Watt's Running

Here are my results of my first Team Rogue Race Prep which included a 3 mile warm-up, then three 5 mile loops at MGP, and a 3 mile cool down for a total of 21 miles. This would be my longest run so far. So here is what happened.

Overall my results were mixed. Some good, some bad. Two good loops, one lousy one. Went out too fast on the first two loops which caused me to have a lousy last one. Was supposed to run 9:06 MGP (4:00 goal time). Reality was first loop: 8:38, 8:32, 8:31, 8:24, 8:22; second loop: 8:36, 8:37, 8:36, 8:34, 9:02. Much too fast. In the past I would pass a mileage cone, click my timer, look at it and adjust. However, with my new geekometer I just let it run and really didn’t focus on pace. What was I thinking? I dunno. Sure, a few times as I was running under a street light I would look at it and saw that I was faster than MGP, but for some reason I didn’t adjust and slow down. That’s all my fault. And this was a learning exercise wasn’t it. Because I had been running so slow on the earlier long runs I just wanted to see what I could do and I paid for it. So I was ‘fully cooked’ for my last loop: 10:25, 10:01, 10:29, 11:33, and 11:36. Another thing, the 3 mile cool-down was miserable, because I was already so exhausted and tight it was walk + run, but I needed to get the mileage in, however, they were junk miles. Sigh.

Overall I’m encouraged because I think if I do more quality workouts and manage my pace better, I should not burn out so fast. In other words, there is hope. Which is a good thing. Hope is good – right?

I haven’t written much about my training. I’ve been doing it and there are good days and not so good days especially in this summer heat. I find that Tuesdays typically are OK, and Thursdays are harder. I’ve not really gotten a feeling for the Saturday long runs. I’ve done them and survived. For all the runs I’m worried that I’m too slow (about 10:00 min/mile pace whereas I need to be 9:00 pace for CIM). But coach tells me that we’re to run easy, which is what I’m doing. So I think I’m following the ‘program’. Naturally only time will tell.

So here are some thoughts about today’s long run. In general it wasn’t pretty. The weather was warm (mid 70s degrees F), but not awful. I’ve been building up my mileage for the past 7 weeks and finally got to the peak of 60 miles this week. The culmination was an 18 mile long run called “Run from Hell North”. I’ve run this route before so I knew what I was getting into. It indeed is hell. However, it still took me by surprise, that is, it beat me down, way down, beyond what I expected, which is not good.

The run starts at Northcross Mall or what is left of it since it’s under construction with a Walmart being built there. The run is hill after hill after hill with two major ones. The first is near the beginning up Far West gradually, but the second is midway and is a killer straight up Ladera Norte. I ran the first, but then the next series of intermediate hills before the second one sapped my strength. Although we were told by Ruth that we should run all the hills I just couldn’t and walked more than I planned. Ones I had never walked before. What’s up with that? So when I got to Ladera Norte I just started walking. I remember past runs having got almost to the top before walking. Not this time. I walked almost immediately. Doing this was not good for my mental conditioning. From then on I would stop at every water stop as an oasis from running. I was no longer just walking the hills I was walking on the flats too. Finally near the end I just couldn’t run. Yet for the last half mile I shuffled along and I arrived back at the mall a beaten man. It took me 3 hours and 32 minutes to run 18.4 miles (11:30 pace). Awful, just awful. Making my goal of requalifying for Boston at CIM an impossibility.

And then when I arrived home my Garmin 110 GPS reset itself when I attached it to the USB and I lost all the data. Another insult to my weakened mental state. Yet maybe that was for the best, because I couldn’t see the miserable effort broken out mile by mile.

So why was this run so bad. I have no clue. I was relatively well rested. I was fueled with breakfast before, and CarboPro and Clif Shots during. The Clif Shots was Mocha with caffeine and I had it at mile 14 but I never felt the pick up. It might be the little extra food I ate yesterday night. It might also be the temperature since I was a dripping sweat-bag after it but that’s nothing new. It might be just the mileage build-up taking its toll since this is the longest we’ve run so far. I just don’t know. All I can do it keep up the training and try to get my head around the mental anguish that occurs when things like this happens, which causes me to question: why, oh why, am I doing this?

The long run yesterday was tough. I woke up 30 minutes late having thought I set my alarm clock, but hadn’t. I rushed and I got there on time though because it was nearby at NorthCross Mall – whew. I did remember to bring my iPod, but forgot to synch before I left so I didn’t have much to listen to – ugh. My right ankle was OK throughout which was good. I’ve run this route in the past with Celeste D, and I remember that Glenn K charged up the first few hills only to get burned out later. So I took it slow and easy. Although I forgot to start my watch I felt later this was a good thing. I really didn’t want to run against the clock or know how slow I was. Also I was to do 22 miles, the longest distance, where most were doing 18 or 20. It included the monster hill Ladera Norte. I met Diego just before it and we ran down Far West together chatting, but soon I was walking and he and Philip were way ahead of me. I never saw them again. As I slogged through it I tried to keep my spirits up. Last week’s Decker race was tough, but it was an overall positive experience knowing how comfortably I ran the first 10 miles. Yeah, I know, the last few miles were awful, but I put those behind me blaming them on the weather and the lack of water and fuel. However, this week all the miles were awful, and I just kept pushing to get them done. I’d get lost at various points, but just took each as a short break to orient myself. I feel I took a lot of breaks. My highpoint was coming down Greystone after most of the big hills and as my iPod played a buoyant up-tempo song which sent chills down my spine I passed some of my running groupmates happy to know that I get to do this – I get to run. Soon however I was back in the death-march. At the end a group of three women were running near me and one broke off from the rest and moved ahead. I tried to keep up, but she had more legs than I did. Yet as soon as she got 50 feet ahead she would pull over and stop and wait for her friends. I would pass her, but soon she would blow by me again. Somewhat frustrating, but I keep running, and I got back to the mall before her last burst. Afterwards I was so very glad it was over. Now when I think back on this run I wonder why it was helpful to me and my preparation for the marathon. It sure burned me up, stressed every muscle in me, and made me feel really down.

I buried my father this week. I traveled to Buffalo, New York with my entire family for the funeral. He had lived a very long and productive life. Nevertheless it was a tough thing to do. It was also very tough to do any running. I tried, but just didn’t have it in me. I walked a bit, I ran a bit, I thought a lot, and I remembered a lot. I returned yesterday, and ran Lady Bird Lake trail slowly this morning. Weather was good. The ankle was again tight for the first 3-4 miles – had to run and walk several times. Then it loosened up at Longhorn Dam and then I met Ed B and Kevin K at mile 5 at IH35. We ran and chatted to the end at mile marker 0, which helped make the time fly by. Thanks guys you helped me more than you know.

Well for some unknown reason I was totally messed up this morning. I woke at the right time, but for some strange reason I got stuck in my head that the run began at 7 AM and I had plenty of time. What I forgot about was that the run really started at 6:30 AM and I only realized it as I pulled into the parking lot at about 6:40 AM. Sheesh. Well just then as I was getting out of my car a large gaggle of runners passed the parking lot so I quickly start running with them (never having gone to the start to get the route map). However at Congress they turn left whereas I had planned to continue straight until Rio Grande and then head north. In addition I was having tight ankle problems so alone I continued on northward. However as time went on I finally realized that those runners were indeed my group and they were running the first 20 miles of the marathon whereas the night before I checked the maps and was running the last 20 miles of the marathon. Double Sheesh. At that time I realized that I was going to be all alone and with no water stops. It really ticks me off that this running group doesn’t publish their plans ahead of time with clear maps weeks before the actual runs. We pay big bucks to take this class and I’m very disappointed in their lack of planning WRT maps. As the miles clicked by I got to the campus and like a brainless drone I forgot to turn at Dean Keeton and dropped about a mile off my route. Triple Sheesh. Oh, and I also forgot to start my timer until I got to Rio Grande and started heading north so my final time was way off. However when I finished I was so brain-dead to have forgotten that and felt that I had done a good time. Quadruple Sheesh. Afterwards I mapped what I actually ran and it totaled 19.1 miles. Was it a good run? Well other than the tight ankle that finally loosened up at about mile 5-7 my answer is yes it was (except for Rogue’s and my sheeshes – is that a word?).

In class this week I did OK, but as I was warming up for the first 3 miles the muscle at the front of my right ankle was extra tight. Generally when this happens I can either run through it or if I stop for water it’s OK when I start up afterwards. Well this week that worked, but the next day the muscle on the back of my right ankle was sore and swollen. Naturally I still went for my morning 4-mile run thinking that it would just work itself out, but it bothered me the rest of the day. I gimped around at work all day in my clunky heavy shoes – ouch. That night I “rice”ed it: rest, ice, compression, and elevation. I also took two Aleve pills to help with the inflammation. The next day, Thursday, should have been a 12-miler, but I decide to rest and take that day off. I was feeling better on Friday so I planned a 12-mile out-and-back route down Metric and out Parmer. I took it slow and easy, and did fine. So on the Saturday 20-mile long run I again took it easy (this means slow to me). I timed myself on the Trail mile 9->10: 8:44 (too fast), mile 0->1: 9:16 (a little slow), and mile 1->2: 9:13 (ditto). I didn’t care how long this would take me. I just wanted to complete it. Unfortunately I didn’t read the instructions as I ran and instead of skirting Mt. Bonnell, I ran up it again (I did it two weeks ago w/ my coach). Sheesh!. Nevertheless I made it to the turn around at Balcones/Mt Barker albeit through this circuitous route both out and up, and back and down. At the stop I had my Chocolate Clif Shot and water. Heading back I stopped at the MoPac water stop and had a Mocha Clif Shot with caffeine. Continuing I again timed myself on the Trail mile 2->1: 8:52 (approx.), mile 1->0: 8:43, mile 10->9: 8:55. I was feeling pretty good and completed strong. Afterwards I had very little muscle fatigue this time, but I had done a much slower pace most of the time. I completed 20.8 miles [0.8 over Mt Bonnell!] in 3:25:51, or 9:54 per miles (note: this includes all the water stops and stopping to select my next podcast). Afterwards I did my stretches, and bought a yummy chocolate milk on the way home. Consider how the week had gone I felt a medium level of satisfaction about how the long run went today.

Weather was OK: humid, cloudy, and 60 degrees F. I had to complete 20 miles as the advanced distance today. I ran by myself with my iPod talking in my ear. I tried to run easy as best I could. Over the run I ate three chocolate-chip cookies and one Clif-Shot as fuel. Nevertheless by the end my legs became fatigued and weak. Afterwards my legs were so tight that they felt like they were cramping. I made sure to stretch back at Rogue. I finished in 3:04:37 or 9:14 minutes/mile. So I did OK, but I’m really worried that I won’t be able to maintain 9 minutes/mile for the whole distance. This muscle fatigue is something that I’ve had before and I have been unable to solve it in the past. Is it something that I’m doing during the run (for ex, bad fueling, or trying too hard], or is there something I should be doing in preparation for it [for ex, strength training aka weights, or massages]. All I can say is that during the first three years of running I don’t remember this problem, but for the last ones it’s been a constant companion and caused me to “retire” from this distance. What am I to do, what am I to do? I’m worried.