Let the Taper Begin

This past Saturday's run was the last "long run" of the training process. We started at 4 am and ran 22 miles. It was absolutely one of the most difficult runs of my life. Every step from 9 miles on was painful. By that I don't really mean pain - like you could take a tylenol and make it go away. I mean sluggish muscles, and leg achy- ness and general tired-ness. I don't really know why it was so tough, but I learned a lot during the 5 and a half hour run.

Primarily, I learned that no matter how bad it hurts on the day of the marathon, I have the mental fortitude to tough it out and finish. At about mile 14 my friend, Sue ( aka running mentor) suggested that it would not be entirely bad for me to quit for the day. I made the decision to do the mileage even though every fiber of my being shouted at me to stop.

When I finished, I was really happy that I had chosen to see it through.

We are now less than 3 weeks away from the marathon. The taper begins now with shorter week end runs and a general decrease in mileage throughout the week. I will run 12 miles this coming Saturday and 8 miles the Saturday before the race.

People ask me what my goal is for this marathon. Most marathon runners have a public goal and a secret goal. I will tell you that my public goal is to finish strong and to cross the finish line before they take the time clock away ( they stop the clock after 6 and a half hours from the start.) My secret goal is.....SECRET, DUH....

More along the way. Thanks for reading!

Mid Training yuk Syndrome

Yup. I have arrived at mental burnout. I have been training since June and frankly, my dear, I am ready to be finished! The big day is October 10 and is 26 days from now.

Last week we ran hills in Apopka and completed 14 miles. This coming week's long run is the longest yet and will be the longest for the entire training period. We will run 22 miles starting at 4 am. It seems a little odd to me that you never go beyond this distance - but I am trusting the training.

I will continue to train after the marathon is done - regardless of the outcome. There are two half marathons that I like to do each year and I hope to achieve a personal best in both of them. The first one is the OUC half marathon on December 4 here in Orlando and the other one is at the end of February in Tampa. The training is different for the half marathon distance - with 12 or 13 miles being the longest you need to do prior to the race - and you incorporate more speed drills.

I guess that is really about all I can think of to tell you right now. As we gear up for the trip, I will include you in on the jitters and packing mayhem that is sure to ensue.

Thanks for reading.

Julie

Miles and more miles.

So, it was a holiday weekend and I got to sleep in a little bit on Saturday morning. Rather than our usual 430 am start, we started at 6 am and the starting point was half a block from my house.

This week's distance was 12 miles. I was really happy for the shorter distance and for the "late" start. I have been training for 12 weeks now and really needed a mental break.

No big news or stories about the run - it was just another training run. There was, however, some entertainment. At about mile 8, we saw a street fight. Not a knockdown drag out - but a verbal volley of more expletive deletives than I have heard in a long time. On our return, the police were there to settle things down. At about mile 9 we were greeted by a gaggle of dachshunds out for a walk with their dog sitter. There were at least 10 of them and one was in a stroller while an injured one was assisted by a wheelchair. It looked like a wiener chariot! All this before 8am!

Of late, I have been obsessively checking Chigago weather, trying to project what temperature it might be for the race. As best as I can tell, it is likely to be between 30 and 45 degrees at the start and up to 60 degrees more or less at the finish. Exciting!

We are winding down our training. The remaining long runs are: 16 miles, 22 miles, 9 miles,8 miles, race.

Only 5 weeks left!

"If you're going to stagger in front of a car, make sure it's an Aston Martin and not some dishwasher haulin it on his way to work on Park Ave."

20 Miles. I did it! I did it! Woo Hoo!

This run was historic for me and I was a bit concerned and nervous going in. The mindset is completely different for 20 miles than for 16. At least it is for me. I have a tendency to experience the "middle mile yuk syndrome" . During these miles, I feel tired, my quads hurt and I am generally grumpy. It usually lasts for a couple miles and then some weird second wind comes into play. This week it happened at mile 7 and again at mile 13. Honestly, at mile 13 - everything in my body was screaming at me to stop. I was able to muddle through it, though and continue on.

Today's run was actually quite fun! I can't say I expected it - but when you trek with great running buddies anything can happen. We had some pretty funny (delirious) moments. Sue, Tim, Rachelle and Beth were all there making it super fun! We giggled so much between miles 15 and 18 that I had to run away from Rachelle so I wouldn't (to put it delicately) pee myself! The headline of today's post is a direct quote from the run!

The aforementioned group was running fewer miles than I had committed to. Tim did 14, and Rachelle and Beth did 18. Sue was our supportive cheerleader on her bike as she was recovering from a 50 mile run the previous weekend and had some wicked blisters. After Rachelle and Beth finished their 18, I was momentarily tempted to call it a day. But I dug deep and with Sue's help, knocked out the last 2 miles. We got back to our starting point with half a mile yet to go and I obsessively ran around the block so I could see my garmin cross over the 20 mile mark. I have the picture to prove it!

So, the run was complete, ( 4 hours and 30 minutes later) and I was so happy! I took off my shoes (aaaahhhh), hobbled to my car, drove to get a chocolate milk and headed home for a delightful nap. When I woke up at 1230 pm, Caleb ( my wonderful, caring son) made me french toast and bacon! Yummy! After burning 2000 calories, it hit the spot! I did get out of bed to eat - and my legs were not as sore as I thought they might be.

Today ( Sunday) my legs are sore - but not dreadfully so. All in all, I am really pleased. I feel confident that I can complete a marathon now. I wish I had started training sooner so I could have gotten a bit faster but I will just have to be okay with it. I won't break any time records - but I will finish.

I am hoping to do one more 20+ miler (preferably 22) during the training. We are down to 6 weeks till the race.

I guess that is all for now. Thanks for reading!

Jules

Early to bed, early to rise...

So it is the night before the longest run yet. I am scheduled to do 20 miles tomorrow. I must say it dominates my thoughts the closer it gets! I went to a concert tonight with my sister and had to leave early because all I could think about was how I needed to get to bed. I feel like I have entered crunch time with my training and since I have worked so hard to build a solid base I don't want to do anything to screw it up.

So, it's off to bed with me. ( 945pm). The alarm is set for 330 am. All my running gear is lined up and ready to go!

Wish me luck!

I will post soon to tell you how it went.

As always, thanks for reading.

Julie

Sweet 16

Yesterday's 16 mile run rocked! Not every run is great, as I am sure you have gathered from my posts, if not from your own experience. This one, however, was. Pretty much everything that mattered went well. I stayed on top of my nutrition and with exception of the middle mile yuk syndrome I felt strong the whole run.

The morning started at 430 with my running pal, Emily. We got 2 miles in before the group set out for 12 together. I finished it off by myself on the Cady Way Trail with the final 2 for a total of 16. I did all this in under 4 hours. I still haven't really figured out how long it might take to do the marathon. There are a lot of variables. Temperature, adrenaline, crowd support, nutrition etc. I know I can do it in under 6 hours but I would really like to get closer to 5 hours.

Next week is 18 miles and I am not afraid! That is huge. My training schedule has the longest run of training at 20 miles. I am hoping to get a 22 miler in, though - for mental reasons. I think I will feel more confident if I accomplish a 22 mile run prior to the marathon.

Countdown: 7 weeks.

More later. Thanks for reading!

Long time, no post. Sorry

I have been a slacker. Not on the road, but in blogging. So let me catch you (all 5 of you) up on my progress and continued training. Last we spoke (you know what I mean) I was preparing for my first 16 mile run. We started at 430 am and it was already hot. I really love running in the pre-dawn hours, really love it. When the sun rises and you have already done 6 miles, it makes the rest of it go by so much faster and, for me, better. Anyway, the run was really great. I always start out a little stiff and it takes me at least 2 miles to get loosened up. I also usually experience what I call "middle mile yuk syndrome" where I find myself struggling and feel pretty tired in my quads (front thighs for you non runners). This 16 mile run was no exception. I came out of it pretty quickly, though, and finished strong.

I was really not terribly sore the next few days which is a testament to the way we are training. I am not sure if I have talked about the specifics of the interval training that we are doing yet. We run for 5 minutes and walk for 1 minute throughout the entire mileage. There are water stops along the way as well and are usually every two miles. This interval approach keeps your legs from getting totally spent during the run. I can't say I completely understand the physics of it - but I totally believe in it.

I will run the marathon using this interval approach as well. Interestingly enough, my pace has not become slower employing this method of training.

Last week's long run was 10 miles and was ok. It wasn't a great run - but not awful either. Suffice it to say, it is done.

Here comes Saturday again and this week is the second 16 mile run. I will post to let you know how it goes.