Summary: these things suck, why do people keep doing them?

Background:

This was my 3rd marathon. My previous two:

- Oct 2012, Grand Rapids - 4:16, 16 min pos split

- Jun 2013, Ann Arbor - 4:06, 6 min pos split

After Ann Arbor, I signed up for the Detroit Marathon in October, ready to jump back into another training cycle. The running gods had other ideas; I struggled with an injury throughout most of the summer & fall, and had to DNS Detroit. Fortunately, things seemed to heal up, and late fall I started building mileage back up. (Just in time for this lovely winter we had!)

Training:

No formal plan (they scare me a little). I figured the best thing I could do anyway is build up a decent mileage base. I never had what would be considered marathon-capable weekly mileage; for my last race I was mostly in the 40's with 4 weeks of ~50 at the end. However since the beginning of this year I had 5 weeks of ~55 followed by 7 weeks of 60+.

Also I had never done any kind of speed work in the past; in the last couple months I added a weekly tempo run and a weekly GMP run, to at least get some variety in there.

Despite not really knowing what I was doing, I felt pretty good about my dedication to my non-plan. I was running 6 days/wk (also new for me), and had zero URD's since the beginning of the year. And I will not belabor the winter weather situation because everyone is sick of hearing about it. Suffice to say I developed an uneasy friendship with the treadmill. A lot of 5:00 mornings getting on that thing just staring at it, working up the courage to press the button.

Taper could not have come at a better time. I was really starting to feel the wear & tear of the high (for me) mileage. Things were getting tweaked that I was just hoping would not turn into injuries, and hoping would not affect the race.

Goal:

One issue for me is having no good idea of my target paces, because I don't have a lot of race data to go on. I have never done any 5k's or 10k's. My two most recent races were a 1:48 HM (at the Martian last year) and the 4:06 in AA; these do not really correlate, as AA was a tougher course, and I was not really trained for the endurance. They were also before my injury layoff & on completely different training. Anyway, I used the 1:48 HM as a rough basis to set training paces for tempo & GMP.

So, in my head for the race was:

- goal of 3:50

- figured even if I fell apart I could get my first sub-4

- hoping for closer to even splits, with stronger finish.

Race:

Beautiful weather; chilly 42 at the start, warming up to ~60 by the end. Used the repurposed tube sock arm warmer technique as well as throwaway gloves for the first time, which were ditched after a few miles. No lines at the pre-race port-o-potties! Benefit of the marathon starting earlier than the other races. Decided to shoot for a 8:40-8:45 pace, and see how well I could hold it.

Miles 1-14

8:54, 8:43, 8:42, 8:58, 8:36, 8:47, 8:51, 8:45, 8:41, 8:44, 8:50, 8:46, 8:50, 8:46

Mostly a bit on the slower side than planned, but it felt right & I was reluctant to push it. Race clock at 13.1 was 1:55, so right on pace for 3:50.

Miles 15-22

8:55, 8:55, 8:53, 8:47, 8:46, 8:46, 8:35, 8:47

Last race, ~16 was where I really started to feel the fatigue & slowed down. This time I was getting a little fatigued, but still felt in control. Started to slow down a bit at 15, but able to pick it back up.

Miles 23-26

9:06, 9:10, 9:18, 9:03

Hanging on for dear life. At about 22, I hit the part where every fiber of my being is screaming at me to stop. It was miserable, no more or less so than my last race, but at least somewhat shorter duration. (Last race I hit that point at ~18.) Stopped looking at my watch, just focused on keeping moving & getting to the next mile marker. It felt like I was slowing down a lot more than I actually was. Garmin had the final 0.37 after 26 at 7:59, so I guess I had a little something in reserve once the finish line was in sight.

Final time: 3:52, 2 min positive split, 14 min PR.

Did not get the 3:50, but comfortably sub-4. Reduced positive split; did not feel like a strong finish, but better. I certainly feel like I gave everything I had. No problems due to injuries, just fatigue. Doing these gives me even more appreciation of all the folks here who have done a lot of marathons, sustained high mileage training, and who routinely knock out BQ's. (I only need to cut off 27 minutes! But a new AG next year, so make that 22!)

What's Next?

Well right now I am pretty sore, and not thinking about a lot of running right away. So first I need to recover. But there are a few races in the next couple months I had been thinking about, mainly because they are within a few miles from my house. Finally try a 10k?

I am looking at Detroit Marathon in October. Thinking I should probably try a formal plan for that. Not sure how well my body (& mind) are equipped to handle the continued rigors of marathon training, it really started to wear on me by the end of this cycle. I always figured it was reasonable to do two a year, but remains to be seen whether I am cut out for that. The higher mileage training was certainly behind the improvement, but it was really over a short period of time. So I am hoping to see if I can continue to sustain that over a longer period of time, and see what comes out of it.

Thank you notes: (apologies to Jimmy Fallon)

- Thank you to the treadmill, I couldn't have done it without you, you heartless bastard.

- Thank you to Winter 2013-14. Why? Because screw you, that's why.

- Thank you to all my RA forum peeps, for all the support, advice and mainly the NRR time-wasters.

- Mostly thank you to MrsP, for putting up with all this foolishness, and even getting up at the buttcrack of dawn to drive me to the race, although this is mainly because she still doesn't trust me to be coherent enough to drive myself home afterwards.

Pics:

Double-FE! Finally met a couple of my Motown-area forum brethren.

With LRB at the expo. Both apparently oblivious to the pain we would be experiencing the next day. And that LRB would be completely destroying his 5k. (Well, he probably knew that.)

With MI_Tim, post-race, glad to be done. We ran the first ~19 together; neither one of us had a good idea of goal pace, so we picked the same one. It was great to have the company.

Also: cool alien head finisher's medals! (sorry it's sideways, iPhone & tinypic don't always like each other)

congrats dave...great report too! i think having that base mileage paid off big time...a two minute positive split is close enough to even splits in my book...your training and smart pacing led to the pr...if you use a formal plan, you can tweak as necessary...i think you can use this to get even faster next time...for now, enjoy the recovery and be well! (that medal is pretty cool)

I am looking at Detroit Marathon in October. Thinking I should probably try a formal plan for that. Not sure how well my body (& mind) are equipped to handle the continued rigors of marathon training, it really started to wear on me by the end of this cycle.

You ain't seen nothing yet as a good portion of fall training occurs during the dog days of summer!  You think this one wore on you?  Just wait!

Great report and perspective Dave.  It was nice to stand there for damn near an hour talking to you!  lol  As I drove away I wondered why we just didn't sit down in the chairs that were right at the stupid table we were standing at, doh!

By all accounts you have to be thrilled with your result!  Is there anything you could have/would have done differently looking back?  What was your hydration/fueling strategy for this race?

Those late race 9:00's were really not that bad at all considering the pace you held for 22 miles.  Great job!

Huge PR = Pure awesomeness

Congratulations, Dave! I'm very happy for you. And now that you understand how it's done, start training for that 22 minute PR. I know you have it in you. 

Congrats on the PR Dave. Enjoy your victory!

Awesome no-plan, run your heart out PR! Even without a formal plan, what you did really mirrors plans like the Hal Higdon Intermediate II (or at least how I have modified it). Simple, consistent mileage can go a long way toward strengthening a marathon effort, especially in these first few years before every second of improvement gets more and more pricy.

I know you feel like the mileage was becoming a struggle toward the end of the cycle, but I would caution against letting it slip too far back over the summer, even if you choose not to run Detroit. It is easier in the long run to maintain a moderately high level (mid-40s to mid-50s) than to drop way back and have to rebuild again (of course that does not apply to these next two weeks!)

Recover well! You've earned it.

Congratulations!  Well done!

And I love the FE pictures!  Thanks for sharing.

Great job, Dave.

Glad you were able to run such a strong race, knowing how much this awful winter messed with your training.

Cool pics, MI_Tim looks nothing like his avatar, lol.

Bask in it for a few days and don't worry about the next training cycle just yet.