Amik - I'm always looking for ways to keep it going.  Note i'm also vegetarian but I get plenty of protein through eggs, whey protein  chia, quinoa, soy beans, beans, etc....  Now I say i'm not losing weight but I'm definitely getting thinner just by the fit of clothes (ie the bags of brand new clothes i've been donating because I lost so much so fast) I'm more curious how I should add calories in the next month when I start hitting 45+ mpw.  I'm looking for goal weight for November, about 1/2 lb loss per week, which I think i'm right on track.  I'm going to add for the next two weeks and see what happens.  I don't want to drink gatorade/sugary products this go around.  I carry dates with me now and have a great post-run shake

onemile - will do.  Question though, would you feel comfortable going back and forth between a pair of 12's and 13's in a cycle?  Or transitioning to the 13's mid cycle?

Indi - <sigh> I want to be you when I grow up.  Can't ask for more dedication than that

Me - Will be back on the TM today, about 8 inches of snow last night and still coming down, back to cold and windy again, don't want to even bother with it until they get it cleared.  First Graston/ASR/Chiro appointment tomorrow.

I tend to be conservative on these things. My feeling is that one should pick their "can't live without goal" and train around that goal. Worst case scenario:  you should for sub-4:20, and you overestimate your fitness, and end up death marching, and come in at 4:3X. If you can live with that, then I'd say, go for the aggressive goal. But if you feel like you'd hate yourself, then I'd target sub-4:30. In that case, you might underestimate your fitness, experience a strong finish, and come in at say 4:22, which will leave you pondering whether you left time on the course. Personally, having experienced a death march and missing not only my A, B, C goals but also my X, Y, Z goals, I could live with that feeling (which is why I tend to be conservative).

This is good advice.  I ran my first marathon too conservatively.  So this time around I want to be more aggressive.  (but not stupid).   Right now I'm training using the paces from my half marathon time (which is what they seem to recommend).  And hoping that as I get closer to M-day that is a reasonable goal.  (Which would mean I get faster during the speed phase of training.  Not sure if this will happen but what's the point of all the hard speedwork if not to get faster).

But when it comes to choosing a goal,  I tend to like the double your half plus 15-20 minutes.  (I've heard if you average over 55mpw that double plus 15 is good).    Which for me would be 3:47-3:52 ish (MP of 8:39-8:51).  I'm using GMP of 8:30 for training though (what my HM time gives me).  I plan to do a couple races and see how training goes to zero in on the actual pace as race day gets closer.  But for now this is how I selected my goal/MP.

Morning all. Did my first marathon pace tempo this morning, 8 with 4 at 8:20 pace (GMP is 8:23).  It wasn't actually on the schedule for this week, MP runs start next week with 6 miles of MP, but I thought I'd ease into it with a shorter one this week.  Felt OK, I'm not a morning runner generally, so I'm not really awake that early.  Saw two coyotes a block from my house - I've always known we have them lurking around in the city, but I've never seen any before.  That is why my cats are indoor cats though!

I did bail on my easy 6 last night and took the SRD as scheduled, just wasn't feeling it - I've only gotten about 6 hours sleep the past few nights and I think it finally caught up with me, so I had some pizza and went to bed at 10.  This does mean I'm going to have to get up early again tomorrow though to fit in an easy 6 before my chiro appointment at 8.  I'll set two alarms.

mdawg - make sure to ice the spots where you had Graston done, those bruises tend to appear the next day.  I'm impressed you're going back again so soon, I don't think I'd have wanted another session that close to the previous one.

Those are the ones I have.  Do you recommend I walk in them and try another one?  What the heck is a rock plate?

As to the ambassadorship, I kne I would've gotten it, but I barely have time to breathe as it is and I was not sure if it was worth the effort.  For the amount I spend with them every month, I think I should be an honorary one.

Indy, love trail running! Wish I had a 12 mile one nearby! Sorry the Altras won't work for you. I really do love the materials and construction. They are good quality but so are lots of shoes.

 

Wow Cbus, nice 8! I are you doing Hanson plan? If so that means 8:50 is your GMP? That's crazy! I'm thinking of targeting 9:40-9:45. Still reading the book and trying to absorb what the pacing strategies are though.

 

Damaris, I didn't love my first pair of Altras (The Intuition). I started using them as a walking shoe instead but once I got used to the shape and feel I really liked them. Then I got the Superiors and took out the rock plate (I love that they have a removable rock plate!) and it was love at first or second run. It's taken me 3-4 months to transition over entirely and my calves are still sore after long runs but I feel like my calves are much stronger now too.

 

This is good advice.  I ran my first marathon too conservatively.  So this time around I want to be more aggressive.  (but not stupid).   Right now I'm training using the paces from my half marathon time (which is what they seem to recommend).  And hoping that as I get closer to M-day that is a reasonable goal.  (Which would mean I get faster during the speed phase of training.  Not sure if this will happen but what's the point of all the hard speedwork if not to get faster).

 

But when it comes to choosing a goal,  I tend to like the double your half plus 15-20 minutes.  (I've heard if you average over 55mpw that double plus 15 is good).    Which for me would be 3:47-3:52 ish (MP of 8:39-8:51).  I'm using GMP of 8:30 for training though (what my HM time gives me).  I plan to do a couple races and see how training goes to zero in on the actual pace as race day gets closer.  But for now this is how I selected my goal/MP.

I too agree with the half time + 15-20 minutes.  That puts me around a 3:45-3:50 which I think is appropriate.

AmiK/docket /Josh- we should have a vegetarian/vegan group on RA to share recipes and meal ideas...I'm an ethical vegan- I took a detour for a few years but have been back "to myself" since October...I think I caught onto the lowcarb buzz when I was anemic a few years ago and never came back. I weighed about 10 lbs less when I was strict vegan before. I don't push my ethics on other people...my DH eats meat and I don't care.

 

Mdawg- I would never let my little girl figure skate.  I also did Ballet as cross training...I showed signs of an eating disorder in high school and my mom and coach agreed it would be best for me to stop skating at 16.  I did the debate team after that and ran around the neighborhood in crappy nikes that likely did not fit for fun.  I gained 40 lbs and finally grew beyond 5 feet (I'm 5'4").  I got lucky because my coach's daughter suffered from bulimia and anorexia and so she was on the lookout for those issues and frequently encouraged mothers to take their prone-daughters out of the sport (to her own detriment).

 

Cbus- I can't even follow the pacing discussions anymore! So complicated.  I look forward to hearing about the Elixirs though.

 

Me- Last night's workout got cut short by 1.75 miles due to GI issues (AGAIN! WTF???)

2x (5x400 m intervals at half marathon pace + 2 miles warmup and 1 mile cooldown). Total of 7.25 miles in 1:06

Tonight is going to be a 7 mile easy run.

Sprinkles, can I also echo the sentiment that I'm glad you made it through that ordeal, and I'm in awe of your strength and honesty.

As for a separate veggie group--why? Just start the tread in the Donuts group. Even though I'm not a vegetarian, I'd be interested in seeing your guys' food ideas. The Elixirs are great. I think you'd like them. I'm also thinking of picking up a pair of Inspires. What I like about Mizuno's stability shoes is that they are still very flexible heel to toe. Did you ever find resolution to your high levels of...I forget what it was called, AST (does that sound right?)?

 

Cbus, did you already run in the new Elixirs?  Are they the new model (the ones out this month) or the prior one?

 

Nope, these are the 7s.