My second 20 mile run took place this morning. It was supposed to happen on Thursday but for the first time like ever..I bailed due to bad weather. I took lil T to the bus stop that morning…and after about 8 minutes outside was so frozen I said screw it to the 20 I had planned. Instead I subjected myself to a 1.5 hour long weighted Tae Bo session….the 20 would have been easier.
So this morning promised to be in the mid 20’s heading up towards 30 by the time I was to be done. I geared up and headed out the earliest I’ve been out in a long while. Something happens to me when I long run that just doesn’t when I’m just going out for 5 or 6 miles…it’s a different mindset. I have time to take in my surroundings…pay attentions to sights and smells like the Kerry Seasoning plant I smelled for miles and miles today..smelled just like pickles. Anything to keep your mind off the fact that you’re doing something that humans really weren’t designed to do. I fueled perfectly for a change…Hammer Espresso gels on the 5’s and Margarita shot bloks on the 2.5’s. And honestly the only thing that felt bad was my lower legs the last 4 miles or so. I wasn’t tired…my legs were just sore. But I remember how 16 miles used to sound so flippin huge to me…and I couldn’t get my head around it..well that number is now 20 miles….and hitting 16 isn’t that big a deal any more. What I am hopping will happen is that eventually…20 won’t be that big a deal…and after that…22 won’t be a big deal…and so on and so forth. You see…I just don’t like to leave much to chance. I want to know that 26.2 well before race day…because honestly..right this second..I could never have made it another 6.2 miles…no freakin way. Two miles I could let myself get away with….because I can do anything for 2 miles….but 6.2….no…I don’t think so.
So I’m supposed to do 22 miles this coming Thursday but am thinking about bumping that to next weekend to give myself a full week between long runs. After that my last long run of February is a mere 8 miles..I so look forward to those step back weeks.
That brings us to March…can you believe it? March is my first month that I do full race distance. I have two step back weeks this month..one the week before my 26.2…and one the week after. This is also the month that I reintroduce speedwork into my plan. I will probably do this on the weekends because I don’t want to do it too close to my long runs. April will follow pretty much the same routine that March has with another full race distance and speedwork….and I start my taper the last week of April. That brings us to May….and my marathon which falls on the first Saturday of May. I am actually looking forward to March and April because it means less crazy long runs and switching to speedwork..which oddly enough I have missed.
Anyways..I think I need a nap. Hope everyone is having a good weekend!
You are SO freakin' motivating, Claire!
ReplyDelete20, I'm sure, will soon seem not so bad and not so hard. :) And your view of 26.2 - "I want to know it" - is actually what a few racine peeps (Hal Higdon, for example) recommend. So that your body knows what to expect...so I think your training plan is right on!
And I would definitely take a full week between these two runs (the 20 and the 22) - just let your body heal. You've still got two more (2.5 really!) months to do long runs and speedwork, and the fact you've already got two 20-milers under your belt is awesome.