Marathon (confession) Report
Marathon Report—It’s 90% Mental; the other half is physical.
Training Plan Stuff
I’m 52, 5’8”, 150 Lbs. I did a 20 Week Fitzgerald Marathon training plan beginning in January 2014. I feel like I could have used any plan, including EN. Without overanalyzing it, I just decided to use Fitzgerald. Coming off IMFL it was easy peasy—for the first 12 weeks. I only train 6 days per week, so I dropped the least challenging run, usually a Z1 recovery run. I swam maybe 5 times just to see if I still floated (barely), rode the bike a 4-6 times when I was given the option of cross training. Until latter April all runs were on the treadmill due to the Michigan winter. I had maybe 4-5 weeks outdoors before the race to get my road legs back. It was just enough time.
The majority of Fitzgerald’s training is at Z2, which I set at 7:09. My heart rate averaged 143 during these run or 83% of max. Looking back, this was a little too aggressive because outdoors my heart rate at the same pace averaged 151 (about 87% of max). Long runs were challenging. Very. Fitzgerald really ramps up the distance and intensity in the last 6 weeks of training, not something I really liked.
In April I ran a 10K that indicated a vdot of 50 and correlated with at 3:10 marathon POTENTIAL. I felt like this was ballpark. Moving my goal into execution my planned pace was goal pace +15 seconds for the first 5 miles, then goal pace -5 seconds for the next 15 miles. After mile 20 I hoped to go back to my 7:14 marathon pace and try to hold on. This translates to 7:24 for the first 5 miles, then to 7:09 for 15 miles, then 7:14 to the finish.
From the Ashes of Disaster Grow the Roses of Success
On a 22 mile training run in April I lost over 3% of my bodyweight and bonked at mile 20. I have always been pretty careful about drinking during my workouts, but that day taught me that being pretty careful was not good enough. To be sure I drank enough, I decided at this race I would carry Perform on a water belt and drink every 5 minutes. In training I found this routine pounds down about 20 ounces of liquid every 45 minutes; it’s just enough for a day in the 50’s to 60’s. I wasn’t excited to carry the extra weight, but I knew hydration was critical. I also knew the hazards of water stops including the temptation to slow down, the mental energy of looking for the right beverage, the problem with small portions, spilled drink, falling over other runners, etc. I just needed to remove that variable, so I carried my own Perform. I drove out on the course the night before and put 4 full 10 oz. bottles at mile 6.5 and another 2 bottles at the turn around.
As far as injuries go, I was fighting a foot issue that occurred for no apparent reason other than general foot stress. I’ve had some issues with Morton’s neuroma and sore tendons, but the swelling was the latest. I had an MRI and blood work that revealed nothing. I could hardly fit my foot into a dress shoe after my runs, and my foot and toes were very swollen but not discolored or bruised. My runs were often painful, but I would adjust my gait and get through. Stupid, maybe. I also wanted to have a decent race for seeding at Boston next year. I have two brothers that I run with, so there was some good-natured competition going on.
Day Before
We headed up to the race in Traverse City on Friday, May 23, looking like the Beverly Hillbillies with 3 bikes on the back of a Toyota Echo. The SUV got Dave Ramseyed last fall, so I’m just lucky to be doing a race at all right now. I had a Subway egg, ham and cheese for breakfast (with extra spinach) and a double meat turkey 6” for lunch. Dinner was some kind of Asian chicken with rice and carrots; I ate until I was full but not stuffed. I also ate a Powerbar for a morning snack and a Clif Bar in the PM. I drank a little Perform whenever I was thirsty. Midafternoon I also ate some pretzels, an apple and 3 prunes. I ate just enough so that I wasn’t hungry. I didn’t try to pound down carbs or any large volumes. My body likes low carb meals and plenty of veg. Lately I’ve been eating a lot of spiralized zucchini. Sautéed it tastes better than pasta. But back to the subject, I would much rather run a race too empty than too full. I can get sugar to my liver pretty quickly with sports drinks, so I don’t feel like I really need a full gut. I tend to bloat, so give me less, not more.
In the evening, after I dropped off my little Perform bottles on the course, we went to packet pick up. By the time we rode home on our bikes, it was around 8 o’clock. I laid out my gear in the corner of the hotel room near the exit door: shorts, tank, arm coolers, hat, gloves, sun glasses, shoes, sox, water belt, 3 gels and my pre-race clothes. Then I said good night and turned in. The weather was predicted to be warm and sunny; I expected temps in the 60s as the race got along, maybe higher.
Race Day
The alarm went off at 3:30 a.m. I got up and mixed my 3 cups of applesauce and whey protein then spoon fed myself while I browsed the weather and EN race reports on my phone. You people are amazing. Simply amazing. After I ate I went back to bed. Wake up call came at 5:00 a.m. Got up, took care of business, showered, dressed and then tried to help the family get up. At about 6:40 a.m. we were on our bikes riding over to the starting line. At the starting line we locked up the bikes and got ourselves ready to run. I finished the sleeve of Cliff Bloks I started earlier that morning and continued washing things down with Perform. I tried to manage my drinking so that I wouldn’t have to pee on the course which meant going kind of easy on it. With 10 minutes to start, I took one last pit stop in the woods and made my way over to the starting corral to find my peeps. My watch was on. I waited.
At 7:15a.m. we were off—the overly optimistic self -sorters who start too near the front, the frustrated superstar who darts and weaves trying to keep on pace almost taking out a few runners in the process, and guys like me who don’t worry too much about the first mile pace. I know it’s going to sort out soon and speed up, so just accept the pace of the crowd and enjoy. There will be plenty of pain and darkness later. Why rush?
First 5 miles
According to the course timing system, my first 5 miles was at a 7:23 pace. My Garmin says my slowest mile for the first 5 was a 7:23. My fastest was a 7:18. Interesting. I was running all the tangents. How could my speed be slower than my GPS indicated? Hmmmm. Heart rate averaged 146 to 153.
Miles 5-10
I was targeting a 7:09 pace, but I was just a little off. My heart rate averaged 149-153. I was drinking every 5 minutes and I took a Powerbar Gel 1x Strawberry at 45 minutes. At mile 6.5 I picked up 2 new bottles for my belt from the cache I left the night before. At water stops I threw water over my head to wash the salt out of my eyes. Crowds were great. Sun was out, but heat didn’t feel uncomfortable.
Miles 11-15
I averaged 7:12. Heart rate averaged 150-152 across all these miles. I ate another gel at about 1:30. There is a big uphill to the turn-around where I slowed. I picked up two more bottles at the 13.1 turn around, and I was headed back home with 1:35:19 on the clock, just about spot on for time. Right away I notice there’s a little head wind now. I thought about my box. Okay, the wind will help me stay cool. I tried to draft, but couldn’t really find a regular draft buddy. I’m definitely feeling it, and I tell myself that this is an endurance sport, so see how long I can endure it. I keep trying to drink every 5 minutes, but I know I miss one or two.
Miles 16 to 20
I start running 7:22-7:36 miles and my heart rate slipped to a 149 average. I picked up my last bottle of Perform at mile 19.5. I decide to only pick up one bottle even though I have two in the cache. I want to travel light for the last 10K. I’m starting to see runners dropping off and walking. I’m still running with a solid pack and there’s some leap frogging going on. I’m feeling just a little nausea and side stitch from time to time so I have to pull back just a little. The race stats show that I’m 10th in my age group of 127 peeps at this point and that I’ve picked up 44 places overall from a field of 2014 peeps since the first 5K timing mat.
Miles 21 to end
Best mile was 7:26; worst was 8:07. I did the numbers with 10K left and found that I would need to run a 42 minute 10K to go sub 3:10. I don’t know of any motivation, other than the fear of mayhem and death, that could have made me run 6 miles sub 7:00 at that point, so I dismissed the goal. Heart rate drifted down to a 145 average. We were in pain management at this point, but it’s still mental. I talk to myself about the pain. I tell myself that it is my pain—I earned it. I don’t get angry or frustrated. I think about my gait and try to stay efficient. I see that I’m headed for a PR if I stay below an 8 minute pace. It’s something to work for.
At mile 25 a couple of young women flew past me around a 6 minute pace. No one tried to hitch a ride. I pushed harder the last mile into the 7:00 pace range. The other runners around me are picking up the pace for the finish. I ran onto the track for the final 150 meters and as I’m running I see out of the corner of my eye that I’m about to get chicked!?! Bang! I go into panic mode and I’m busting out a full sprint for the last 100 meters and through the chute. I’m certain the last 100 was close to a world record. Although I finished with my man card intact, this little sprint gave me some painful muscle spasms. I stopped at the end of the chute and leaned on the fence waiting to die. The medical staff started circling me. I wish I could get attention like this at the doctor’s office. They asked how I was doing, if I needed help. I gasped something about muscles…spasms…I’m…okay. Somebody brought me a water. The volunteer gave me a sympathetic look as I picked up my medal. My son was waiting outside to take my picture. I felt like a celebrity. He had a good day taking 4th in his age group in the 10K. I met my wife and friends. We watched at the finish for a while just taking in the beauty of the day and the joy of being finished. Later we celebrated our son’s 15th birthday over lunch.
I finished in 3:15:05, 12th place for my age group of 127 who started the race. Not a podium finish, but it shaved a good minute off my PR, so it’s not all that bad. For imperfect preparation I would call it a success. I had hoped to go 3:10 or better but a little nausea, a little side stitch and just not being able to hold on mentally and that goal slipped away. I don’t know what to do differently. I feel like my body weight was good although I would still like to drop some weight. My nutrition and hydration was as good as it has ever been. I paced the race as well as I knew how. My bum foot really didn’t seem like an issue in the race. Maybe I just expected too much. If anyone has any suggestions to throw my way, I would love to hear it. I still have this lifetime goal of going sub 3. I’ll keep dropping weight and trying to heal. Maybe I’ll take another shot at it next year.
Comments
Two thoughts … if you want to see how fast you can go, you'll probably have to get up towards 75 miles/week of running in the 3-4 months before the race. No way around it, anything less will not max your potential.
Now as to sprinting at the end to "save your man card". That's how guys in their 40s and 50s die in marathons. Seriously. Don't do it again. the majority of deaths in marathons occur in "older" men in the last mile or less of the race. The faster you are, and the more experience you have, the higher the risk. I won't go further into all this here; if you're interested, read this on my blog
http://bikrutz.org/triblog/?p=1140FWIW, I think Al's right...to absolutely maximize the marathon potential down to the last 5 minutes or less, there's no getting around that a really focused plan with almost entirely running and relatively high miles. Without any real evidence, the "lots of goal marathon pace" does seem appealing. Fitzgerald is not the only one who does that. I agree, though, that a plan that socks it to you with both increased speed and mileage at the same time seems less than ideal.
Congrats again on the PR. Old(er) guys rock. :-)