10-10-10

I've learned a lot in this last year .

The Chicago marathon on 10-10-10 was just 364 days after my first ever marathon.

10/11/09 - Chicago.  I didn't have a clue how to train, did many things wrong.  In hindsight I'm surprised I stayed healthy.  I ran it, scrapped a BQ but completely fell apart over the last 6 miles.   I felt I should have done better so immediately started training for CIM 8 weeks later.  Got injured (surprise), ran it on limited training.  Improved my time to 3.17.47, but faded badly again.  Switched to mid-foot running.  Trained for my first Boston - I finally used a plan (Pfitz) but likely still did my LR and MLR's too fast and ran too many miles (up to 85 / week), got achilles tendonitis 18 days before, suffered through a painful race in 3.45. 

In just over 6 months I'd run 3 marathons - none of which I was happy with.

So this time around - after recovering from the AT injury in June and my hernia surgery, and then the trip to Africa, I started a 12 week plan for Chicago.  This time I trained slower on all my LRs and MLRs.  I used my HR monitor to guide my pace, not my ego.  I backed off the mileage a little.

I saw the results.  I only ran 2 races this summer - a 5K and a half.  But I killed both of my PRs. 

Both of these predicted out to a 3.02 marathon.  Despite the improvements, I didn't have the confidence that I could do that.  I'd faded badly in my previous runs, so maybe a half was my better distance.  Sure - now as a certified RCAA running coach, I knew the physiology of why training slower helped recruit muscle fibres to work aerobically and should help reduce the fade - but I hadn't seen it in practice.

Going into Chicago - I decided my A goal was 3.05.   Get a time in that neighborhood, and I'd have the confidence that I could indeed run the faster times.  I wasn't ready to try to go sub 3.

Then the forecast.  Crap.  82 degrees forecast, humidity.  Here in Colorado I ran early to avoid the heat and we have pretty much no humidity.  This is terrible.

I seriously thought about bailing.  After 2 Pfitz training cycles - I needed something to show for all that work.  Denver was the following weekend.  I could run my time then.

After much thought I came to Chicago, my mind wasn't really in it, but I wanted to meet everyone and have fun.   I'm going to at least start.

Still - I was going to start slowly, and was preparing to bail at the half at the slightest hint of discomfort.  Not the ideal mental state to be going into a marathon.

3.05 - 3.10 was now the A goal.



Met my friends from the Runners World forums pre-race, headed down, used the gatorade / trash sack porto potty.

The overnight predictions of 'high 50s' never materialized.  This from the WGN news after the race.  We started at 67 degrees, and temps quickly went up.  They changed the 'threat' level of the race from green to orange and then to red around the 4 hour mark when it was close to 80 degrees.



We were off.  My splits are a combination of what I remember, and what I've pieced together from gamin when it wasn't jacked up with the tall buildings and the official splits.

I started slowly.  Breathe, relax, keep monitoring your HR, don't get tripped.

Mile 1.  7.25.  Nice.  It's crowded, but I'm feeling good.

A little faster.

Mile 2.  7.16.

Ok.  HR is in the low 150s.  That's good.  In Boston - for many reasons - it was in the high 170s at this point.  Stomach doesn't feel good tho'.  I can taste the ultra fuel still there.  No gatorade for a while just water.

Mile 3 - moving out of downtown.  7.05.  That's a 3.05 pace.  Overtake the 'B corral' 3.10 pace team.

5K - 22.34, for a 7.16 avg.

Mile 4.  7.05. 
Mile 5. 7.05.

This is actually pretty good.  Feeling very easy.  Well within myself.

Mile 6. 7.04.

I catch Ashley from the Boston forums.  Say a quick hellow.  Sounds like she's decided to take it easy today.

Mile 7.  7.05.

Into boys town.  Missed the cheerleaders on the stage this year.  Someone gives me a bottle of water.  Thanks.

Overtake the A corral 3.10 group.  Think about staying with them, but decide I'm feeling too good to go 7.15 pace.

Mile 8.  7.05.
Mile 9.  7.05
Mile 10.  7.04

This is clockwork.  Time to start thinking about your 'bail' decision.  Do you want to stop at the halfway point and do Denver next weekend ?  Decide to decide just before I get there.

Mile 11. 7.04
Mile 12. 7.04
Mile 13.  7.00

Ok - decision time.  I'm sure I'm going to die in a few miles, but I've come this far.  Who's to say I'll be in any better shape next week.  Think of Zab's boston mantra.  Balls on the table.  13 miles to suck it up baby.

Push in my chips.  I'm all in.

Half in 1.33.18

Funny - 18 months ago, that would have been over a 2 minute PR for a half.  HR still hovering around 160.  Well within my 'range'.

Now we're into the sun and it's getting hot.  I saw later from WGN news that miles 13 - 16 were the hottest part of the course.  Stomach still feels crappy.  I haven't taken a gel yet, and have no interest in one either. No gatorade either.  Just water.

Mile 14.  7.05

Thinking 3.05 might be possible.  Time to pick it up a little.

Mile 15.   6.57
Mile 16.  6.58
Mile 17.  6.59

Feeling good.  Just waiting for that fade though.  Damn it's hot.

Mile 18.  7.01
Mile 19.  7.08
Mile 20.  7.14

Not sure what happened there.  Still feeling good.  Maybe the heat was getting to me more than I realized.  See a bank clock saying 78 degrees.  Crap.

Could that be CGRITT from the boards up ahead ?  Looks like him.  Gaining, see the tattoo.  Say a quick hello as we hit China town.  Still feeling good.

Mile 21.  7.07

Where's the fade ?  I was dying last year at this point but now I'm 'that guy' picking off people.  Still no gels.  Started out with 4, and I've got 4 in my pocket.  Too cheap to throw them away.  Just water too.  Wonder if that'll hurt me - no extra carbs or salt.

Mile 22.  7.22

Uhoh.  Starting to think 3.05 isn't going to happen today.  Still not feeling bad though.

Mile 23.  7.20.  Keeping it together.  Just.  Starting to feel very light headed.  Hoping not to fall over.  Just 5K to go though.  Picturing the local 5K course and thinking about starting to run it.  I'm going to do this.

Mile 24.  7.36.  There she goes...  still - not a big fade.  Also amazed that despite my slowing down - everyone is slowing down too.  Not getting passed by people.  I'm with runners from the 3 hour pace group - all hurting together.  The heat seems to be getting to everyone here.

Mile 25.  7.49.  Hold it together for one more mile.  F**k it's hot. 

Mile 26.  7.38.  Where's that stupid turn off Michigan avenue onto the Mount Roosevelt ?  What ?  All the way in the distance ? 

Finally the turn.  Try to hold it together up the hill, feeble attempt at a sprint.  Look at watch.  You can get under 3.09 if you sprint faster.  Sprint faster.
 

 
And I'm done.  3.08.56.  Wow.  That's almost a 9 minute PR.  In less than ideal conditions, with a poor mind set going in, without taking a gel or gatorade all race. 

What I learned:

- Most importantly.  I now have the confidence that I CAN run faster.  Until the end, I was cruising around the 7.05 pace for a 3.05.  In cooler conditions, I'm pretty sure I could have gone faster.  And the fade at the end, really wasn't as bad as I've had before, and can easily be attributed to the heat, and no carb intake during the race.

- Training slow to race faster absolutely worked.  Thank you everyone for finally getting that into my stubborn head.

- Pre-race ultra fuel loading works, but I need to be smarter.  I drank too much too close to the start.  Fortunately the late Boston start should help next time.

- I'm no longer going to be afraid of less than ideal conditions.  It's not the end of the world.  Starting slower and aiming for a time just a little slower than I would have in cooler conditions helped me keep things together.

Finally - I ran a marathon that I'm happy with.

Then it was time to party with my friends.  Good times.

Deja vu all over again...

so here I am.  sitting in my hotel room the night before the Chicago marathon.

it reminds me of the same day last year

http://runningdenver.blogspot.com/2009/10/marathon-eve.html

So many things are the same, but many are different too.

Then I was on the eve of my first marathon.  I was nervous as hell.  I'd put a lot of pressure on myself to BQ at the first attempt.  I didn't really know what to expect, and fortunately didn't realize at the time that I'd been training badly.  But I had perfect weather and no injury concerns...

This year I'm not nearly as nervous.  While I should be a lot faster in ideal conditions, I haven't put the pressure on myself to achieve a particular goal time.  I get butterflies thinking about the race, but I'm not the nervous wreck I was last year.  I've got a little foot pain and the weather looks like it's going to suck....

From all accounts the temperature at the start will be low 60s with high humidity (85%) and then will rise up during the race into the mid 70s.  The forecast high is 86, but fortunately we'll be done long before that happens.  At least I hope that's the case.

Bearing in mind the optimal temperature for running a marathon is 40s to low 50s, this will be far from ideal.  I'm used to running in a dry environment - I'm going to need to do a very good job about hydrating tomorrow.

I'm a little torn too about the approach I should take.  I signed up to the Denver marathon months ago as a backup plan for Chicago in case the weather was bad.  Having missed out on a time in Boston because of injury, I didn't want to do 2 full training cycles this year and end up with nothing to show.

I'd intended to cancel the Chicago trip and concentrate on Denver if that happened.  Well - here I am - still with the spot next weekend in Denver, but sitting in my hotel room in Chicago...  it's a catch 22.  I'm here so feel I need to give this a go, but then I know that if I go for it and get impacted by the heat, I'll be blowing any chance to run a fast marathon next weekend.

So I'm going to hedge my bets.  In perfect weather and in ideal shape, I'd probably have aimed for close to a 3 hour time.  Now I'm thinking 3.05 - 3.10 would be great - and still a big PR.  So I'll go out with  the 3.10 pace group, then after a few miles think about speeding up to 3.05 pace (7.05 min / miles) and then as we wind our way back into downtown around the half way point, re-evaluate.  If I'm suffering and know that I can't keep going at that pace, I'll either dial things back completely and jog in the last half very slowly, or even step off the course and save it for the next weekend.

If I'm feeling good, then I'll go all in.  No marathon the following weekend in Denver.  Time to HTFU and put it all on the line.

I'm hoping it's the latter.  And I'm hoping it's the right decision and I can hang on for those last 13.1 miles.

I'm hoping the weather fears or more mental than actual.

I'll know in about 18 hours...

Where did the summer go ?!

Holy crap.  Have I not posted anything since July ?

The summer has flown by and now I'm 11 days out, and in mid-taper, ahead of Chicago.

I guess a quick recap is in order.

Returning from Africa, I continued with the 50 mpw schedule, and bumped it by 10% each week, until I got back to the 70 miles / week threshold.  I kept that up through the summer, following the Pfitz 70/12 plan for Chicago.  Juggling schedules for varying reasons, I maxed out at 82 one week, but most were between 65 - 70 miles.

Injury wise, things have been pretty good.  My achilles issues appear to be behind me (hopefully that's not tempting fate), although I do have some minor bone spurs in the bottom of my right foot which can be aggravated by a tight peroneous longus muscle in my calf.  Running 70 miles / week is always going to leave to some aches and pains, but it's been nothing too bad.

I ran 2 races in August in consecutive weekends, and crushed PRs in both.

The first, a 5K was run on a whim.  It was a local race and I decided the day before to give it a go.  I hate 5Ks.  They're too fast and too painful for me, but somehow I averaged 6 min / miles and ran an 18.36.  Considering I went into 2010 wanting to go below 20 mins, that's a pretty big improvement.

The following weekend was the Georgetown to Idaho Springs half marathon.  Last year I'd run a then, PR, of 1.31.43.  I'd improved that in March this year at the Boulder Spring half with a 1.28.5x.  Going into Georgetown I felt good and was able to maintain a 6.35 pace and come in at 1.26.21.   Again - my 2010 goal had been to get below 1.30, so I've easily accomplished that too.

I also trained to become a certified running coach (RRCA).  I completed the class a few weeks ago, and passed the test.  I just need to get CPR and first aid training (early November) and then I'll be an RRCA certified running coach.

I'm not sure how much coaching I'll actually do.  In the class they talked about how you could be a good runner, or a good coach, but that it was hard to be both.  I still have some running goals that I'd like to go after, so for now the coaching will take a back seat.  Still, the knowledge I gained will be very useful and should help me in future training cycles.

One thing that I finally learned this cycle - and that was confirmed in the class - was the need to run long and slow in training.  While I'd heard that many times before, it was hard for me to reconcile in my mind why you'd want to train slowly if you wanted to race fast.  Surely practicing to run at marathon pace would be the best way to run at marathon pace ?

That's not the case.  While there are some runs you do want to train fast on - VO2 max, or tempo runs, the majority of runs should be run at a much slower speed than your intended pace.  Finally I know the science.  We have different types of muscle fibers - slow and fast.  Most people know that.  What I didn't know was that there are 2 types of the fast twitch fibers.  And one of these can be 'recruited' to work aerobically if you train them to.  This means that rather just rely on the slow twitch fibres you can get aerobic help from the type IIa fast twitch fibres.

However - it's an either or.  If you train hard and fast all the time - these fibers are being recruited to help the anaerobic energy system.  That won't help in a marathon.  If you train long and slow, they're being trained to help the aerobic system.

I guess I'll find out in a couple of weeks if it helped, although the 2 PRs confirm that the slower training has helped elsewhere.  In my previous marathons I've really suffered over the last 5 or 6 miles.  It'll be interesting to see if this makes a difference.

As for Chicago - there is an awful lot less pressure this year.  Last year it was my first marathon.  I wanted badly to BQ, but wasn't sure what to expect.  I thought about nothing else for weeks leading up to it and slept badly.  This year round, another year wiser and having been through it multiple times - I know exactly what to expect.  I'm also not putting a time goal on myself.  While my 5K and half times predict out to about a 3.02 marathon, and while a number of friends are aiming to go below that 'magic' 3 hour threshold.  I'm really not.  I don't think I'm quite ready for that yet.  I'll be very happy with a time in the 3.05 - 3.10 range, which would still be a considerable PR and would then perhaps set me up for a faster attempt next year.

We'll see.

Africa

Things started to get back on track in June.  I'd been advised nothing fast, and nothing hilly, so that's what I tried to maintain.  I also tried to not do too much too soon, and with 32, 35 and 46 mile weeks (the last skewed because of 2 longer runs), I finished the month on a positive note. 

I successfully resisted the urge to run the 2 races I'd planned.  The Mount Evans Ascent - 14 miles up the highest paved road in North America was a no brainer.  A local 5K was a much harder decision, but the right one.

Then on the last day of June - I went to Africa !

Kenya to be precise.

A couple of days in Nairobi, then 4 on Safari, finished off by a couple of days in a remote village to see how rural Kenyans live.

Amazing and humbling at the same time.

I was only able to get one run in while I was there.  Partly a factor of the dangerous nature of the place - Nairobi - also known as 'Nairobbery' isn't particularly conducive to running, and then the obvious dangers of running around in the open carnivore inhabited plains at the safari.

The one run I did get in - a short 3 miler - was a great experience.  I ran with a Masai Warrior out of the safer confines of the electrified fence surrounding the tented camp, and out into the Masai Mara.

Here are a couple of photos of him.

I'd heard stories of people going on safari and not seeing much in the way of wild life so didn't know what to expect.  Either through good luck, or because of the timing of the migration pattern of the animals from the Masai Mara in Kenya down to the Serengeti in Tanzania (it's the same plain - just named differently in each country) - we got to see a ton of animals.

People talk about wanting to see the 'Big 5'.  The lion, rhino, elephant, buffalo and leopard.  We saw them all in a single day, plus thousands of giraffes, zebras, wilderbeasts, antelope, gazelles, hyenas, baboons, cheetah, monkeys, hippos, crocodiles, to name but a few.

Some of the photos from the trip - all taken with my point and click camera and not with a massive telephoto lens - below.

An incredible experience.

Then we spent some time in a small village, 30 miles north of Eldoret in Western Kenya.  2 years ago Eldoret was at the center of the ethnic killings that erupted after the contested elections and you could still see some of the damaged buildings from the lootings and violence.

The roads are terrible, the people very poor, sleeping many to a single mud on the floor, but everyone seems happy.  Quick to burst into song and truly making the best of what they have.  It helps keep things in perspective.  A running injury that keeps us out of a race, really isn't that big a deal.

Slow Recovery and New Ink...

Another month has flown by.

It's now mid June. A month since the hernia surgery and over 10 weeks since I developed the achilles tendonitis.

I've been seeing a new PT and he's provided me with some renewed hope. He's given me trigger point needle therapy in my calves to relax the muscle. This in turn lowers the constant tension on the achilles. He's also given me some additional stretches and is doing specific massages on the trouble area twice per week. All this isn't without cost, and my health insurance has a $50 deductible per visit, but at least things appear to be moving in the right direction. I've had 4 sessions the past two weeks.

This last week I was able to run 30 miles. A great sign, but I need to remember to be careful and not repeat the actions that got me in this mess in the first place.

Over the last 3 months I had been thinking about getting a running tattoo. I've been running again for over 18 months and it's become a big part of my life. I wanted to recognize that fact with some 'new ink'. I didn't feel right doing it while I wasn't running, but with the developments of the last few weeks I felt that the time was right.

I'd considered a '26.2' symbol, but then wondered what would happen if I ran an ultra. I know I wouldn't want a '13.1' symbol now having run a full, so would I feel the same way then ?

In the end I decided to go for hermes / mercury wings on the outer side of both ankles. With running shoes on, they appear to be an extension of the tongue of the shoe.

I've had 2 other tattoos before, but these - because of the positioning so close to the bones in the ankle - were by FAR the most painful. Absolute agony for over an hour. I certainly won't be rushing back to get any more, but I'm very happy with the results.

As one of my running friends said - now I need to 'back them up' with performance...

Post Op

I don't normally re-post so soon, but I wanted to do a quick update on the surgery.

I went in to St Joe's late Monday morning to get my hernia issue resolved. This was the first time I've had something like this, so was a little nervous about the general anesthetic and how things would go. Also the area of the surgery - so close to 'the boys' meant I knew I'd be in for some pain on the other side.

Good news. Everything went smoothly. The surgery lasted about an hour. I don't remember falling asleep - no counting back from 10 to 1. One minute I was on the operating table getting myself comfortable, and the next I was in the recovery room coming round. It was only the existence of a 2 inch sealed cut in my abdomen that confirmed I'd actually had the procedure.

The nurses were wonderful - both before and after the operation. While I gripe about the insurance that I have, this was one time where I believe I got amazing service. I haven't received the bill yet (I'm pretty sure I owe $600 for the co-pay), so maybe that will temper things a little, but for now I'm very happy with everything.

A few hours later I was allowed to leave. To help with the pain they left an anesthetic drip attached to the surgery site, which would dispense pain killer constantly for 48 hours. They also gave me a hefty prescription of vicodin. I doubt I'll use it all, so maybe I can seek out Dr House and see if he'll give me a good price for the rest ? :) That first evening it wasn't too bad, but yesterday, despite the drugs, the pain was pretty intense. Today I take out the drip tube. According to my surgeon, this is likely to be the worst day and then things improve.

I'm planning on working from home for most of this week. Fortunately I have a job that allows me to be as productive from home as in the office. The doctor wants me to walk a little each day - which I am - but being able to avoid squeezing in and out of the car with a commute, and other work related movement, is definitely a blessing.

This weekend I'll go and support a number of my friends who are running the Colfax Full and Half Marathons - an event I'd planned on doing myself until I got the achilles tendonitis.

Hopefully this was the low point. With my hernia fixed and my AT on the mend - things should now be on an upward swing. It does make me realize that we shouldn't take things for granted. Through March I had run close to 800 miles, and was seriously thinking that 3,000+ for the year was realistic. Now it looks like I'll run less than 50 in April and May combined, with more than half of those being the Boston Marathon.

Clearly everything can change very quickly...

Surgery...

My achilles tendonitis has continued to hamper me. 3 weeks after Boston and it's still 'not right'. I've completed a total of 1 mile in running since the race itself. That a test a few weeks ago to see if it was improving. It wasn't. I've tried to keep some semblance of cardio by using the elliptical. While I don't feel any achilles pain while I do that, I've got a feeling it isn't allowing things to heal as quickly as they would otherwise.

Still - that's the least of my concerns at the moment. The week after Boston I went to watch the Cherry Creek Sneak. A local 5 mile race that before my injury woes I'd have expected to have run as well. I started getting some fairly severe pains in my groin while I was there. It went away later in the day, so I put it down to a one off oddity and forgot about it. The following Friday night the same thing happened again. When I got home I took a look and saw that I had a bulge in my lower abdomen that coincided with the area of the pain. The internet is a wonderful thing. Within a few minutes I'd self diagnosed myself with an inguinal hernia.

First thing last Monday I visited the doctor who confirmed the verdict. A referral to a surgeon on Wednesday and he explained the options. More than a quarter of men get this at some point in their lives, and it's not something that will go away by itself. The causes can be every day activities, but in my case it's likely it was the additional core strengthening I'd been doing while I couldn't run. Sit ups and weights had pushed things over the edge (or through the abdominal muscle...). Either way, the only option was surgery.

Timing wise, it's not bad. Since I'm already out with my achilles I figured I should try to get it taken care of as quickly as possible, so here we are just a week after the doctor confirmed the diagnosis and I'm waiting to head into the hospital in 3 hours to get the surgery.

It was good to know that a number of other runners from the Boston boards on the Runners World Forums have had the same issue and have had full recoveries. Most had the same surgical option that I'm getting - the 'mesh' approach - where they cut open the lower abdomen and insert a mesh over the connective tissue, and then basically sew you back up. The mesh strengthens the muscles and prevents the hernia from pushing through in the future. It's going to be painful. I'll be trying to work from home for most of the week, and will have a tube drip inserted with pain killer for the first few days.

I'm expecting recovery time to be about a month. The doctor said no impact sports (he means running and not football !) for 2 weeks, although I can attempt to use the elliptical or stationary bike if I feel up to it. Then after that he says I can do whatever my pain threshold allows.

I've decided to take a complete 2 week break to hopefully allow my achilles to heal once and for all, and then will start the elliptical or bike again. My goal is to start slowly running in early June which will mark 18 weeks to go before Chicago.

After 3 great months of running to start the year, things have definitely not gone the way I'd planned. However, I'm viewing this surgery as a blessing in disguise - forcing me to rest completely for a few weeks and allowing me to get back on track in time for my next marathon.

Fingers crossed...

Boston Marathon

Not a huge surprise, but I didn't sleep so well. That probably put me in good company with many thousands of others this Monday morning.

Sunday I'd gone to the expo and had my ankle taped with 'KT Tape'. It was feeling a little better race morning, but with 26.2 miles of pounding ahead I wasn't too optimistic. I was going into the race thinking that as long as I didn't do any serious damage to it I wanted to try to run as far as I could, but was fully prepared to walk if I necessary.

I had my normal breakfast of cereal and a couple of cups of tea. I also drank some gatorade with ultimate fuel, and had some shot bloks. Then down to meet Phil and Ryan in the hotel lobby at 6am and we headed over to the buses. While the lines were long, it was well organized and we were on them surprisingly quickly. Our bus driver was a stud. He drove like one of the speedy taxi drivers in the amazing race as he overtook many other buses. When traffic ground to a crawl, a police convoy went past with a bus of officials. Our driver jumped in behind and swept us quickly to the start.

The athlete village was very much as I'd imagined. Thousands of athletes milling around. Sitting, chatting, lining up for the hundreds of porto-potties. Our group from the Boston Runners World Boards met at a pre-arranged spot and I was thankful for the company. I continued to drink gatorade and consumed further packets of shot bloks. Something that I regretted later.

The time went quickly and soon we were being called up to the corrals. I dropped off my checked bag, and later threw away my disposable 'good will' clothes that I'd bought and stood in my trash sack with gatorade toilet until it was time for the off. The national anthem was sung, jets flew over us, and we were off.

I decided to go out as if I wasn't injured. I figured I'd rather 'go down in flames' than meekly jog it out. I was using the Greg Maclin pacing spreadsheet to help me pace myself through the undulating course. Before the injury my 'A Goal' had been 3.05. After 3 weeks with very minimal activity I realized that was likely out of reach so decided to aim for 3.10. In my mind I knew that if things were going very well - the 3.05 splits were around 12 seconds / mile faster.

I'd been warned both not to go out too fast, and also not to try to weave through the inevitable congestion at the start. I felt I'd achieved both of those - my first split on the garmin was 7.11. Nice. I soon caught up Chad and Ashley, who were running for a 3.10, so I got in behind them and tried to soak up the experience. The crowds were impressive and I did my best to high five as many kids as I could on the side of the road I was running.

Second mile was 7.15. Things still were going well, although I was starting to get concerned over my elevated HR. I didn't feel like I was working hard, but my HR was telling another story.

Mile 3 went by at 7:00 even, and the first 5K in 22:14. Mile 4 was also 7:00 even. Consistent pace, and my ankle was giving little pain, but my HR was now in the 170s. That was a huge red flag that I ignored. I'd run a half marathon at altitude 5 weeks before, running 6:40 mile pace, and my HR hadn't reached 170 until the end - so clearly the lack of cardio fitness, and likely overdose of caffeine from the 3 full packets of shot bloks that I'd consumed and multiple cups of tea, were taking a toll.

Mile 5 - 7:15. Mile 6 - 7:08. Through the 10K in 44:44. All on track for my goal time, but I already knew I was in trouble. As if on cue - the ankle started to grumble. Quietly at first, but then louder and louder.

I was still in denial about my HR and cardio fitness. I had altitude training on my side. Surely if I could get through the half, I could then 'gut it out' over those last 13 miles and still come in at 3.10 ?

I knew with the ankle pain that I should ease back a little, so I did.

Mile 7 - 7.17
Mile 8 - 7.30
Mile 9 - 7.22
Mile 10 - 7.23
Mile 11 - 7.41

That final mile finally hit home. I needed a new plan. Forget the goal, now it was just time to survive. The pain was getting worse so I kept bargaining with myself. First it was - get to 10 miles then you can walk. Then it was - ok - let's get to 13, that'll be half way. All the while I was working out what time I'd end up with if I walked the remaining distance. Figuring a 4 miles per hour walking pace, I realized at the 10 mile mark that I'd be able to get easily inside 6 hours and thereby 'earn' the jacket and finishers medal.

Between mile 12 and 13 we hit Wellesley College. I could hear the screams ahead and looked out - unsuccessfully - to find the sign that the girls had designed for our board. I continued to bargain with myself. Get to the half - you're half way home. You could run half, walk half. I hit that in 1.36.49. Not bad, but way off my initial goal and slowing all the time. The only positive - my cardio was back and fine. My HR was now in the 150s and soon dropped to the 130s.

I tried to get over to the side and started a new approach of walking for 10 seconds after each water station. I'd grab the drink, and then as soon as we were passed the tables I'd pull over, walk and drink, then start up again. Each time I did I realized I was walking with a more pronounced limp.

Mile 14 was my last sub-8 minute mile. 7.48. I kept the bargaining going. Run to 16 - that's just 10 miles of walking left. 8.05, 8.02. Now the pain was a lot worse. I was coming up to the hills. Running up hill with achilles tendonitis is worse than running on the flat. Picture your foot landing flat - and then picture it landing on an uphill slope. The uphill causing further extension on the achilles. I imagined people back home following my splits, not realizing I was having injury problems and laughing that the 'hills were getting him'. The hills themselves really weren't that bad. I forced myself to run up them - I didn't want to walk, but I did walk down them some. 8.39, 8.53, 8.56 and 9.19. Over a 9 minute mile - when my 3.05 pace would have been 7 mins. Uggh. Although at that point I didn't care. I was running up and walking down and just trying to ignore the pain.

6 miles to go. That's 90 minutes walking at 4 miles an hour. Now I was going to come in at 4.5 hours if I did that. The crowd was a amazing. I was wearing my name on my top and every time I stopped to limp along they yelled my name and told me I could do it. I wanted a place to hide, to just finish in my own personal agony, but they wouldn't let me.

9.42, 9.39, 9.59. I was still a little faster than 6 miles per hour. Just 3 miles to go. Now I realized I was going to get below 4 hours. I could almost walk it to that. And walk I did - a lot more. I'd bargain with myself to jog to the next water stop, then I'd hobble for half a mile, then jog to the next water stop.

13.03, 12.23. Just one mile to go. I found another runner who was following a similar hobble/run pattern. He wasn't injured, but was having a hard time. Looking at his bib number - a 6xxx - he must have had an even tougher race than me. We chatted and as we got to 25.3 miles we got each other to run it out. Slowly. Most people were overtaking still but we didn't care. Mile 26 a little faster in 11.15. The crowds were unbelievable. I'd thought Chicago was good, but these were so much better. We turned the corner and headed to the line. I even managed to pick up the pace and saw on the garmin for those last hundred yards my pace was back in the 8 min range.

Finally. Over the line. 3.45.57. A personal worst by more than 25 minutes but all things considered, not bad. It was EASILY the most painful and toughest run of my life. If this hadn't been Boston I very much doubt I'd have pushed myself through the pain, in fact I probably wouldn't have even started. We talk on the running boards of 'HTFU', where HT stands for 'harden the' (and with my mother perhaps reading this I'll led you figure out the rest !). My shirt had those letters on my back so I figured I had to try to live up to them. I also knew I had to finish to 'earn' the right to wear the jacket.

Through the chute very slowly, I got the medal and space blanket, then finally my checked clothes. I sat on the ground trying hard to get them over my right ankle. I looked up and saw that the hotel was directly across the road from where we left the runners area. Fantastic. I probably couldn't have walked another block. I said it out loud to whoever would listen - 'there's my hotel'... Across the road and straight down into the bar to hear the amazing stories of the other folks on the runners world boards.

Writing this a few days later I've realized that Boston is about far more than just the race - it's the whole experience. From the first thoughts of even qualifying to the event, to the joy of getting the time and being accepted, through the build up and anticipation of training hundreds of miles through the winter months, to the soaking up of the atmosphere of the weekend in Boston with thousands of others runners, to the ride on the buses, to the waiting in the athlete villages, to the start, to the high fiving of the kids and the support of the crowd, to the dreaded Newton hills, all the way to the finish. If my race time wasn't up to what I thought or hoped it could have been before the injury, that only takes away one small facet of the whole experience.

Still. I've promised myself I need to go back in 2011. I've got unfinished business in Boston.

Achilles Tendonitis

"Achilles tendonitis, also sometimes called Achilles tendinitis, is a painful and often debilitating inflammation of the Achilles tendon (heel cord)

Achilles tendonitis is an overuse injury. The factors that can contribute to developing the condition.

* Increase in activity (either distance, speed or hills).
* Less recovery time between activities.
* Change of footwear or training surface.
* Weak calf muscles.
* Decreased range of motion at the ankle joint, usually cause by tight calf muscles.
* Running up hills - the achilles tendon has to stretch more than normal on every stride. This is fine for a while but will mean the tendon will fatigue sooner than normal."

Let's see. Increase in activity - check, less recovery time between activities, check, Running up hills, check.

I'm training for the bloody Boston marathon for goodness sake :)

So the injury that came on through my final run of March turned out to be a little more serious than I realized. Clearly the record mileage week, at the end of a record mileage month were a few miles too far. That's good to know for the next training cycle.

I took the first few days off in April trying to re-hab it. I was getting ultrasound therapy to try to increase blood circulation to the tendon to draw down the inflammation. By the 4th - a Sunday - I felt that I was ready to get back to running. I ran 11 miles and felt pretty good, although could still feel some discomfort in my heel. Monday I ran another 4 on the treadmill but again, could feel some pain so I stopped. I took Tuesday off, and then tried again on Wednesday. I got a mile in and had to stop. Clearly I couldn't ignore, or run my way out of this injury.

Those are the last miles I've run as I type this.

I switched to the elliptical, but that continued to cause mild irritation of the achilles, so the past 3 days I've been trying my hand at aqua jogging in a pool.

Aqua jogging has to be the most mind-numbing activity known to man. A minute in the pool seems to last 10 minutes. My sports massage therapist gave me a 5 day free trial at the Colorado Athletic Club, so that's been the venue of my torture. I have to tip my hat the athletes rehabbing from stress fractures or other long term injuries who are able to maintain an aqua jogging program for an extended period. 5 days is certainly more than enough for me, although hopefully it's helping me to maintain some semblance of aerobic fitness.

Rather than wait for the package from New Zealand, I was also able to get a prescription of Voltaren Gel. An anti-inflammatory and an analgesic which, unlike an oral pill, can be applied directly to the site of the inflammation. I've continued almost daily ultra sound sessions, and have been wearing heal lifts in my shoes.

Today marks 8 days to the Boston Marathon. I have no idea how the injury treatment is progressing. I'm not running so it's hard to gauge the recovery. Walking around everything feels fine, although I've felt slight tweaks from the achilles a couple of times, so I'm pretty sure if I tried to run now it would just set me back.

It's very hard. After the great training session through the winter, I can see some of that good work slipping away. That's part of my drive to get back out quickly and run again, but now I've realized if I do that - I likely won't be able to even run the marathon, let alone get the time I was hoping for.

I need to readjust my expectations. Now my 'A' goal is to qualify for the A wave in Chicago, so 3.10.59. While the race itself is clearly the main objective of the 18 week training plan, those 18 weeks themselves are also a big part. I've seen dramatic improvements to my running so even if I don't perform the way I'd hoped at Boston, I can draw many positives from the cycle that I'll use in the build up to Chicago.

One big lesson is not to overdo things. If I'd had stopped after the 2nd mile of that last run in March, I'd have ended the month short of my 300 mile goal, but likely I wouldn't have missed the 40 or 50 miles in training since. A lesson I'll hopefully remember next time.

The main objective of the next week is to continue to heal, and to attempt to get some sleep. The latter is going to be tough.

Record Week, Record Month, and an Achilles Injury...

Closing out March I ran my record mileage week - 85.75 miles, and a record mileage month - 303 miles. And now begins the Taper. Time to slow things down, get some recovery juices into those leg muscles and try to sleep ahead of April 19th.

The taper couldn't come soon enough to be honest. In my enthusiasm to get my record month I think I pushed things a little too far. I had to cut the last run of the month short with some achilles pain. I went to see my sports massage therapist - achilles tendinitis. Not good with just 19 days left until Boston. I've been icing constantly, as well as using traumeel to try to bring down the inflammation. I've been having daily ultra sound treatment to try to encourage the blood to circulate and help bring down the irritation. After a couple of recommendations from running friends I also ordered some voltaren gel off the internet. It's a doctor prescribed drug here, but available OTC from New Zealand. It's an anti-inflammatory as well as an analgesic. A friend at work had a tube so I tried some. It completely numbed the pain for a few hours, so it's my backup plan if the injury isn't recovered at race time. That is if it gets here in time from the other side of the world...

After 4 days off the swelling and pain has gone so I'm going to try a gentle run this morning. However it turns out - it was definitely a big scare. I need to be smarter about the training. I'd been feeling strong and pushed myself too far. If I'd applied the 10% rule of not increasing mileage more than 10% in a week, this wouldn't have happened. I'd have finished the month with perhaps 285 miles, but then not lost 4+ days this month already with an injury. Another good lesson to be applied in the next training cycle. I'm still making 'rookie' mistakes.

I mentioned sleep. I had a terrible time in the weeks leading up to Chicago. I'm feeling more relaxed this time around. I don't have a time goal that I 'have' to achieve like I did in Chicago so am not feeling the pressure as much. 3rd time round I've also got a better idea of what the marathon will be like - less of the fear of the 'unknown'. This injury probably also takes the pressure off a little bit. If training had been going perfectly then I might have been setting some more aggressive goals, now I need to be a bit more realistic.

Still - as long as the weather cooperates, I'm still hoping to take a big chunk off my PR from last autumn.

I'll put down my 3 goals, the A, B and C goals. Putting them down in writing somehow makes me feel a little more committed.

A - if things go very well, and I don't go out too fast and then blow up on the Newton Hills - a 3.05 would be my stretch goal
B - the middle goal is to get 3.10.59 - which would get me into the A wave at Chicago. That seems very achievable based on my training, but then with the achilles problem you never know.
C - I read yesterday that I get guaranteed entry to the London marathon with a sub 3.15 time - so that would be my C goal. Still a 2.5 minute PR, but one that I should realistically be able to do pretty easily. Weather and injury permitting....

So fingers crossed ahead of today's run. I hope very much to be returning smiling and not limping.

Ides of March

Were a few days ago...

I didn't feel like making the title '1 month' and my imagination is not up to much this morning.

After 71 degrees on Wednesday, 65 yesterday, we're meant to be getting 12 inches of snow today. Spring in Colorado.

Today does mark the 1 month to go to Boston mark. Not wanting to tempt fate, but so far so good on the training front. I've been able to follow the Pfitz plan without much more than general wear and tear injuries. Nothing that's really stopped me getting out there. I've been averaging around 70 miles/ week for the last couple of months.

I ran a warm up race last weekend. The 'Boulder Spring Half Marathon'. Conditions were far from perfect. Similar to today, after great weather leading up to it, the race day was low 30s, with a wind from the north that threatened to bring snow. I'd signed up hoping to PR, but when I saw the course profile - climbing 300 feet over the first 6 miles, I wasn't so sure.

The massive stretch goal was 1.25 to get the 'A Wave' for Chicago locked up. Once I saw the course profile I realized that would never happen. It would be almost a 7 minute PR and with the hills and gravel footing it would be as likely as winning the powerball.

The stretch goal was sub 1.30, which would get me guaranteed entry to the New York marathon next year. I'd run a good MP run the previous weekend which suggested this might be possible.

The 'C' goal was a PR - beat 1.31.43 that I'd set the previous August.

The plan was to go out slow, and then start ramping it up. The best laid plans of mice and men... the gun went, and so did I. So much for building up. With the adrenaline I didn't notice the uphill for a while, but by the 5th mile with the wind squarely in my face it was having an impact. At the half way point I checked the watch. 45.30, so already 30 seconds behind the goal for 1.30. Fortunately the hard work was behind us. Now we were mostly downhill with the wind at our backs. Mile 8 was run in 6.15, and the next few miles were easily under target pace. Another uphill to the end, but I was running well. I crossed the finish line hardly out of breath - 1.28.55. A PR by almost 3 minutes on a tough hilly course and now guaranteed entry to the New York Marathon in 2011. Nice.

Putting things into perspective. That's a pace of 6 min 45 second miles. Less than a year ago I couldn't maintain that for 4 miles, let alone a half marathon. A nice confidence boost that the training plan is working and some reward for all the hard work. It also means under better conditions this summer I should be able to take more time off this new PR.

I'm supposed to have another warm up race this coming weekend but have decided not to go through with it. The weather looks iffy with snow forecast, and the half marathon gave me the confidence boost I needed. I'll run a couple of time trials instead as part of the normal plan, and just keep plugging away with the mileage.

One month until Boston !

February in the books

Another month down and just 50 days to go until Boston.

The training program is starting to peak and touch wood (raising hand to my head) things are going well.

I'm going to close out February with a little over 270 miles. EASILY a monthly PR, in the shortest month of the year. The previous highest I'd run was 205 miles last August.

It was almost a completely injury free month. I missed just one day of scheduled running - last Thursday - with some pain on the top of my foot. I could have run through it, but played it safe with a tough workout the next day.

It's hard training through the winter. Snow obviously can't be predicted. Recently it's seemed to fall over the weekend coinciding with my longer runs forcing me inside to the treadmill. Running on the TM never seems as tough as running outside, so it's hard to correlate the times there to pavement.

Still, the positive is that I am training through the winter. Having the early Spring goal keeps the motivation going. Without it I'm sure it would be easy to see the snow and decide to bail on best intentions.

7 weeks already ?

So here we are, already getting into the middle of February.

A bit like in the middle of a long race I kind of 'zoned out' with my blogging in these cold months.

January started out great. After a few days off at the end of December, I hit the ground running in 2010. I'd clocked 100 miles in the first 10 days, well on track. By the middle of the month I started getting some pain on the outer side of my left foot. I started getting paranoid it was a stress fracture, but after spending more time at the Newton Labs I realized it was being caused by tight tendons down the outer side of the leg.

More rolling, and a few extra days off. I decided to go ahead with a 5K in City Park that I'd run the previous year - the 'Run for the the Dream'. I wanted to get a time to get me into the AA wave of the Bolder Boulder, and the relatively flat course in City Park seemed ideal. The race went well - I maintained a 6.15 pace, easily inside the time I needed and came 3rd overall, 1st in my age group. Unfortunately the course was long. Most races use the same course in City Park, so I knew immediately the finish was in the wrong place. I spoke to the organizer afterward and he confirmed that they'd made it a tenth of a mile longer by mistake. GRRR. I still ran a PR - 19.57, but with that extra 10th of a mile I missed the time I needed by a few seconds. In reality the time was around 19.25 if you adjust for the extra distance, so it tells me there's PRs to be had again this year.

My foot was still gimpy, so I took the rest of the weekend off.

Following advice from runners on the Boston boards, I decided to get a sports massage. Both the foot, and my previous knee issues, were caused by tight tendons. Getting into a semi-regular massage program might be the preventative maintenance that I was looking for.

On January 18th I saw Steve Lynn. He spent an hour on my legs and things felt good. He told me to drink water afterward, which I did a little, but didn't think too much of it. The next morning I woke up with flu like symptoms in my legs. I figured it was just the massage and went to work, but by midday my whole body was going downhill. I ended up taking the rest of the week off work sick in bed. No running - unless you count the multiple repeats I was doing to the toilet...

I later learned that some people can have this type of reaction to a deep tissue massage. The lymph fluid, and general 'gunk' that's been stored for years in the muscles is released, causing the immune system to go into overdrive. Friends told me that I needed to drink copious amounts of water, and even cleansing detox tea to avoid this the next time.

The foot, and sickness had put a big dent in things. I'd run 100 miles in the first 10 days of the month, and then just 26 in the next 13. Fortunately with my foot issue under control with constant rolling, and the sickness finally at bay, I was able to get back to it. I ran 75 miles over the last 8 days of the month to just achieve the 200 mile / month target.

Not the way I'd hoped to start the year, but I feel that I'm learning more about my body and how running impacts it.

I see a lot of runners out and around Stapleton, and after speaking to a few, realized there might be interest in a local running club. An alternative to the existing offerings that require monthly memberships. I created a yahoo group, a simple website (www.stapletonrunners.com), and had some business cards printed to hand out to runners that I see out. We started off with some 'fun runs' at the weekend. Still early days - we have 20+ people in the yahoo group, but only 3 or 4 have shown up for runs. As the weather warms up, I'm hoping this can develop into a reasonable sized group spanning beginners to sub 3 hour marathoners. I've given cards to people in both camps.

February has started off well. 11 days in and I should pass the 100 mile mark today, with 2 rest days included. I don't want to tempt fate, but my knees and foot seem to be under control. It's a struggle to get up early for some of the long mid-week runs that Pfitz is calling for (15 yesterday, 13 tomorrow), but so far I've just about managed to juggle the work and running.

Just 67 days until Boston...

2010 Goals

The Christmas and New Year festivities are over, now's the time to think about the coming year.

I was able to close out 2009 by getting back to some reasonable mileage. I started running again after the PT visit. While I still have some knee pain, it's less than it was before and the combination of exercises, switching to the newtons, and not pushing things too hard seems to have helped. I was able to run 90 miles in the last two weeks of the month and easily make my previous year's resolution to run 100 miles every month.

When I set that goal last December it seemed like a big stretch. I was coming off my first ever 100 mile month and - truth be told - would have bet against myself achieving it. Last January I was just seeing how things went, not yet committed to a marathon. I closed out 2009 with 1735 miles and over 100 every month. I took the last 2 days off with sore calves (due to the newtons), otherwise it would have been 1750.

Moving into 2010

I want to try to run 200 miles / month. This one is very much injury dependent, so I'd be very happy if I ended up with 2400 miles, even if some months fell short. Realistically some will due to the cyclical nature of training around the marathons.

I want to run the Boston marathon in April, then either Chicago or New York (or both) in the fall. I may even run the Denver marathon too, although that wouldn't be for a time. Then I could sign up for Marathon Maniacs.

I'd like to go below 3.10 at Boston. Having run 2 marathons now I feel a little more comfortable with the distance. In both Chicago and CIM I was on target for below 3.15 and then lost time over the last 5 miles. With an injury free training session and better race and hydration strategy, I'm pretty sure 3.10 is a achievable.

If I do make 3.10 at Boston, then I'd like to shave more time off in the fall marathon. When I was 18 I thought I had a sub 3 hour marathon in me. If I'd run one then, then it's very likely I would have made it. That's still probably too lofty a goal for me, but if things go well in the races this year I'm not ready to rule it out as my ultimate marathon goal. I don't think there's any danger of me breaking that this year though.

I've already run a 1.31 half. To get the automatic qualification for New York I just need to lower that to sub 1.30. My initial half goal for 2010 will therefore be to do that, with the stretch goal to go below 1.28.

As for the shorter distances - I want to beat all my PRs from 2009. I want to get into the AA wave at the Bolder Boulder. That should be pretty realistic. I'll attack that through a 5K in the coming month - needing to get below 19.53. That's only 20 seconds faster than my current PR, set last summer. I didn't run many so this one I'm hoping I can knock off fairly soon.

I'd also like to run the Mount Evans Ascent in June. 14 miles up a mountain to the top of the highest paved road in North America at over 14,200 feet. Far higher than any Tour de France stage ever goes. This more 'because it's there'. I see Mount Evans every day from Denver, and have taken 2 scooters to the summit. It seems a natural progression to run up it.

I want to do this by training smarter. I've just ordered a soft heart rate monitor strap for my garmin. It's hard to know what my 'marathon pace' is - when I'm hoping to knock 10 mins off it, so I'm going to work out my maximum HR and tailor my workouts just as much off that than actual speed.