Forums >Racing>2012 Sub-3:00 Marathon Goal Thread
Belated congratulations, J2R, great run! And I'm really happy to see that the slight negative split worked out well for you.
I'm envious as hell that you can do that on 30 mpw.
Belated congratulations, J2R, great run! And I'm really happy to see that the slight negative split worked out well for you. I'm envious as hell that you can do that on 30 mpw.
Thanks! Interesting you should say that you're envious I can do that on 30 mpw, because I doubt that I have some special physical gift that let me do this - it's just down to the training program (which probably most people could do). I did a lot of speedwork to push up vO2max and running economy; quite a lot of long 'tempo' runs (8-12 miles or so at marathon to half marathon pace, slower than standard tempo runs but much further than standard tempos as well); and I ran most of my long runs faster than is normally recommended - never more than a minute per mile slower than marathon pace, often just 30 seconds or so slower, and often speeding up to HM pace or faster towards the end.
While I say that I have no special physical gift, I am fortunate enough not to be prone to running injuries (it may be more than just good fortune, as I've been going down the minimalist path for the last few years - I ran the marathon Merrell Bare Access shoes - and I do believe it has helped me avoid injury, although I know the experts are still divided on the issue). So I may have been able to get away with a rather more intense training program than people would normally risk.
Having said all this, my legs still are pretty beaten up, 8 days later, and I'm sure I did rather more damage to them in the last few miles of the marathon than I would have done if I'd been running 50+ miles per week. I certainly wouldn't recommend 30mpw! I'll be running the London Marathon in mid-April next year and between now and then, I intend to ramp up my training to a more realistic weekly mileage. The dream, then, will be 2:55...
Welp, I'm up soon for Philly. I need to do a better job of posting around here.
Anyway, the sub 3 attempt is out. Missed June and July with IT band issues, and the training hasn't been there the past couple months. Was also considering a run at a BQ, but I came down with Achilles tendinitis after my last long run of the training cycle and haven't been able to run much the past couple weeks. So maybe a 3:15? This is my first marathon, so maybe it's a good thing the pressure is off, as now I can just focus on finishing and figuring this beast out.
This is my first marathon, so maybe it's a good thing the pressure is off
Yes. This is a good thing. Enjoy the ride!
- Joe
We are fragile creatures on collision with our judgment day.
Ran a 1:22 half-marathon over the weekend (8 minute PR).
I wish my training had included more miles and was more consistent, but I am feeling like the sub-3 is a reasonable goal based on how I felt during / after the bigger workouts and the weekend's half.
One more long run this weekend and then the taper begins.
--
Nashville, TN
Reasonable goal? Heck, I'd say with a 1:22 it's almost a dunk.
Great race J2R!!! I tried for years to go sub three with 25-35 miles per week on 3-4 runs. Best I did was 3:02 and a 3:03. I had to get my miles to approx. 55-65 before I went sub three but that mileage got me a few 2:55 marathons. I've taken a break from serious running for the last 1-1/2 years due to years of running through tremendous heel pain and also because I now have a one year old son and a three year old girl.
I'm trying to make a comeback for the spring and I plan on only running 30-40 miles per week. I am going to try to never run two days in a row substituting biking for my easy days. I like to hear more about your training, did you do other training besides running?
Was it all a dream?
A bit last minute, but please add me for the Flying Monkey Marathon this Sunday (11/18). Thanks.
Hey Clive, as much as I think I should just keep my mouth shut, I'm gonna stick my neck way out there. < 2:40 in Dallas. Race date is 12/9, by the way, I think I had told you 12/2 by mistake much earlier this year.
It will take a "Raising Lazurus from the Dead", major kindof miricle for me to run a sub 3 at Monkey
My Monkey goal is to run as hard a possible - Last time at Monkey it = 3:17, the time before 3:00x ... this time I am going to guess between 3:05-3:10.
I never look at mile splits @ Monkey ~ 1st time is 5 mile then 10 etc.
I do believe in God
I do believe in Miracles
I do believe that God's will be done ... even through a POS, ugly stide, fat ass runner like me
But I also cannot fathom why God would have a plan that included a sub 3 at Monkey for me
More likely I need to learn more humility and run 4+ hours ... not finishing until after the beer has been tapped.
I also predict a likely chance of being chicked in Monkey 2012.
Long dead ... But my stench lingers !
I do believe that God's will be done ... even through a POS, ugly stide, fat ass runner like me But I also cannot fathom why God would have a plan that included a sub 3 at Monkey for me
LOL -- not in a flippant text messaging, metaphorical kind of way, but in a literal, my coworkers wonder why I am laughing by myself kind of way.
Good luck Godspeed, DB.
woof. 3:18:12 at Philly. tried to give myself a shot at sub-3:05. made it through the half in 1:32:10, then blew up at 16-17. The last 8 were terrible, the last 3 I wanted to die. Now it's time for some rest and then I begin training for marathon #2!
Hi everyone,
Late to the party this year, I suppose. I'm another RWOL refugee. We had a nice group of folks in the pretty active sub-3 thread over there. I hope more of them find their way to RA and this thread (if you'll have us!). So far I am enjoying this site & I look forward to getting to know you all.
Anyway, I ran a 2:57:12 for a PR and my 3rd sub-3 at Glass City (Toledo, OH) back in April but I have not been running much since then, partly because I was focusing a bit more on cycling this summer and partly because of a nasty bout of piriformis syndrome that is really killing me lately. I was managing 30-40 mpw over most of the summer along with 150-200 mpw on the bike. My plan to up the running mileage as the days got shorter and the weather got colder has been derailed by the piriformis. So a spring marathon is probably not in the cards for me--at least not for a PR or even a sub-3 attempt--but if I can get over this injury and get my mojo back I may run a late fall marathon next year (Philly or St. Jude/Memphis, perhaps). In the meantime I'll probably just lurk here for a while, though I probably won't be able to resist the urge to post a snarky comment now and then.
Cheers,
gus
Hi everyone, Late to the party this year, I suppose. I'm another RWOL refugee. We had a nice group of folks in the pretty active sub-3 thread over there. I hope more of them find their way to RA and this thread (if you'll have us!). So far I am enjoying this site & I look forward to getting to know you all.
Bring it on! And good luck with the piriformis.
"I want you to pray as if everything depends on it, but I want you to prepare yourself as if everything depends on you."
-- Dick LeBeau
So, after my failure in Ottawa at the end of May, I'm going to give it another go next year. I'm tentatively planning Ottawa, but work may get in the way of the last month of training a bit. I think I'm going to try a bigger and longer base (building from now) and running to or from work. If training goes well, I'm probably going to aim a little faster even than I did this year - I was on pace for 2:55 until 32km, then lost it completely - dead legs, just wouldn't work anymore.
I know I did a bunch of things wrong - starting 5 weeks before the race, my training went downhill for a variety of reasons - schedule, flu, etc.
My ideas for things to change:
Longer and bigger mileage base.
Less of a taper - both length and amount of mileage cut.
Not run the day before, but move that MP run a day earlier and make it shorter.
Better race-day schedule - My breakfast, etc was not as good as could have been.
Eat a full GU at both stops - they were handing them out (I had no idea) but I'd never tried one before. I ate about a quarter of it at the first stop in case I had problems.
less interval work, more MP and tempo work.
Suggestions, comments, etc?