I am : HELPED
I will definitely admit that the mental strain of running for 3 and a half hours FAR outweighs the physical demands. Will I get bored? Will I give up? No of course not, but that doesn't mean that it won't be hard. That said, the promised support of my friends is GREATLY appreciated. I can't say enough how much you all will help me cross the finish line. I couldn't do it with out you. Breaking the 3.5 hours down into 45 minute segments between seeing friends makes the entire ordeal much more manageable. So....here is my
proposed meeting times and places for those of you that have generously offered to help me finish this marathon. I would like to have someone meet me with a gel and a water bottle every 5 miles:
Mile #5 (~8:40am): On the west side of Lake Calhoun between 32nd and 36th (Tyler and Kennedy??)
Mile #10 (~9:20am): Minnehaha Parkway, just west of Portland Ave (James and Anna??, Grace??)
Mile #15 (~10:00am): Minneaha Parkway, just east of Hiawatha (James and Anna??, Grace??)
Mile #20 (~10:40am): East River Road, between St. Anthony and Eustis (James and Anna??, Grace??)
Mile #25 (~11:20am): Summitt, between Dale and Mackubin (Jake and Beth??)
Whew. Those times are fairly approximate. Those are all at an exact 8min/mile pace. The problem is that I don't know when exactly I will start. The whole thing starts at 8am, but since there are 10,500 people, there are two waves, and I'm in the second wave. They also say that the first mile or two is fairly slow because of all the people. So, I'd say if you want to meet me somewhere, come 5 minutes before you think I'll get there, but stay at least 10-15 minutes until after you'd expect me to be there. So, Grace, Tyler/Kennedy, James/Anna, Beth/Jake....thank you!
Miles Since 4/23/05: 625
I am : WAITING
Here I sit, darkened room....
My student didn't show up, so I have an hour to kill until Ann gets here and I we work on stats.
I am waiting. Waiting. Waiting.
Sunday is October 2. A day that I have had in my mind for nearly half a year. Never in my life has a single DATE been the first thing on my mind when I awake and the last thing on my mind when I sleep. All day, every day, it is there. Certainly I have been able to accomplish other endeavors (house, test, etc...), but in the back of my head I was always planning my next run...or my next meal...or my next rest.
But, the time of waiting is almost through. Soon will come Sunday morning 8am, and I will begin to run. And run I will for 3.5 solid hours. When it is over I will relax, regroup, and promptly begin a new phase.
For I have the rest of my life.
Miles Since 4/23/05: 626
I am : CALM
Including today, there are 5 days until the Marathon. Yup, 5 days. The last two weeks I have been in taper-mode, and now I'm on a time-measured program. I don't run for distance, but for heart rate and time. Quick 30-min runs at an easy pace. This will allow me to simultaneously rest my body as well as sharpen it in preparation. I am trying not to feel excitement for the big day. Not that I am not excited, but if I allow myself to get too worked up, I will start feeling anxious. That anxiety might lead to other less desirable emotions, so I'm just nipping it in the bud. I am calm, I am rested, I am preparation. Sunday will come and I will do great.
Alright you spectators -- if you are planning on coming to watch the marathon, check out the
official website. Go to the spectators section and check out the spectators guide. Scroll down a little bit and there will be a chart outlining what time you can expect a given runner to be at a certain point. I will be on the 3hr 30 min pace. Tyler: I will need someone to meet me at at least 5 different points to give me my nutrition: water bottles and gels. I really don't want to have to carry that stuff, so I'd REALLY appreciate the help. You don't have to do it all yourself. Maybe we can coordinate something with others.
Alright, I need to meditate.
Miles Since 4/23/05: 621
I am : TAPER
I must report with a little more than mild satisfaction that my 14-miler on saturday went
very well. I decided that with only 2 weeks to go until the marathon, this isn't the time to be messing around. I'm going to do everything by the book. I've met someone known only as "Herb" on the BFFM message board that I frequent who is quite experienced in marathon running and ultrarunning. He has analyzes my schedule and results and makes suggestions. I'm looking forward to his advice for the coming two weeks.
Anyway, back to not messing around: for the last couple of months I have been going on my long runs alone, starting later in the day. On saturday I returned to the running group, starting bright and early. It was great. The weather was nice and cool, I had good company which helped to pass the time. We had a nice easy warm up which turned into a solid pace (which turned out to be a smidgeon slower than 8min/mile). We stopped for water and stretching. Nothing fancy. Very nice. The marathon is in two weeks and I am now tapering my runs to rest up for the big day. This week will be less mileage than last week, and the week of the 25th will be very low mileage. I will have 3 days completely off before the 2nd, so my body will be rested and primed. I'm not yet able to say that I am *ready* for the marathon, for my mind and body are still coming down from the bruising I gave them over the past 4 months. But, I am fit enough to finish once I am healed.
My biggest challenge will be the mental aspect. I know how to train my body, at least, I know thousands of exercises, routines, splits, lifts, paces, mileages, etc...which groove the body. Harder than any of these is mental training, and yet, its most crucial. It involves a firm and unwavering belief in yourself, your abilities, and your body. Doubt, unfortunately, is like sand. It gets everywhere, and once it gets in, its quite difficult to remove. A seed of doubt was planted in my mind on Sept. 10, and I am currently in the process of expunging that seed. The good part about mental training is that it can be done at any time, at any place, so...indulge me as I knock out a couple sets:
1. I CAN do it.
2. I CAN do it.
3. I CAN do it.
I'll be spending the next two weeks in "sleep preparation" as well. This means that I'll be going to be at the same time as I'll be going to bed on the 1st (9:45pm) and waking up at the same time as I'll be waking on the 2nd (6:00am). Every day. I want my body to be completely at ease on the morning of Oct. 2, and this will ensure that. So...sorry if people want to do stuff late on Fridays/Saturdays, but I just won't be able to join you. I hope everyone understands. James and Tyler have volunteered already to *pace* my progress during the marathon; to supply me with the gels and water-concoctions I need so that I don't have to carry them. Thanks in advance fellas! As time gets closwer I'll post a spectators guide for anyone who thinks they'll want to watch a sweaty and exhausted Alex run. Have a nice week everyone!
Miles Since 4/23/05: 591
I am : REFLECTIVE
After all of my talk about how I analyzed my body and legs following a hard leg workout and bad running week...I have my worst long run of the year. What is important now, however, is that I accept that this was just a bad run, to learn from it, not to dwell on it, and to move on. I can't let any encroaching doubt affect my training, especially this close to the marathon. So, for a little analysis.
My run didn't start out that well. I could tell from the beginning that it wasn't going to be great. This didn't phase me all that much, as the first 30 minutes of the long runs tend to be the hardest. I usually don't even hit my strongest stride until about an hour in. It was hot. I was wearing a new orange Nike moisture wicking shirt. I had two Clif bars with me. I had my Willard Water, but this time also supplemented with some Chlorophyll extract. Chlorophyll as an almost identical molecular structure to hemoglobin, which results in richer blood and a stronger flow. For breakfast I had a bowl of grape nuts and a small handful of mixed nuts (cashews, peanuts, soynuts). Even though it didn't start out that well, I didn't worry too much about it because your just supposed to run as fast as your body will take you. Your body knows itself much better than your analytical, worrying, over-active mind. So, I was taking it easy. Not pushing it, not dogging it. Probably about 8:45 min/mile. I was holding steady until about mile 15 when everything started falling apart. I wasn't even really all that tired. I had been more tired on other runs. For some reason, my mental focus faltered. I didn't think I could keep going. Once this happens, you are pretty much screwed. On the long runs all you have is your mental edge. Without it you are just a pile of sore muscles, creaky joints and an upset stomach. Around mile 16/17 I reached the intersection of Summit and River Road and decided to do something I'd never done. I stopped to walk. I couldn't believe it. I just couldn't keep going, and I didn't really know why. My pace had slowed to a crawl and there was no way I could continue on. That intersection had a water fountain so I drank some water ( I had run out of the Willard Water about 2 miles previous) and stretched. I started making all sort of justifications: I was tapering (no need to push it), etc... I then walked up Summit to Cleveland and began to run again. By the time I got to Snelling, my stomach was in knots, my legs were in shambles, and my brain was mush. Which was weird because the first two problems I can usually deal with, but I didn't know how to handle the third. I was confused....disoriented. I stopped again. I looked around, shocked. What was happening? Walking again I started doing some major self-analysis, the results of which are summarized here. I talked to another runner who has run more than 50 marathons, and she said that everyone has bad runs, everyone. The key is to accept it, and let it go. Here are my candidates for the bad run:
--The clorophyll. I had never used the stuff before, and the first time I do = bad run.
-- The Clif bars. I've used them before, but on saturday they just felt heavy and thick. I didn't think I was getting much energy from them.
-- The weather. It was hot and humid. I started my run around 10, and by then the weather was sticky.
-- Overtraining. I've been going pretty hard for about 5 months. I have consistantly done more miles than I'm scheduled to run. Its finally catching up to me.
The winner? Probably the overtraining. I'm taking today off and starting back up tomorrow. Luckily I'm close to the Marathon so I'm in taper-mode, which lightens the load a bit. Thanks for indulging me!
In other news I upped my calories and fat intake last week to 2600 per week and guess what?!? 4 pounds lost (too much, by the way, if accurate) and .5% body fat gone! So, physically, my body is in just fine shape. If anything, at 168, I may be a bit underweight. Tyler said he's concerned about me. Thinks I'm underfed. And Grace thinks I have an eating disorder. So does Crystal Payne. Y'all don't know her, but I work with her.
Miles Since 4/23/05: 562
I am : RECOVERED
Sorry about that enormously self-aggrandizing photo of me. I'm trying to set it up so that my little mug appears when I make comments, etc...
I had a bad week running-wise last week, primarily because of my weight training program. So, what does any good BFFM-er do? Adjust. And that's precisely what I did. I analyzed myself, my body, my responses, and took action. From now until the marathon I will not lift my legs other than light workouts. This probably isn't the best course of action, but I want to make entirely sure that my legs are fresh and willing to log the miles required for marathon training. After multiple different stabs at alternate nutritional intakes, I've come to the conclusion that losing this last little bit of body fat% won't be possible while I am training for the marathon. The stress that the miles are putting on my body is forcing it into a slowed metabolic state, which isn't ideal for fat loss. Also, I need tons of carbs which tend to slow fat-loss goals as well. I'm not worried though, I feel great. Once I complete the marathon I will rest, recuperate, evaluate, and begin a new phase in my nutritional/physical journey: Complete Cutting.
Miles Since 4/23/05: 537
Me!
I am : LEGS
Sooo...I haven't blogged since last monday. I've had a pretty bad week running wise. Last Saturday I completed 24 miles, and I was feeling great about myself. Then, the following monday, I had the wonderful idea of lifting my legs really heavy. Then I played basketball afterwards. Shouldn't've done that. My legs felt terrible all week. I wasn't able to run like I wanted to. I was planning on running 13 miles this morning, but I woke up in the middle of the night with severe leg cramps. I drink tons of water and stretch alot so I have to assume that the cramps were from the lifting. I can not let this derail me. I WILL RUN 13 MILES TODAY. I VOW TO YOU NOW THAT I WILL RUN 13 MILES TODAY. Somehow, I'm going to need to stretch ALOT and drink a ton of water, but it has to get done. I have to stay on this running program, especially as I approach the
big day. Well, off to the house to get some plumbing done!
Miles Since 4/23/05: 524 (but 537 after today)
