Driving and yacking

I noticed a few things out there on the roads today. One is that people driving in cars don’t seem to like runners. At least they make faces that seem to indicate that they don’t like runners. But then again, a person’s personality seems to change the moment they sit in a car, buckle the seat belt and close the door. It’s like folks wrap themselves into a torpedo where it’s impossible not to be a jackass.

Either that or they would rather be out running.

The other thing I noticed was that a disproportionate number of women talk on cell phones while driving in comparison to men. That said, it seems that all women driving in late model SUVs must speak on the cell phone while driving. I suppose it has something to do with the ruggedness of the terrain of those suburban side streets. After all, why else would someone drive something as ridiculous as a Land Rover.

Hey, it’s a safari out there.

Anyway, I felt strong enough to double up today/night. The afternoon outing was a cool 16 miles in a reasonably brisk 1:46:11. The second one was a 5-miler in 34:26. I felt like I was going faster than that, but then again I always feel like I’m going faster than I am at night. Later, when I look at my watch, the pace is just average.

But I feel fast… that should count for something.

Here’s the updated count for the week:

Monday – 20.2 in 2:17:44
Resting heart rate – 41
Weight – I don’t know… 160-something

Tuesday – 16 miles in 1:49:56
Resting heart rate – 44
Food – veggie delight hoagie from Subway brought home by my wife; two Morning Star Farms veggie chix patties; Crazy Richard’s Natural Crunchy Peanut Butter and blueberry preserves sandwich; banana; three Clif Bars; big bowl of Special K with strawberries; animal crackers; coffee

Wednesday – 1st run: 16 miles in 1:46:11
2nd run: 5 miles in 34:26
Resting heart rate – 43
Height – still just about 6-foot-1

Miles during last seven days: 111

Once is enough

Recently, I have come to enjoy the phenomenon known as doubling up. That’s one of those training techniques used by a certain segment of runners in which they add a second run to the main workout of the day. The idea, I suppose, is to load up on the miles and the time spent running to build up that aerobic base. And in that regard it’s perfect – guys like me can pile on another 15 to 20 miles per week by dragging a tired ass outside for a relaxed jaunt through the neighborhood for a half-hour or so.

Plus, I have a job, a mortgage, a wife and two kids — that extra four to five miles is as much for my sanity as anything else.

Regardless, in the drive to build strength on top of strength by running as many miles (without the pace suffering too much) as possible I have added a second run in the evening. It’s not something I do every day – perhaps two or four times per week – and I’ve learned to stop doing it after a long run. A few weeks ago I did an easy five after an 18-miler and it was tough to walk the next day. On top of that, my first run of the day will continue to be 13 to 15 miles. I know that a lot of top guys do less in the morning and slightly more in the evening, but that just doesn’t work for me.

Actually, I should say I don’t know if it works for me. I don’t know if I care to find out, either. I just like the ritual of doing 20 miles every Monday, and 13 to 15 miles every other morning except for Sunday. That’s when I go light.

I imagine my methods aren’t very scientific and I suspect I could go faster if I did things differently. However, I never take easy days. Oh sure, on some days I go slow or I run with little intensity, but that’s only because the effort and the attitude match what I have to give. The plan is a bit of a rip-off from the way some of the top Americans in the 1970s did it:

I run the best I can every time out.

Sometimes that means decent fartlek efforts, or tempo runs or steady 6:40 pace. Sometimes that means doubles for 20 to 25 miles a day. Other times it means a simple 16-miler in 1:49:56 like I did today.

Here’s the way I saw it minutes after finishing up:

I went sloooooow. The last 2 miles were really slow, but they didn’t feel like I was running slow. I felt strong and the distance part was no problem, but any time I tried to step on the gas I couldn’t go. Oh well… I got the work done. It was fun, too.

splits:
1st 5 – 34:05
2nd 3 – 34:01
3rd 5 – 34:39

There used to be a time that if I ran the first five miles of a workout in 34, I’d stop and go home. That was 10 years ago, though, back when I never went slower than 6:30 pace. I also did 120 to 130 miles per week and ended up not running competitively for nearly eight years.

But that’s a different story.

Today’s story was simple – I finished the run, showered, ate, sat down and haven’t moved. Actually, I took some trash outside and cleared some leaves off the drain on my driveway, but that was about it. When I was standing on my driveway I cast a glance into the nighttime sky and didn’t see any stars. The cloud cover signaled an approaching storm, which made it perfectly humid for a winter night. I also noticed the tree branches weren’t swaying and the street lamps circling the campus at F&M a couple of blocks away made it look and feel like a perfect night for a short run.

But I’m tired and it took more effort to push myself outside to look at the trees and the stars than it does to run for 30ish minutes. Instead, here I am sitting still, typing away and waiting for tomorrow so I can go out and make myself tired again.

This week so far:
Monday – 20.2 in 2:17:44
Resting heart rate – 41
Weight – I don’t know… 160-something

Tuesday – 16 miles in 1:49:56
Resting heart rate – 44
Food – veggie delight hoagie from Subway brought home by my wife; two Morning Star Farms veggie chix patties; Crazy Richard’s Natural Crunchy Peanut Butter and blueberry preserves sandwich; banana; three Clif Bars; big bowl of Special K with strawberries; animal crackers; coffee

Miles during last seven days: 108

Deep into it

The interesting thing about training for a marathon is trying to manage the balance between perfectly trained and overtrained. It doesn’t sound like much – just put in the work for X amount of week and presto, go run your rear off come race day. If only it was that easy.

Overtraining is much easier to do than to train properly. Athletes, and runners specifically, are a driven group of people. They also seem to be a paranoid lot, too. Just the notion that someone else might be training harder is enough to send one screaming down the street in some sordid fartlek workout. Ever see a guy screaming at the top of his lungs while mixing a 5×1-mile in 5:20 into a 15-miler? Yeah, well it’s like something out of Hunter Thompson. If you see that guy coming, just walk to the other side of the street. I promise I won’t chase you.

Anyway, I’m deep into a marathon-training program now for a race on May 4. There are two races that day – one called the Pocono Mountain Marathon and another called the Frederick (Maryland) Marathon. I’m leaning toward the Pocono Mountain one because the net downhill course might be more conducive to running a fast(er) time. However, based on how it’s going, it’s fair to think that I might be ready before May 4 rolls around. I get this idea because the workouts I am doing now are just as good as the ones I did leading up to the 1998 Boston Marathon. The only difference is that the workouts I did in ‘98 were faster.

Still, 10 years later I still can crank out weeks of 93, 94, 90 and 114. No, it isn’t as easy. Actually there were three or four days mixed in there were I thought it was over. I felt like the inevitability of injury was ready to cripple me and the nastiness of burnout by overtraining had bit me on the ass. In fact I spent two straight days indoors where the most athletic thing I did was get in the car to pick up the Thai food. Two other days I returned from a run, went inside and dropped facedown to the floor with muscle aches in places I never knew existed. One time I felt the heart attack-like pain of an anxiety attack mixed and muscle spasms in that soft flesh behind my armpit with a few days of pounding tension headaches thrown in like sprinkles on top of soft serve.

Yet for some reason I keep going out there every day. The routine stays true – out of bed into the easiest yoga poses ever (toe touches count, right?), a vitamin, a Cliff Bar, coffee and water. After the diuretic does its thing, I dress, warm up with some strides and go.

What else am I going to do?

But if I make it too May 4 will it be too much? Is Boston on April 21 better timing? What about the National Marathon in D.C. on March 29? How about just sticking to the original plan?

Nevertheless, a guy who runs 80 miles by Thursday on the way to 114 for the week gets fit rather quickly. Nope, the speed is gone, a victim of 20-mile days from the so-called base period (you mean there are other periods than just the base one?), but I have the strength of an old Clydesdale… or at least an old Clydesdale that can run 5:50 pace without sweating.

Just don’t ask for 5:45.

Anyway, I’ll detail the first four weeks of the marathon build-up either tomorrow or the next day (or the day after that). In the meantime, today I did my second straight Monday 20-miler. Actually, I went 20 and a quarter in 2:17:44 and I feel OK. According to the entry I made on my charts and excel sheets, here’s the way it went:

I got tired about 70 minutes into the run, but overcame. My left hip was also a bit bothersome, but not to the degree that it would stop me. Otherwise, it was a nice, solid long run. The distance part – as usual – was easy.

In the meantime, here are the weekly mileage breakdowns since I decided to start getting ready for a spring marathon:

Oct. 29 – Nov. 4: 72.7

Nov. 5 – Nov. 11: 84

Nov. 12 – Nov. 18: 80.5

Nov. 19 – Nov. 25: 85.6

Nov. 26 – Dec. 2: 85.4

Dec. 3 – Dec. 9: 96

Dec. 10 – Dec. 16: 69.5

Dec. 17 – Dec. 23: 85

Dec. 24 – Dec. 30: 55.5

Dec. 31 – Jan. 6: 93

Jan. 7 – Jan. 13: 94

Jan. 14 – Jan. 20: 90

Jan. 21 – Jan. 27: 114