Week in review

The photo to the left my final stretch of the 2006 Rochester Marathon.

Here is a quick recap of my running week (just 2 weeks from today is the Buffalo marathon!):

Monday: 4.2 in 38:04 (9:04 pace)
Tuesday: 4.8 in 40:14 (8:23 pace)
Thursday: 4.2 in 37:27 (8:55 pace)
Saturday: 12 in 1:52:48 (9:24 pace)

Total miles: 25.2

I felt great Saturday morning on my 12 mile excursion. I decided to cut my long run before I went out on Saturday since I do not want to add too many miles in these "taper" weeks. I figured 12 miles is much easier for me to recover compared to my typical 20 miler. I headed out the door at 6:20am Saturday and the temperature was 46 degrees, as I expected. Everything felt great on this run. I definately felt like I could go many more miles as I finished. The pace I ran felt comfortable and I added in some hills along the way. Perfect morning to run. Everything was quiet as I ran through farmland and back country roads. I can't wait for the race. I am not sure what kind of time I will run but I want to get out there and do my best.

Happy Mother's Day to everyone!

72 degrees: 4.8 miles in 40:14

Went out for another lunch run today and felt great even with the sun and warmer weather that I need to get used to running in again. It is amazing how the weather can go from the 40's to the 70's in the span of just a few weeks. I plan to get a couple more weekday runs in before another long run this Saturday.

Great weather

Today I was able to get out for a lunch time run. I left around noon and the weather was perfect: sunny and 68 degrees. After the first mile or so I really started feeling the sun. I don't usually run very well in the heat so hopefully these afternoon runs will help me out. I am sure things will get tough when it hits the high 70's and 80's but my lunch runs are uaually between 4 and 5 miles so it should be ok for me.

Today was my first run since last Tuesday. I ran 4.2 miles today in 38:04. My average weekly mileage for this marathon training is very, very low. The marathon is around the corner so my last long run will be this Saturday morning. Usually I like to run my last long run three weeks prior but I could not schedule it this time.

I am running in my last pair of Asics GT-2100 shoes. This is my sixth pair since the model came out and I can no longer find my size. I'll be due for a new pair in a couple months. I'll be purchasing a couple pairs of the 2110 model. I really enjoy the Asics shoes and have had very good experiences training with them.

Four days after the marathon I will be running the Chase Corporate Challenge in Rochester, NY followed by the Utica Boilermaker 15K in July. More talk to follow on these races.

The 3100 mile road race

Check out this 3100 mile race event that is run on a city block. The longest road race in the world (and interesting loop course). Not your typical road race, but an interesting story.

No miles today, hopefully get out early tomorrow morning.

4 miles in 33:41 (8:25 pace)

Today was a great running day. The forecast called for 80% chance of rain and I was able to get out and run on my lunch. I felt good today - I tried to maintain a faster pace and I felt decent. The first mile clocked in at 9:33 on my Forerunner 201. I picked it up and finished strong. I am not sure how these workouts will really help my marathon race. My long run pace has slowed quite a bit since the fall. I am not sure what to expect when I run Buffalo at the end of the month. I am looking forward to the race. I just love the whole marathon experience.

20 miles in 3:44:27

Plan put into action today: alarm woke me at 5:15 and I was running on a trail by 6am! I felt very sluggish this morning. I was running on less than 5 hours sleep. I brought a few Clif Shot Blocks and they have a little caffeine - not that I felt that much better. I am glad I got the run in, no time for any excuses - just go out there and run! I have 4 weeks until the marathon.

I am back!

I will try to post more often but things have been very busy lately. I have had trouble getting in sufficient mileage and the marathon is just weeks away! I am running 20 miles tomorrow morning at 5:30am. Weather looks decent for the morning: 43 degrees at 5:30am. Looking forward to another long run. My mileage has been low but I am still running the race! This will be my first spring marathon so I can't miss it. I hope to get in about 4 miles later today.

More posts to follow this week. I will try to get at least a short daily update on this site. Good luck with your running and racing!

More to follow soon......Matt