The good:
1) enjoyed beautiful scenery while running on the shore from New Castle, NH via Portsmouth and Rye....
2) felt pretty good for the first 15 miles.
3) ran faster than I had planned (average pace 8:55 instead of the 9:00 planned)
4) ran 30 sec/mile faster than my first 20 miler during my previous marathon cycle.
5) listen to 3 amazing NPR podcasts.
6) had minimal leg soreness throughout the run and thereafter, in spite of hilly terrain.
7) recovered much better than during my previous marathon cycle - absolutely no leg heaviness or soreness 4 hours post run, no nausea, etc, feeling great.
8) i finished the run.
9) i managed to maintain my form throughout the run.
10) i ran my first 20 miler alone, something i did the best I could to avoid during my first marathon training cycle.
The bad:
1) i had a side stitch during the last 8 miles. I don't remember when was the last time I had one of these - a year ago? Nothing I did helped - breath into it, put pressure on it - so I ended up accepting that it will stay with me and ignoring it the best I could.
2) i started the run too late.....8:50am.....I know, i know, but we are house sitting for my mom in law in a beautiful house on the beach, had a friend over last night and lots of games to play and movies to watch, so I went to bed super late. Plus, my son is sleeping late these days, and after waking up at ungodly hours for the first 2 years of his life, I consider it just wrong to be up before him...
3) it was hot. i stopped at mile 10 to get water, went into a bathroom, took all my clothes off and wrung them out only to see sweat coming out of them. I was again drenched.
4) i drank too much water (again), was able to take in only 1.5 Gu(s) and felt very nauseous from mile 15 on ( maybe I should switch to Vanilla, now that I ordered 10 chocolate Gu(s)).
5) i ran positive splits (8:50 to 8:55:(
6) i walked the uphills during my last mile (yes, I felt THAT sick to my stomach). My legs were not sore or in pain, just weak, probably because of poor nutrition during the run...
So, that was my long run today. Looks like there are more "good-s" than "bad-s", so I suppose I should not get too tough on myself (I did, I am fine now). I am not used to not nailing my workouts. In fact, during my previous marathon cycle, I was way ahead of all the paces that FIRST gave me.. However, I am training for a 3:30 rather than a 3:45 now, so that is huge, and I know that I would have had a much easier time in cooler temps. Also, running 20 miles alone is much more difficult than running 20 miles in the company of other runners. Again, I am learning so much from each and every run, and can't wait to do better during my 18 miler next week.
*
This week I ran 41 miles, a record for me. My training will top at about 51 miles one week, on top of my swimming and biking. Will see if my legs will cooperate...
This week:
Monday: 9, 3.5 speed
Wednesday: 8, 4 short tempo
Thursday: 4, recovery on trails.
Saturday: 20 long.
11 comments:
Sounds like you are on track :) I love how the goods were more than the bads!
Wow, all of those "goods" are such strong observations and the "not so goods" are just situational(well, most of them)!
You have to sleep in if you need the rest-you run better!
Great job!
Don't beat yourself up on not hitting your pace. Performance can be affected as much as 2% per 5 degrees over 50-55 degrees. That means that if it is 80 degrees, you will lose at least 10% of your performance. You were not running 10% slower than your pace, which means that you were working that much harder. That is probably why you felt so bad at the end. If there was direct sunlight and humidity, your body would be working that much harder.
It sounds like you did a great job.
Hey...doing a 20 on your own for the first time is a huge huge accomplishment! Everything else is secondary once you have a check next to that box. Congratulations.
Ana, I did my long run yesterday and I agree it was pretty hot. You shouldn't worry about missing your pace by 5 seconds. Like Lisa said your effort was hard and that's what counts. Plus it was only your first one. Running alone is good for building mental toughness, something that is needed on race day.
a 20 alone is a huge feat! i remember my first last year - i felt so accomplished after, even though it wasn't even a distance pr (since i've done a marathon, lol) those 20 mile training runs are beastly!
like you said, this was your first of 5 for the training plan. you aren't anywhere near the peak of your endurance/stamina, so it's OK to have felt rough near the end. your pace slowed by 5 seconds... that is hardly anything to me! when i crash and burn it's more like 2 minutes/mile slower. :)
awesome job on the 20-miler. rest up, reward yourself and your legs! i'm sure you will see improvements on the next four!
Long runs done alone are hard. No doubt about it. I think I'll be running all my long runs alone this time around and I think that's an accomplishment in itselt. Really.
Sounds like you need to figure out that nutrition during the run. 1 1/2 gu's? How did you even finish? I don't understand the side stiches either. I get them from time to time and never figure out where they come from.
Great job Ana-Maria.
I think the thing that's important to remember is that this was your first of 5 20-milers this cycle. The first one will generally have at least a couple hiccups . . . and I really think the heat could have been to blame for a lot of the items on you "bad" list, as Lisa also pointed it. Hang in there! The important thing is that you got through it. I am betting your 18-miler next weekend will be MUCH better ;)
congrats on your first 20M done, they are always daunting runs. and sorry it was a hard run. I also hit the road late and suffered for it. but I know such bad runs pay off in the end, as nothing difficult comes easy. I always enjoy reading your posts.
The key (IMHO) is to just get through the 20 mile runs without breaking anything. These kind of runs are what allow us marathoners to do what we do. And in my experience they are almost never pretty. There is no taper, no carb loading, and no getting a good sleep the night before and staying off our feet. Training 20 milers just kind of happen along with the rest of our life.
Great job I say!
Hmmm, sleeping late and running when it's hot, or getting up super early and running when it's cooler? BLP (Before Little Person), I would have said suck it up and get up early. Now, I'm with you. It's a crime to be up before the tiny tyke! My long run was tough this week too, and I did get there early. But it's all good. Completing the long runs are the important thing, so you're doing great!
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