2017 New York City Marathon – Week 9

It was a great week! Cooler temperatures had me thinking I should start focusing more on pace during my workouts and I ran much faster than I have these past 9 weeks.  I didn’t hit goal marathon pace during my long run today, though.

Training Schedule
August 27th – September 2nd

Sunday: Recovery Run. 6 miles (AM) + Recovery Run. 4 miles (PM).
Monday: General Aerobic Run. 9 miles.
Tuesday: Medium-long Run. 15 miles.
Wednesday: Recovery Run. 8 miles.
Thursday: Medium-long Run. 13 miles.
Friday: Recovery Run + Speed. 7 miles w/6x100m strides.
Saturday: Marathon-pace Run. 18 miles w/12 miles @ marathon race pace.

Mileage Total: ~80 Miles

Notes. The only element I missed in the schedule was the strides on Friday.

Goal.  Achieve goal marathon pace during my long run.  Outcome: Fail! But, I paced the run well.

Workout Details

General Aerobic Run. 9 miles [Log Details].

I ran this workout too hard.

Before the workout, I re-read the Advanced Marathoning passage on general aerobic runs.  These runs should be a moderate effort – slower than lactate threshold pace and 15 to 20 percent slower than marathon pace.  Based on recent runs, I guessed that would be no faster than 8:30 pace.

The weather was finally pleasant!  I ran pretty hard from the first steps but I stopped a few times during the first few miles stopping at lights.  But, I kept the pace up as I ran through the Arlington suburbs on my way to the Custis Trail.  I felt a little GI distress when I hit the W&OD Trail and made a pit stop when I reached the bathrooms at Bon Air Park.  When I resumed, I was running sub-7:50 pace!  Usually, I slack off a little on the uphill home, but I told myself, “The entire 9 miles are supposed to be a moderate pace.”

Overall pace=8:17.

Medium-long Run. 15 miles [Log Details].

Back-to-back strong workouts!

I woke up feeling tired and sore.  Walking around my apartment, so many thing ached and I just felt tired.  I didn’t have time for coffee, so I drank some water and chewed a RunGum before heading out the door into the rain.

I was happy to take the early miles easy.  I listened to a Pace the Nation podcast that had me lost in thought for the first four miles or so.  Then, it was time to pick up the pace a little.  During my 22-miler last week, I felt pretty comfortable running low-9:00 pace for the middle miles, so I aimed for that range.  I stopped for water near Roosevelt Island.

When I reached the Custis Trail, I started to run even harder.  I saw my overall pace was in the low 9:00 pace range.  I wondered, “Could I run sub-9:00?”  I responded, “Go get it!” and started running hard, focusing on running with my hips.

Overall pace=8:48.

Medium-long Run. 13 miles [Log Details].

I didn’t run as fast as I did earlier in the week but this was still a good run.

The heat and humidity made an unwelcome return, so I ran the first two miles at an easy effort.

Running through Ballston to the Custis Trail, I picked up the pace a little.  I was sweating a lot and knew I wasn’t going to be able to run as fast as I had earlier in the week.  I had “flybys” with a couple of runners I knew on the down hill towards Rosslyn and that boosted my spirits a little.

On the Mount Vernon Trail, I stopped for water near Roosevelt Island and caught my breath.  I was definitely more tired than I would have liked.

But, a half mile down the road, I pushed the pace to “hard”.  I probably averaged 8:15 pace over the next 4 miles with some short stops in Gravelly Point and in Crystal City before running easy again on my way home.

Overall pace=8:51.

Marathon-pace Run. 18 miles w/12 miles @ marathon race pace [Log Details].

I ran surprisingly even splits despite the rain and terrain.

It was a long week and I woke up uninspired for this run.  And, it was raining.  At first, the rain was light.  But a mile into the run, the water was coming down in sheets.  Two miles in, I sought cover so I could put new iPod Nano in a plastic bag.  I also took a video:

I made another pit stop at the bathrooms on N. Kennebec Street.  I walked in and it was heated!  As I was prepping to run again, I dropped my iPod and it shattered.  Grrr!

I ran 8:11 pace for the first mile of the marathon pace segment.  I was a little disheartened, but the Custis Trail is rolling hills, so I knew the early miles would be slow.  But when I reached the Mount Vernon Trail, my pace wasn’t dropping.  I didn’t feel discouraged, though.  I just thought that was marathon pace and tried to stay in the 8:00-8:20 range.

Marathon-pace segment=8:11.  Overall pace=8:37.

Health

Injuries.  I had pain my piriformis after Monday’s general aerobic run, which was troubling.  And on Tuesday, the front of my left hip hurt.  I stretched and rolled both areas pretty aggressively for a day or two and they felt better by Wednesday.

Sleep.  Like much of the world, I stayed up late on Sunday night watching Game of Thrones.  I went to bed at a decent hour for the rest of the week, but work stress had me waking up in the middle of the night.

Weight.  I ate a lot of tacos for lunch this week so it isn’t a huge surprise that my weight crept up.

Weather

August forgot itself and the weather was pleasant this week!  Morning temperatures were in the mid- to low-60 degree range.  On Tuesday and today, it rained during my runs and I was actually cold!  The only exceptions were Sunday and Thursday when it was a little warm and humid.

Racing Schedule

Next race: 2017 Dulles Day on the Runway 10K on September 23rd. (My Complete Racing Schedule.)