Archive for May 6th, 2008

What an eye-opening season it’s been for marathons. After following several marathoners’ stories from training to completion, I’m relaxing my marathon goal.

It was humbling to hear from runners you knew had it in the bag – doing their 3rd, 5th or 6th marathon – reporting races peppered with unexpected physical issues, pacing woes or nutritional troubles that killed their expected goal. The newbie stories are just as compelling, though less surprising as far as goals not coming to fruition, but it’s the seasoned marathoner let-downs that scare you.

What I’ve Learned: no matter how well you follow your plan or how beautifully your tune-up races point you to that BQ and beyond, you just never know what can happen race day.

So, here’s the dirt. I need a 4:00 to BQ. Honest Injun, I don’t even care so much to run Boston, it’s the point of being fast enough to qualify for something – that’s the draw. Anyway, barring injury or unforseen ailments and considering I have 5 months to train, not to mention I already run faster than 9:09 for my easy/longs runs, this would be a conservative goal.

My original goal for October was 3:40 – far from conservative, even over the edge especially considering it’s my first marathon (though keeping in mind, Steamtown’s a famously fast course). I’m letting this one go.

I could split the difference and shoot for 3:50, which makes for a comfortable goal since 8:45 is often my easy/long pace anyway. But where’s the challenge in that? I know I can run long(ish), I did a 19 and 18 last October just for fun. I want to get faster for the Fall, not just go longer.

So my revised plan is this: 3:45. If I’m improving in leaps and bounds, I might glimpse that 3:40 on the radar again, but 3:45 is realistic with some work. I’ll be following a Pfitz 18/60 plan by removing the double recoveries on the the 18/70. I don’t feel I need to get up to 70 just yet – I don’t want to burn out and also, at 46 years old, I don’t need to push it to destruction the first time.

Conversely, since I’ve run several successful weeks at low to mid 50s and my usual mileage is right under that, it doesn’t make sense to do the 18/55 which starts in the low 30s. Yet perversely, considering I’m sitting here with a bum ankle and will be out of town for two weeks prior to plan start, 30s might be my weekly mileage at that point. If so, I’ll embrace the 18/55, no problem! Playin’ it by ear.

My general attitude keeps improving concerning speed gains vs. the calendar. I’m still hungry as ever for crazy cool race times in all the distances but am no longer driven by a timetable. Last Fall, I was “Since I’m doing X, that means in 3 months I’ll be at Y, then 3 months later I’ll be at Z,” I’m coming around to the idea that I don’t need to push it out like a hard dump, all things come in good time.

And with that lovely visual, I bid you adieu for the day. Because I’m tasteful like that.