Grand Rapids Marathon - 7 weeks!

The week of August 24-30 was a cutback week and it was absolutely glorious! Instead of following a strict plan, I set out to run 38-44 miles throughout the week. It was really nice to decide each day how far and how hard I wanted to run.

Monday 8/24
rest day

Tuesday 8/25
Distance: 8.67
Pace: 9:34

I ran with my friend Maria for about half of this run. I was only aiming for 8 miles, but had to take a slight detour for a mid-run bathroom break.

Wednesday 8/26
Distance: 7.17
Pace: 2 mile warm up, 5 x 800 at 5k pace, 1.82 mile cool down

This speed workout was listed in the cutback week of my training plan, and since I haven't run anything close to 5k pace since June, I was curious to see how it felt. Impossible. That is how it felt. My basic plan was to start with a 7:15ish pace for the first interval and then work my way down to actual 5k pace (6:50) by the end of the workout. A minute or so into the first interval I looked down and saw my pace was 7:40. It was like I had completely forgotten how to run fast! I fought hard to pick the speed up; the first two intervals were so freaking difficult! Finally in the third interval things came together and I was able to hit the paces I was expecting without feeling like I was going to die (7:09, 7:06, 6:54, 6:54, 6:53).

The workout called for 8 miles total, but I was quite exhausted so when I finished my final 800, I just ran back home and called it good enough.

Thursday 8/27
Distance: 5.0
Pace: 9:45

I paid for Wednesday's speed work with a slow and sluggish run on Thursday. Fortunately I was running with Maria again, because if I was running alone I would have ended up walking half of it.

Friday 8/28
rest day

Saturday 8/29
Distance: 5.0
Pace: watch free run

Best run of the week! And it almost didn't happen. I was in the crankiest of moods on Saturday. I didn't feel like running, so I decided to take an extra rest day. I also was in such a mood that I didn't even feel like having a movie marathon and snuggling little kitty on the couch, which frankly is the best way to waste a Saturday. I just didn't want to do anything.

All day, everyday.

I talked myself into running just 2-3 miles to see if that improved my mood. When I told my husband that I was only running 2-3 miles he laughed and said I'd probably end up running 6.  After insisting that making it 3 full miles would be a miracle I set out for my run. And then I ended up completely zoning out and missed the turn around spot for a 3 mile run. So I decided to just do 4 miles. And by then I was feeling so much better that I decided if I was going to do 4 miles, I might as well do 5.

So yeah. 5 mile run. I guess my husband knows my running habits better than I do.

Sunday 8/30
Distance: 16.23
Pace: 9:14

The weather during this run alternated between disgustingly humid and light rain. Last weekend might have felt like fall, but summer is still holding on for another few weeks.

Pace for this run was in the 9:30s for the first 9 miles with the last 7 at marathon pace (8:28 average). I mixed in one crazy fast mile (8:00) just for fun. Feeling strong at the end of a long run is the best feeling ever.

Total: 42.07 miles

This coming week I will jump back up to a 55 mile week ending with a 20 miler on Sunday. For speed work I am considering adding some HMP miles to one of my midweek runs (weather dependent...forecast is showing highs of 90). My long run will probably not include a fast finish since I don't want to short change myself when it comes to the physiological benefits gained through easy long runs.

Midweek thoughts

I'm still riding the high of my Sunday long run; it was simply glorious. If I was a better blogger I would have some truly amazing pictures to share with you from my run. Instead my phone stayed tucked in my hydration pack for the entire run and you will just have to use your imagination.
My run started before sunrise and it was actually chilly while I stood outside putting on sunscreen. After a couple mile of running I was treated to a beautiful pink and purple sunrise that I glimpsed right as I ran past a tree lined pond. The pond was as smooth as glass and reflected the gorgeous colors of the sunrise. It was so stunning that I almost stopped for a picture, but I was just 2.3 miles into my and did not want to interrupt my momentum.

After that quick glimpse of nature, I had about 4 miles of not-so-scenic city running before I would get to the next park. At the park, nature once again surprised me, this time with two deer grazing about 15-20 feet off of the trail. I have seen deer at this park multiple times, but this time it included an 8 point buck, which I hadn't seen in the park before. Again, I was super close to stopping to take a picture, but I didn't want to spook the buck/have him get protective of the doe, so I ran on.

Not my photo, but possibly my deer! This picture was taken where I was running! (Ryan Stanton, The Ann Arbor News, source)

Less than two miles later I came across another three deer who were playing in the road. Fortunately some honking cars got them safely off the road and they crossed the running path right in front of me. This time I decided to go for a picture, but they didn't stick around long enough for me to get my phone out.

The next 7 miles were pretty uneventful. I focused on keeping my pace easy and evaluating if I felt up to pushing the pace for the final five miles. I decided to go for it and I felt like I was flying during those miles. My ballpark goal pace is anywhere between 8:30-9:00. Honestly anything under 9:00 would BLOW MY MIND on race day, so I was super pumped to be averaging 8:31 at the end of my long run.

When I look back at my first attempt at 20 miles I can't believe how far I have come in just 5 weeks! These runs were as different as night and day. I feel confident that reassessing my training plan was the right decision. I just rocked one of my peak weeks of training (a 55 mile week with a long run of 20 miles), but now I am kind of wondering what should I do for the next 8 weeks.

First things first, this week is a cutback week! I am aiming for somewhere between 38-44 miles (70-80% of last week's mileage). My main goal to start the next week of training feeling physically and mentally refreshed. If that means running fewer miles this week, then I'll be cutting some runs short!

After this cutback week I will have just four weeks left until my taper (Hurry up taper! I'm so ready). I already have my three taper weeks mapped out, so I just need to focus on finalizing the middle four weeks. I've been rereading through Advanced Marathoning trying to figure out the best way to incorporate a half marathon into my training. I would like to have a great half marathon, of course, but I also want to be mindful of my primary goal, the marathon. I also want to avoid overreaching. Just because my 55 mile week went well, does not mean that I need to try for a 60 mile week. I've already increased my mileage quite a bit this year, I don't want to over do it and risk injury.

If you have incorporated half marathons into your marathon training, please give me some ideas on what worked and what didn't!

Grand Rapids Marathon - only 8 weeks remain!

My latest week of training almost didn't happen. I took Monday as a rest day (per usual) and ended up taking Tuesday off as well. When I headed out for a run late Wednesday night I didn't know if I would even make it through 2 miles. I contemplated making it a cutback week, but once I started running, I didn't want to stop. Running is my crutch for dealing with difficult emotions.

On Tuesday I said goodbye to Mouse, my sweet old man cat. It's too painful for me to write anything more, so I am going to jump right back to talking about running. Maybe when the grief is not as fresh I can tell you about what a wonderful kitty he was.

Wednesday
Distance: 10.0
Pace:  9:36

My pace was actually all over the place during this run. Sometimes I felt like running hard other times I stopped to walk and text my husband. The magic combination of adrenaline and endorphins seemed to run out at about 9.5 miles so I was kind of a crying mess during the last little bit of this run.

Thursday
Distance: 13.1
Pace: 10:02

I just could not get into this run. I ended up running 4:00 and walking 1:00 for the first 7-8 miles. Finally things started to come together and I was able to finish the run feeling alright. I was planning on 12 miles, but decided to bump it up to the half marathon distance when things started feeling better.

Friday
Distance: 9.0
Pace: 9:23

First run of the week that actually felt normal. I guess Thursday's slow pace payed off because my legs felt great during this run!

Saturday
Distance: 3.0
Pace: 10:31

I don't usually run 5 days in a row so I wanted to keep this run as easy as possible, especially since the turn around time between a Friday night run and a Saturday morning run is less than a day AND I had 20 miles coming up the next morning.

Sunday
Distance: 20.0
Pace: 9:18

The first 15 miles I actually averaged 9:35, which is much more in line with my current abilities than 9:18. I ran the last 5 miles at goal MP, which is still just a vague goal. For this run I figured if I could get the pace under 9:00 for the last 5, that would be good enough. I was actually faster than I thought, averaging 8:31 for those final miles. Feeling that strong at the end of a long week of running? Yeah, major confidence booster right there!

Total: 55.1 miles