Two weeks ago, during my cutback week, my long run was 14 miles. Now that same run is classified as a "medium long run" and my husband is left wondering what sort of crazy marathon pills I have been taking. Before I left for my run I told my husband that I couldn't tell if I was dreading this run or looking forward to crushing 14 miles on a Wednesday. His response was that if I wasn't sure if I was looking forward to the run, I was probably dreading it. He was probably right.
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| So happy for gorgeous views and company on at least part of my run! |
The downside to the Downhill from Here group run is that you have to run up a massive hill to reach the whole "downhill from here" part. Usually this is about 3 miles into the run. Yesterday it was 10 miles into my run. It was a killer climb, but honestly wasn't as bad as I was expecting. When I got tired I tried to just focus on pumping my arms or picking up my knees.
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| Silly Garmin. The elevation gain is definitely not 0. |
When my watch finally clicked over to 11 miles I let myself start counting down the miles. I was ready to be done. I kept myself running by dreaming about the huge chocolate chip cookie my husband would have waiting in the car for me. And a bottle of water that was actually cold. And a huge burrito bowl.
I'm looking forward to the fact that tonight's run is a paltry 6 miles. And then shaking my head at myself for considering an hour long run paltry.
That's crazy! Just think, you ran a half marathon plus some, and it wasn't even your long run. Insane! That elevation looks like all my runs...I live in an insanely hilly area so it's tough to find flat courses to run on! But, I always feel so accomplished and tough when I make it to the top :)
ReplyDeleteI live in an area where I can easily avoid hills. Which means that sometimes (most times) I run pancake flat routes. I've been trying to be a bit proactive in seeking out hilly routes because I know it will make me a stronger runner. I did feel pretty bad ass when I finally made it to the top!
DeleteWow...and here I thought 9 miles followed by 10 followed by 20 during my peak week is a lot! While I personally feel that 14 miles as a mid week long run is excessive, I think mid week longer runs in general are a very sound strategy and I credit mine (although nowhere near as badass as yours!) with being able to improve my marathon time so drastically. I remember the feeling of training taking over my life very well, but just remember it is a short term inconvenience that will pay dividends on race day. You are really killing your training and this hard work you're doing is really going to come through for you - i have a feeling you are going to crush the marathon. And yes, it does feel pretty awesome when you "only" have to run 6 miles and during your taper when your long run is "only" 10 miles! That was one of my favorite things about high mileage training :)
ReplyDeleteI feel like I managed 14 (as part of 6-14-6-rest) just fine, but doing 9-10-20 just sounds impossible! At this point I am just trying to follow my training plan the best that I can and I figure Pfitz knows more about marathon training than I do :)
DeleteI hope your feelings are correct. I keep bouncing between super excited and super scared when I think about the actual race. Hearing that my training is on track from someone who has been there and done that is a serious relief. Thank you!!
Wow, great job!!! I can't even fathom running that far and mid week none the less. You're a rock star!
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