Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Tough Day on a Long Run

With the Monumental Marathon just under three weeks away, I figured I had better get some long runs in. I also figured I should have actually trained for this event. Last Sunday I ran 14 and change, at an easy 8:30 pace. I could have easily run longer, and though I wanted to, had to be back to help get the kids up and ready. Today I had planned an easy 18 miles. I put a water bottle drop at a point roughly 7.5 miles, knowing I would need it. I never carry water, and don't even bother with a drop, unless I'm going longer than 14. Since I drink about 1.5 gallons of water every day, hydration issues are generally not a concern. I had planned on running about 4:30 am, but by the time I got back from dropping the water, I didn't really have enough time. I decided to go after church.

The weather was really nice: about 71 or so, very low humidity, and a beautiful cloudless sky. I felt great the first few miles, but started to feel a bit off. What's this? I was running 7:50s, then 8:30s, and still slowing down. My HR was higher than it should have been, and before long I was have=ing to make an effort to slow down to keep my HR in zone 3. This continued until I was running a 9 minute plus pace, with my HR in zone 4. What the heck? I drank the water at my drop, and had a gel and some shot blocks on the way, but couldn't wait to finish this run. Something wasn't right, and I ended up cutting out a loop near the end, so I could finish at 16.25 miles.

We I got home I was drained, and confused as to what had happened. I had a drink, walked for a few minutes, and went into the house. The scale told the story. I was really dehydrated, as I was down to 150.4 lbs. That's pretty low for me. The part I don't get is why. I have been drinking plenty, and it wasn't hot out. The air was very dry, and the fact I started feeling it early in the run tells me I was not hydrated well to start. But why? I have been drinking about the same amount of water as usual, and I don't think I am eating more poorly than usual. The weather change? The amoxicillin I have been taking for the sinus thing I had? I don't know.
What I do know is had I not felt fine on my longer run last week, I would be more stressed about the race than ever. I'll take it as a bad running day, but a good lesson. Next weekend I'm planning on a 20 miler, as it will be my last long run before a short taper. I'll be out of time. I'll prepare a bit for this one, and it should tell me a little more about what I can expect on the Monumental Marathon.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

AM church...Good for you. yesterday was the feast day of St. luke.. I found this & want to share it w/u

I ran a half-marathon this morning. Had a very strong run; a run I hadn’t expected to have because my training over the past few months has been sporadic and inconsistent as I’ve battled a wet and cold Midwestern winter and spring.

But on one of my final training runs this week, I realized that I was dwelling on all of the miles I hadn’t run, instead of the miles I had run. And that is when I realized that I couldn’t do a darn thing about the miles missed; it was too late to make them up four days away from a race. What I could do was focus on the miles I did put in and use them as the springboard for a good race.

And I couldn’t help but think; that is what Christ wants us to do in life. He wants us to forget about the mistakes made and the opportunities missed; and focus instead on the things we do right and the future ahead. We can either let the faults of the past weigh us down and keep us from doing his will; or we can ask for and accept his forgiveness and mercy and use him as the impetus for being the disciples we are supposed to be. It’s why Christ gave us the Sacrament of Reconciliation; to accept and atone for what we did wrong and then to move on.

I also thoughts of two things in my race today. The first is that the course passed three Catholic churches. I said a little prayer and made the sign of the Cross as I passed each of them; thinking of Christ inside on this blessed Sunday morning. I then noticed that I started running a lot faster; as if the Holy Spirit was giving me a little push. The other thing I noticed is that I couldn’t think of a patron saint for runners; so I think I am going to start a movement to have St. Peter and St. John named as such because of their foot race to Christ’s tomb on Easter morning.

Keep up the good work