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Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Excitment going up!

Excitement and expectation are building up for 10/10/10! My training has been solid and am healthy for the most part. I have a sore lower back but it’s getting better by the day. I am logging a lot of weekly miles and my body is feeling it. I feel great otherwise. The weather is much better so my legs are fresh. I actually think that training in a very hot and humid weather made me substantially stronger. My endurance is very good and my speed is coming back to where it was before running in Traverse City. The Chicago Marathon is in 6+ weeks and a lot of things can still happen until then but, if I keep training like this, am going to be very strong and fast. I use my daily runs to imagine how I want to run the Chicago course turn by turn, mile by mile, step by step. I have done that course two times but this one is going to be different because I am a different runner. For many years, I trained to finish races or, better said, to survive races. I enjoyed finishing marathons, it was nice to have the medal. Yet I recently discovered that I enjoy them much more when I run in front of the massive pack of runners. I enjoy them much more when my body responds smoothly when I ask for more. So I now train to run in front. The mental barrier that prevented me from running faster times doesn’t exist anymore. I know I can go fast and I train, physically and mentally, to go fast.

I did 61 miles last week. The best part of it was a very solid 8x5 min. tempo run on Wednesday and a lot of base, easy miles on Mo, Tu, Th, and Fr. Saturday’s run wasn’t easy. I did a combo of tempo+10 miles+tempo (17 miles total). My times on Sat. were good, but I had to dig deep to finish the workout. This is the first time in my running life that I run 60+ miles in two consecutive weeks. Hopefully this is going to make 3 in a row. I have done 10.75 and 9 miles on Mo and Tu respectively. This is going to be a difficult week but I see the finish line in Grant Park waiting for me. If someone offers me a settlement for a sub 3:10 marathon right now, I wouldn’t take! I think am in much better shape than that and I hope to continue traveling in this line until October 10th.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Less than 8 weeks

Believe or not is less than 8 weeks to the Chicago Marathon. I have had 4 very strong weeks of hard training. My legs feel much better and, overall, am very strong. Training in high heat and humidity has helped me to get stronger. I peaked at 62.75 miles last week. My long run was a 19 miler in very humid conditions. I owed myself a workout like that one. It was strong and very consistent. The last three miles were fast and I truly enjoyed that. It gave me confidence and a good boost to continue training. In addition, the mid-week tempo run was good, a 2x20 mins. tempo (10 mins. recovery) for a total of 10.5 miles.

Ahead are 4 weeks of heavy mileage for me: 60, 64, 67-69, and 70+ miles respectively. I have never done more than 65 miles in a week but am healthy and ready to try it. The weather is better and my recovery is faster. I need to work on my speed a bit more. It’s not bad but I know it can get better so I am going to incorporate some speed workouts and hill runs in my plan. I have nothing to lose in Chicago, I already qualified for Boston and am going to run and enjoy as much as possible. I want to fly!

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Time for an update

First of all, I would like to express my apologies for not updating the blog. It’s been a hectic August for me and things don’t seem to get better any time soon. My choice is between blogging or running and, needless to say, I prefer running. It keeps me sane and energized. Seriously, I get much more productive after a good workout. If you don’t believe me, just try it!

Well, it’s been a busy time at work and training. The weather doesn’t get better, it’s still steamy hot. Yet my workouts have been pretty good. I am getting used to running in the blazing hot weather. My legs, lungs, heart and mind are adapted to heat and humidity and, as a consequence, my runs are good. This week has been particularly good. I am well on my way to peak at 60+ miles with 2 quality workouts. I ran 9 miles on Monday, 7.5 Tuesday and 10.5 yesterday. Yesterday’s workout included a 2x3 mile tempo. I didn’t push the pace too much because the humidity was very high and I wanted to conserve energy as much as possible. I never felt wasted in the run and I had a pretty decent run this AM (I ran 9.5 miles). Looks like my running legs and instincts are coming back right in time for the Chicago marathon. Ahead are 8 difficult weeks of training but am very motivated and, fortunately, healthy. Hopefully, I will stay like this until 10/10/10.

I will do my best to keep you updated more often. In the mean time, the gym is waiting for me! Cheers!