Stress....

So, it has been 15 days since my first half marathon and I am now in an "injured timeout" phase. When I got home from the half, my left foot hurt really bad and I couldn't stand to walk on it. It took 2 days before I could walk on it so I went to my PCP for some x-rays and they showed nothing so I was told to "rest". Well I did that and felt fine that weekend so I tried to run 2-3 miles at a gentile pace while running along side my son as he rode his bike. That was all it took for me to figure out that my foot was still not right. So I made an appointment to see a Podiatrist and met with him this past Friday. Within 30 seconds of looking at my x-rays and then another set to be positive I was diagnosed as having a stress fracture in my left foot. No running or impact training for the next 3-4 weeks but I am not really upset because if it had been a soft tissue or tendon problem it could have dragged on for 8-12 weeks.

So, no running for me until November and I will be spending some time in pool. The good news is I will be well rested for the start of my Marathon training on December 15th....

Tim

Peak Performance Maine Half Marathon

On a beautiful fall Sunday morning in October I lined up with 1611 other runners to run the Peak Performance Maine Half Marathon along with about 900 runners for the full marathon. This was my first half marathon and training was a little scattered. I didn’t follow the training plan I original chose because of the calf injury but I was able to get my long runs in and I felt comfortable that I could finish the run but I wasn’t positive I could get the sub-two hour time I was looking for.

I was able to meet a guy named Doug McCrae online via the Extra Mile Podcast and we had similar goals so we hooked up and ran the race together. It works out that it was good that Doug was planning on running with me because when he had car issues I was able to drive him to the race. So after picking up Doug and his friend John (he was running the full marathon) we headed off to the gym at the University near the start line to hang out in a warm room. My only complaint for the pre-race was the limited number of restrooms but other then that everything was fine.

The weather was great, it was about 45 degrees so I started with shorts and a long sleeve shirt over my race short with the plans of tossing that later on. The race started on time at 7:45 and the 2500 plus runners made their way down Baxter Boulevard and overall the crowd moved well considering there was no corrals for the runners. Doug and I made our way and easily settled into a 9:15 pace, in we were to get under 2 hours we knew we needed to average under 9:09. The race went well and the course was pretty flat through the first 5 miles then there was so rolling hills. We stayed at about a 9’15 pace so we were on target.

At mile 9 I started to loose steam and get a side cramp. I am not sure if it was because I didn’t fuel up correctly the night before (loaded pizza) or a lack of electrolytes but regardless I started to fade. So I let Doug go ahead and I struggled through the last few miles. I finished in 2:04:18 and I gave it all I had, Doug finished in 1:58:20 (he followed my strategy and he had the fuel to pull it off). It wasn’t a bad race, I had fun I just learned a lot:

1.) I need to focus more on running my long runs at race pace, how can you maintain a pace that you are not use to running.
2.) I need to stick to a training plan and log the miles and maintain quality runs.
3.) I need to loose more weight, running Boston with 25 pounds less on me is a big benefits.

Cheers,

Tim

Milestones and enter the taper phase…

Well on Sunday, the 21st of September, my 17th wedding anniversary and 1 day after my one year anniversary being diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes, I awoke at 4:45 AM, laced up the sneakers and headed out for my last long run before the Portland Maine Peak Performance Half Marathon.

My goal was to do 13.1 with 2 miles at a slow pace then pick up to my predicted marathon pace for 9 miles and then end with 2 miles at the slow pace. The run was great, and I was able to maintain a solid pace in the middle miles and finished the run in 2 hours and 6 minutes. This was a great way to end my training. I was able to get the 13.1 miles and the psychological fear of “can I run that distance” off the table and most importantly get the confidence that I can move from the slow “injured” pace back into the fast pace that I wanted prior to the injury.

So now I am done with my training for the half and I will use the next two weeks to do cross training and yoga to maintain my conditioning and show up in Portland on the 5th with a well rested calf.

Update on training…..

With less then 4 weeks to go until my first Half Marathon the training is going very well. I visited my kid sister in Kennebunk, Maine and ran 10 miles on Sunday morning on some of the flattest roads I have ever run. It was a nice run, beautiful farm lands, cool fall weather and clear skies. I am going to get three small runs in during this week and then do 12-13 miles on Sunday and then I think I am going to stop running for the two weeks.

I don’t want to risk injury so the thought is to rest the impact of the roads and swap the 3-5 mile runs out with 30-50 minutes of rowing or cross training and then work on yoga and stretching until the final week. I will replace the last two long slow runs with 1-2 hour sessions on the ARC Trainer to get the conditioning without the pounding of the road. Then the week of the race do two short 3-5 miles runs and rest the Friday and Saturday before the race. This should keep me rested and ready to run strong in Portland.

Cheers,
Tim

Run for 2 hours, who would thought it was possible

In my training for the Portland Maine Half Marathon it was critical that I get 2 hours of running in to get myself use to it. This was a big milestone for me and I am really glad to have this under my belt.

I woke up at 4:30 AM on Sunday the 31st with the plan of hitting the road for 6:00 AM. The weather was perfect and I headed out to meet with Sherry and Dimitra for part of the run. We did the Mendon Road to Quaker to School then 122 to Church Street route. This is normally an 8 mile run and I added 3 miles to it by going down my road.

Well with this run and no injury to my calf from this an even better run. I feel very comfortable at this point that I can complete the half marathon, now I just need to stay healthy.

Tim

Flat roads make a nice vacation

Hello,

I went with the family on vacation to the coast of Maine in OOB. We had a condo on the water with a pool and beach access. The weather was pristine and I was happy to get clearance from my Physical Therapist to run my scheduled training for the Hal Higdon Novice Half Marathon schedule. With the injury I decided to stick with the basic training approach with the hopes of preventing further injuries.

I started the week with a 5.5 mile run on Sunday the 17th, then a 5 mile run on Tuesday, 4 mile on Wednesday and finally a 7 mile run on Friday. I kept a steady pace for all of these runs between 9:45 to 10:00 minute pace but most importantly I didn't aggravate the calf injury any further.

So I am going to keep plugging at the training program and build my LSR to 12 in the next couple of weeks. I am not sure if the sub two hour half is within reach but I do know I will FINISH it and that is the primary goal since Boston is the real target.

Cheers....

Famouth 2008