The last time I trained really hard for a marathon, my confidence grew with each passing week. The speed work got easier as I progressed and I could tell everything was coming together just perfectly. I felt like I was in the best running shape I'd ever been in and knew I did all I could do to get that PR. Because of the positive training experience and PR outcome, I decided to follow the same training plan for Reggae marathon but adjusted my paces to shoot for a new goal. Well, as the weeks have been going by, I just haven't been feeling...I dunno...just not feeling it. I'm not burned out, just lacking the confidence that I have a shot at a PR in December. Aside from my tempo runs chewing me up and spitting me out, I'm a little worried about the travel and the heat and how that will affect me on race day. I have two more big weeks of training and I'm going to push through as if I'm going to go for it; hopefully something will click and I'll get that feeling that I'm looking for to know I'm ready.
I ran my second 20 miler for this training on Saturday and did it on the treadmill. Everyone thinks I'm nuts but I'm telling you, nothing builds mental toughness like a 20 miler on the treadmill!! I do at least one long run every training cycle like this and I actually enjoy it. I also wanted to do a long run where I was a hot, sweaty mess because temperatures in Jamaica will not be in the 40's, that's for sure. The 20 miles actually flew by and when I started to fade the last 3 miles, I just pushed the pace and got it done. My final sprint was well under an 8 minute mile (goal marathon pace) and when all was said and done, I felt great! This is the second 20 miler now where when I finished I felt like I had more in me.
Aside from all the running, I made some progress with my tri goals for next season and put aero bars on my bike. I went for a fitting, ready to shell out whatever it took for a tri bike, but after talking with the sales guy, we decide to modify my existing bike. I have a brand new road bike which served me fine this past summer and after hearing my goals, the sales guy felt it would be better if I stayed with what I had and we just made the proper adjustments. The fitting went great and I learned that I really wasn't positioning my body correctly on the bike (which explains some of the upper body pain and numbness I experienced on my long rides over the summer). Easy enough to fix, but now I have new hoo ha muscles to toughen up. My first ride in the aero position went fine, on the bike trainer, but I need some practice!! I know it's going to be a whole different ball game being out on the bike path in that position. Needless to say, I won't be doing any group rides right away, that's for sure!
Here's my schedule for the week:
Mon - swim, 5 mi (didn't happen, will fit run in at some point this week)
Tues - 10 mi w/ 3 ladders @ 6:44
Wed - lift, easy pm bike session
Thurs - 10 mi w/ 6 mi @ race pace
Fri - swim, 5 mi
Sat - 17 mi
Sun - lift
8 comments:
Wow, 20 miles on the 'mill! You are amazing :)
You sounds exactly like I did about a month before my race. I was not feeling it AT ALL! Something ended up clicking in those last couple weeks, but as you know I still didn't have much confidence in the goal. Soooo you just never know! :)
Either way, Jamaica is going to be awesome and I wish I was coming!!!
You're certainly braver than I am with the treadmill. Good for you!
The only thing I can say about road bikes and tri bikes is the tri bike works your hamstrings and saves your quads for the run. My husband is doing the Ironman in Madison next year and wants the tri bike for this reason. But he loves his road bike with the aero bars! Good luck with your training!
i used to rock out on the treadmill, but i have a much harder time with it now. I think sometimes we go through phases with our running, so maybe in a week or two you will start to feel it
I've been having the same problem..kind of..only I know that I'm losing lots of motivation and am on the verge of over training, unless I'm already there. It's been a tough year of training since January and I'm just ready for Philly to be done so I can take a break!
Amen to you for doing 20 miles on the treadmill! I certainly couldn't do it.
I also have learned that I have new hoo ha muscles to tighten up, care of a tri bike fitting on the weekend. Because I was such a vocal complainer, we did swap my saddle for a nose-less saddle. It helps but my poor lady parts... they are still grumpy. You might want to check out a nose-less option too.
I hope you find "it" soon and even if you don't, that's ok too... I still think you will have an AMAZING race :)
Whew. Ladders at 6:44? I totally hear you that you're not feeling it, but that's some speed you've got in your legs!
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