At times I feel a bit like Custard on the eve of his last stand at Little Bighorn. Well, maybe not exactly because Custard didn’t know what was going to hit him.  Unlike Custard,  I have the national weather service and see the weather conditions for my last stand at Little Big Boston at not going to have the same heat that Custard felt.

It is difficult training for a marathon so I have no choice to go ahead and run it. I did my LAST speed workout this morning, a 6 mile tempo run with 4 miles at speed with splits at 7:26, 7:24, 7:44 (hill) and 7:26. Those are right on target per my Runner’s World Smart Coach training plan of 4 miles at 7:26 pace. I was amazed how much easier this speed workout was last week where I had to average 15 seconds per mile faster. Those 15 seconds per mile are real tough to get when you are up against your top capacity. Or it might be the tapering down with little running this week (although I have still been biking).

Running wise, I feel I am ready for the marathon. When I got up this morning it was 42 degrees. I joked with Ann that maybe I should do the tempo run right then and have her turn the garden hose on me, and plug in the big fan, so I could get a taste of what I will get to experience on Monday. But I decided to wait a bit for it to warm up and do the run under sunny skies. It is beautiful in California right now — so why I am traveling back East?

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I have been closely watching the weather forecast for Boston. The entire East Coast has a cold spell and with the marathon fast approaching it is not encouraging. As of today it showed worsening conditions from prior forecasts. Then I get this email from the Boston Athletic Association (who puts on the Boston Marathon).

Wednesday, April 11 – As the Boston Athletic Association continues to make preparations for Monday’s Boston Marathon, we are monitoring the upcoming weather conditions forecast for this area. Based on the National Weather Service’s most recent report and in cooperation with the Executive Office of Public Safety (Commonwealth of Massachusetts) and the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, together with the eight cities and towns along the 26.2-mile marathon route, we are planning for likely heavy rain and windy conditions on race day. However, all race day plans remain the same. The Boston Athletic Association advises participants in Monday’s race to plan accordingly for their run, bringing with them gear and apparel to suit the conditions. The B.A.A. will continue to update its web site as necessary.

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Another one of those triple days, running in the morning, road biking in the afternoon and mountain biking in the evening. The run was the big effort for me today because it was a speed workout and with the marathon peaking around the corner I am trying to follow the Runner’s World Smart Coach training program rather closely.

This program has you input several things, including a recent race time and the number of miles you are running. For this week it called for a tempo run, total of 8 miles with 5 hard miles at a 7:15 pace.

I was not quite sure I could keep that pace for 5 miles, but thought I should give it a shot. After a easy one mile warmup I kicked it in and was 7:06 for the first mile, then slowed down a bit, even more when I hit the hill. But the last mile was sub 6:58. This chart shows my splits, heart rate and altitude for the 8 miles. My pace for the 5 hard miles comes out to 7:13, so I was right on target. My heart rate went as high as 173, while climbing.

No, the hill is not as steep as it looks on this chart, but there is a definite grade up, which accounts for the faster time on the last mile because that was on the downside part. Click the chart to enlarge.

I heard from my son who just returned from a business trip to Boston that it was cold there. The thought had not even crossed my mind to check the weather. All the marathons I have run have been in nice weather and it has been nice here in California. So I got on the internet and see that it is going to snow in Boston and even the 10 day forecast show a high in only the mid 40′s. Guess it is going to be on the cold side so I need to take the right clothes, and prepare for cold and rain, just in case.

Categories: Boston Marathon, Training
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The official “taper” portion of my marathon training began yesterday.  This is the 3 week period following the last real long run where you are suppose to start to taper, so you are fully recovered for the marathon.  Maybe taper is the right word because you don’t make a major change.  You still do weekly long runs, just not 20 miles, and you still do speed workouts.  In fact I feel the speed works during this phase are the most important because  for me speed is the quickest to build and the quickest to lose while base mileage takes the longest to build and the training is reatained the longest.  Hence I do the last 20 miler 3 weeks before the marathon and some use a 4 week period.  But I keep doing weekly speed workouts right up to a few days before the marathon.

I usually alternate weeks between interval training and a fast tempo run.  I did intervals on m y birthday last week (mile repeats) so today I headed out for a tempo run.  Actually I first biked with Ann for 32 miles first, kind of a warmup. Then I headed out on the road in my running shoes. The first mile was kind of a warmup but still faster than my typical first mile. Then I moved the speed up to my half marathon race pace and held it there for the next 9 miles. I finished the 10 miles with an average pace of 7:39.  I checked my log to discover this is the fastest pace for my 10 mile course since 2002 and then I was only only 1 second per mile faster.  So I was happy with today’s run.

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I just finished my last long run for this marathon training. Covering that long distance and using some paths where I have measured the distances becomes a object in creativity and I have to wind back and forth over some of the same paths. I usually try to run a 18 miler, 20 miler and 21+ miler. Today I ran 21.59 and if you are not sure why that odd number, check out my other blog entry “59″. Besides 21 and 59 represents my two favorite ages to be at.

Unlike my “Hot 20 Top 20″ last 20 miler run, I took four water bottles today and had plenty of water, especially since the weather was nice, in the 60′s. My pace was 8:37 overall, right on the training program target of 8:38 pace, but off considerably the 8:23 pace I did a similar run last fall when training for the St. George Marathon. However back then I was focussed only on running. This time I am equally focussed on long distance bike training and squeezed my long run in between the long ride last Saturday (112 miles, 10,000 ft. climb) and the Solvang Double Century bike ride this Saturday. Since I want to take a rest day on Friday, I had to run yesterday to get in the running miles this week. It is all a difficult balancing act being focussed on multiple major events occurring near thee same time.

Additionally my objective last year was to qualify to run the Boston Marathon and since that is what I will be running, the pressure is off. Or maybe it is because I am older and getting slower

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I am not sure if it was just finishing my tax return or reviewing my marathon training program, but I feel a bit down. For the St. George Marathon, the same week of training, I ran a 18 mile run at a 8:08 pace. Today I did 16 miles and only could manage a 8:48 pace. That is a huge difference. I just don’t seem to have the same speed and I guess that means my marathon time is not going to be as fast as last October. It might be the effect of dual training for cycling at the same time and just not having enough rest in the legs. The left leg still smarts from the fall this morning. I think all I need is some good sleep (it is now 1 am) and a good bike ride tomorrow to get my head back straight. 58.98904 and counting!

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I did my long run today, a total of a sweet 16 miles. However his time I got kissed by the hard ground when I took a tumble after mile 3. I had to shake myself off and get back into the grove, but I never got back to the pace I was hoping to run. I ended the run at 8:48 pace. It is interesting that this is exactly the same pace I ran 20 miles last Monday.

On the run backwards, I saw what I had tripped on, one of those cement utilities boxes that was bout 2 inches above the ground but covered by the grass. I am not sure if it was the fall, the day I took off yesterday, or the 140 miles of hard cycling only 40 hours earlier, but the run today was not what I would call sweet. But I finished it and I guess that is what counts for my marathon training for Boston. Now I am going to take a shower and head to Costco to get a hot dog.

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I went on my first 20 mile run today training for the Boston Marathon. I took my iPod and listened to the top 20 hits (actually the top 20 hits of prior decades). I also ran in warmer weather than I expected. I only took two 7 oz . water bottles because that is all I have needed, so I ended up rationing water. That is not a good way to train unless you are training for the Foreign Legion. I only averaged a 8:48 pace, but I was happy with that coming off an injury and not running that many miles the last two weeks while I was ramping up my biking miles. You can see from the graph below that during the last 6 miles of the run I had to take my heart rate up from the relatively easy 145 range to the high 150′s and even 160′s to keep the pace. That shows I need more training, especially speed workout, before I run the marathon.

Click image to enlarge.

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Okay, I know it is “Go West Young Man” and I also know I am no longer a young man, but we are headed East to Boston. I ran 6 miles easy this morning and didn’t notice the running injury so I have now booked flights to Boston to run the marathon. I may not get a PR but I now feel confident I can train enough to finish the race and still train for the double century cycling event in Solvang two weeks before the marathon. I will resume speed works next week and run 20 miles on Monday.

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Previously I wrote I was considering bailing out of doing the Boston Marathon due to the running injury I am dealing with, the cost of the trip and my desire to buy a new bike. Well I bought the new bike yesterday so I have removed that from the decision process

I did an 8 mile run this morning. It hurt somewhat where I was injured but taking the day off yesterday really helped. I am now inclined to stick with my plan to run the Boston Marathon and will make the final decision tonight. I found a real good fare on American Airlines for non-stop flights.

So I am on a roll. The last two posts have four “B” words in the title. So what other word starts with a “B”?

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