The end of the road (are we there yet?)

pgmcpq

So it is Sunday, mile 17 of 18, stuggling at this point along a park waterfront, agsint a headwind and the cold. Pass a group of women. They stand out a little wearing headscarfs as was common in Ireland in the 1970s. As I passed them one turned to me and started singing in a Dublin accent 'Keep right on ot the end of the road". So I took this as a sign an registered for the Dublin marathon, alongn with Mrs. Pgmcpq, and brother-in-law-pgmcpq.

I have been lurking here for a while and found a long of great info - the pmp v. slower paced LSR thread I still go back to. So given that I have committed to Dublin I am staring a log here.

Background : mid 40s, living in the NE US - so weather is a major factor. About a year into running. Todate most has been at the 5k to HM distances. IN the last three months have started psuhing longer distances, longer weekluy milage.

PBs: 5k 21:30 (2009), 4m 30:33 (2009), 8k 34:23 (2009), 10k 44:23 (chip 44:12) (2009), HM: 1:39:54(chip) (2010)

Schedule :

Right now I'm focused on my first marathon in May (10 weeks to go) a smallish flat and fairly local marathon. Aim is 3:30 - probably ambitious for me but there I have said it - it would quality me to run Boston. I think 3:45 is realistic - I ran a 1:39 half-marathon on a hilly course in January. Before this I have the NY half marathon in March ( and a possible 10K three weeks before the may marathon.
During July-September there are some 5k/10k I would like to do ... but an not sure how to fit this with Dublin training ( I have comeg back from thje 5k and done a LSR later in the day - but one attmept at this left me nuring a sore IT band so I ma nervous about trying this again ). I have a few local AG wins I would like to defend in the short stuff.
Dublin in October will have the same aim - unless I make the 3:30 in May.
Later in fall there are a some 10k and an 8k race in November that I will focis on.

Aims:

Marathon : 3:30 - qualify for Boston
5k : Break the 21 minutes mark
4m: : improve to ?
10k : improve to ?
HM : Well I had said 1:40 and suprised my self in Jan ... so anything is a bonus
8K : Under 32 minutes (this will win me a prized)

Training:

Began training towards this early December. Weekly milage has been in the 40s, with some tipping into the 50s. I am now _trying_ to hit the mid 50s consistantly and hope to peak at mid 60s for a few weeks. Running five tiems a week - but going to pick up to six for a the next six weeks pre taper and see how that goes.

Not strictly following a training schedule. Trying to cheery pick the best from a few of them and add into that a pretty aggressive schedule of long runs. I try to get sone speed work, one sort-of tempo run and one long run in every week - though to my horror I discovered that my hills workout on a treadmill has been run too slowly. The speedwork has been a little erratic as snow and ice has made my local track unuseable for the past three weeks. The long runs I have been very diligent about as 15 miles plus is new to me. So far I have hit 20-22 miles 5 times, 18-20 3 times. None of these runs have filled me with the confidence that my 3:30 is realistic.

The other big problem is the weather - the snow has meant that many of my usual training routes are out of action. Only this week have some finally been cleared and we might be facing a new now storm on Thursday/Friday. The track has been unuseable for three weeks - so while I have improvised/used the gym it is becoming difficult to keep going. "Real life" has not been helpful either !

So for the last two weeks it has been :

WeeksToGo|M|T|W|T|F|Sat|Sun|Total
12 | -| 10| 2hrs-bike| 6fast| 6| 1hrs-eliptical| 22(3h15)| 44

Long run was a shocking struggle. Had not planned on 22 but snow meant the rest of the weekwas limited milage with cross-training.

WeeksToGo|M|T|W|T|F|Sat|Sun|Total
11 |5| - | 10 | 10 | 7 | 22(3h:08) | 4rec | 58

Better week. Concentrated on a confortable pace on LSR - it was also above freezing for the first time in quite a while whihc probably helped

WeeksToGo|M|T|W|T|F|Sat|Sun|Total
10|10(pmp)| 7(6xhills)


OK ... deep breath ... submit

Krusty_Clown

Best of luck pgmcpq. That's a lot of long runs. Should see you through to a strong finish.

Later in fall there are a some 10k and an 8k race in November that I will focis on.

What's fall?

pgmcpq

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

Best of luck pgmcpq. That's a lot of long runs. Should see you through to a strong finish.

What's fall?

Touche !

Yes, fall : that which I do every time I fall asleep trying to get miles in on the treadmill. Embarassing. What I have done twice this winter - I'm sure the other guys training are thinking - "Well if he can't make it from one end of the park to another ....".

Trying to focus on the long run - though possibly/probably doing them too fast. The recent thread on how do you know if you can really do your pmp over the whole distance is one that has played on my mind from the beginning.

Krusty, your long runs I could only dream of ! Best of luck in Barcelona.

pgmcpq

Feb 24: 8 miles @ 7.38 : Hate running after dark but had to be done after a very early start to the day

Feb25: 5 miles a la threadmill, 1-2%incline, 1 warmup+4m@8.00 : *Sigh* forgot to set alarm - first time in thsi training. When I did get up and stuck my nose out the door, I was battered by big wet sloppy snow ( I know the eskimos have a swear word for this ). It was like being socked with a soggy cold pillow. Have run in snow before ... but enough is enough ... so off to the salt-mines gym and up on the treadmill. Tighs and hammies were (and are) feeling alarmingly stiff (did I skip strectching after last night ?), and I was now runnng late so kept it short and relatively easy - though I find the gym tough as it always seems a bit stuffy. Still I am following Terget's "keep the momentum going" creed.

Sadly given the snow my outdoor running may be done until I try the LSR ( I refuse to do the LSR on the threadmill as I always lose focus, misstep and fall once I go beyond the 7-8 miles range. I think the guys in the gym now take bets on when I am going to fall over :mad:).

pgmcpq

This is beginning to look like a weather report.

Thursday 25th : gym 5 miles on the threadmill. By the time I left the gyn the snow was coming down.
Friday 26th: No chance to get out - even to the gym - did an hour on the sationary bike.
Saturday: Planed a 16 miles lsr with the last six at pmp. Unexpected guests meant fitting in a quick 8 miles at pmp ... then 3 hours off walking doing the tourist thing.
Sunday: Tried again to get the 16 miles in with the last five at pmp. By the time the folks had gone I was concerned about finishing while the sun was still up, ended up not eating enough as I had expected to get going earlier, not taking a gel, and was run off the the road by a cab driver into calk deep snow ... giving me a miserable, slightly nauseous 16 miles where I crashed around mile 14 .. shuffling home at 9mm+ in 2hrs 15 minutes with three bathroom breaks. A confidence/morale draining weekend. The only positive is that I did complete the 16 ( though at the end I was running up and down by my water bottle waiting for the Garmin to click over to 16. The only positive was acutally completing it.
I'm also trying to convince myself that the walking time on Saturday and Sunday morning factored in ... not convinced.

Monday 1st - 9 weeks to go: 5 mile recovery run. Legs feel ok but jsut don't have it. Concentrated on form. (Reading Brain Traing For Runners right now and am trying to put some of the stride "cues" into action).

So for the week:

WeeksToGo|M|T|W|T|F|Sat|Sun|Total
10|10(pmp)| 7(6xhills) |5threadmill|bike|8|16| 54


At this point I am getting concerned about the quality of my training. I am tempted to back off but with a HM coming in three weeks I was planning to use a mini-taper for that race as a step-back week. So I guess I will play it by ear and see if things get better once I get control of my schdeule again.

pgmcpq

Well bit ironic - managed to tweak my knee when walking out of work. Not sure what I did but I know immediately that it was not good.
Been careful with it ... but it has not actually hampered running so I ma continuing on - really just feel it when I walk.

Tuesday: 9 miles with 3 x 1 miles at < 5k (~7mm for me) pace + 1.5 mile of approx. pmp. With the track still unuseable this was the nearest thing to speedwork in two weeks. Had planned to do 4X1miles but ran out of time and wimped out a bit. Could hear a woodpecker in the park while I ran - hard not to speed up to the rythem !

Wednesday: 9 miles at PMP - maybe a little faster slower.

I am having problems keeping a consistant pace. A lot of the runs I have done recently have been hilly so I could ignore pace ... but on flat I seem to gradually speed up until I pull myself back of find myself suffering. I've tried focusing on the sound of my feet, singing (silently! ) to myself but still. On LSR my pace is often all over the place. Not sure if this is soemthing that will be "alright on the night".

Second problem is that the first 2 miles of very run are a struggle. Don't know if this is just in my head. After 2-3 miles if often gets easier and I settle down but I would like to be able to get over this initial stuggle. I don't really warm up on long runs ... figuring the first mile will serve. This I should look at.

3 weeks to the HM, 9 weeks to the marathon. Plan to try a 24 mile run this week and then start a mini-taper/stepback for two weeks until after the HM.

rigal

Hey pgmcpq,

Just seeing your log now. Great to see runners based outside of Ireland posting here. Keeps things interesting!

Based on your HM time, mcmillan's running pace calculator (www.mcmillanrunning.com) and the training runs you are doing sub 3:30 is definitely possible for you. I ran 1:34 in Longford 1/2 last August and then ran the Amsterdam marathon 6 weeks later in 3:27 so I reckon you have a good shot at it in May all going well.

You are getting some big LSR's in at this stage. Are you going to do many more 20+ milers before the race in May? They're a great confidence builder if your legs can handle it but you do increase the risk of injury.

Snap on "brain training for runners" - I read it before running Amsterdam. It's a good book, bit technical in parts, but what he says re. embracing the pain etc is pretty good advice for marathon racing...

Best of luck with the goals and hope the knee injury isn't too serious!

rigal

pgmcpq

rigal wrote: »

Hey pgmcpq,

Just seeing your log now. Great to see runners based outside of Ireland posting here. Keeps things interesting!

Based on your HM time, mcmillan's running pace calculator (www.mcmillanrunning.com) and the training runs you are doing sub 3:30 is definitely possible for you. I ran 1:34 in Longford 1/2 last August and then ran the Amsterdam marathon 6 weeks later in 3:27 so I reckon you have a good shot at it in May all going well.

You are getting some big LSR's in at this stage. Are you going to do many more 20+ milers before the race in May? They're a great confidence builder if your legs can handle it but you do increase the risk of injury.

Snap on "brain training for runners" - I read it before running Amsterdam. It's a good book, bit technical in parts, but what he says re. embracing the pain etc is pretty good advice for marathon racing...

Best of luck with the goals and hope the knee injury isn't too serious!

rigal

Thanks Rigal,

Feel like a bit of an interloper but this board is pretty unique in terms of the quality of info - I've learned a lot just reading the debates on LSR pace etc and how people put their training together - though most of the logs are beyond my standard.

MacMillan shows me making 3:30 .... but only just - no room for error at all ! I deliberately loaded the 20miles+ runs on as they were new for me. I was unsure if I'd be able to get them in ...but so far so good and I seem to recover reasonably well. Max is 3 more, 2 is more likely as I have another HM in three weeks, but I"ll see how I feel. I have been trying to do a few "fast/pmp finish" long runs but it has not really come off. But I take your point - at this stage I need to bea little more careful. Like yourself I have itbs issues (I use alternating heat and ice pads)... so any training run can be abondoned at the first sign of trouble.

Brain Training was an impluse buy. Not sure I am at the "embracing the pain" stage yet - but it is interesting. I read a recent article that external association - focusing on external but race related things liek the runners around you - with periodic "body sweeps" to check on relaxed muscles, belly breathing etc, gave the best results.

dermCu

pgmcpq wrote: »

I've learned a lot just reading the debates on LSR pace etc and how people put their training together - though most of the logs are beyond my standard.

It doesn't matter in the slightest if some people are running faster than you. Just because you can run "fast" doesn't mean that you understand how you are able to do it or even how to structure a training plan.
My own personal feeling is that there are a significant number of people out there running relatively "fast" times despite the training they are doing. If a good coach got hold of them I'm sure there would see even bigger improvements.
Having said that the general level of knowledge on Boards is pretty good. I've learned a good bit on Boards from people who might finish behind me in a marathon.
The approach you are taking up to now is the best one: read a lot and cherry pick the best bits that work for you. Don't be afraid of trial and error to prove or disprove.

You seem to have taken well to long runs. Given that you ran a 1:39 half on a hilly course I'd say you look good for 3:30
What you've been able to do in a year is impressive. Just running consistently for another year will see your times improve, keep it up.

pgmcpq

dermCu wrote: »

It doesn't matter in the slightest if some people are running faster than you. Just because you can run "fast" doesn't mean that you understand how you are able to do it or even how to structure a training plan.
My own personal feeling is that there are a significant number of people out there running relatively "fast" times despite the training they are doing. If a good coach got hold of them I'm sure there would see even bigger improvements.
Having said that the general level of knowledge on Boards is pretty good. I've learned a good bit on Boards from people who might finish behind me in a marathon.
The approach you are taking up to now is the best one: read a lot and cherry pick the best bits that work for you. Don't be afraid of trial and error to prove or disprove.

You seem to have taken well to long runs. Given that you ran a 1:39 half on a hilly course I'd say you look good for 3:30
What you've been able to do in a year is impressive. Just running consistently for another year will see your times improve, keep it up.

Well, I when I found the logs I looked for some here that seemed like a match for my kind of range ...So I'd find one and read... "beginning runner", "never athletic" ok, ok this one looks like someone I could relate to... and by page 2 they were knocking back a 38m 10k and reflecting on what went wrong !!

I have looked at a number of the training plans and while they differ in the details they all basically agree on structure. In to that i have added an pretty aggressive set of long runs - as this is the bit that i have no real experience of. I am ready to (expected to) drop some at the first sign of trouble ...but so far so good.

To be honest I have learned the most from reading about failures - sorry I know might sound a bit voyeuristic but reading I did this and it resulted in that makes an impact that "you should do this" does not.

The 1:39 in the half was a complete suprise but while it suggest 3:30 is not a complete fantasy it is far from a done deal. I am running the NY Half in two weeks and am still undecided as to what I should aim for here. It is a flatter course but I have noticed that hilly courses often seem to generate the fastest times ....I guess any improvement on 1:39 would be good.

Thanks for the feedback - keep 'em coming.

pgmcpq

Thursday : Woke up with a head cold. Not part of the plan - worked from home and after some indecision took a rest day.

Friday: Worked from home again and snuck out in the afternoon for a quick 8miles@pmp. Despite everything felt reasonably ok. Certainly better than I would have expected.

Saturday: I had planned a 24 mile LSR with a finish at pmp. Was unsure if this was a sound idea after the 8 yesterday ... but decided to go ahead. Weather was great - first run above freezing so far this year - actually ran without a jacket for the first time this year. Almost packed it in after two miles as I thought I must be delerious when I heard and saw an ice cream truck. I mean yes, it was great - but still ice cream ??? Little Jimmy's Ice Cream & Italian Ices to be exact.
For the first time I tried pinning partially cut gels to my shorts. The idea is to tuck the gel inside the shorts, creasing the top and pinning the top on the outside of the shorts. That way the gel does not bounce around can be ripped off and opened wihtou breaking stride.
Not a success. The actual result was an open (un)saftey pin pin and unopened gel.

Overall did the 24 in 3hr 27 (8:37mm). Tried to get to pmp in the last 4 miles but was off at around 8:11 with a final mile @ 8:39 (with hills). Overall reasonably happy with the run - felt the pace was pretty sustainable, though the finish was a little disappointing. I tend to judge the run by how I feel at the end and by that standard today was a good day

Planning a 5 mile recovery run tomorrow for my first ever 60 mile week. Given my first thoughts on Thursday morning - have to be happy with that.

pgmcpq

Well having completed the 24 mile run I settled down to enjoy my post run carb feast. But since nothing can be easy I managed to drop a desert spoon on the middle to of my right foot. Bit sore but nothing I cannot handle ... a few hours later I had forgotten all about it.

Sunday : Woke up, rolled over, stood up .... and the middle toe of my right foot reminded me pretty damn quick that still had not forgotten about being mugged with a spoon. Really amazed as it seems like such a minor thing. So now I am perfectly symmetrical - head cold and sore toe. After a few hours I decided it probably would be ok if I kept my stride correct. So I did finish the week off with a 5 mile recovery run (@9m/m )- actually felt pretty good - better than I would have expected. Unfortunately I did tweak my knee again very early on before I have got into stride.

WeeksToGo|M|T|W|T|F|Sat|Sun|Total
9(3 to HM)|5recovery| 9 (3X1m@5k) | 9pmp| rest|8pmp|24|5recovery| 60



Monday: Toe and head are both still a problem. Knee seems ok-ish again I think this is a minor issue. 9 miles with 2 tempo miles, 2 hills and 2 miles at pmp.

Planning on another 60 mile week with a 18-20 miles LSR on Saturday, and then a taper week (40miles including race) to the NY Half. Hoping the mini-taper week will be enough to resolve tghe niggles I am beginning to pick up - (symptom of overtraining or just par for the course? I don't normally get colds ... hummm ... the spoon however was just one of those things).

Thinking about 1:38:00 as a target for the half. The 1:39:54 in January was a surprise but ....assuming that it was not a freak result .... a 1:38 would be a nice confidence boost ? Still on paper it looks like a big ask ... dunno maybe I should think a bit less and run a bit more.

pgmcpq

Tuesday: 8+ miles total. 2 miles warmup, (3 x 1 miles @ 5k pace), + remainder at pmp. The plan was 4 X 1 miles on the track but the heart/legs were not in it and I wimped out. Part of the problem was I did the 1 miles stretches too fast. The glare on the Garmin got me confused so I found my self at 5:50+ m/m ( when I thought I was at 6:50 m/m and was pushing to get to 6:30) Slowed down but the damage was done - so these may fall into the junk miles category.

At under eight weeks to the marathon, less than two to the half marathon, this is proably my last track/speed session (though having the track back from under snow makes it very tempting). But form here on out baring the LSR, the half and a possilble 10k three weeks before the marathon - everything else will focus on PMP or just below. A lession learned from reading discussions on here.

Have started to get a periodic pain in my right knee. This is new - it seems to appear and then disappear after a mile or two. I suspect it is the result of a sloppy stride when I get tired. After the toe incident Mrs pgmcpq has given me a plastic spoon and confiscated all cutlery and sharp pointy objects in the house.

catweazle

I got three colds in quick succession before xmas, i never got them before this, I would eat curries for breakfast if I was let.

I was recommended Vitamin B Complex by a dietician to stop this, havent had a problem since, maybe that might work

pgmcpq

catweazle wrote: »

I got three colds in quick succession before xmas, i never got them before this, I would eat curries for breakfast if I was let.

I was recommended Vitamin B Complex by a dietician to stop this, havent had a problem since, maybe that might work

B ? Interesting I will have to try that. I've been doing traditional C thing with some raw garlic.

I read somewhere - and I think it was Hal Higdon who said it but I could be wrong that 40% of runners training for marathon or longer distances get a cold during training. Seemed to suggest it was a symptom of over training - though I find him a bit conservative - almost anything seems to be a potential sign of trouble.

Like my curry - but I am not sure I could manage a vindaloo for breakfast !

pgmcpq

Wednesday: 10 miles : average 8.21m/m.

Great morning, crisp, sunny.

Wildlife : the woodpecker is back. I cannot tell where he/she is but it close. The Canadian geese are also starting to arrive in numbers and are getting aggressive - I had to surrender a path to them this morning.

Felt good but legs were alarmingly heavy for the the first four miles but cleared up - though the final miles were harder than I would have expected.
Possibly I should have kept this to recovery pace after yesterday but I don't know how long this weather will last and hate to 'waste' it. My head cold is getting much better, toe seems to be settling down. Knees are still causing me some concern but we'll see how they are after the next rest day (Friday).

During the morning runs I always need to stop at around the 5-7 miles mark and hit a bathroom. Not a big problem except that it makes it hard to know if I am making progress. So the 8:20m/m includes a bathroom break off .... 1 - 2 minutes .. maybe. So it might be a pmp run ... or might not !

Krusty_Clown

The hard part is that bathroom break schedule will eventually become park of your marathon race schedule. Don't get into the habit of regular pee breaks, as I did. Every second may eventually count!

This log needs more wildlife photos. Look after that knee!

pgmcpq

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

The hard part is that bathroom break schedule will eventually become park of your marathon race schedule. Don't get into the habit of regular pee breaks, as I did. Every second may eventually count!

Yeah ....not been a problem on race day so far - touch wood - but it is a bit of a concern. Not really sure there is a lot I can do about it. I am impressed with how you handled it in Barcelona and still got back on track. For me every second WILL count - I already feel the pressure .... Damn had to say pressure didn't I. Back in a minute ....:D

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

This log needs more wildlife photos. Look after that knee!

Maybe when I get to 25 posts ! Just remember the goose was a least 6'4" and a good 200lbs and his mates were with him.

pgmcpq

Thursday: Well .....had intended doing a recovery pace run but I forgot and lapsed in pmp.

8 miles @ average 8.01m/m. Actually pretty happy with that. All miles were under 8m/m with the exception of two outliers - A 8:39 to start (I always struggle in the first mile - the downfall of my first attempt at half marathon ) and an 8:26 in a mile mostly uphill with a stop at the top for water - so I'll cut myself some slack there. Finishing mile was comfortably under 8 so for me for seven days on the run that's ok. Tomorrow _will_ be a recovery run !

pgmcpq

Friday : Well again intended a slow near recovery pace but it turned cold and I ended up trying to get the run in before the rain started. 7 miles : pace was well over 8m/m even though I felt I was pushing it. Average of 8:15 at 6 miles, then slowed as the last mile was done on grass.

The pace (in it's absence) definitely suggests that tomorrow my legs are due a rest day ... might swing by the gym if I feel enthusiastic and do some light core/flexibility work.

pgmcpq

Well, lighting, thunder, fallen trees, we had it all. So Saturday was a rest day with some core work.
Sunday :I had just given up and was resigned to heading to the gym when the rain finally eased. So I chanced it. Interesting run. I was looking at the garbage all over the park, in odd places and seeming to form a jagged line. I was thinking that it was an odd way for the bins which had blown over to have distributed their contents when it dawned on me that I was actually looking at a tide line much as you'd see on the beach. The park is along side the mouth of a major river - probably a couple of miles of water. So it seems my running park had flooded. I was running at low tide - just as well. Meanwhile I had the park to myself other than love lorn teenagers and someone making very strange noises in the upper area. Having left my water near where this guy was I had some concerns. On my second loop I realized that he was doing vocal exercises and by my third loop an one man opera was on the go. Wish I had his lung capacity.

Oh .. the run. 18 miles with an attempted final 6 at pmp. As ever the first couple of miles felt rough (is this the product of age?) but then it settled down. Never felt great but the rain and headwind did not help. Target for final six miles was to keep them below 8,00. Actuals were 8.03, 7,45, 7.49, 7.50, 7.30, 7.46. No sure what happened on the first(thirteenth - wind may have been a factor) or fifth(seventeenth - some downhill) but pretty happy with that effort, tends to suggest I was doing better than I felt. The final six ( homage to Bettlestar Galactica) were tough but I was not out of gas at the end. All in all a good end to the week.

WeeksToGo|M|T|W|T|F|Sat|Sun|Total
8(2 to HM)|9(2 tempo)| 8(3X1m 5k) |10 |8 pmp |7 |rest|18 (6 pmp)| 60

pgmcpq

Monday : HM is Sunday so this will be a light week. Knees are still being cranky so I am going to ease up on the milage more than I had intended ... was looking at 40 (including the race) but might dip below this.

Morning are tough now. The clocks went forward here this weekend which means it is now dark in the morning again. I had been increasing my milage by getting out earlier before work but this is now a challenge.

6 miles : As ever was meant to be recovery but found myself going much too fast. Again knees are bothering me though when I focus on my stride it seems to clear up. Getting a little concerned about this now. It might be that my milage has exceeded the limit of what I can take. Next two weeks are mini-taper to the HM and then a recovery/rebuild week so I should have a better idea by then. I know I have been following a higher-risk strategy to date but at this point I need to become a little more careful about taking chances.

pgmcpq

Tuesday: Went out to push it today in a last hard session before the HM. 7 miles, average 7:27m/m. Knees held up ok during the run after being iced for much of Monday evening. Pretty happy with that effort. So going to set 7:25 as my target pace to try to break 1:38.

Unfortunately the HM course is largely similar to the course I ran in January - with loops of Central Park so my hopes for flatter are blown away. Central Park is nothing but hills (the worst being the NW corner) and is 2/3rds of the course. Ce la vie.

pgmcpq

Wednesday: Plan was 7 miles at recovery pace. Ended up 7 miles at 7:48m/m. *Sigh* way,way too fast - I have no discipline ( in my defense it was too tempting being back in a calm sunny morning ) - hope this does not come back to bite my this weekend.

Not a bad run - legs were a little heavy. Knees ok - though one is was little sore to the touch afterwards. Curiously I did get a stitch at between miles 5-6. This has happened a few times recently - I was able to breath my through it but this is unwelcome development. Also got a sudden pain in my hip early on which seemed to come out of now where and had me worried. Putting this down to middle age.

Plan is to take Thursday off, 7 miles (4 easy) on Friday and then the HM on Sunday. Hopefully enough to let the few niggles settle down.

pgmcpq

Thursday : rest
Friday: 7 miles, 1 mile on grass.

Tomorrow will be a rest day - maybe a mile to stretch the legs but that will be it. So now we get to see what 395 miles in the last 7+ weeks equals in term of improvement on 1:39:54 with a slightly easier but much more crowded course !

pgmcpq

Sunday: Well, I guess training does work ! 1:35:02 for a new PB (by 4:54).
Start was crowded (11,000+ runners) and had me worried, but have learned to be patient. Actually my first mile was 8:03 - so it was better than I thought at the time. At mile 5 some guy having a conversation over his shoulder ran into me but I was able to stay on my feet. Running Central Park clockwise seems easier that clockwise as in January. From mile 2-8 ran a fairly consistent pace 7:10-7:22, out of the park it's down hill (never really knew that) and kind of impressive looking at the ribbon of runners down to Time Square. Crowds got large and noisy and I unwisely threw in a 6:45m/m. I was able to back off back to 7:01, but the remaining 4 miles were below 7m/m. At mile 11 I began to get worried because I was finding myself looking for the mile markers - never a good sigh - and knew I could not sustain the pace, at that point I dropped to a 6:51 mile. But I was able to re-focus on form/breathing and finish reasonably well.
Average pace 7:16. All in all happy ... but there is a tinge of regret about that :02 ... so close to < 1:35 !

Physically fine - seem to have come through without picking up any niggles. Knees were ok - despite the last three miles yesterday being on concrete. Starting to get optimistic about the full marathon ....

WeeksToGo|M|T|W|T|F|Sat|Sun|Total
7|6recovery| 7fast|7|rest|7|rest|13race| 40

pgmcpq

New week:

Six weeks to the marathon. I suspect much of this week will be recovery before the final two/three week push - we'll see how the legs feel in another few days. Would liek to ramp back up to the 60 miles and get in at least 1, maybe 2 more 20 mile plus LSR. From next week I might try some of the suggested mid week PMP temp runs.

Monday: 5 mile recovery run. 1 mile (mile3) on grass. Went for a massage last night so now both leg and shoulder are sore today ! But I am happy enough that other than tired there are no ill effects after yesterday.

Abhainn

pgmcpq congrats on a great PB. Your 3:30 looks well on course. I did a 1:31 before my first marathon which I came at 3:14 on the day.

Yes wise to take this week relatively easy. Nothing hard or anything like 20 mile LSR stuff.

Krusty_Clown

Great running pgmcpq. You're set up nicely for the final big push over the top (guess who's been watching The Pacific!).

actwithoutwords

Congrats. That's a really fantastic time. Chopping off 5 minutes is great work as well.

pgmcpq

Abhainn wrote: »

pgmcpq congrats on a great PB. Your 3:30 looks well on course. I did a 1:31 before my first marathon which I came at 3:14 on the day.

That's interesting - that only twice the half + 13 minutes. For myself I'd be a bit more cautious than that. Given your recent job in Cyprus I'd be careful about modeling myself on your numbers ! But it is comforting that the most pace predictors now project at 3:30 finish at worst (though it still has to be run).

Abhainn wrote: »

Yes wise to take this week relatively easy. Nothing hard or anything like 20 mile LSR stuff.

Umm - you may have have saved me there ! I had been undecided aboutng about a gentle 18 miles at the weekend - I did it after my last half in January though it proved to be a struggle. I'll take the advice and scale back and see how I feel. I plan to run "on feel" until the weekend - keeping it at the "not hard" level. Would you suggest skipping the LSR completely ?