My training has finally picked up after a lull in October. I think I was burned out from all the training I did earlier in the year. My first year racing and I did 4 triathlons (one was a mini), 1 aqua-velo and 6 running races ranging from 5k to half marathon. Maybe I started out too aggressively? By the time the last triathlon, marathon relay and half marathon rolled around (all back to back weekends) I was pooped.
I gave myself a few weeks to recover, but the Austin Marathon was looming...so it was back to the grind. I even managed to get in a few outdoor bikes in before it started getting cold. The coolest ride was a commute into my new work location. The ride was just under 11 miles, and it's mostly on trails, so I only have to deal with traffic for about 3 miles of it. (The bad news is that 3 miles is a 2 lane road - 1 lane each way.) I met up with a coworker who commutes in at least once a week on his really cool recumbent, so he could show me where the turns and stops were, but now that I've done it once, I'm sure I could do it again. If only it weren't so cold!! And I weren't such a cold weather wimp!!
The marathon training has me focusing on the run, even though Coach Ed still wants us to do 2 swims and 2 rides a week. I'm following TeamZ's plan for the Myrtle Beach marathon, since Austin and Myrtle Beach fall on the same weekend. But I've been kinda slacking on the swimming and biking. Waking up at 5:00 when it's 20 degrees out and going to swim is not very appealing. And biking outdoors on Sunday, the day after our long runs isn't either. Especially since our long runs have now exceeded the longest runs I've ever done (16 this weekend!! eeek!!)
So my weeks are ending up with 3-4 runs and a trainer ride...and those are my good weeks. I've had a few weeks where I've done 2 runs and a bike, or 2 runs and a swim. I hope I'll still be in good enough shape to run my first marathon. I noticed that Ed's plan only has us running 20 miles before the race, so I guess he's assuming we're doing the bikes and swims. Ugh!!
My long runs have been going pretty well. I try to meet up with Connie for most of them, so that we can push eachother to finish. Although I'm sure she's a lot more help to me than I am to her...since she's already run 2 marathons. The encouraging news is we have been doing all these runs at under 11:00 miles, so my goal of coming in under 5:30 is looking pretty doable. Mike keeps telling me to set a more aggressive goal, but I don't want to be disappointed for my first marathon ever. Maybe I'll try those Yasso 800s that Rich was mentioning a while back.
This weekend's run is 16 miles, and I'll be running it alone in Tennesee. I wonder if I can get any of Mike's family members to go out and run with me. :( I have to make sure I do the whole thing because it just gets harder from here on out. It looks like our schedule has us resting for 2 weeks after this run with a 10 miler and then a 5 miler. Then we increase again to 18, followed by a rest of 10, peak at 20 then taper to 16, 8 and then race. I'm tempted to run longer than 20 somewhere, but I have no idea where to fit it in. And the taper looks not so tapery to me...but I should just trust Ed.
On a side note, I tried Gu for the first time on my 10 mile run (I ate only half of it, and stupidly only brought the other half with me on my 14 miler....a 14 miler probably requires more than half a gel) I had the Vanilla Bean, probably from one of my races earlier this year. Up until then, I'd pretty much exclusively used hammer gels because of the sugar content. But, wow...Vanilla bean Gu is yummmy. It tastes like vanilla frosting. Worried, I looked at the nutrition list and only 3 grams of sugar!!! I bought a few more of these to try out, but if they work on longer runs, I may start alternating them with my hammer gel...just for a change of pace. As much as I like the vanilla frosting taste, I'm sure I'll get sick of it quickly.
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I've switched to Clifshots. I think they are better than Gu's in terms of sugar content type. Also, Hammergels beat all as far as I know in terms of sugar content. The type of sugar in Gu gels will give you a higher high but then you have a faster low versus a better constant energy source in Hammergel.
I've tried doing solely Hammergels and I haven't done extremely well, although it was also my first time using gel flasks during a race which isn't nearly as precise as 1 gel shot per x miles or x minutes. So I figure Clifshots are a happy medium.
It may be a cool topic to research!
I can see how using solely one type of nutrition might not work for most...but I am very happy with the gel flask. I usually can only take a half of a gel shot at time or i get dizzy, and the flask allows me to do that without the other half of the gel oozing all into my pockets :P
My friend swears by Clifshots, I'm going to have to give them a try. The low sugar content in Gu made me happy, but what you said about higher highs and lower lows will make me rethink whether I can use them for my longer distance runs.
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7
I tried the mile repeats today, but instead of doing them at a reasonable pace, I tried to sprint the first one. Ended up fubaring my quads and had to stop after 3 of them. Oops.
I'm not sure who to believe on the peak training. The RW plan has the longest run at 20 miles (although, they also have you running 6 days a week).
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7
In Jeff Galloway's plan, we're at about week 22 right now, which means he thinks we should be doing over 20 already.
http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/ma
After my experience in SA, I'm definitely doing at least one run longer than marathon distance. I don't want the race to be the longest run I've ever done in my life.
I have that 16 miler this weekend, so I wonder if I could fit in the Yasso 800 on monday or tuesday. Hmmm...that would mean I need access to a track in TN though. I'll have to see.
Hope your quads are feeling better!!
Those 20 and longer runs really put a beating on your body and take a while to recover from. In general I limit my long runs to 2.5 hours - any longer than that and I greatly increase my chance of injury.
I'm a fan of clifshots and hammergel - for whatever reason, the gu always makes me feel very spikey. I also try to eat around 200 to 300 calories an hour when running, so yeah, more then half a gel every 14 miles :D