Calling It

I know now why so many southern runners choose late fall marathons. Running (or even attempting) 20 miles in August is a recipe for near-certain disaster.

I knew that both the temperatures and humidity were going to be high today. Thus, I planned to drink as much as necessary and take walk breaks if I needed to. I wanted to hit my goal pace of 8:30-8:50 but I was willing to let go of that depending on the weather.

The run started off well. I planned to divide the run into 5 parts, taking 2 Gu Chomps every 4.5 miles with 4 of those sections being 4.5 miles and the last portion 2 miles.

First section: 9:06, 8:40, 8:38, 8:35, 9:28
It took a little while to warm up but I settled in quickly and the pace felt slightly harder than an easy run. This was the best section of the run. It already felt warm by that point but I tried to ignore it. The last split is from the mile when I walked while eating my Chomps.

Second section: 9:28 (repeat from above), 8:45, 8:47, 8:42, 8:45
After eating the Chomps I got a noticeable boost. I realize now that I should have taken more fuel. As I got closer to the halfway point I started to wonder how I would be able to do another 10 miles. I tried to banish that thought and keep going. I still thought that I could finish this run as prescribed, maybe even finish the 20 miles before 180 minutes.

Third section: 9:31, 8:53, 8:55, 8:46, 9:30 (.5)
This is where it started getting hard, fast. Thinking back to my quick glance at the weather channel app, I remember that temps were predicted to rise from 73 to 84ish between 7 and 10. This was about that time. I had stopped at mile 10 to refill my water bottle. I guzzled from the water fountain before setting out again. Around mile 12 I couldn’t wait to get to 13.5 and a chance to walk again. I also decided that I would probably have to give up maintaining the faster pace. I told myself I just had to get to mile 15. After that I would walk a tenth and then run the other nine.

Fourth section: 9:30 (.5), 8:41
So…when I got to mile 15, I stopped and then saved my run. I wanted to be able to see my average pace for the first 15 miles before I had to get through the last 5 miles at a slower pace. My average pace for the first 15 was 8:55 which is just outside the 8:30-8:50 margin but also includes the three walk breaks. I think I need to start practicing with gels. They’re not my preference but at least I can eat those while running.

Fifth section: 9:46, 9:50ish (I forgot to pause the Garmin when I refilled my water bottle)
I turned around at the start of this section and honestly could not fathom finishing 5 more miles. I was almost out of water so I made my next goal getting to the Swamp Rabbit Cafe to refill my water bottle. It was there I decided to call it. I felt so drained. I was drenched in sweat from head to toe. My socks were so soaked I could feel them squishing in my shoes. Another 3.5 miles was not worth potential dehydration or heatstroke. Seriously, it was that hot out. I hated not being able to finish but I knew that it was the right thing to do. I texted Mom and arranged to get picked up. I managed to finish 17 miles. It felt good to be done but I almost talked myself into finishing the final three miles. It’s only three miles after all. I didn’t. I stuck with my original decision and then have been working ever since to make myself be okay with that.

I ended up walking another mile or so for cool down while I waited for Mom to make her way over to my stopping point. I was very thankful that she was able to do that!

I could feel disappointed that once again, I was not able to complete a long run as prescribed. I’m not disappointed though. If it hadn’t been for the heat and humidity (a ten degree temperature increase is nothing to mess with) I would have been able to complete it as prescribed. The first 15 miles are proof of that. I’m also pleased that I made the smart decision instead of pushing too far. I still have another 20 and 22 mile long run left in the plan. I just hope that it’s not quite as warm for those. 🙂

Hot, Humid, and Happy

I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed a hot, humid, super sweaty run like the one I completed this morning. Several times while I ran, I thought “this is why I love running…putting myself out there, seeing what I can do, pushing myself to the limit.”

This run proves that you don’t have to have a perfect run to add a run to the all-time favorites list. Seriously, this run kicked my butt but I absolutely loved it. My clothes have never been so soaked with sweat before. (I lost at least 3 lbs of water weight and that included the 3 bottles full of water, Gatorade and 20 oz coffee that I guzzled before I weighed myself. The water I drank while running.)

It was a good sign when I looked out my bedroom window first thing this morning and saw dry pavement. The forecast called for scattered thunderstorms all day. (It still hasn’t rained.) I am so glad that I did not have to run for over two hours on the treadmill.

Mom and I got out the door a little later than I had planned but that was alright.

We got to the trail and started running. Right away my legs protested a bit to being used so soon after a tough tempo yesterday. I forced myself to ignore them and settle into a decent long run pace.

Mom and I ran together for the first two miles. When she slowed to walk for the first time, I kept going. (In my defense, she told me to. ;)) I didn’t know until later that she wasn’t ever that far behind me.

I knew the day was going to be a scorcher so I took in hydration as soon and as often as I could, usually once a mile.

At the 30 minute mark I slowed to a walk to eat a couple chomps. I learned my lesson in San Francisco. Chewing while running at my goal pace is next to impossible. I’ll probably end up using gels on marathon day.

My first goal of the day was to run all the way to the new end to the trail. I love the new expansion to the Swamp Rabbit. It may not be the most scenic but it was new and enjoyable. The only part of the new section that I didn’t like was a lovely little downhill behind a gas station. When I ran down I mentally groaned knowing that I would have to come back up.

Just a little ways beyond that the trail ended … for now. (That’s what’s on the trail end sign. Love it!) I made the turn around and started the second portion of my run.

That hill? Yeah, it was hard but it didn’t kill me. It actually didn’t seem all that bad.

Soon after that I caught a glimpse of orange up ahead of me. It was Mom. She turned around just before the hill. Smart woman. I put on a little bit more speed than I probably should have to catch up with her.

About a half mile later I caught up with her and ran the rest of the way back to the Duncan Chapel parking lot with her.

Besides my two fuel breaks, I did walk one other time when she slowed to a walk. I wanted to stick with her. On a day like today, it’s so nice to have company on the run. We also made a slightly longer stop than normal at Williams Hardware to fill up our water bottles. (Thank you so much Williams Hardware!)

I felt pretty good throughout this portion, especially considering the weather–75ish degrees with 100% humidity. I didn’t feel drained or dehydrated. I did wonder how I would be able to speed up almost a minute per mile for my fast finish but decided to deal with that when I came to it.

Once we got back to the Duncan Chapel lot near Furman, I was on my own. I had about 15 minutes before I had to pick up the pace. I took my last fuel break with about 3 minutes to go using that minute afterwards to try to pick up the pace.

Word to the wise, 7:40 per mile after almost two hours in super humid summer weather is not for the faint of heart. I didn’t quite make it for the first mile but kept pushing, telling myself to “embrace the suck.” (Yes, I love my new catchphrase. It’s great for those times when you want to quit.)

With 10 minutes to go I did pause to catch my breath, regroup. I needed those few seconds. When I started running again, my new favorite running song (just bought it today!) “Bang! Bang!” started playing. (I’m not a huge fan of the lyrics but the beat is undeniable.) It was just the pick me up that I needed right then. Too bad I didn’t have it on repeat.

When it finished, “Firework” came on and while I like it, the rhythm was all wrong. That was the point where I needed a little external motivation to finish and that song just wasn’t cutting it. With 3.5 minutes to go I stopped again and put “Bang! Bang!” on again. I needed all the motivation I could get to finish. Those last few seconds seemed to take forever!

I finished with a huge smile on my face. Just like that my longest (both in time and distance) run in months was finished and I had conquered it.

Check out the splits (Ignore the 12:45…it was only a partial mile)

Runs like this help me remember why I love marathons (and marathon training) so much. Bring on TCM!

Sixteen Miles Exactly According to Plan

After the awful run I had Wednesday, I approached this run with quite a few nerves.

On the plan for today was 16 miles with 10 of those at race pace, a scary 8:35.

I haven’t had much luck with marathon pace long runs. During the training cycle for San Francisco I kept running the marathon pace miles half a minute too fast. (That turned out to be a great predictor for how I ran that race.) Two weeks ago the heat and humidity prompted a change in plans and the dropping of the marathon pace miles. Instead I focused on finishing.

Since we’ve had a brief window of opportune summer weather (for South Carolina) I decided to go for it today. (Plus, the tightness in my back muscles had almost completely disappeared. I’ve got a post coming soon about that. I promise.)

Before heading out I opened my kindle app and my Advanced Marathoning book to refresh my memory on how exactly I should run these 16 miles. (I’m so glad that I own the book now.)

Armed with this knowledge I headed over to the Swamp Rabbit Trail.

I started off conservatively with the goal of gradually increasing my pace through the first six miles until I reached race pace. As my splits (which I’ll insert later) show, I managed to do just that.

I was a bit worried at first that I wouldn’t be able to reach the 8:35 pace much less maintain it for 10 miles. Recent history (10:15 average Wednesday, 9:30 average last Saturday) didn’t predict success.

Well, it seems like the authors of Advanced Marathoning know what they’re talking about. By the time I got back to the water fountain by the Furman parking lot (my starting spot…I ran three miles out and back for the first six) my legs and body were warmed up and ready to go.

After refilling my water bottle, I told myself “Let’s take these legs out for a spin and see what they can do.”

I’m not sure how many times I glanced down at my Garmin throughout those 10 miles. I was determined to find that 8:35 pace and lock into it. (Yes, I know. I need to adjust the screen of my Garmin so that it displays the average pace not the current pace. I’ll get around to that eventually.)

I felt good as I ran, really good. I kept waiting for the honeymoon period of the run to end and it never really did. The pace did feel a bit hard when I was chewing my chomps but I’m pretty sure that’s because my breathing was off. It’s difficult to breathe normally while running at that pace and chewing. Good practice though.

About three miles in I could tell that a group of runners was slowly coming closer to me about to pass me. Our paces were almost identical because it took a little while for them to get around me. As they did we carried on a mini conversation. I have to admit that I was pleased to hear them say that I looked strong and that they’d been chasing me down for quite a while. They asked what I was training for and when I told them MCM, one of the guys mentioned that his son is a marine and had been one of the marines handing out medals at the end of the race either last year or the year before.

So cool. It was awesome to run with these guys for that little space. Soon they started to slowly pull away. Admittedly, I wanted to stick with them but I held myself back and tried to stick with my 8:35ish pace.

As I ran I kept finding myself surprised that this pace really didn’t seem hard. Each time I took a couple chomps and the pace got hard for just a bit, I was soon out of that tiny speed bump and cruising right along.

I hated having to stop for street crossings but I’d rather not be hit by a car or two. 🙂

I also paused momentarily about a mile and a half from my finish to rearrange a few songs on my playlist putting all my power songs together for the last little bit.

When I finished I couldn’t believe my time: 2:20:51. I knew without checking my stats that my average pace including the warm up would be under 9 minutes. So excited.

Though I did experience a temporary set back with the tight back muscles on the car ride home–I think my car seat hates me!–the muscles soon released their tension and I got to check my stats.

Textbook perfect. I am absolutely thrilled about those numbers.

After I finished I couldn’t help thinking back to my first, ill-fated, 16 miler. You know, the one I ran in Spinx Marathon training before I was ready? I had to check the stats on that one.

That’s right. It took me almost an hour longer!

3:45:00 Marine Corps Marathon, here I come!