Last Long Run Before Marathon
Again we were blessed with an awesome morning for running, 51F, 11C, clear and calm. I got up with the sun, and headed on one of my favorite routes, a ~13 mile loop with three major uphills during the second, 7th, and last miles. I really feel that I should be able to run this loop in under 2 hours, but the best I’ve ever done was ~2:07.
I began running comfortably, and at my early checkpoints, I was ahead of any previous time that I had run this loop. It was early enough that there were few cars out, just me and the pavement. I’ve been eating shot blocks at the 45, and 1:35 minutes, and this morning I was ~2/10ths of a mile farther along this run at 45 minutes. I continued with a solid pace, pushing up the hill at the half-way point, keeping my momentum with the transfer from the hill to the flats. Even though I was running better, I knew at 1 hour and 20 minutes that I wasn’t going to get home in under 2 hours. When I had the mental letdown, I ran well, but not with the same sense of urgency. I lost a some of my focus. I still managed to set a PR for that loop, but I could have been ~1 minute faster if I had maintained my focus.
May 18, 2008 at 4:29 pm
VTDad! That sounds like an awesome day for a run!! And an awesome run!!
May 20, 2008 at 1:43 pm
It sounds like you have your clif blocks/shots and water (I think?) down, which is excellent! As for the mental letdown, I wish for you that it doesn’t happen during race day - just know that you are doing what only a small percentage of the whole human population will ever do, which is a great accomplishment all on its own!! You’re awesome, my friend, and don’t forget that!! Now run like the wind and HAVE FUN!!