2:20:00 :: 21 miles

Long run. Got a bit fatigued at 13, but after a couple of sips of water, I started to feel more energetic. First 12.5 outside, then finished on the treadmill.

2:20:00 :: 20.7 miles

Long run. A little bit sore at the end, but fueling wise, everything went very well (as compared to the multiple failed runs over the past few weeks). Pace was faster than expected from the start. Had to dial back a bit after the first two miles. Legs feel good a few hours later. I'm feeling like I'm back on track! A few more weeks of good results and I will be much happier.

2:21:00 :: 21 miles

Long run on the mill. One of the good ones. I think I benefited from doing the moderate ten miler yesterday, which sort of makes this like a back-to-back. Something about doing these one after another makes the long run better.

7:16(119) | 6:45(128) | 6:42(131) | 6:43(134)
6:42(135) | 6:43(136) | 6:42(136) | 6:43(136)
6:43(138) | 6:42(139) | 6:43(138) | 6:42(140)
6:38(141) | 6:39(142) | 6:39(143) | 6:40(144)
6:40(145) | 6:40(145) | 6:40(147) | 6:40(148)
6:40(151) recHR 130-:38 120-:58 110-2:47

2:20:00 :: 20.2 miles

Long run. Felt pretty good (finally). Picked up toward the end, once I knew I was going to get through the whole thing.

2:29:00 :: 22 miles

Long run on the treadmill. I'm still having all kinds of pains and cramps on the right leg/ankle/foot. Today was the strangest yet, as I went 13 miles with quite a bit of tightness and some pain in my leg, foot, and toe, but then within a few minutes after passing 13 miles, everything went pretty much normal through to the end. I even did a few strides over the last four miles (4x.3mi @ 5:30 pace) and had no problems. Didice bath for the lower legs after just for the recovery aspect. Legs felt great all day, no cramping or anything. Pace was pretty solid, about 6:50s overall, so I was pretty excited about the run, and especially feeling so fresh during and after.

Since I have been on the treadmill, I've been taking 100kcal of nutrition during the last ten miles, and I have to say, I think it makes a huge difference in performance during the run and recovery afterwards. I still think there's some value in occasionally doing a long run without fuel and stressing the system that way, but in general, I'm thinking you get better workouts when you fuel the body adequately throughout.

2:25:00 :: 21+ miles

Long run. Really great run on the treadmill. Felt like I could have gone on forever (or at least another 3-4 miles). Weather outside was decent, but for some reason the treadmill was calling me. Probably for the better, too, as being on the mill really helped me control the pace, and I'm sure it kept me from finishing too hard toward the end. Did the first 10 around 6:50-7:00 pace, and the last 11+ at 6:35-6:40 with the last five minutes or so right at 6:00 pace. Took about 100 kcal drink at 12 miles. Didn't feel the leg at all. No soreness or anything to speak of. Really great run.

Lesson learned: do NOT watch Little House on the Prairie while running on the mill, especially if it is a particularly poignant episode, and especially if you are a particularly emotional person when you are running. It was, and I am, and that equals an accident waiting to happen!

1:51:23 :: 17 miles

Longest run since the marathon. Started out very relaxed and picked up toward the end. Felt great the whole way. Low 6:40s until about nine miles (took a gel and some water at 50 minutes), then low 6:30s to 13, and the last four in 6:25(146) | 6:26(149) | 6:11(154) | 5:27(169). Last couple of miles was just striding out, feeling really relaxed, controlled, and easy, (despite the fact that 5:27 is quite fast!). Legs felt really great, feeling really fresh mentally right now, and looking forward to assaulting my 10K PR this summer, both on the road and the track.

2:21:00 :: 22.5 miles

Long run. Another good one. Weather was fine, a bit on the cool side at 25F, with a gusting 15mph wind. Took a gel around 13 miles. Felt fatigue starting to creep in at 17-18 miles, but never overcooked, which is different than normal. Break it down...

6:13(136) | 6:14(144) | 6:10(144) | 6:15(143)
6:16(145) | 6:17(144) | 6:23(146) | 6:19(146)
6:14(145) | 6:19(146) | 6:14(146) | 6:11(148)
6:23(148) | 6:17(150) | 6:15(149) | 6:16(149)
6:16(149) | 6:20(148) | 6:20(147) | 6:16(149)
6:09(152) | 6:06(155) | 3:17(156)-.54mi
Recovery: :33(130) :50(120) 1:16(110)

Excellent run.

2:26:00 :: 23.1 miles

Scratch all that crap about the bad run yesterday. Long run today was good beyond expectations. Weather could have been better (7F, 10mph wind--c'mon it's MARCH!), but at least it was sunny. Averaged 145 HR for the first 13, then HR gradually crept up to ~150 until mile 21. The last two miles I went a bit faster because I wasn't tired at all yet, and I pretty much knew I was stopping at 23 miles, not wanting to chance overdoing it mechanically and having to take extra recovery.

Recovered to 130HR in :35, 120 in :48, and 110 in 1:06. Max HR of 155. It's Miller Time. Actually chocolate milk time. Question for Thomas...what do they say in Ireland that would be comparable to "It's Miller Time"? A wild guess says it has something to do with Guinness. Cheers!

2:10:00 :: 20.4 miles

Long run with 5k 'race'. Finally, a nice day! Very little wind, sunny, and +8F. That doesn't sound like much, but when you're used to -10F or colder every f***ing day for two months, it makes a big difference. Did 14 miles around 6:25-6:30 pace, then jumped into a 5k, and finally, finished with another few miles. I figured I had preliminary speed coming up on Monday, so I could sneak in a couple of MP miles and a quick finish without getting too far off the plan. After deciding three-quarters of a mile into the race to close the five-second gap and commit, I hit the first mile with the lead pack in 5:41. Mile two slowed a bit to a 5:52, which set me up perfectly for the last mile. I opened up and cruised in for the win, finishing with a surprisingly comfortable 5:07. Having not run a mile faster than 5:56 since November, I was shocked. Pretty cool.

Anyway, I got a few more miles in before getting that feeling that the long run was long enough, so I went back to race HQ to chat, eat, and drink a bit. All in all, a very nice way to break out of the Winter from Hell. Legs felt great the rest of the day, never feeling tired or sore. Even did an hour of sledding with the kids after. Good day.

2:31:00 :: 23.1 miles

Long run. Best long run in memory! Felt really good out of the gate, and seemed to get stronger through the end. Took a 1/2 bottle of accelerade at 13 miles. Shooting for 6:40 pace, and had to pull back to get there during the first part of the run.

6:36(139) | 6:31(143) | 6:24(143)
6:27(142) | 6:34(144) | 6:42(141)
6:33(141) | 6:24(141) | 6:36(142)
6:44(143) | 6:42(141) | 6:36(143)
6:38(140) | 6:40(142) | 6:39(142)
6:41(146) | 6:35(147) | 6:36(146)
6:30(146) | 6:24(148) | 6:24(151)
6:23(153) | 6:20(155)

Recovery
:37(130) - :53(120) - 1:36(110)

Got to 18 miles feeling great, so I upped the pace a bit, planning on stopping at 2:20-2:25. Still feeling really good at 21 miles, so I kept going for the full 2:30, plus another minute to get the 23. At the end, still felt fantastic. Really felt like going for another 5K! Recovery drink, no ice bath. No soreness or tightness hours later. Everything seemed to click today.

2:15:00 :: 20.4 miles

Long run. Nailed it. Did the first 12 miles outside, but the weather was overwhelming, so I had to bring it in to finish. Held 142-144 HR for the first 18 miles, then 148-150 HR through the finish. Very good run, legs felt strong, pace felt easy, and motivation was excellent.

Felt really strong at the 2:15 mark, but I've been lacking consistency, so I cut the run ten minutes earlier than last week. This should result in a shorter recovery from the Friday/Saturday double, and allow me to build up over consecutive weeks, instead of the good week/bad week rollercoaster I've been on since mid-December.

Since I described the weather as 'overwhelming', I suppose I'd better explain. Air temp was -20F with a 7mph wind, which calculates to a -36F windchill. Whoop-dee-doo. Running into that slight 7mph wind for three minutes froze my right eye shut. I've never had that happen in 21 years of running in North Dakota. I turned back out of the wind and headed for the home loop, for a measure of safety as well as a means of avoiding the breeze. By ten miles, my facemask was solid, I couldn't see through the breath-formed frost and snow that covered my eyes, and my arms and legs were getting cold despite the fact that I was generating a lot of heat. When I finally called it and went inside, I took off my gear and had another first--frost on the inside of my clothes. I've occasionally had snow form between layers and collect inside sleeves and pant legs before. That's fairly common in January. However, I've never seen a uniform layer of frost covering the inside of my jacket and pants after a run.

Someone asked me last year at this time, "how cold does it have to be for you to not run outside?". At the time, I guessed -20F, not having run outside in those temps.

I guessed right.

2:25:00 6:35 22/85

Long run. Went very well--felt strong through 21, then the HR kicked up to 155 and I could feel the transition. Finished just starting to feel tired over the last half-mile. Went a bit too fast over the last five miles or so, with most of the last thirty minutes under 6:30 pace. First fifteen was very consistent at 6:38-6:43.

No fluids or nutrition during the run, ice bath and recovery drink after. Legs feel really good this afternoon.

2:01:05 :: 18 miles

Long run. First longish run back since the marathon. Felt better than I thought I would, with just a small amount of fatigue in the last mile of the run. Average heart rate of 138 for the run, including about four miles under 135HR at the beginning and four miles over 145HR at the end. The breathing seemed to even out today, and I didn't experience the strange heavier than normal breathing from the last few days. I'll be ready for an easy day tomorrow. Good run.

Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury

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2:14:29 :: 21 miles

Long run. Really good run. Ran relaxed all the way, picking up some speed toward the end even though I was trying hard to back off. I really felt like I was jogging the last four miles, though they were coming in under 6:20. Legs felt very fresh through 17 miles, then a small amount of fatigue gathered, but didn't amount to much. By the time I decided to end the run, I felt like I could have continued at that pace for a long time. No soreness to speak of, no fatigue...hell, I didn't even want to stop! =)

Overall heart rate averaged about 147, with the first fifteen at 143, and the last six around 152. Recovered to 120 in 1:05, and just about to 110 in 3:00--never quite got there and stopped timing. Standing around heart rate before the run was 57, so a bit elevated from yesterday's run. Temps were warm (60+ the last few miles), the sun was out, and I was overdressed at the end, which may have contributed to the slow recovery.

I discussed with Mystery Coach the value of doing a longer, marathon duration run (2:30) versus the 2:10 that was prescribed for today. I had been reading Buddy Edelen's biography recently, as well as Ryan Hall's blog (which I found yesterday...thanks Fatboy!), and both had mentioned some variation on either covering the marathon distance or duration several weeks before the goal race. I had also been dithering over the missed long run from a few weeks ago, when I was supposed to go 2:15 to 2:30, but ended up bonking and stopping around 2:00. I felt a 2:30 run today would be good mentally, and it couldn't hurt from a 'familiarity' standpoint. One of the reasons that training works, in my opinion, is that the body and the mind become familiar with the efforts that they are put through--they understand what is coming, what is expected, and they deliver the performance. It fits in nicely with the Central Governor model that Tim Noakes has proposed, and it makes sense to me.

Anyway, nothing can quite prepare you for the marathon as well as running a marathon. That is a classic conundrum. So, I decided to go with the Mystery Coach, as I usually do, and cap the run at just a touch over the recommendation, since I was still feeling fine. There is a much more key back to back coming up next week, and it will be important for me to be 100% recovered going into it. Today was a day to do no harm.

Run Two | Weather | Supplemental | Nutrition | Sleep | Injury

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