San Diego RnR Marathon Training Update (Week 3 of 6)

It was an undisciplined week.  As I mentioned in last week’s post, my motivation is just not there for this marathon.  As a result, I’m pretty much just going through the motions.  I also had relatives visiting this past weekend, which gave me an excuse to gouge myself on unhealthy food I normally wouldn’t eat.

I’m going to try and become a little more disciplined this week.  However, as far as the marathon itself goes, it will definitely just be a fun run with no expectations other than to enjoy the atmosphere and finish.  The good news is I still enjoy running, so I don’t think it’s burnout, just need a break from marathon training.

Report Card

I ran 33 miles and cycled on the bike trainer for 3.25 hours.  I ran three times this week –  intervals on Tuesday, tempo on Thursday, and long run on Saturday.  Only hit my targeted pace for the tempo run and cut my long run three miles short.  My diet was a disaster, especially this past weekend and my weight also went up a couple pounds.  Slept okay, usually getting a solid 7 to 8 hours of sleep each night.  I got my planned time in on the bike trainer, did three core training sessions and a bit of upper body strength training.  Stretched about every other day for 10 minutes.  Stress was moderate.  No major injuries, but the pain in my left heal (plantar fasciitis) still lingers.  Overall, I’d give myself C for the week.

Running Recap (35 miles)

Monday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Tuesday – Intervals (3 x 1600s w/400m rest jog between intervals – 1:38, 1:37, 1:36, 1:34, 1:30, 1:35, 1:31, 1:28, 1:32 and 1:29)

Wednesday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Thursday – Tempo (1 mile warm-up, 7 miles @ tempo pace 6:13 ~ 7:12/mile)

Friday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Saturday – Long Run, 17 miles (8:27/mile pace)

Sunday – 5 minutes strength, 60 minutes Bike Trainer

Training Plan

 

San Diego RnR Marathon Training Update (Week 2 of 6)

It was a good week of training, although I must admit I am not motivated for this marathon.  I don’t have a lot of expectations going into it and that’s probably not a the best attitude to have.  My body is trying to tell me something, but I’m a bit bullheaded and once I’ve committed to something, I will complete it.  I am sure when I do complete it, I’ll be happy that I ran it, but I really need to reassess how many marathons I run each year.

As I mentioned last week, I’m beginning to fiddle with my diet.  I am reducing my carbohydrates and replacing those calories with healthy fats.  I haven’t eliminated carbohydrates totally, but have probably reduced them by about 50%.  I’ve increased my fat intake by eating more nuts, seeds, olive oil, full-fat yogurt, eggs, and fatty fish – like salmon.  I still eat about the same amount of fruits and vegetables.

I noticed a couple things so far.  First, although my total calorie intake probably hasn’t changed much, I don’t feel as hungry throughout the day.  Second, I noticed that my energy levels are a little more consistent, I don’t experience the highs and lows, which probably means my blood sugar is not spiking after loading up with carbs.  However, so far I haven’t seen any difference when it comes to my running, but that just may take time for the body to adjust.

Report Card

This week I ran 35 miles and cycled on the bike trainer for 3.5 hours.  I ran three times this week.  The intervals on Tuesday and tempo on Thursday went well.  The pace for my Sunday long run was slower than planned, which may be due to my lower carb diet.  I ate healthy, mostly whole foods.  Slept well, getting a solid 7 to 8 hours of sleep each night.  Did a little better keeping hydrated this week.  My weight was about the same as last week, holding steady around 146 – 147 lbs.  For cross-training, I got my planned time on the bike trainer, did three core training sessions and a bit of upper body strength training.  Stretched at least 10 minutes daily.  Stress was kept low.  No major injuries, but the pain in my left heal (plantar fasciitis) just keeps lingering.  It doesn’t seem to get any worse, but it doesn’t seem to get any better either.  Fortunately, I think I have a mild case and I have been massaging it daily with a golf ball.  Overall, I’d give myself another B this week.

Running Recap (35 miles)

Monday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Tuesday – Intervals (3 x 1600s w/400m rest jog between intervals – 6:17, 6:06, and 6:07)

Wednesday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer, 10 minutes strength

Thursday – Tempo (1 mile warm-up, 10 miles @ tempo pace, 1 mile cooldown, tempo pace 6:26 ~ 7:06/mile)

Friday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Saturday – 10 minutes strength, 60 minutes Bike Trainer

Sunday – Long Run, 15 miles (7:56/mile pace)

Training Plan

San Diego RnR Marathon Training Update (Week 1 of 6)

This was a planned easy training week since I’m technically still recovering from the Boston Marathon.  Fortunately, I’m feeling pretty good and should be able to carry my current fitness into the San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon.  This morning I ran 16 miles at an average 7:46/mile pace, which was a little faster than I was planning.

I do plan to change one thing for this short training cycle, which is to reduce my carbohydrates (although not eliminate) and replace those calories with healthy fats.  I was listening to a podcast (Runner Academy with Matt Johnson) where the host interviewed Dr. Tim Noakes, a highly respected sports scientist who wrote the The Lore of Running.  Dr. Noakes recently did a total 180 on his nutrition advice advocating a high fat, low carbohydrate diet for endurance athletes.  Dr. Noakes has personally been on the diet for a couple years and experienced major success with it.  I was skeptical at first, but then came across a book yesterday titled Eating for Endurance by Dr. Philip Maffetone.  Dr. Maffetone, back in the 90s, advocated a higher fat diet for endurance athletes and after reading a good part of the book, it makes some sense.  For those who may not know, Dr. Maffetone coached Mark Allen, the winner won six Ironman Triathlon titles, for many years.  Dr. Noakes did caveat that this diet is not for everyone, but if you have an intolerance to a high carbohydrate diet, which he says about half the population probably does, this may be worth considering.  So I’m going to give it a chance and see what happens.  But if you get a opportunity, I highly recommend you listen to the podcast.

After the San Diego RnR Marathon, I plan to do a few half marathons this summer/fall.  There are three half marathons in the San Diego area that I plan on running – America’s Finest City Half Marathon (Aug 18th), Raptor Ridge Half Marathon (trail, Oct 13th), and Silver Strand Half Marathon (Nov 17th).  Focusing on shorter these races will be a welcome break from the full marathon training that started back in October.

Report Card

This week I ran 31 miles and cycled on the bike trainer for 3.5 hours. I ran three times this week, all at a moderate pace.  Next week I’ll begin incorporating the speed work.  I ate relatively well, but as mentioned above, plan to move toward a lower carb, higher fat diet.  Not exactly sure what foods I’ll be substituting, still need to do some research in this area, but the fats will be of the healthy whole foods variety.  Didn’t maintain my hydration very well this week, need to make sure I drink more fluids.  Over the next couple of weeks, I would like to try and get my weight under 145 lbs (currently around 147 lbs) before the marathon, so I’m hoping the higher fat diet will help me lose a few pounds.  For cross-training, I got my planned time on the bike trainer and did three core training sessions.  Didn’t do as much stretching this week as I would have liked, skipped a couple days.  Stress was kept pretty low this week.  I have no major injuries or pain, but still have the lingering heal pain in my left foot.  I also got a pretty large blood blister on the bottom of my middle toe on my right foot from running the Boston Marathon that hasn’t really bothered me, but looks worse than it really is.  Overall, I’d give myself a B this week.

Running Recap (31 miles)

Monday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Tuesday – EZ7 (8:34/mile pace)

Wednesday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Thursday – EZ8 (7:30/mile pace)

Friday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Saturday – 10 minutes strength, 70 minutes Bike Trainer

Sunday – Long Run, 16 miles (7:46/mile pace)

Training Plan

Next: San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon

With the Boston Marathon now behind me, I’m beginning to train for the San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon on June 2nd.  The marathon is only about 5 weeks away, so my plan is to maintain my fitness level and see where that takes me.  I have no time goal.  This will be the first time I’ve run a Rock ‘n’ Roll series marathon and it looks like a lot of fun.

For those of you who have been following my blog, I completed the Boston Marathon in 3:25:52.  This was a rather conservative pace and I never hit the wall.  As a result, my recovery from Boston has gone well.  I took an entire week off from running after Boston and started easing back into the training routine this week.

The course for the Rock ‘n’ Roll marathon is new this year and will end at Petco Park where the San Diego Padres play.  It’s funny, but after reviewing the elevation profile, it looks somewhat similar to the Boston Marathon course, with an early downhill portion, then flat until a significant hill starts around mile 20, then downhill for the last couple of miles.

This will be my third marathon this year.  Although I planned on running four marathons in 2013, most likely it will be my last marathon for the year.  This summer and fall, I’m going to work on improving speed and run some shorter races, primarily focusing on the half marathon.  I just haven’t felt right this year with my training cycles, and I think much of it has to do with moving from Japan to San Diego last summer when I took a few months off from running.  As a result, I never really had that solid foundation to build upon.  I’m also getting older, so that may be part of it too.  So I’m hoping this change in focus during the second half of 2013 will build a stronger base when I begin my next marathon training cycle for the spring 2014 LA Marathon.

Below is my San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon training plan.

Mournful Boston Marathon

Just got home from Boston late last night.  I will not be posting a race report given the tragic event surrounding the Boston Marathon.  My prayers and thoughts go out to the victims, families and those who were affected by this cowardice act.  It must have been horrifying for runners who were still on the course wondering about their families waiting for them at the finish.  Fortunately, my family and I were on our way back to the hotel and didn’t hear about it until I turned on the television.  I am thankful to God that he kept us all safe.

To lighten the mood a bit, I saw this on the Internet yesterday.

Boston Marathon Training Update (Week 10 of 11)

One more week until the marathon.  I’m excited, but it probably won’t sink in that I’m actually running the Boston Marathon until marathon weekend.  Boston is a great city, so looking forward to all the race weekend festivities.

Earlier this week I came up with my pacing strategy.  I tried to balance being conservative, but not so conservative that I leave a lot on the table at the end of the marathon.  I’m sure the hilly course will take its toll on the quads, so hopefully my planned pace strategy is appropriate for my fitness level.

Finished a good second week of a three week taper period.  I’m relatively healthy, other a bit of pain on my left heal/arch area.  The pain normally goes away within the first mile of a run, so it shouldn’t be a problem come race day.  Haven’t experienced any pain in my Achilles tendon, so that’s a big relief.

I will continue tapering this last week, reducing my mileage to less than a third of what I normally run.  I will run three times this week, with some short intervals (6 x 400s) on Tuesday, a few miles at marathon pace on Thursday, and a short easy 3 mile run on Saturday – for a total of about 10 to 12 miles.  The marathon is on Monday (Patriot’s Day), so that will give me Sunday as another full rest day before the marathon.  I will not be doing any cross or strength training this week, although I’ll try to get some stretching in.  I’ll also try to get 8 – 9 hours of sleep each night and stay hydrated.

Report Card

This week I ran 25 miles and cycled on the bike trainer for 3 hours.  My interval run (5 x 1K) on Tuesday went well, tempo on Thursday was on target, and 10-mile long run on Sunday was solid.  I slept most nights between 7 to 8 hours.  I ate pretty well, mostly vegan.  I got the planned time on the bike trainer, did three core training sessions, and incorporated some yoga/stretching some days.  Stress was pretty low this week.  The body continues to heal and no major pains.  Overall grade of A- this week.

Running Recap (29 miles)

Monday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Tuesday – Intervals (5 x 1K w/400m rest jog between intervals (3:50, 3:45, 3:46, 3:46, and 3:39)

Wednesday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Thursday – Tempo 2 miles warm-up, 3 miles at tempo (6:46, 6:43, and 6:31), 2 miles cooldown

Friday – 15 minutes core, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Saturday – 10 minutes strength, 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Sunday – Long Run, 11 miles @ 7:25/mile pace

Training Plan

Boston Marathon Pace Strategy

Being less than two weeks out from the Boston Marathon, I figured it was time to come up with a race pace strategy.  Although I don’t have an overall time goal, I do want to go into the marathon with a pace strategy.  From what I’ve read the Boston Marathon is highly technical and if you don’t pace properly, you will pay for it dearly toward the end of the run.  But I’ve also read that if you pace smartly, Boston can actually be a relatively fast course – assuming the weather conditions are good.

As you can see in the course elevation profile above, the course is very hilly, with a net elevation loss of 442 feet (783 ft elevation gain – 1225 elevation loss).  So trying to go out and run even splits every mile probably isn’t going to work.  Although there are more downhills than uphills, the downhills will trash your quads if you run them too hard, so I’ll need to make sure to hold back.

They say you can break Boston down into four distinct sections based upon the elevation profile.  Segment 1:  miles 1 – 5 is downhill; Segment 2: miles 5-16 are rolling/flat; Segment 3:  miles 16-21 are the Newton Hills; and Segment 4:  last 5 miles are downhill to flat.  As a result, each segment should have their own pacing strategy.

I feel I’m currently in shape to run a marathon between 3:15 – 3:25.  If this were a flat course, I would probably try and run even splits of around 7:30/mile pace.  Since Boston is not flat, I will instead try to average a 7:30 pace, using the following pacing for each segment.

Segment 1 (Miles 1 – 5, downhill):  7:30 ~ 7:40/mile; although this is mostly downhill, I plan to start off conservatively.  Running the 2011 New York Marathon was a good lesson on how I sub-optimized my time because I got so caught up in the moment early in the race.

Segment 2 (Miles 5 – 16, rolling/flat):  7:20 ~ 7:30/mile; since I plan to start out conservatively, this is where I’ll gain back some of the lost time.

Segment 3 (Miles 16 – 21, Newton Hills):  7:35 ~ 7:45/mile; this is going to be the toughest part of the race and inevitably I need to dial the pace back by about 15 seconds per mile.

Segment 4 (Last 5 miles, downhill/flat):  7:25 ~ 7:35/mile; hopefully, by this time I’ll have enough left in the tank to maintain around a 7:30 pace.

So there you have it, we’ll see what happens on race day.  The pace above is assuming we have decent weather conditions.  I would be interested to hear any comments on my planned strategy from folks who have run Boston.

Boston Marathon Training Update (Week 9 of 11)

Two weeks to go until 117th Boston Marathon.  I have arranged my travel plans, although I’m still thinking about attending a Red Sox game during the weekend.  Hopefully, this year we’ll have good weather for the race, seems to be the roll of the dice every year.  Haven’t thought about my race strategy yet, but will need to put some thought into it later this week.

Finished another solid week of training for my first of three week taper period.  My body seems to be getting stronger and the pains I experienced early in my training are beginning to fade away.  My Achilles tendon injury is pretty much a non-factor when I run now, although it is still not 100% since I sometimes feel a very dull pain every once in a while.  I seemed to have recently developed a mild case of plantar fasciitis in my left heel, but the pain goes away within 5 minutes of starting a run.  I’ve been massaging it with a golf ball every day, which seems to help keep it at bay.  Otherwise, everything else is functioning properly and the body is feeling pretty good.

I will continue tapering this week, reducing my mileage another 25%, but still maintain the intensity of each run — they will just be shorter runs.  The taper can be a tricky period, but I find the key is to relax, get plenty of rest, stay hydrated, and just let your body heal.  Also, now is the time I really need to eat very healthy, limit the calories since I won’t be burning as many, and avoid the junk food — I’ll have plenty of time to indulge after the marathon.  Most likely I am going to gain some weight, possibly a 3 – 5 pounds, but I don’t worry too much about it since most of it is just water weight.

Report Card

This week I ran 29 miles and cycled on the bike trainer for 3.25 hours.  My interval run (8 x 800s) on Tuesday was horrible, tempo on Thursday was great, and 13-mile long run on Sunday was solid.  I was still fatigued on Tuesday from my long run, so instead of trying to push the pace, I decided to do the intervals at a moderate pace to avoid risking injury.  As I’ve gained more experience as a runner, I’ve realized that if you’re not feeling it, just take it down a notch or two and hope to come back strong on the next workout.  I slept between 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night, although there were a couple of nights where the quality of sleep wasn’t good.  Ate a good amount of fruits and vegetables and most meals were vegan, although I did eat some steak tacos and fries on Friday night, which I came to regret later that night.  I find that the more you eat vegetarian or vegan, the harder it is to digest meat.  I got all my planned time on the bike trainer, did three core training sessions, and incorporated some yoga/stretching most days.  Stress was moderate this week.  The body continues to get stronger and the pains I am experiencing are very minor.  Overall, another solid B+ week.

Running Recap (29 miles)

Monday – 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Tuesday – Intervals (8 x 800s w/90 second rest jog between intervals (3:17, 3:11, 3:11, 3:12, 3:14, 3:20, 3:03, 3:00)

Wednesday – 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Thursday – Tempo (2 mile warm-up, 5 miles tempo (6:18 ~ 6:54/mile pace), 1 mile cooldown)

Friday – 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Saturday – 1 hour Bike Trainer

Sunday – Long Run, 13 miles @ 7:20/mile pace

Training Plan

Boston Marathon Training Update (Week 8 of 11)

Received the Boston Marathon packet in the mail on Friday. Only 22 more days to go!

Only three weeks to go before I toe the line at the 117th Boston Marathon.  I received my packet in the mail yesterday and will be in the first wave of runners.  I am getting a little excited now, this is a race I’ve wanted to run for a very long time and it is finally here.

It was another solid week of training and my confidence is continues to build.  I’m not in PR shape, but feel I’m in shape to run a marathon between 3:15 to 3:25.  I don’t plan to go into Boston with any particular time goal, but will probably pace myself somewhere within that range depending upon weather conditions and how I feel that day.  The course does look pretty challenging, very hilly throughout, so that will be a big unknown on how my body handles it.  During this training cycle, I did train on some hilly terrain during my long runs, so feel somewhat prepared.

My achilles continues to get better and have barely felt any pain during my runs this week.  This afternoon I completed a 20 mile long run pain free, so I’m feeling pretty good that I’m going to get to the starting line relatively healthy since I’ll begin reducing mileage over the next three weeks.  Still have some minor aches and pains that pop up here and there, but nothing I can’t run through.  The Newton Gravity shoes, although not perfect, are much more comfortable to run in than my previous Brooks Glycerin 10 shoes.

At this point in time, with only three weeks left, there is really not much more I can do to improve.  Just need to not do anything stupid and get to the start line in one piece.  Although I’m not in the shape I hoped to be in, managing a moderate level injury was a great learning experience on finding alternate ways to still get to the start line in decent shape.  Although I’m not 100% of where I wanted to be, I’m thrilled that I got to at least 80 – 90%.

Report Card

This week I ran 37 miles and cycled on the bike trainer for 3.25 hours.  My interval run (10 x 400s) on Tuesday was great, tempo on Thursday was very good, and 20-mile long run on Sunday was okay.  It was the first time in a while that I hit all my planned paces, although I experienced hydration issues on my long run, resulting in slogging through the last three miles.  I slept between 6 to 8 hours of sleep each night, will need to work on this area over the next few weeks.  Ate quite a bit of fruits and vegetables and meals were mostly vegan, but there were a couple days where I let loose and wasn’t disciplined and ended up eating too much junk.  Got all my planned time on the bike trainer, did three core training sessions, and incorporated some yoga/stretching most days.  Stress was relatively low this week.  The achilles continues to improve and feel the body is finally adapting to the training.  Overall, another solid week, but haven’t been able to put it all together for every facet of my training.

Running Recap (37 miles)

Monday – 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Tuesday – Intervals (10 x 400s w/400 rest jog between intervals, 1:24, 1:24, 1:23, 1:28, 1:22, 1:25, 1:20, 1:23, 1:22, 1:18)

Wednesday – 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Thursday – Tempo (1 mile warm-up, 7 miles tempo (6:41 ~ 7:09/mile pace), 1 mile cooldown)

Friday – 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Saturday – 1 hour Bike Trainer

Sunday – Long Run, 20 miles @ 7:39/mile pace

Training Plan

Boston Marathon Training Update (Week 7 of 11)

San Diego, CA Sunset – I feel very fortunate to be able to run in such a beautiful area, there’s hardly ever a bad weather day for running or biking.

It was another good week of training.  Although I’m not at the same level I was last year, I had an encouraging long run this morning that seems to suggest I’m on the path to improvement.  Most likely I’m going to go into Boston under-trained, but I’ll be happy if I can get to the starting line healthy.

2013 Newton Gravity Model

The good news is I think I’ve identified the primary culprit of my Achilles tendon injury.  In mid-January I switched to Brooks Glycerin 10 shoes after running in Newtons for a few years.  The Brooks were usually fine until about 5 miles into a run, then I would begin feeling some pain in my Achilles.  In addition to my Achilles, I was sometimes experiencing mild pains in my knees and other joints, although nothing serious enough to keep me from running.  I also had a significant hot spot on the balls of my feet after about 10 miles running in the Brooks and it felt like my feet were in a war zone after 15 miles into a long run.  I initially thought my injury may have been due to over-training, but I’m thinking that wasn’t the primary cause.  So this week, after really trying to give the Brooks a chance, I decided to throw in the towel and go back to the Newton Gravity.  The Brooks still have some life left in them, but with Boston a month away, if I’m going to change shoes, I need to do it now.  Moral of the story — PICK YOUR SHOES WISELY!

This morning I ran my long run in my new pair of Newton Gravity shoes and it was a vast improvement over the Brooks.  Not only were the Newton’s noticeably lighter, the Achilles injury pain I’ve been enduring the past five weeks was almost non-existent.  Not having to deal with the pain really added some pep to my workout and I was able to run my long run at a much faster average pace than I was planning to run — planned to run around 7:35/mile, ended up running 7:24/mile with a couple 6:50 miles toward the end of the run.  I’m crossing my fingers that this will be the cure to my Achilles problems, but I will still stick with my reduced mileage training plan until Boston.

Report Card

This week I ran 34 miles and cycled on the bike trainer for 3.25 hours.  My interval run (3 x 1 mile) on Tuesday was ugly, tempo on Thursday was okay, and 16-mile long run on Sunday went very well.  I slept between 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night, but the quality of the sleep was not great.  Ate plenty of fruits and vegetables and meals were mostly vegan.  Got all my planned time on the bike trainer, did three core training sessions, and incorporated some yoga/stretching.  Stress was relatively low this week.  The Achilles continues to improve and felt pretty good during this week’s long-run.  Overall, a good week, but I would like to improve on my interval speed.

Running Recap (34 miles)

Monday – 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Tuesday – Intervals (3 x 1 mile, 7:14, 6:50, and 6:31)

Wednesday – 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Thursday – Tempo (1 mile warm-up, 10 miles tempo (7:12 ~ 7:22/mile pace), 0.5 mile cooldown)

Friday – 45 minutes Bike Trainer

Saturday – 1 hour Bike Trainer

Sunday – Long Run, 16 miles @ 7:24/mile pace

Training Plan