The timing could not be worse. 4 months of preparation and I get sick in the final days before the marathon. I never get sick. When I first felt it Monday night, I thought there was enough time for a quick head cold to runs its course. I’m sleeping as much as my body will let me sleep, but by Friday night I knew this thing was getting worse before it got better. Nothing’s going to stop me from trying to run the Maine Marathon, but who knows how far I’ll make it or how slow it will be.
Sunday – 8 miles with 4-mile tempo at 7:45 pace & fast-finish mile in 7:00
I ran the middle portion of the marathon course today, ending on a grueling hill that will come at mile 16 on marathon day. In theory these tempos during long runs are supposed to be at marathon pace, tuning your body into maintaining that pace over longer distances. 7:45 has always felt a bit quick and I can’t imagine keeping that pace up for 26.2 miles. My working theory has been to train for a slightly faster time than my true goal so come race day, a) I will be more likely to meet my goal and b) hopefully it won’t feel entirely awful.
Tuesday – 21-mile bike commute
Took Monday completely off. I was supposed to run an easy 4, but I felt like I needed the rest. Plus I seem to be developing a sore throat…
Wednesday – 21-mile bike commute, 5 miles with 3-mile tempo at 7:45 pace
I’m not sure if it was the adrenaline from the 10.5 bike warm-up or the effects of the taper, but 7:45 felt like a snail’s pace this morning! After biking into work this morning, I headed out on a course that included the final 2 miles of the marathon. I could not run slowly enough. I kept dialing it back but didn’t slow to 7:45 pace until the final mile of the tempo. Taking the rest of the week off from bike commuting.
Friday – 3 miles easy with 10x 25sec pickups
Congestion is setting in and breathing wasn’t quite natural during this run. I think the final run before a marathon always feels a little off, just in case you though you might be ready to breeze through 26.2 miles.
Highlight:
It’s fall. The leaves are changing beautiful colors. No running-related highlights. I just want this to be over.
Eat Run & Be Merry 