Week Twenty-One: Run Forest, Run!

I now have two 20-milers under my belt. I finished both runs in 3 hours 10 minutes, which is exactly the pace that I expected to be at. Since the Seattle Marathon course is a "rolling course," meaning that their are several inclines and hills throughout the course, I ran both 20-milers on the hilliest courses that I could handle. Actually, it's hard to find a non-hilly course in Seattle, so I kind of had no choice. I'm hoping that the marathon course will be less the hilly than the courses that I am running now, but if it's not, at least I'll be prepared.

I have been told by a few people too not push myself so hard, but honestly, I do not feel like I am exceeding my limits. I am a naturally competitive person and I do have a tendency to test my limits, but I know when enough is enough. I take the fact of becoming injured very seriously. This is my first marathon and I'd hate to blow it before I even make it to the starting line.
My final long-run before the race will be 22 miles. A few friends/seasoned runners have told me that 22 is too much. They say that most first time marathoners peak at 18-20 miles during training. I don't doubt this, but 22 miles doesn't seems like too much to me. I know that I can handle it. Running both 20-milers almost felt natural to me. I reminded myself of Forest Gump; I just kept running! I maintained a steady/comfortable pace throughout the runs, drank water and ate energy gels when necessary, and re-fueled with the proper recovery foods and drinks afterwards. The following days, I wasn't even that sore. I actually felt really good; really in-shape and powerful. At no point did I ever feel any unnatural discomfort. So what's an extra two miles? I can do it!

Last night, I did intervals with the running group. Another amazing work-out! This was my third interval run with the group and I can honestly say that I am already starting to feel stronger. I ran a mile in 7:04!! That's a major PR (personal record) for me. Woohoo! I didn't know that my legs were capable for moving that fast. It wasn't over yet. After the mile, we did intervals of 5 x 200s; this is essentially sprinting for 200 meters, followed by slow jogging of 200 meters and repeat 5 times. I was running the 200s in about 44 seconds, another record-breaking pace for me. I never thought that I could be a fast runner. I always tell people that I can run for miles on end, but I am not fast. This was because I wasn't training myself to be fast and I had nobody pushing me to be fast. The combination of interval training and running with other people has really helped build my speed and stamina. Everybody in this group is so encouraging and they really help to push you to the point where you need to be. There's no way I would have gone out and ran a 7:04 mile by myself and then proceed to run sprints after that. If you want to improve your running, this is the way to do.

Only 4 more weeks until the marathon!!

Week Twenty-One
10/26 - Rest day
10/27 - Run 7 miles
10/28 - Intervals - about 5.75 miles
-Warm-up easy 3 miles
-1 mile run @ 7:04 pace
-5 x 200s
-Cooldown - .5 mile
10/29 - Rest day
10/30 - Run 7 miles
10/31 - Long run - 15 miles
11/1 - Rest day

Total miles for the week: 34.75