Week 11 Training Update

Well, I'm halfway through the marathon training program and am still on track to be ready for the race on October 7th. I'm a little sore today after the 13 mile run yesterday. It only took 2 hours and 30 minutes :>) Most elite runners would finish 26 miles in that time. It was very humid but the temperature wasn't too bad - around 80-85. I didn't really struggle until after 11 miles - the last 2 miles were a moderate uphill climb.

When I finished I knew right away there was no way I could do 13 more miles so I know I still have a long way to get into "26 mile" shape. Its a good thing I still have 2 more months to train. It was good feeling though knowing that I'm now a "half marathoner" - There were allot of folks out on the trail training for this marathon - thousands of runners from the St Louis will run in the Chicago marathon. The race has been sold out since last April - so yes, there are plenty (at least 40,000) of "crazy" people out there doing what I'm doing :>)

When I got home I filled up the tub with cold water and emptied our freezer's ice compartment into the tub. They say that an ice bath on the legs right after a long run will help eliminate the tightness and soreness. What's it like you ask? - think of the feeling you get when you lower yourself into a hot tub; once you are in it feels pretty good. Well this is the exact opposite of that feeling. It more walking on a frozen lake and then falling through and gasping for breath. There was never a time that it felt good until I got out. I will say however that my legs recovered pretty well. The only thing still ailing a little are my knees.

This week is another 22 miles of training with the next big test - a 15 mile "group" run on August 12th. Every 2 weeks the long run mileage jumps 2 miles until we culminate with a 20 mile run about 3 weeks before race day. In the next 6 weeks we have scheduled long runs of 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, miles. The weekday runs are usually 3 - 5 miles. I've completed about 137 training miles with no major ailments other than minor aches and pains and some "mental" fatigue - I've been tempted many times to hit the snooze button and blow off the weekday running but so far I've been able to stick with it. By the time the training is complete I will have run close to 400 miles. The weekend "long" runs are what really get you prepared physically and mentally for the marathon - you can't miss those or you will not be able to complete the 26 miles.


Cheers
Ray Baumann
http://www.active.com/donate/tntgmo/SeeRayRun