Going the Distance
My marathon quest is either going better or going worse, I'm not sure which.
My training plan, if you could call it that, is progressing as scheduled. Last night (Sunday), I did my "long run" which was supposed to be 12 miles. I ended up going 12+ in about two hours.
The exact distance, of course, is a little unclear because I got lost on the run. Well, not "lost," as if I were a Boy Scout in Utah lost in some canyon with helicopters and bloodhounds searching for me. Just lost in the sense that I took a wrong turn and ended up making an extra loop that I didn't want to make. After making this mistake once, I tried to avoid it again and ended up going other places where I didn't know how to get where I wanted to be. By this time, I was very tired, very disoriented, and rather dehydrated, as I had been running for over an hour without a drink. (Because I got lost, I missed going to the drinking fountain I was planning to stop at.)
By the end of the run -- actually, by about mile 10, I was dying. My nipples were chafing (because I didn't tape them like I should have), so I took off my top. Then, however, the wind and my sweat made me too cold. I had a blister forming on the inside of my right foot, which made every step painful. My knees were hurting. My lungs were ok, but not great.
So I guess I'm divided on whether I can actually finish 26.2 miles. On one hand, with the way my body responded, I'm not sure I could do much more than 12.
On the other hand, there are several things about San Francisco that I think will make me more successful:
1.) It was 80 degrees with 60% humidity last night. San Fran will be 20-25 degrees cooler, at which point the humidity helps keep you cool rather than making things worse.
2.) I will properly hydrate, thanks to the water stations every 2 miles.
3.) Every time I run, I've been getting stronger. So I think I should be able to get at least 15 miles next time.
4.) I paced myself poorly last night. I went out at probably a 7.5 minute pace, where as I need to be pacing at closer to 9 or 10 minutes.
So I feel like I should be able to get through the first 16 miles or so of SF. From there on, it's a matter of will and forcing my body to do what I want it to.
Of course, all this is complicated by realizing that I can't switch down to the half marathon once I get to SF. From the emails they've been sending out, I thought I could change up until the day before the race, but from reading their website, it appears that all changes had to be made before July 10. So right now, it's looking like marathon or bust.
Tomorrow, I'll do a 2 mile recovery run, then probably do 3 miles on Thursday. On Saturday, I'll do about a mile and a half just to keep my legs loose. In the meantime, I'm stretching constantly to keep my legs limber. Of course, what I really need to do is lung stretching to prepare for the hills of San Fran.
My training plan, if you could call it that, is progressing as scheduled. Last night (Sunday), I did my "long run" which was supposed to be 12 miles. I ended up going 12+ in about two hours.
The exact distance, of course, is a little unclear because I got lost on the run. Well, not "lost," as if I were a Boy Scout in Utah lost in some canyon with helicopters and bloodhounds searching for me. Just lost in the sense that I took a wrong turn and ended up making an extra loop that I didn't want to make. After making this mistake once, I tried to avoid it again and ended up going other places where I didn't know how to get where I wanted to be. By this time, I was very tired, very disoriented, and rather dehydrated, as I had been running for over an hour without a drink. (Because I got lost, I missed going to the drinking fountain I was planning to stop at.)
By the end of the run -- actually, by about mile 10, I was dying. My nipples were chafing (because I didn't tape them like I should have), so I took off my top. Then, however, the wind and my sweat made me too cold. I had a blister forming on the inside of my right foot, which made every step painful. My knees were hurting. My lungs were ok, but not great.
So I guess I'm divided on whether I can actually finish 26.2 miles. On one hand, with the way my body responded, I'm not sure I could do much more than 12.
On the other hand, there are several things about San Francisco that I think will make me more successful:
1.) It was 80 degrees with 60% humidity last night. San Fran will be 20-25 degrees cooler, at which point the humidity helps keep you cool rather than making things worse.
2.) I will properly hydrate, thanks to the water stations every 2 miles.
3.) Every time I run, I've been getting stronger. So I think I should be able to get at least 15 miles next time.
4.) I paced myself poorly last night. I went out at probably a 7.5 minute pace, where as I need to be pacing at closer to 9 or 10 minutes.
So I feel like I should be able to get through the first 16 miles or so of SF. From there on, it's a matter of will and forcing my body to do what I want it to.
Of course, all this is complicated by realizing that I can't switch down to the half marathon once I get to SF. From the emails they've been sending out, I thought I could change up until the day before the race, but from reading their website, it appears that all changes had to be made before July 10. So right now, it's looking like marathon or bust.
Tomorrow, I'll do a 2 mile recovery run, then probably do 3 miles on Thursday. On Saturday, I'll do about a mile and a half just to keep my legs loose. In the meantime, I'm stretching constantly to keep my legs limber. Of course, what I really need to do is lung stretching to prepare for the hills of San Fran.
posted by N at 11:58 PM
3 Comments:
i think my brain stopped processing after the whole taping the nipples bit. really?!?! you have to do that to discourage chafe-age? i have NEVER heard of that before. interesting...
I, too, was surprised to see your honesty in revealing the aforementioned state of your nipples...it's like we all know you a whole lot more now!
yeah, taping the nipples is pretty common for marathoners, at least those of the male persuasion. i'm thinking it's not as big of an issue for females, unless they want to go free and encourage early sagging.
there's also the issue of using vasaline to prevent chafing in other uncomfortable areas which we won't mention at this point. however, judging from my run the other night, i don't think i'll have a problem there.
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