2018 Boston Marathon – Week 11
The first week of my taper! I ran the final hard workouts of the training cycle this week – a long run on Sunday and an interval workout on Friday. I focused on running my recovery days legitimately easy.
Training Schedule
April 1st – April 7th
Sunday: Long Run. 17 miles.
Monday: Recovery Run. 6 miles.
Tuesday: Recovery Run. 6 miles.
Wednesday: General Aerobic Run + Speed. 8 miles w/8x100m strides.
Thursday: Recovery Run. 6 miles.
Friday: VO2Max Run. 9 miles w/3x1600m @ 5K pace.
Saturday: Recovery Run. 5 miles.
Mileage Total: ~57 Miles
Notes. The only adjustment I made was running 5 miles instead of 6 on Monday. Otherwise, I followed the schedule to a tee.
Workout Details
Long Run. 17 miles [Log Details].
The run was a bit of a dress rehearsal in that I ran in the singlet and shorts I thought I might want to wear for the 2018 Boston Marathon. I also wore my new wireless headphones with a visor to see how that would feel. It was about 54 degrees when I started the run but I felt chilly.
I ran around 8:40 pace on the three miles north to the Custis Trail in Arlington. I stopped to eat a Crank Sport eGel at the water fountain at Nelson Street. I knew I should practice eating on the run but I wanted to wash it down with a lot of water.
On the Mount Vernon Trail, I quickened my pace to 8:30 even though it felt like I was running into the wind. After taking a break for pictures of the Washington Monument at Humpback Bridge, I felt like running a little harder.
But the feeling didn’t last long! By the time I reached the Four Mile Run Trail, I was back to running 8:40 pace. I felt hungry but only took the one gel with me on the run. I faded even more and the last 2 to 3 miles were closer to 9:00 pace. It made sense – I ran a 5K the day before and my legs were probably tired.
I hit the stop button on my Garmin and was happy to arrive in “Taper Town” at 1:03pm!
Overall pace=8:37.
General Aerobic Run + Speed. 8 miles w/8x100m strides [Log Details].
This was going to be one of the only workouts I’d run this week so I wanted it to be a good one. But, I also knew that I shouldn’t overdo it and reminded myself that the point of the taper is to give my body rest before running a marathon.
It was a warm morning. I wore my 2012 Boston Marathon long-sleeve shirt and quickly felt overheated. Feeling superstitious, I thought, “This is a sign that it will either be as hot as it was in 2012 or that I’ll run that same time.” I ran 3:36:49 (8:17 pace) for that race and it remains one of my proudest running achievements.
I ran three miles, mostly uphill, to the Custis Trail. Rather than feeling winded, though, I felt fantastic! I decided not to stop at the water fountain at the junction with the W&OD Trail and just kept going until I reached Columbia Pike. I really focused on extending my reach and bending at the knee for the strides before heading home.
Overall pace=8:35.
VO2Max Run. 9 miles w/3x1600m @ 5K pace. [Log Details].
The last hard run of the training cycle! Thank goodness!
Unlike last week, I was able to transfer the workout to my Garmin. I ran a ParkRun last week in 7:23 pace, so I thought something in the 7:20 pace range should be my goal for this workout.
I ran the workout on the Four Mile Run Trail, so each repetition was on completely flat terrain. The first repeat felt very comfortable and controlled. I took a long walk break – 3 minutes and 30 seconds – before starting the second repetition. I slowed down a little when I turned around at Route 1 but not by much. Usually, there’s a headwind when I run west the air was calm for a change. On the third leg, I really appreciated running in capris on a 45 degree morning rather than heavy tights and really pushed hard.
Even though I just finished mile repetitions, I felt great after the workout! I even managed to slug up the ridiculously steep Water Reed Drive during my cool-down.
1,600m Splits=7:19, 7:03, 6:50. Average=7:04.
Health
Injuries. My left knee felt fine but I can tell the joint still has some healing to do. I had some back pain in the morning but it didn’t impacted my running.
Sleep. I slept alright except for Wednesday morning when I woke up to a nightmare. Since that morning, I turned my alarm off but still woke up at 5am every day.
Weight. Even though I’m running less, I didn’t gain weight this week.
Weather
Last week, I thought winter was over. And, it was close to 50 degrees in the morning through Wednesday. But then the temperature dipped and averaged around 40 degrees for the rest of the week.
Racing Schedule
Future races. When I started this training cycle, I hoped to run sub-3:30:00 at the 2018 Boston Marathon. Eleven weeks later, I don’t think I’m in that kind of shape. I think my race goal will be sub-3:35:00 (8:13 pace).
Next race: 2018 Boston Marathon on Monday, April 16th. (My Complete Racing Schedule.)
