I survived the first four weeks of marathon training – including two peak weeks at 85 miles, a twenty mile long run, and two 18 milers.
My reward? A quick mile race on Sunday followed by a week of relative rest and relaxation.
I worked a down week into the schedule here to give myself a bit of a reset, and boy do I need it. Last week really kicked my butt.
I finished up yesterday feeling ok, and I think I’m in good shape for the race. But it’ll be nice to let up a little bit and make sure I’m fresh for the next chunk of tough training. After the race, I’m going to do a shortened long run on Monday and only hit 70 miles for the week.
I’ve also organized things such that the end of this week will be light, because I have a XC 5k race coming up next Sunday. When I’m on the other side of that race, I can ratchet things back up.
So keep reading for a race report from the Big Bang Mile and a brief recap of my cutback week.
The Plan for the Week
Here’s the plan for the week:
- Sunday – Big Bang Mile, 5 miles with warm up and cool down
- Monday – 16 mile, easy long run
- Tuesday – 6 miles easy AM, 5 miles easy PM
- Wednesday – 8 miles easy trail AM, 6 mile track workout PM
- Thursday – 11 miles easy
- Friday – 7 miles easy
- Saturday – 6 miles easy trail
And here’s how things went.
Sunday – The Big Bang Mile
I woke up Sunday morning, and the weather wasn’t great. It was raining, and there were thunderstorms in the forecast for the morning.
But the weather said that it would clear up in the area of the race – about 45 minutes south of me. I had a bowl of cereal, drank my coffee, and left for the race. Sure enough, I got there and the rain was over.
It was still cloudy and muggy. There were races going on all morning, so I sat and watched a few teammates go. Around 9, I started warming up for my heat (9:45).
I jogged about a mile and a half, followed by some strides, leg swings, and a couple 200’s. Although it didn’t feel all that hot, I broke into a sweat almost immediately. It was definitely humid. Considering the weather, I decided not to overdo the warmup.
Just as we were about to start, the sun broke through the clouds. Really? Now we have to deal with direct sun, too? Oh well. It is what it is.
There was a small group of about 20 guys in my heat – masters men, 40-49. I knew some of them would be faster than me, so my plan was to go out hard, settle in to a comfortable pace, try to split the half at around 2:50 and then push it home.
At the gun, we shot out. A small group of 10 guys or so slowly stretched out in front of me. They were close for the first 100m or so, but then I settled in to the pace and they pulled ahead a little bit.
There were clocks set up at each quarter mile split, and before I knew it we were at the first one. As we approached the split, I could see 1:10’s on the clock. I thought, “Uh oh. Too fast!”
I hit the split at just about 82 seconds. Not crazy fast, but a little faster than my goal (85 seconds).
For the next quarter, I tried to keep things relaxed and I paced off a guy next to me. I didn’t bother looking at my watch to see the pace. My only goal at this point was to get through the halfway point without feeling like death.
And before I knew it, we were there. The course takes a wide turn to loop back towards the start, and we passed the clock at the beginning of the turn. I felt surprisingly good at this point.
Time: 2:50 – I split 88 seconds. I eased up a little too much, and this split was a little slow. But combined with the faster first quarter, I was right on target.
Here, I made a concerted effort to speed up. I passed one guy, and there were two more slightly ahead of me. I tried to slowly reel them in.
At this point, I wasn’t paying attention to the time or the clock. I was relieved to pass the 3/4 mile mark – but I had no idea at the time what my time was.
I checked Garmin Connect afterwards, and I split 84 seconds. Nice.
Now the pain starts. 400m to go. I can make it. I kept bearing down on the two guys ahead of me and trying to reel them in. Pace by pace.
My effort was maxed out – but I could tell I was speeding up. I still had a little gas in the tank. I couldn’t quite catch the two guys ahead of me, but I breathed a little sigh of relief when I saw the finish line come into view.
When I could read the clock, it read 5:20 something. I crossed the line, stopped my watch, and looked down. 5:37.
Nice!
It was a rough day, weather-wise. Mid 70’s, dew point of ~70-71, and direct sunlight for part of the race. And I’m coming off two weeks at 85 miles. But I was still able to knock out a solid race and time.
Under better conditions, I probably could have run 5:20-5:25. But 5:37 is the fastest I’ve ever clocked a mile, so I’ll take it. I executed the plan pretty well, and I’m happy that I was able to finish strong without fading.
Monday – Another Long Run on the Treadmill
Since I had a short race on Sunday, I had to push my long run until Monday.
Because of the race, I also planned on doing a shorter, easier long run – 16 miles at an easy pace.
We had some people scheduled to come do some work at the house Monday morning, and I didn’t know exactly when they’d get there. So I decided to stay home and run on the treadmill instead of going out for a couple hours.
I fired up Star Wars: Rebels and settled in for two hours and fifteen minutes. The first mile or two, I was still a little stiff. My legs felt a little heavy from the race.
But overall, I felt pretty good.
My heart rate was low and under control, and it stayed that way as I stepped up the pace. In fact, looking back to my last similar treadmill run, I was much more relaxed and at ease today.
Two weeks ago, I did a 16 mile / 2:15 long run on the treadmill, with an average heart rate of 139 and a max heart rate of 155. That’s firmly aerobic – but towards the upper end, especially later on.
This morning, I did the same run with an average heart rate of 127 and a max heart rate of 140.
Any time you can do the same thing with much less effort, it’s a good sign that your training is going in the right direction.
Tuesday’s Easy Doubles
Tuesday morning, I had to be down at the office fairly early for a meeting. So my morning routine was a little rushed.
I initially planned on an 8 mile trail run, but I decided instead to do 6 miles around the Reservoir – and shift those 2 miles to another easy run later in the week.
I stepped outside, and the weather was amazing. It was in the low 60’s and there was a moderate breeze. It felt like early fall.
Unfortunately, I looked ahead … and summer will be back. But I enjoyed this morning’s run. It was a beautiful morning to lap around the Reservoir a few times.
I kept it nice and easy, and I ended with a set of strides to stretch out my legs.
After work, I took a quick nap and then hopped on the treadmill for an easy five miles.
The first ten minutes or so, my legs were kind of heavy and tight. Aerobically, I felt fine, and my heart rate was low throughout the run.
Things loosened up as I warmed up, though, and I felt pretty good by the end of the run.
Wednesday’s Track Workout
I had a more flexible morning on Wednesday, so I hit the trails like usual.
Eight miles. A little stiff in the first mile, but loosened up pretty well and felt great once for most of the run.
The weather was perfect. In fact, it was almost chilly. I wore a short sleeved shirt, and I never once felt like I needed to take it off. It’s been a while since I’ve got through an entire run with a shirt, and I didn’t immediately want to strip it off from the sweating.
My pace at the end was 9:00 to 9:15/mi, and I finished in 1:16. A decent easy run – not too fast, not too slow.
In the evening, I headed to the track for the team workout. Warmed up with a mile on the track, and we did some drills.
The workout was a mix of fast running and tempo. But this week, the fast reps came first. 8 x 200m with a 200m jog recovery. After a few minutes to recover, we wrapped up with a 2 mile tempo run.
There was a pretty big crowd, and there were six or seven of us in the “fast” group. We started the first rep, and the first four guys pulled out ahead slightly. My legs felt a little heavy, and I thought maybe I’d gone slow and just needed to warm up.
Nope: 39 seconds. Great pace for me. One of the other guys was right with me, and we did the rest of the workout together.
8 reps is short enough that it wasn’t too tough. It probably helped that the weather was nice, too. I consistently hit 39 seconds with each rep. In the final rep, I pushed a little harder and came through in 37s.
I drank some water and jogged a lap to recover, and after a few minutes it was time for the tempo run. We lined up and got started. For the first lap, I stuck with some of the faster guys and I think the pace was a little hot.
After that, I backed off slightly. The gap stayed pretty constant, so we probably ran a similar pace. I dropped back a little further as things went on, but I pulled closer in the final two laps. I didn’t pay much attention to my watch, and I just focused on keeping the effort steady throughout – and speeding up slightly towards the end.
I finished the two miles in 12:40 – so 6:20/mi. Which is fine by me – that’s a T pace equivalent to a 2:55-3:00 marathon. Right on target.
This was also the final night for one of our team members who was only visiting for the summer from Australia. He’d been a staple at team races and workouts for the last couple months, and we’ll miss him when he’s gone. Once we wrapped up the workout, we gave him a card and a few small gifts.
Thursday’s Easy – Not So Long – Run
Typically, I’ve been doing a medium long run on Thursdays or Fridays. But this week, with my goal only being 70 miles, I didn’t need to put in 16 miles midweek.
Instead, I planned on limiting Thursday’s run to around 10 miles. I eventually decided on a route that came out to 11 miles, so I adjusted a mile elsewhere. It’s a hilly out and back route that loops through Verona park.
The weather was still nice, so I didn’t bother taking water. I wasn’t too concerned with the pace, but I had a general goal of around 90 minutes for the 11 miles.
It took a mile or two to loosen up. Probably a little fatigue from the workout the day before. And the first half of the run is net uphill, so it’s naturally a little slower. I checked my pace after five miles, and I was at 43:13.
The next two miles were 8:11 and 8:01. Getting a little faster. And now that I was out of the park, the last few miles were net downhill.
From there, I ran 7:51, 7:34, 7:43, and 7:58. The last two miles had some inclines mixed in, too.
All told, I finished in 1:30:35 – 8:14/mi.
Pretty solid effort for an aerobic run. Average heart rate was 141, and when I sped up towards the end I was still around 150. That’s the top end of the aerobic zone for me, right where I want to be on this kind of run.
Friday Morning in Brooklyn
Thursday night, we went into the city for a NY Liberty game. That meant that we stayed the night in Brooklyn – and I got to run through the city Friday morning.
We were staying in between the Brooklyn Bridge and the Barclay’s Center at the Aloft. It’s about 1.5 miles from Prospect Park. I needed to hit 7 miles – so it was perfect to go to the park, loop around once, and head back.
I ran the Brooklyn Half this year, and I think I might run it again next year. So it was nice to be able to spend some time in the park and get a little used to the hills.
The first mile and a half up Flatbush Ave was uphill. So the warm up seemed a little tougher than usual. Plus, it’s starting to warm up.
But once I got to the park, I felt great. There was shade and a nice breeze. It was just the right amount of crowded – runners everywhere but not enough to get in your way. I cruised through the park, slowly passing people as I went.
It’s always such a treat to run in Central Park or Prospect Park, because there are so many other runners there. I literally never get to see this many people unless I’m running a race. On a usual morning, I’m lucky to see more than a dozen other people – and on the trails, I can usually count it on one hand.
Once I got back to the top of the park, I jogged back down Flatbush. It was a lot easier when I went downhill. I had to pass by the hotel and do an extra block to finish up.
I stopped in front of the hotel … and when the activity sync’ed to Strava it said 6.99 miles instead of 7.00.
Eugh. Oh well.
It was a great run, nonetheless.
Saturday’s Easy Trail Run
I wrapped up the week with an easy six miles on the trails.
When I woke up, I felt a little stiff. I remember thinking, “Isn’t this a recovery week?”
But after I had a chance to drink some coffee and go about my morning routine, I felt really good.
I was brewing beer today, so I dropped the grains in to mash just before I left on my run. Did an easy six miles on the trail and came back after about an hour. Perfect timing to remove the grains and heat things up to a boil.
The run felt great. It’s warming up again, but it wasn’t too hot. After the turn around, my pace got down to ~9:15/mi. I could have gone faster, but I wanted to keep things easy with the race coming up tomorrow. In the final mile, I added four sets of quick strides in to loosen up my legs.
It was a nice, easy way to end the week. I’m ready for the race tomorrow – and for a few more tough weeks of grueling marathon training.
Reflections and Looking Ahead
The week started off with the Big Bang Mile, and I’m really happy with how that turned out.
My time (5:37) is a huge PR for me. I don’t routinely race or train for short distance races like the mile, but it’s always fun to get out there and run fast.
Under better conditions, I think I could go much faster. It was humid, and I was coming off two tough peak weeks. There’s usually a late spring mile race in May, and I think I’ll try and run that next year.
And I’m pleased with the way the rest of the week went. I hit my mileage goal (70 miles) with ease, and the week felt light. By the end, I could definitely feel my legs unburdening a little from the fatigue.
The workout Wednesday was great, and I’m still all the right paces. Last week, I didn’t have a good workout because of stomach issues. So I was happy to get a little redemption this week. Evidence that things are on the right track.
Tomorrow is another team race – the USATF NJ XC 5k Championship.
I scouted out the course, and it’s got two big hills – one towards the end of mile one and one at around mile 1.5. I think the plan will be to take it out fairly easy for the first mile (~6:25-6:30), make it through those hills by feel, and then hammer it in the second half.
It’s forecasted to be warm (~70F) but not overly humid (~62F dew point) tomorrow morning. So the weather shouldn’t be a huge issue. It’s certainly better than what I was dealing with at the RVRR Summer Series races this summer.
If I can finish under 20 minutes, I’ll be happy. I’d love to get down closer to 19 – but I’m not sure just how steep the hills are, and how much they’re going to take out of me. And I’d rather be a little conservative than crash and burn.
We’ll see what happens tomorrow – and check back next week for a race report along with my weekly reflection.