BQ weight this time last year. All in all, going for 3:10 again. Should be OK for first 20, after that, it's a crap shoot. I do feel confident that I will PR."


When, the race day forecast reached 77, I started to get a little antsy. "It's a dry heat," many would say. I agree, if you are standing in the shade. The day before the race, I walked out of the hotel at 10:30 and stood under the covered drive thru; it was cool and comfortable. I then stepped out to the street. Five minutes later I had a sunburn.

I decided on a race strategy different from my previous nine marathons, a positive split. The accepted optimal strategy is to hold back the first 20 miles, and then let loose the last 6. However, the forecast showed an 8 degree increase in actual temperature from 10:00-11:00. Adding in the high UV sun intensity, this meant the rise in apparent temperature would be about 15 degrees.

I thought it best to take advantage of the cool start by building a 1-2 minute buffer, and then slowing pace by 10-15 seconds a mile after 20. Given I had run a 1:33 half marathon, in bad weather conditions just a month earlier, I was confident I could easily pull away from the 3:10 pace group at the start.

My previous 3:18 personal best (PR) time, run in Houston exactly 12 months earlier, qualified me for a "Preferred Corral" seeding. This meant I was allowed to queue up directly behind the elite runners, mostly East African, only 10 feet from the start line. When I entered the preferred corral, immediately the Sesame Street jingle came to mind, "Of these things, which one doesn't belong?" I didn't see a single runner over 140 pounds. I voluntarily moved back one corral where the 3:10 pace leader was. Though I planned to run ahead of him, I didn't want to get pulled out too fast by being lined up next to the elites.

The gun fired and we were off. At mile one I was about 10 yards behind the 3:10 pace leader. There were about 35 other runners bunched in tight around him. At mile two the pace felt fast, almost too fast. I was sure the leader was running ahead of pace to free up some space. I didn't worry about it. However, as we hit mile three, a runner with a GPS watch called out to the pacer leader, "Good job Bill! You're right on pace." "Uh Oh!" I said to myself, "this is not good."

We were right on the 3:10 pace, but it felt fast. I became apprehensive. "I don't see me carrying this past 13-15 miles," I worried. At mile five I was running dead-even with the leader, though about 20 feet off his left shoulder. Just then, something unexpected occurred.

Two young runners out of Idaho came by. I think they were on the university team as they wore identical type uniforms. They were running about a full beat faster than the 3:10 pacer. Their stride just pull me with them. By mile 10, we were a full minute ahead of 3:10 pace. I actually felt comfortable and was running rhythmically.

Coming to the 12 mile water station, one of the youngsters had fallen back. The other was about to lose me. Not by pace, but by running straight through the water stops. Having emptied my handheld water bottle at mile 8, I needed to slow at the water stops to stay hydrated. Fortunately, one of the few women runners keeping stride with us stopped for water also. As we pulled away from the table, I told her, "Let's go, you're my rabbit." The young girl (20 something) replied with alacrity, "Yes Sir."

Our pace perfectly synced; rather than having fast leg turnover, she had long powerful strides. Even being eight inches shorter than I, our strides matched well. She was really moving; I could feel that we were at a faster pace than I had planned. But it felt so rhythmic and natural; I didn't want to break.

At mile 20, "Yeehaw," we were a full three minutes ahead of the 3:10 pace time! "Mile 23," I said to myself, "Try to hold to mile 23." My legs were feeling tight and starting to hurt. I knew I would have to break pace. But with the buffer, 3:10 was still in range.

At mile 21, my quads were really hurting. I wiped my hand across my arm; it looked like I just stuck it into a bucket full of sand. It was completely covered with salt. By mile 22 I had to break pace and my rabbit pulled away. At exactly the 23 mile mark, the 3:10 pace group passed me. I say "group", but of the 35 or so initial runners, only four remained: the pacer, two men and one woman.

I tried to stay within shooting range of the group, hoping for a burst at the end. But by mile 24 I was exactly one minute off the 3:10 pace. I was in lots of pain. I couldn't take full strides anymore. I shorten my steps by 25% and tried to increase my leg turn over. I lost another minute at both miles 25 and 26.

I crossed the finish line in a new PR of 3:13:20, placing 272 out of 6,408 finishers.

As my email stated four days earlier, I thought 3:10 was possible, but not probable. My disappointment is not in failing to reach 3:10, but in having come so close. Had I been able to hold pace just another mile and half, ten minutes, I probably would have run sub 3:10.

Well, I am closer than ever. I think I'll break the 3:10 mark in the next year.

Phoenix Marathon Quick Results

Solid PR, 3:13:23
Placing 272 out of 6,408 finishers. Still waiting on official results

Good Enough

The weather is not as good as advertised "average start tempature 40 degree." But the 49 degree forecast is good enough, if the wind is out of north.

My weight is five pounds heavier than I wanted, but still better than my BQ weight this time last year.

All in all, going for 3:10 again. Should be OK for first 20, after that, it's a crap shoot. I do feel confident I will PR.

Race Week

Friday
Headed toward Phoenix

Thursday
easy 5

Wednesday
off

Tuesday
had 7 with 2 at marathon pace.

A client called needing a tax estimate. After 3.5 miles, if felt fine so called it day and billed the client.

Monday
5 am / 4 pm

Let's Go

Race week. Ready to bloody run. Can't take waiting much longer.

Weekly Recap (2 Weeks till Phoenix)

Sunday
13 miler. cold front come through Saturday; piece of cake.

Saturday
Standard 5 with strides

Friday
Standard 8

Thursday
Standard 7

Wednesday
6 and 1/2, with 2 x 1,600 VOmax

Tuesday
Five

Monday
Off

The Waiting Game

Two weeks out and training all but done. Now the waiting game.

Most importantly, need to stick to diet next 10 days. I really don't need to lose anymore weight, but a pound or two wouldn't hurt. With low carbs and some crossing training, I might get it.

Weekly Recap (3 weeks to Phoenix)

Sunday
17 miler. A tough one after yesterday's speed run.

Saturday
10k full bore. Solid run. 44:30 mill time with heavy shoes.

Friday
Off

Thursday
9 miler.

Wednesday
11 with some hill work.

Tuesday
6 miler

Monday
11 with 6 x 1,000 VOmax. Always a challenging run.

Another year comes to a close.

Weekly Recap (4 weeks to Phoenix)

Sunday
5 miler

Saturday
5 miler

Friday
20 miler. Hot muggy. Good run. That makes 80 miles in last 8 days.
Feeling a little worn down.

Thursday
Off

Wednesday
Lemonade out of lemons. Had 11 with 6 x 1000 VOmax. Within 2 minutes my hamstrings were so tight and tender I knew the VOmax was out. By mile five was was feeling heavy and ready to call it a day.

But I had eaten so much junk in the last 24 hours, I felt I should do at least 10 just to burn calories. I decided to spice it up a little. I usually hit my cruising speed about mile seven and hold that pace. I decided to continue to accelerate all the way through, a bump about every mile or so.

By mile 10 I was moving pretty good, and feeling better. I took all the way to 12 really flying the last mile.

Solid run. That makes 60 miles in the last 5 five days (12 mi/day average).

Tuesday
Standard 8.

Monday
15 miler. The only carbs I ate Sunday and Monday was one bowl of cereal. As a result, the 15 miler felt like 30. I don't know why it is, but when a cut back on carbs, I sweat twice as much. The weather was very cold, yet by mile 10, I was soaked through.

Carrbing

After two days of low carbs, I scarfed it down today.

It's just murder to run farther than five, without any carbs. With a hard 11 miler with 6 x 800 VOmax tomorrow, I carbed up (pigged out).

Well so much for the diet. After I do my 20 miler this week, I'll cut back.

American Bank Annual Half Marathon

(me in white . placed 8th out of 110, 2nd in my division
The guy in red was 6th, 1st in my division 1:30:46)

As noted in an early post, I was looking forward to this run about as much as a colonoscopy performed by Barney Frank. I knew at best I might squeak out a PR; but due to the weather, there was no way to run my potential and my 1:30 goal.

The forecast held; at gun the temperature was 65 with 100% humidity and a 10 mile/hr south wind. The roads were quite slick from the fog. Damn the torpedoes, I went out at what I thought was a 1:30 pace.

I didn't wear my gps watch, but a runner next to me did. At mile two he said we were on a 6:50 min/mile pace (right at 1:30). It felt too fast aerobically. I relaxed my leg turnover, but tried to maintain the strength of my strides.

I could bitch about the weather, and there was plenty to bitch about. However, I was actually grateful it wasn't worse. The wind was fairly strong running into it. And the sky was completely overcast. Even a slight bit of sunshine would have doomed me.

I only looked at my own watch once, at the turnaround: 46:17. My second half split was about equal (46:40), which is a good indication that my endurance / strength was good.

Yes I PRed, but I was still quite unhappy. Not because I didn't hit 1:30, but because I couldn't set an true baseline. I just don't know if I can hold the 7:06 min/mile pace for a full if weather conditions are great (i.e. 43 with 40% humidity). I think I can, but without a baseline, I can't benefit from the confidence knowing I can.

The race did confirm one thing, I need to lose 3-5 pound. Three will work, 5 would be great. With only three weeks of training remaining (one of which is a taper), I'll have to double up on cross training to lose the three. If I want to make it five, I'll have to go low carb the last three weeks.

Weekly Recap (5 weeks to Phoenix)

Sunday
12 miler

Saturday
American bank half marathon 1:32:56.

Friday
9 with 5 x 600 VOmax

Thursday
Off

Wednesday
Five miles into a 12 miler, I called it quites.

Tuesday
9 with 8 at LT.

Monday
4 mile recover

In a Bad Bad Mood

Confident I could post a sub 1:30 in this coming Saturday's American Bank half-marathon, I pre-loaded my mileage last week by doing two long runs. I posted a PR for both my 21 miler and 18 miler.

Then on Monday, I saw a Friday night forecasted low of 63. Half my motivation left me. I ran a sloppy four mile recovery counting every minute until is was over. On Tuesday, a cold front came through and picked me up some; I ran a good eight mile LT.

Now as of today, they're forecasting a Friday low of 67 with a 15 mile/hr southwind, and 95% humidity. As a taste, the wind shifted to the south tonight and brought the humidity to 96%. Five miles into a 12 miler (at a easy pace), I was totally dejected and quit.

All I could think of is how I'm going to have to bust it full bore Saturday in these oppressive conditions, and still be lucky to PR a 1:34. More specifically, I was recalling how I almost heat stroked in Chicago after 8 miles in similar conditions.

I could express this more urbanely after six years of college, but the only way to really express it is to say, "THIS SUCKS!!!" And to make it "COMPLETELY SUCK", the forecasted high for Sunday is 57.

Weekly Recap (6 weeks to Phoenix)

Sunday
18 miler. Added some hills, tough run with the muggy conditions.

Saturday
Standard 6 miler.

Friday
Damn. I had 12 scheduled with 7 at LT. After posting a four minute PR on a 21 miler just 48 hours eariler, I thought it would be hard. But to my surprise, that wasn't the problem.

The weather was nice and cool. I didn't even think of using my portable fan that I place on the treadmill for hard runs. By mile 3, I knew that was a mistake. I was sweating pretty good.

By mile six, I was trenched. By mile 7 (with 4 LT done) I couldn't breath, just too much water loss. I called it quits. Initially I was POed, but hell I just creamed my 21 miler two days ago. I don't think it was a conditioning problem.

Thursday
Had 6 scheduled. But a client called about his retirement plan, and I spent three hours working on it and had to miss my run.

Wednesday
Well, I might pay for that one also. After two easy days, and a nice cold front coming through, I decided to PR on my 21 miler.

I bested my previous 21 mile training time by a full four minutes (174 minutes). Aerobically, felt fine. But the extra speed cominbed with the extra five pounds I'm carrying was hard on the body. Overall, solid run.

Tuesday
6 mile recovery

Monday
8 with 5 x 200 meter strides.

Weekly Recap (7 weeks to Phoenix)

Sunday
Had 8 scheduled, but a client called with a rush job. I had to miss workout. Besides burning 1,000 calories, which I need, there was no conditioning loss.

Saturday
16 miler. Ran about 7:00 p.m. Dew point was only 45; it was like running with a oxygen mask. Barely breathing. However, legs still not recovered from Thursday.

Friday
6 mile recovery.

Thursday
Well, I'm going to pay for that.

Had 16 scheduled, with 12 at marathon pace. I wanted to set a PR on the 12 section, so after four good miles, I took it down to about 7:00 min/miles. Felt fine after first 30 minutes, so I took it down another 10 sec / mile. After another 30 minutes, I could feel the lactic acid building up.

I was afraid that I would throw off the rest of my training this week if I went to hard. But I was also afraid that if I broke pace, I would just stop. I hate to miss mileage. So I pushed hard the last 30 minutes.

All in all, a PR and 100% effort. I'm just afraid my 11 miler tomorrow will be very difficult now.

Wednesday -Off

Tuesday
Reality Check. I've been front loading my mileage so I can get in a taper before the American Bank Half Marathon the week after next. I tried to squeeze in 11 with 5 x 1,200 VOmax.

Cruised the first six miles, but after running my first 1,200, which took me to 7 miles, I stopped there as I had a 7 miler scheduled originally. After 15 on Sunday and 8 uphill yesterday, my legs just weren't in it.

I will try to makeup the VOmax Friday, which is when I originally had it scheduled. However, anyway you look at it, 5 consecutive 1,200s at 6 min/mi pace is brutal.

Monday
6 miles a.m. / 4 miles p.m. scheduled. I combined it into a 8 miler with a slight incline all the way through. I don't care much for hills during a race, but it really helps with focusing during training.