2019 New York City Marathon – Week 12

A planned recovery week turned into a complete taper after I felt light-headed during Sunday’s back-to-back long run.  I took the next three days easy – eating, hydrating, and sleeping well – because my body needed rest more than workouts.

Training Schedule
October 20th – October 26th

Sunday: Medium Run. 14 miles
Monday: Off
Tuesday: General Aerobic + Speed. 8 miles w/10 x 100m strides
Wednesday: Recovery Run. 4 miles
Thursday: Interval Run. 8 miles w/3 x 1600m @ 5K race pace; jog 50 to 90% interval time between
Friday: Recovery Run. 5 miles
Saturday: Recovery Run + Speed. 6 miles w/10 x 100m strides

Total: 44-48 miles.

Notes.  I couldn’t finish a medium run on Sunday and I was still too afraid to run 8 miles on Tuesday.  But, by Wednesday, I felt mentally ready to resume the schedule.

Workouts

Easy Run. 3 miles [Log Details].

I wanted to give myself more rest after yesterday’s long run and staying out late the night before so I didn’t leave until close to 11am.  It was raining by the time I left my house..

9:35am: Rain across most of the area at this time. Heaviest across the southern half of the area. Spottier in our far north and northwestern burbs. pic.twitter.com/kalMU9oHOf

— Capital Weather Gang (@capitalweather) October 20, 2019

From home, I ran down to George Mason Drive and then headed north towards the Custis Trail.  Nearing the final uphill before Wilson Boulevard, I stopped and walked after feeling slightly lightheaded.  This was supposed to be my second long run of the weekend – 14 miles – but I knew I couldn’t do it.  My jaw wasn’t locking up like it did a couple of weeks ago but I felt just as exhausted.  I turned right to walk towards Ballston and took an Uber home.

That night, once I felt better, I reviewed my training log and searched for similarities between the two events. In both cases, I’d stayed out late the night before (in bed after 11pm) drinking wine. On a positive note, in both cases I was able to finish my first long run. It was the second that caused the problems, which suggested to me that this was a recovery problem.

Overall pace=11:12.

Easy Run.  4 miles [Log Details].

I ran during my lunch break.  The workout was supposed to be a general aerobic run with 10 x 100m strides.  I thought I would run to National Airport and back, which is approximately 4 miles away.  I started out running by feel with no particular pace in mind and noticed my legs were incredibly sore!

But, 1.94 miles into the run, I stopped at the foot bridge near Hains Point.  I was actually too afraid to run the 0.06 miles to make it an even 2 miles out.  I gathered myself mentally, ran the final steps and then ran back to work.

At the end of the run, I determined I “hit the wall” on Sunday and my body was out of glycogen.  (While I had a good breakfast that morning, I only had about 400 calories during the 25 mile run the day before.)

That evening, I watched the Washington Nationals and tried to get my head in a good place.  Was this just mental or is there something wrong with me?

Overall pace=10:27.

Interval Run. 8 miles w/3 x 1600m @ 5K race pace; jog 50 to 90% interval time between [Log Details].

I fell asleep on the couch watching the Washington Nationals win Game Two of the World Series, having hitched a ride on the bandwagon.

The Washington Nationals have been the best team in @MLB since May 24.#WorldSeries // #STAYINTHEFIGHT pic.twitter.com/AB5WO6krsQ

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) October 24, 2019

From home, I ran down to the W&OD Trail for my warm-up and then started the workout on the Four Mile Trail just beyond I-395.  I knew my first repetition is usually slower than the rest so I didn’t worry when I struggled to get under 7:30 pace.  I turned around on the Mount Vernon Trail after 5 minutes into the second repetition.  Sure enough, it was a little quicker.  But, the third repetition was the slowest.

I was relieved the workout went well.  In fact, the paces were similar to my last attempt back in February.

1600m splits=7:28, 7:22, 7:29.  Average=7:27.

Nutrition

Carbo-loading.  Carb-Pro Powder.  On a few days this week, I added two scoops of this mix (200 calories and 50 grams of carbohydrate) into Gatorade and sipped it throughout the day or during workouts in an attempt at replenishing my glycogen stores.

(My Guide to Running Nutrition)

Gear

Websites and Blogs. Garmin Forerunner 245 Music GPS Watch In-Depth Review, DC Rainmaker.  I thought it might be time to upgrade my Garmin 645 Music because I don’t have confidence in the battery life for my ultramarathon in December.  But, the new version doesn’t have any new features that I want so I’m going to hold off.  There is the Garmin Forerunner 945 though…

(My Guide to Running Gear)

Media & Motivation

News. “Shalane Flanagan Retires from Professional Running,” Runner’s World.  October has been full of shocking running news!  One of the handful of runners know by just one name, Shalane inspired so many runners.  For me, it was because there didn’t seem to be any quit in her.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

With happy tears I announce today that I am retiring from professional running. From 2004 to 2019 I’ve given everything that’s within me to this sport and wow it’s been an incredible ride! I’ve broken bones, torn tendons, and lost too many toenails to count. I’ve experienced otherworldly highs and abysmal lows. I’ve loved (and learned from) it all. Over the last 15 years I found out what I was capable of, and it was more than I ever dreamed possible. Now that all is said and done, I am most proud of the consistently high level of running I produced year after year. No matter what I accomplished the year before, it never got any easier. Each season, each race was hard, so hard. But this I know to be true: hard things are wonderful, beautiful, and give meaning to life. I’ve loved having an intense sense of purpose. For 15 years I’ve woken up every day knowing I was exactly where I needed to be. The feeling of pressing the threshold of my mental and physical limits has been bliss. I’ve gone to bed with a giant tired smile on my face and woken up with the same smile. My obsession to put one foot in front of the other, as quickly as I can, has given me so much joy. However, I have felt my North Star shifting, my passion and purpose is no longer about MY running; it’s more and more about those around me. All I’ve ever known, in my approach to anything, is going ALL IN. So I’m carrying this to coaching. I want to be consumed with serving others the way I have been consumed with being the best athlete I can be. I am privileged to announce I am now a professional coach of the Nike Bowerman Track Club. This amazing opportunity in front of me, to give back to the sport, that gave me so much, is not lost on me. I’ve pinched myself numerous times to make sure this is real. I am well aware that retirement for professional athletes can be an extremely hard transition. I am lucky, as I know already, that coaching will bring me as much joy and heartache that my own running career gave me. I believe we are meant to inspire one another, we are meant to learn from one another. Sharing everything I’ve learned about and from running is what I’m meant to do now.(1/2)

A post shared by Shalane Flanagan (@shalaneflanagan) on Oct 21, 2019 at 6:28am PDT

Racing Schedule

Future races.  “Marathon Myths Debunked by NYRR Staffers,” New York Road Runners.  Good observations from the NYRR.  However, I think the mile going into the Bronx is the worst.  The First Avenue crowds have thinned, it’s Mile 20, and the last thing I want is the Willis Avenue Bridge.

Next race: 2019 New York City Marathon on Sunday, November 3rd.

(My Racing Schedule)