2017 Eugene Marathon Training – Week 15

I ran a strong 22 miler, a hard 12 miler that ended up being marathon pace, and a lot of 400m repetitions this week.  I’m running the 2017 Cherry Blossom 10 Miler tomorrow!  With only 35 days until the Eugene Marathon, I’m hoping this tune-up race will give me a good sense for my marathon pace.

Training Schedule
Week 15: March 26th – April 1st

Sunday: Long Run. 22 miles easy
Monday: 6 miles recovery + strides
Tuesday: 7 miles recovery
Wednesday: Tempo Run. 15 miles w/10 miles @ marathon pace
Thursday: 4 miles recovery + hill sprints
Friday: Interval Run. 10 miles w/12 x 400m @ 5K pace w/1 minute recoveries
Saturday: 4 miles recovery

Mileage Total: ~68 Miles

Adaptations.  I didn’t have time to do 15 miles before work, so I did 12 miles hard as my tempo workout.

Goals.  Complete a 22 miler.  Outcome: Success!

Now that I’m in the race preparation phase of my training, I’m going to try to keep my long runs in the 20 mile range and do steady, maintenance style tempo runs and intervals.

Workout Details

Long Run.  22 miles easy [Log Details].

From my house in Arlington, I ran south to Alexandria.  I started the run listening to podcasts since they help me keep my pace easy.  An hour in, I had my first Crank Sport E-Gel.  I joined the Mount Vernon Trail by Slater’s Lane.  I thought about speeding up but thought maybe I should wait until I was an hour out from the finish.  Around the Washington Marina, I ran into a Ragnar friend.  We didn’t stop to talk – she was running with someone else – but it lifted my spirits a little seeing her.  Almost half way though, I stopped at the port-a-potties at Gravelly Point.  Normally, they aren’t so bad but on this occasion, they were pretty foul.  I continued along, listening to podcasts and trying to keep the pace easy.

About two miles down the road, I ran into a friend from my Sunday running group.  We chatted for a moment.   I felt so popular seeing two friends on this run!  I had my second gel as I climbed the Lee Highway hill on the Custis Trail.  I felt fine with my endurance but my mobility seemed off.  At the water fountain at the junction between the Custis and W&OD Trail, I switched to music hoping it would inspire me to run faster.  In the end, it wasn’t a particularly fast run for me, but I was happy with it.  At the end of the run, I thought I could run another 6 miles.  That has to be a good sign.

Overall pace=8:56.

Tempo Run. 15 miles w/10 miles @ marathon pace + 5% 12 miles hard [Log Details].

I got a late start on the morning and didn’t have time for 15 miles before work.  I thought I had enough time for 12 miles “hard”, though.  I got off to a good start.  My legs felt up for putting in a strong effort.  The route I ran took me through Rosslyn during rush hour and it was a little hard navigating pedestrians and cars.  Once I was on the Custis Trail, I could just focus on running.  The hills were hard and I thought the pace was too hard.  I told myself, “How fast you can go is just in your head.”  Not terribly eloquent but it did the trick.  Once I was on the downhill section of the W&O Trail, I was running under 7:30 pace!  I felt fantastic after this run.  I didn’t hit my mileage goal for the day but I did 12 miles at marathon pace!

Overall pace=7:55.

Interval Run. 10 miles w/12 x 400m @ 5K pace w/1 minute recoveries [Log Details].

At the start of this run, it was 45 degrees with 12-13 mph winds, which made it feel much colder.  I started the first repetition on the Mount Vernon Trail just south of Gravelly Point.  Since this area is a bit exposed, I felt the full force of the wind.  Several times, I thought about quitting but I kept reminding myself that there’s no reason why it couldn’t rain on race day.  I missed 5K pace but given the weather, it wasn’t a bad workout.  I had two very slow splits but they were under the 14th Street Bridge so I may have lost the GPS signal.

400m splits=1:44, 1:48, 1:51 (under the 14th Street Bridge), 1:45, 1:45, 1:44; 1:46, 1:46, 1:55 (under the 14th Street Bridge), 1:42, 1:42, 1:44. Mean=1:46 or ~7:04 pace.

Health

Injuries.  I hurt my trapezoid muscles doing bounding drills on Monday.  Because my hips were so stiff, I had to use my arms to power through the movements.  As a former triple jumper, who elegantly did bounding drills all the time, it was humbling.  My piriformis hurt on both sides during Wednesday’s medium hard run.  I skipped my chiropractor appointment because I failed to realize Fridays are now hard days so I need to move them to Tuesdays.

Weight.  My weight stayed within a pound all week.  I’m taking that as a sign that this is about where my body wants to be right now.

Sleep.  I slept okay this week.  I was able to fall sleep every night but towards the end of the week, woke up early.  The worst was Friday when I woke up at 3:30am.  Ugh!

Weather

Pretty good running weather this week.  Temperatures mostly in the mid-40s.  It drizzled a little on Monday.  The air was a little damp for the rest of the week but warmer.  On Friday morning, a rain storm rolled through and I ran in a steady downpour.

Racing Schedule

Future races.  I found a course video of the Eugene Marathon on the race website.  It’s going to be very helpful as I start thinking about my race day strategy and pacing.

Next race: 2017 Cherry Blossom 10 Miler on Sunday, April 2nd. (My Complete Racing Schedule.)

What type of training do you do in the weeks before your taper?