2017 Eugene Marathon Training – Week 14
Nailed my interval workout on Tuesday and pushed hard to salvage my marathon pace workout on Thursday. At the end of the week, I got two recovery days since I’m switching my long runs to Sundays to line up hard weekend-efforts with upcoming races. Also, spring arrived!
Training Schedule
Week 14: March 19th – March 25th
Sunday: Recovery run. 8 miles + strides
Monday: Medium run. 12 miles w/6 miles @ MP+15 seconds
Tuesday: Interval Run. 7 miles. Speed work with run club or 6 x 1 mile @ 10K pace
Wednesday: Recovery run. 4 miles + hill repeats
Thursday: Tempo Run. 15 miles w/10 miles @ marathon pace
Friday: Recovery run. 4 miles
Saturday: Recovery run. 6 miles
Mileage Total: ~56 Miles
Adaptations. I didn’t get in the planned mileage for Monday, but got close enough. When I drew up my training plan back in December, my goal was to run 14 miles at goal marathon pace. Somehow, I missed that and just did 10 miles.
Goal. Hit goal marathon pace on Thursday’s workout. Outcome: Fail! I didn’t quite hit my pace but I fought hard for it, so it wasn’t disappointing at all.
Workout Details
Medium Run. 12 miles w/6 miles @ MP+15 seconds 11 miles w/4 miles @ MP+15 seconds [Log Details].
This workout would be similar to those I ran during Week 9 and Week 11. I woke up late, though, and didn’t think I’d have time to run 12 miles before work. But, since I was running an out-and-back on the W&OD Trail, I could turnaround anytime. During the out, there was a maintenance truck on the Trail following me. It passed me a couple of times, but then the driver would stop and I’d pass him back. It was distracting trying to keep track of him, so I was glad when he finally turned off somewhere near the junction for the Custis Trail. I turned around at Washington Street and quickened the pace for the MP+15 seconds segment. I couldn’t help but notice the pace felt pretty hard. I asked myself, “Could you maintain this for a marathon?” And, I answered, “No.” It worried me a bit because this pace was supposed to feel easier.
Marathon pace+15 seconds segment=8:10. Overall pace=8:43.
Interval Run. Speed work with run club or 6 x 1 mile @ 10K pace [Log Details].
Most of the runners in the club I’ve been doing interval workouts with ran the Shamrock Marathon or Half Marathon this past weekend. They weren’t doing a hard workout, so I decided to run the interval set I planned back in December. I plugged in my time from the 2017 Rock ‘n’ Roll DC Half Marathon into the McMillan Calculator and set my Garmin for 7:05-7:25 with 5 minute recoveries. I ran the workout on the Mount Vernon Trail between National Airport and the Memorial Bridge. It felt remarkably comfortable despite the fact that I trained pretty hard last week. I didn’t struggle at all to stay in the pace range I’d set.
Finishing the final repetition, I felt a little sick to my stomach but in a good way. I ran hard and nailed this workout!
Splits=7:08, 7:19, 7:16, 7:17, 7:21, 7:06. Average=7:15.
Tempo Run. 15 miles w/10 miles @ marathon pace [Log Details].
The McMillan Calculator estimates my marathon pace is 8:12 based on my time from the 2017 Rock ‘n’ Roll DC Half Marathon. But, that was a tough race and thought I should be able to run faster than that on race day. I set my Garmin for 8:00-8:15 pace for that segment. I felt pretty tired during the warmup. I started the MP segment and my Garmin showed 8:40ish pace at the beginning. I thought, “This is going to be a disaster.” I quickened the pace, though, and managed to get the pace down to 8:18 before I hit a rolling hills of the Custis Trail. I was still tired but thought, “You’re not going to let anyone see you struggling.” It helped. Every time a runner or cyclist approached, I straightened my back and lengthened my stride. My pace was up to 8:25 pace before I finally arrived at the downhill segment. I kept pushing and telling myself that I could get down to 8:20. And then, 8:15. I wondered, “Could I really end these 10 miles faster than I started?” With one mile to go, my Garmin finally told me I was within my pace range! I was overjoyed! When the run was over, I felt so proud of this effort.
Marathon pace segment=8:12 pace. Overall pace=8:31.
Health
Injuries. My feet are pretty chewed up these days with callouses and rough skin. I was a little too aggressive with the scraper on my right foot and had a sore foot pad for most of the week. My piriformis hurt all week. I went to my chiropractor on Friday morning.
Weight. My weight was slightly up this week from last, but around where it has been. I think I weighed a little less last week since it was after the 2017 Rock ‘n’ Roll DC Half Marathon.
Sleep. I slept well this week. In fact, I woke up and started my runs earlier than usual on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Weather
The week started with temperatures in the low to mid 40s. By Wednesday, the winds picked up to 20+ mph with 30+ mph gusts! On Thursday, the temperature dropped below freezing. I packed away my winter clothes after that run. It was sunny and 60 degrees this morning!
Racing Schedule
Future races. Boston Marathon runners received their participant guide this week. I noticed the bus loading at Boston Common is changing this year.
Next race: 2017 Cherry Blossom 10 Miler on Sunday, April 2nd. (My Complete Racing Schedule.)
Do you prefer running long on Saturday or Sunday?
