2017 Eugene Marathon Training – Week 18

I ran the Boston Marathon on Monday and started my taper for the Eugene Marathon the moment I crossed the finish line.  After three days of easy running, I did an interval workout on Friday.  I feel fantastic!  Time to lock down a race plan for Eugene!

Training Schedule
Week 18: April 16th – April 22nd

Sunday: Recovery run. 4 miles
Monday: Boston Marathon
Tuesday: Off
Wednesday: Recovery run. 6 miles + strides
Thursday: Easy run. 6 miles
Friday: Tempo run.  10 miles.  6 miles @ half marathon pace.
Saturday: Easy run. 6 miles

Mileage Total: ~58 Miles.  I planned on following the taper guidelines in Pfitzinger’s Advanced Marathoning.   I’ll do a 3 week taper.  This week, I’ll reduce my mileage by 20-25% of my maximum, which was 74 miles/week.

Adaptations.  I didn’t change much.  I ran 5 miles instead of 4 before the Boston Marathon.  I ran a very easy 2 miles after the race on Tuesday.  only ran 4 miles on Saturday to get my mileage down.  Instead of doing a tempo run, I did an interval workout on Thursday instead.  I thought it might be good to do a little fast running this week since most of my mileage was slow.

Goal. Finish the Boston Marathon in 3:50.  Outcome: Success!  In fact, I ran a little faster than that.

Workout Details

The Boston Marathon.  26 miles easy [Race Report].

I’m going to try to run the Boston Marathon every year that I qualify.  Since my goal race is the Eugene Marathon in three weeks, I treated it as a long run.

It was a hot day – about 70 degrees at the start.  I kept the pace very easy.  Running with no pressure, in some ways I felt like it was my first Boston Marathon.  I took in the scenery and interacted with the crowds more than usual.  By the time I reached Wellesley, I was overwhelmed by the support.  I ran the hills in Newton well and picked up the pace after Brookline.  I’ve felt like a runner reborn since the race.  Bring on Eugene!

Result=3:42:59 (8:31 pace).

 

 

Interval Run.  10 miles.  6 miles @ half marathon pace 4 x 1 mile @ 5K-10K pace [Log Details].

After a few easy days, I thought I was ready for a workout.  I thought it might be helpful to do this interval workout on the rolling Custis Trail instead of as an out-and-back on the flat Mount Vernon Trail.

I ran easy through Arlington to reach the Custis Trail near I-66, rested a bit, and then started the repetitions.  The first went well.  It ended on the brutal uphill near Glebe Road but surprisingly, the incline didn’t hurt my pace much.  During the recovery, I ran into a running friend.  He offered to pace me for the workout but I was a little afraid of setting a goal pace since I ran a marathon four days ago.  The next two repetitions went well.  I cut the recovery after the 3rd repetition short so I would finish the hard part of the workout on the trail instead of neighborhood streets.  The last repetition was downhill and my legs were turning over effortlessly!  It’s been a long while since I felt this much range of motion in my legs.

I was pretty impressed that I could hold these paces a few days after a marathon.  I felt sure that I didn’t go out too hard on Monday.

Splits=7:14, 7:08, 6:55, 6:46.  Average=7:01.

Health

Injuries.  After the marathon on Monday, my feet and ankles hurt and I had two dime-sized sores on my back from my sports bra.  But the best news…  My piriformis didn’t hurt at all!  I didn’t see my chiropractor this week but before bed on Sunday, I gave myself an EMS (electronic muscle stimulation) treatment.

Weight.  I thought I’d lose some weight this week but surprisingly, that did not happen.

Allergies. After a lot of sneezing and congestion last week, I finally took a Zyrtec before bed last Saturday night.  It definitely helped while I was in Boston.  But, I’ve been congested again since returning to D.C.

Sleep.  Since the Boston Marathon, my sleep has been pretty terrible.  I didn’t have any trouble falling asleep, but I kept waking up in the middle of the night.

Weather

It was another warm year for the Boston Marathon – about 70 degrees at the start.  Back in Washington, D.C, it rained during my easy run on Thursday and I got drenched!  It also rained today but it was light.

Racing Schedule

Future races.  I’m starting to focus on the Eugene Marathon.  Yesterday, I got an email about the finish line festival.  I can go the breakfast route with pancakes, chocolate milk, and coffee or the lunch route with grilled cheese sandwiches and beer.  Yes, please!

Runner rankings.  The Potomac River Runner Store’s Regional Runner Rankings for the winter came out this week.  I showed up in 22nd position.

Next race: 2017 Eugene Marathon on May 7th. (My Complete Racing Schedule.)

How much do you cut back during the first week of your taper?