Breaking through

I had a great 20 miler today! It was not easy - I never expect easy - but it was what I remembered training to be: some pain, some nausea during the last few miles, lots of mental games during the last few miles all combined with a sense of purpose and accomplishment. My last 20 miler, and to some extent my 18 miler last week have been awful. In fact, I started doubting my ability to run a 3:30-3:35 marathon, or even a marathon. I felt nauseous, sick to my stomach, and the miles felt like a self-imposed torture that did not make sense at the time, or in the big scheme of things. Although I rationally knew this was all because of running in 80-90 degrees, and carrying a few pounds of sweat in my shoes and clothes, it was very difficult to internalize these reasons, and I started to think that perhaps running Boston so well was a fluke... I knew I would continue training, and pushing through, but my sense of purpose, accomplishment and pleasure that I associated with running long were gone; what's running without those?

As expected, I had some apprehension about today's run. On top of that, I have a mild cold, and have been dragging a bit these past few days. Nonetheless, I woke up at 6:30am, packed vanilla GU (to try instead of chocolate), Nuun and water, had an extra large bowl of oatmeal and a little coffee, and was on the road by 7:30. We are again in New Hampshire at my mom in law's house, and the plan was to run by the beach again. As soon as I stepped outside, I was greeted by a gentle breeze, and it felt great. My legs needed a few miles to wake up, and I was fine to start running slower. My plan for the day was to try to run a progressive run, ending at an average lower or equal to 8:45min/mile. The first 10 miles went by quickly, while I listened to a Runner's Round Table podcast, and my average pace at that point was 8:42. I was shoked that I was not hot at all, and barely sweating. What a change a few degrees make! By mile 15 I was at 8:33, and still feeling great, in spite of rolling hills during miles 12-15. The 2 vanilla Gus I took settled nicely in my stomach, and the Nuun provided enough electrolytes given that I was not sweating nearly as much as last week or 2 weeks ago. Since I was feeling great, I decided to push it. I switched my I-pod to music and hammered the rolling hills going faster and faster, and actually sprinting the last mile for an average of 8:25 for 20 miles! I am so happy. I have my proof that I can run strong. A 20 miler with about 7 miles of rolling hills at this pace so early in marathon training increases my confidence that I can meet my goals. More importantly, it reminds me that running is not all about pain and suffering - of course, those are part of the game, but they should not be everything! Running, for me, needs to also be about having fun and enjoyment. If I have that, I can also push harder, and run stronger. Lets hope for 50 degrees for Baystate - and no more chocolate GU for me!
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Total weekly mileage: 41.4 run, 50 mile bike, 1.5 miles swim.
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If you have not seen my previous post, check out the Runner's World article I mention and let me know your thoughts (research based or own experience). The article contains pretty controversial information, and I would love to hear other runners' opinion on it. Thanks!