Reflections

Set a goal so big that you can't achieve it until you grow into the person who can ~Anonymous

Before I get ahead of myself; there are still two important workouts left before training transitions into the taper phase:

Saturday: 10 miles @ MP
Sunday: 20 miles

That said, come Sunday around 9am, you just might hear a scream of pure joy emanating from the roads of Capitol Hill; our marathon training cycle will have officially peaked. 

It's been a journey; completing 11 weeks of some of the most intensive athletic training of my life. Christine and I have sacrificed a lot this summer to chase our goal of qualifying for Boston. Waking up before 5am to get runs in. Going to bed at 9pm to make sure we get in a solid eight hours of sleep. Running through some of the worst heat and humidity DC has seen in years. We've missed birthday parties and celebratory occasions because they interfered with our training schedule. We've traveled less. Practically gave up alcohol. Haven't spend time with friends or family nearly as much as we would have liked. Even our dog has had enough.

But, this is a moment to be proud of. I don't mean to overstate or overemphasize the sacrifices of training for a marathon. Millions of people have done it before. Everyone makes sacrifices in life for their goals. I'm just especially gratified of this one; just two years ago I was 235 pounds and unable to run more than 2 miles at a time. Now I am logging close to 60 miles this week and have dropped my weight to 175. I'm officially a runner reborn. And in serious need of a new wardrobe.

No matter what happens in 3 weeks at Marquette, it's the voyage that matters. Someday, Christine and I will run in Boston together. It will happen. I've learned so much about myself from the past 3 months, and I'm sure Christine can say the same. The focus, drive, and determination required to get ourselves to the starting line for a 26.2 mile race with a legitimate chance of qualifying for one of the toughest marathons in the world is no small feat. I'm incredibly proud and honored to have done this with my wife. No matter what happens at our first marathon together, there will be another. And another. Any many more, god willing.

Just wanted to share this.


-J

Drop it Like it's Hot

The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today. ~H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

I am never training for another marathon through the heart of a DC Summer. Just wanted to put that out there. The past 2 weeks have been intense. Every run has been a struggle.

Back in High School/College; all the running during July and August in preparation for Fall XC was base building. Long runs, slow miles. Very different than doing intensive training for a marathon. Mentally, I wasn't prepared for this. Even though I'm getting out around sunrise; the humidity has caused the most misery. This past Monday, a 4 mile recovery run was honestly the most difficult "easy miles" run of my life. The dew point was 78. By any metric; that's awful.

I've managed to make it through every workout, except for a 45 minute tempo run earlier this week. After 33 minutes; I was on E and though I should have tried to push through the fatigue, I dropped off and jogged it back in. Still frustrated at myself for that one. This morning was 4 @ MP; which I pushed through. I'm a bit scared of the 9 @ MP Saturday; followed by 20 on Sunday.

Overall, I actually feel very strong. It's a weird feeling; once I get outside all that strength and energy seems to be sucked out of my core fairly quickly. Next weekend is the half marathon time trial that I'm just hoping for decent conditions. I think I could go sub 1:28; maybe 1:27:30. Not going to put pressure on myself though. I just want a solid and focused effort leading up to Marquette.

Biggest concern so far has been that all of my long runs have been slow miles. I haven't been able to put in any miles at MP at the end of any of the long runs. From everything I've read; the best indicator of being able to hit your marathon goal pace is the ability to do long run fast finishes.

Otherwise; finally seeing dividends after laying off alcohol for the past few months. Down to ~178 lbs. This is definitely the fittest I've been since college. Although, life has pretty much been run, work, eat, sleep, repeat. I miss fun Jay. Did treat myself to a brew at the Nationals game last weekend. Living wild!

-J

Week 8

Success is best measured by how far you've come with the talents you've been given. ~Unknown

One takeaway I've had so far is just how difficult marathon training is when traveling on weekends. Having just returned from a quick weekend trip up to Boston; this was the 4th of the last 6 weekends that Christine and I traveled out of town. Not only is it a logistical challenge; planning new running routes, adjusting your training routine, etc; the resulting lack of consistency week in and week out takes a big toll. Though I love traveling as much as possible during the Summer months, I'm very much looking forward to staying in DC until race weekend.

So we are now in the middle of Week 8 (!!); and starting to show signs of wear and tear. Christine has been dealing with an IT-band issue; which has caused her to ease back the intensity a bit. I ended up taking an extra day off last week, since I felt really fatigued after an 8 mile MP run Thursday followed by a 12 miler Friday. No red flags yet, thankfully; but this just reinforces the importance of core work that goes along with marathon training, which I can definitely do a better job of. Foam rolling is your friend.

Overall, the extra day of rest has helped. I feel fresher heading into the long miles this weekend. Sunday's scheduled long run is 19 miles, which conveniently will be during DC's hottest stretch of the year. It's looking like near 100 degree temperatures all weekend. The plan will be to head out pre-dawn in hopes of finishing before the sun angle gets too high. 

While we remain optimistic of qualifying at Marquette, we have come up with a backup plan if we do not BQ together. That backup plan is the REVEL Canyon City Marathon. Just outside of Los Angeles, California, REVEL is the fastest BQ marathon course in the US. The marathon net drop is 5,073 feet. Over five thousand feet! That's ridiculous.

Should either Christine or I not qualify for 2017 Boston, we will head out to Cali for the November 12th race. That said, this is the last moment I want to spend thinking about REVEL.

All focus continues to be on a BQ at Marquette.

-J

The Glass is Half Full

One day you won't be able to do this. Today is not that day. ~Unknown

Today marks 50 days out from the Marquette marathon. Come Sunday, we will be 50% through training. 276 miles will have been run; 303 to go.

On tap this morning was 8 miles at MP. Conditions were rough. While the heat wasn't bad at 6am, the humidity was up there; with dew points in the low 70s.

The workout was...tough. Ended up averaging 7:07; but that is a bit misleading as the first 5 were in the upper 6:50s and then mile 7 & 8 were more like 7:25 / 7:20. It was a complete mental game. Really wanted to quit after 6. I saw my pace increasing, thought I may be overheating some, and I was sweating buckets. Post run weigh-in had me down 7 pounds water weight, which is something I'd typically see through ~16 miles.

I saw my wife grinding out her MP's on the Mall and that provided extra motivation to get through it. Overall, I was still surprised with how difficult today was compared to my 7 miles at MP two weeks ago. Today's effort was a 9+; whereas two weeks ago it was more like a 6. We'll see. The only way to get faster is to train faster. Need to keep running that through as I'm out there.

Meanwhile; last Sunday's 17 miler went great. I switched from Water+Gu to Gatorade; and that seemed to make a huge difference. That and the fact that I haven't had any beer/alcohol since the 4th. While I kept the pace easy at MP + 75, this was still my longest run ever. My hamstrings started to get tight around mile 14, but I was able to stay on pace through the rest of the run.

Normally, the training plan calls for a half marathon time trial at the midway point through the program; but Christine and I are traveling to Boston this weekend. I sought input on when would be the latest we could race a half before the marathon; the universal consensus was 4 weeks. So we will be doing a flat trail half down in Fredricksburg on August 6th; which will be one week before the last 20 miler and the start of our taper.

The long run this week is eased back to 12 miles; following the high/high/low model. The next series of long runs are 19/20/HM. Going to keep the pace easy/moderate for this one; but am planning to throw in a few 60 second surges/pickups. Hoping for lower humidity!

-J

Lists

Later, I shall have pie ~Anonymous

Getting into the toughest stretch of training now. Logged 17 miles this past Sunday, 6 x 800 this morning, and have 8 miles at MP coming up Thursday. The next 5 weeks are looking pretty brutal.

Everything hurts. Starting to walk funny. People notice. Neighbors notice. The dog is now walking me. Poor Poe, they say; 'There goes old man Lufkin, walking all crazy. Let's cross the street.' I try to wave hello. They pretend to ignore me and look at their phone. But I see them. It's just an empty hand.

Alright, so it's not that bad. But, still. Training in this heat and humidity wears you down. It beats you up a little more. So, to combat the monotony of analyzing the past few days of training in this sweatfest, I've decided to make a list.

A list of all the things I'm looking forward to enjoying (without guilt) after Marquette.

1) Drinking beer at Bluejacket

2) Pie

3) Drinking beer at Nationals games

4) Bonchon

5) Drinking beer at Right Proper

6) SNICKERDOODLES

7) Drinking Old Pro's by the pool

8) Not weighing myself 4x a day

9) Going to bed after 9:30pm

10) Less rice

11) Less Google searching: What's the shortest recovery period needed before running another marathon?

More to come later this week...

-J

Highs & Lows

The real purpose of running isn't to win a race, it's to test the limits 

of the human heart ~ Bill Bowerman

It's been a roller coaster week of training. I've gone from crushing my toughest workout yet; feeling like there is nothing that can get in my way from achieving a BQ, to completely falling apart during my long run 72 hours later.

First, the good. Last Thursday's 7 miles at MP was one of the best runs I've had in the last two years. I felt strong, focused, and determined. My splits were:

7:02
6:56
6:51
6:54
6:51
6:52
6:31

I honestly felt like I could have kept going and run a ~1:28 half that morning. I was feeling incredibly confident with where my training was.

Then came the Sunday 16 miler.

In short, I completely fell apart after 10 miles. I'm not sure if it was heat exhaustion, dehydration, or some other root cause, but I have never experienced a run quite like that before.

Christine and I traveled to Michigan early on Saturday and the plan was to do a 16 mile out-and-back early Sunday morning. We did some Fourth of Julying Saturday evening - nothing too crazy - but ended up sleeping in a little later than we wanted to. We didn't get out to the trail until 10:30am.

The weather wasn't bad. It wasn't too hot or humid. Light winds. After having my normal breakfast (maple pecan & sea salt KIND bar), I did feel properly hydrated by the time we got out there. The plan was to take it easy throughout and run at a steady MP +70 to 80.


The first half felt OK. The trail was less shaded then I had hoped, but I wasn't too concerned. Shortly after the turn around 8 miles out, my pace initially slowed as I felt somewhat fatigued, but then had a nice burst of energy, and got my pace back down. After another mile or so, a second wave of fatigue came over me, but this time I just wasn't able to regroup. My pace slowed down considerably, and I felt helpless to go any faster. My pace slowed to 9:00, 10:00 then around mile 15 I was hovering at 12:00 minutes per mile.


Since I've never experienced heat exhaustion or dehydration before, I didn't really know what I was dealing with. At the time, I didn't think I was in any real danger - I wasn't seeing spots, or suffering from confusion. I just wanted to get the 16 miles over at whatever pace I could. I remember being overcome with a weird sense of emotion.

Near the end of the run, my father-in-law who was out biking on the trail pulled up to say hello. I'm not entirely sure what language my greeting was in. Later that night he said I looked pale and 'not well.' Once I got home, I dry-heaved quite a bit and then proceeded to curl up in a fetal position on the bed for the next few hours.. all while wearing a SUNDAY FUNDAY t-shirt. Good times.

I'm sure this has happened to a vast majority of long distance runners. But experiencing this kind of 'failure' during a long run, the longest run I've ever attempted, could not have been more dejecting. 
Talking over the run with Christine, I realized we only have four more true long runs left (17, 19, 20, 20). Four!

Looking back, I'm sure having those several beers the night before had a bigger effect than I thought. Also, I probably wasn't nearly as hydrated as I believed. Those factors in combination with a limited amount of shade near the height of the solar afternoon probably were my un-doing.

But, all you can do is look ahead.

On another note, Christine had a great 16 miler and has been never been more confident of her BQ prospects. The BAA announced the 2017 Boston Marathon registration dates this morning, so it all is getting a little more real. Lots more work ahead though.

Up this weekend is 8 on Saturday and 17 on Sunday. The humidity in DC this week has been brutal, even at 6 AM. The plan is to continuously hydrate all weekend and try to focus on having a quality long run. One change I am implementing is to switch to Gatorade instead of Gu. Hoping for the best!

-J

Week 5??? Week 5!

Seek a calling. Even if you don't know what that means. Seek it.

If you're following your calling, the fatigue will be easier to bear, the disappointment will be fuel, the highs will be like nothing you've ever felt. ~ Phil Knight

Can't believe we're already into Week 5! Days are flying by and we both are feeling stronger each week.

Generally, we have been eating well and really limiting our craft beer intake during the week. We have also made the decision to go just about alcohol-free beginning after July 4th through race day. Hoping this pays huge dividends, because it's definitely a sacrifice during these summer months.

This past weekend I took my wife to NYC for her birthday and had the opportunity to run in Central Park for the first time. I fell in love with the ~ 6 mile Park Drive loop. We had perfect weather, and were able to get in our 10 miles on Sunday and a shakeout 4 miler on Monday. I joked with Christine about coming up to NYC each weekend just to do our long runs in Central Park. The tourists on bikes are a bit of a wild card, but you'd be hard pressed to find a more scenic run.

Before heading up to NYC, I shifted our 6 miles at MP from Saturday to Friday evening. This was awkward because we had a moderate effort tempo run the day before, and I really didn't want to go back-to-back on moderate+ workouts. To ease the strain some, I advocated for us to do the marathon pace run during the evening to allow for 36 hours of rest, and a chance for the temperature/humidity to drop. 

This effort represented the longest run at MP so far in the program. Knowing how difficult the 4 miles @ MP was for me the prior week, I began to psych myself up the day before/day of, getting into a race preparation-like mindset. I tried to get in extra sleep; made sure I ate well, and focused on what that feeling would be like when I completed the workout.

It worked. I actually felt very strong throughout. Whereas the 4 miles at MP from the prior week was a 10/10 effort, this was more like 8+/10. My splits were:

7:06

7:14

7:06

7:09

7:11

6:56

Overall a few seconds above my 7:04 MP goal; but I intentionally held a little something back. In that last 6:56 split, I picked it up on the last quarter, ending in a full out effort the last 100 meters.

Christine got out there too, and put in a solid 5 at MP. I've encouraged her to post a more comprehensive update on her progress. She's been doing great. I've been really proud of her overall dedication to this training plan. I understand how difficult it is for someone who has completed several marathons to transition to a structured time goal specific program. I sometimes lose sight of the fact that I have many years around structured race plans and this is all new to her. There's no better feeling though than seeing her come home with a big smile on her face, excited to share that she crushed her run.

-J

Rest of Week 5:

Thursday: 7 miles @ MP
Friday PM: 40 minute tempo
Saturday: OFF
Sunday: 16 miles