4 Weeks Until Race Day

We're really into the home stretch now, faithful readers. In less than a month, this thing will all be over and done with. I will have hopefully conquered the marathon, got a medallion and bought up as much 26.2 memorabilia as possible, and will be ready to start the real vacation part of the trip.

We ran a total of 33 miles this week, but after some brief flirtation with spring last week, it was back to chilly starts in the morning. And a brand new element for our long run.

Rain.

Believe it or not, it's the first time in this entire plan that rain was unavoidable. In that context, I really can't complain, but the first 5 miles or so were pretty miserable. We were wet and cold out of the gate, but the rain did taper off towards the back half of the run. And now, we mentally can handle a wet day, in case the marathon gods are in a bad mood on the last Sunday in April.

Next week is the big one. Our peak training week of 40 miles, with 20 of those coming on Saturday. Stay tuned for the report.

B

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5 Weeks Until Race Day

Here we are again. Another big training week in the books, capped off by a new long distance of 18 miles on Saturday. We continue to plod through our training and fight of the aches, pains and parnoia of serious injury. Someone getting sidelined at this point in the game (after 25 weeks of training) would be a tough pill to swallow without a doubt.

The long run on Saturday was slower than normal (9'50" average per mile), but I think we've all attributed it to the training load. This plan has a 2 week taper period before the actual marathon, so that time of rest and recovery should (let's hope) deliver us to the starting line ready to go. And just before that taper is our longest training run of 20 miles, which comes a week from Saturday. It's all downhill from there.

Over the last week or so, we've started looking more closely at our agenda for our time out West, which makes this whole thing seem more real and has helped the motivation as well. Monterey, San Fran, Napa Valley - here we come...

A couple of video clips this week. The first set is from an early 9 mile run. I'll just say that I've been lucky enough not to suffer from Mike's "condition". The second clip is just after the 18-miler - tired, salty and ready to sit down.

B

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6 Weeks Until Race Day

I'm pretty sure the light I'm seeing is that elusive light at the end of the tunnel. With just 6 weeks of training left and of those weeks, only 2 with really long runs (18 and 20), I'm feeling pretty good about surviving this plan and accomplishing this wild goal of running 26.2 miles.

This week wasn't so bad. Upped the midweek mileage a bit, but came back down for a shorter weekend run. Felt pretty good about the long run, but am definitely feeling the effects of all this wear and tear. The knee hasn't gotten any worse, but my body is starting to revolt against all the pounding. Cardio-wise, things are good, but after we finished yesterday, everything just ached. Still nothing a little time on the couch didn't remedy, so no major complaints.

I think that's it for now. Check in again next week to see if running 18 miles makes me cry...

B

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7 Weeks Until Race Day

Pain. Sure, some is to be expected - I AM training for a marathon. And not to say that this training regimen has been all fun and games, but...


Until recently, I've had the occasionally soreness, stiffness and general desire to sit on the couch after our long runs, but nothing more than that. Starting last week, I went to a new place. I went deep into the pain cave, dropped the flashlight and it was dark, if you catch my drift. I worked up some serious blisters that didn't quite heal enough through the week and came back with a vengence yesterday. Add into that a nice case of "runner's knee" and I'm feeling a little banged up. The knee thing is weird and kind of comes and goes during the longer runs, but I think I can manage it. As long as I can shake these blisters, I think I'll be in good shape. I certainly haven't done all this training to let a little extra pain sidetrack me...

B

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8 Weeks Until Race Day

I am writing this post as one tired puppy. Just finished our first 15 mile training run. This was my first long run in my new shoes and I paid for it. I've got blisters that would make Dr. Scholl's blush - on both feet. Hoping that these will quickly heal/harden and I'll be back on my merry way, but they definitely caused me to struggle today. Towards the end of the run, I fixated on each step and couldn't get my mind to a happy running place.

That being said, we did still finish. Big shout out to Nathan for running the whole distance after being sick all week, and equal props to Mike for "headphone mode". That guy puts on the tunes and disappears down the trail/road.

Next week we up the mileage during the week and tag on another mile to the long run. Here's to quick recovery and being ready to run again on Tuesday.

B

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9 Weeks Until Race Day

Well...To put it mildly, this was a low morale week for me. I've been feeling under the weather all week, so it makes it that much harder to find the motivation to stay on track and get out there and run. Add that with the fact that I've been on a structured, 5 days a week plan for 21 weeks, and I feel like I'm allowed a week of blarg now and then.

I'm definitely a morning guy, but had to postpone my long mid-week run (7 miles) until the afternoon on Wednesday. The weather was much better (shorts and 60s), but the 4 miles the next morning were tough. By Saturday I was just wiped out, but managed to survive the ten-miler. Contributing to that worn-out feeling was Will Ferrell's Funny or Die Tour. The better half and I trekked over to Chapel Hill Friday night to see the show. It was well worth the trip (and unexpected scenic tour around campus), but it was a late night/early call for running. I highly recommend you check out any of those comics. Zach Galifianakis is a personal fave of mine - check him out if you enjoy wildly offbeat comedy.

Next week ups the mileage again to 15. Hopefully I'll shake the crud I've been fighting (I do feel better today) and be ready for a big week.

B

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10 Weeks Until Race Day

Halfway there! Uhh, sort of. At least by mileage. Ten weeks to go, and today was our longest and most challenging run yet - 13 hilly miles. I'm hoping that the route we took today is somewhat comparable to the Big Sur course. We still haven't found a 2 mile long hill (hello Hurricane Point), but I feel like we got a lot of ups and downs today. Everyone survived unscathed, but ready to be done (at least I know I was).

Today was also time for new shoes. As I tally up my training miles, it looks like I've put about 319 miles on my shoes. They're not completely worn out, so I'll have some time to work in the new pair slowly. Hopefully the new shoes will help ease some of the discomfort I'm having with my mutant left foot.

Also of (non-running) note. Valentine's Day was this week and the better half and I went blue instead of red. We saw the Blue Man Group perform and it was great. I saw them years ago in Chicago, but this show was new and different. And their opening DJ (Mike Relm) was a great surprise. He has a big video screen and controls both the records/scratching and the video. Those of you that know me, know that anyone who does this has earned a lifelong fan.

Until next week...

B

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11 Weeks Until Race Day

Today was a 12 mile jaunt around Salem Lake. Uneventful it was not, as Nathan found a pile of something to step in and Mike took a tumble (or two) over some very poorly placed roots. I managed to stay upright and survive the run, but I was cashed at the end. Feeling pretty good now, so I'm hoping I'll recover strong and be ready for another big week next week (up to 13 miles, with a much hillier course than this week).

You'll notice from the video that we all had headphones today. No, we're not completely anti-social, but as those miles tick by, we have less to talk about, so a little audio motivation does help. What's on the MP3 player, you might ask? I'm a load-it-up-and-play-it-random type of guy, so I try to dig deep for the tracks on the running mix. Can't miss picks for my eclectic taste? How about the Kings of Leon? You should check them out if you don't know them already. Other staples that keep me moving are Rage Against the Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Arctic Monkeys and Pearl Jam. And to slow down that heart rate, you've gotta mix in some Regina Spektor and G. Love. So go on, head out to your local Best Buy and freshen up your music collection.

B

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12 Weeks Until Race Day

Another week in the books, faithful readers...

This week was capped off by a 7 mile run today. As a "stepback" week, the mileage was a little less than last week. This is, unfortunately, the last Saturday that we'll see single digit miles until our taper down period a couple weeks before the race. For any of you that may be interested in the details, you can check out the training plan we're doing here. Next week jumps up to a 12 mile run (almost halfway through the full marathon distance). See how I'm using that glass half full mentality? I'll take every advantage I can get to keep the motivation high, as it was a massive battle with the pillow this week.

On a brighter note, today's run had some new faces. Nathan is back from his injury and looked as fit as ever, and my dad even joined our crew for the first couple miles.

Until next time...

B

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13 Weeks Until Race Day

Here we are with blog post #2. This week's total mileage was 21, with 10 of those being today. Thursday was a major battle of wills between myself and the pillow, but I prevailed (barely). 10 miles was another uncharted distance, but I think we covered it well. My average pace per mile was 9'13" - pretty respectable with 2 walking breaks for water and power gel. That would put me in roughly the 4 hour range for the actual marathon. As you'll see from today's clip, power gel/GU is the ever-so-appetizing source of calories during these longer runs. The consistency, especially when it's cold, isn't so pleasant, but it is a quick shot of calories to help keep the legs moving.

You'll also see me try to show you my watch after the run (a little blurry, I know). Most of you know what a gadget freak I am, so before I started training I set out on eBay to find some man-toy that would give me something besides running to be interested in. The result was a combination heart rate monitor and GPS watch. The heart rate monitor lets me know well in advance of my heart beating out of my chest. The GPS has functions to show how far I've gone, at what pace/speed, elevation, latitude/longitude, location of Osama Bin Laden, etc. Needless to say, it's pretty slick and a great training aide.

Next week is a setback/recovery week. These weeks are built into the plan every 3rd week to (hopefully) let the body recover and be stronger for the next "hard" weeks. So far, that seems to be working, keep your fingers crossed.

Thanks for stopping by,

B

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