Sunday, March 16, 2014

Knoxville Marathon Week 8, OMG 2 weeks to go!


Monday: REST

Tuesday: Easy 5

Wednesday: 2x3 Miles HARD & FAST, 8 Miles total. (3 sets strength stuffs/ 2 sets core)
1st set @ 7:08 avg pace, 2nd set @ 7:03 avg pace. YEEHAW! 2 weeks ago I did the 3x2's and had doubts because the pace was around 10 seconds slower than my 5K PR (from October). Well, I nailed this one. Doubts were cast aside and I ran hard and enjoyed this ass kicking workout.

Thursday: Easy 2.5
Was supposed to be 5, but the pup detoured my plans. He was freaking out from all the ice falling that I made the decision to board him for the night, so he wouldnt hurt himself anymore by scratching at doors and destroying things.

Friday: 20 FREAKING MILES before work with 10 @ GMP. 2:41.37 +2 sets strength stuffs
Gym was at 75 degrees, FML. The thermostat is too high tech (read:not intuitive) and I couldnt lower the temp. There's a special place in hell for people who like the gym to be hot. It's not a freaking Bikram Studio, Idiots. Sweated my balls off during this one, but pushed through with the 10GMP (8:00-7:50 pace)  for miles 9-18. Overall felt pretty good. Experimented with nutrition more- Took a TJ's "Fruit Crusher" at mile 4.5, gu around mile 10, and ate bites of banana from 9 to the finish.

Saturday: REST
Was going to do my easy 5, but needed all the sleeps. An early massage at 9am also didn't help with running, but the massage was needed. My quad seems to have a knot in it, but the therapist said no- it was just tight. More Dead Sea salt baths are in my future, along with the usual foam rolling, myo ball, etc.

Sunday: Easy 6 with "All da Hillz" + 2 sets strength stuffs, 2 sets core.
12x 20 second hill sprints. I felt tired and heavy and lethargic and hot. Residual from the 20 most likely. Was happy to be done with this one.


 Monday the CBear and I took a walk because it was a "warm" 50 degrees out. It was probably the 3rd walk he has been on this year. We both enjoyed ourselves immensely even though the sunset was lack luster.
Much of the snow was melting and causing flooding.

By Wednesday the F*CKING snow came back. Around 4" of heavy wet snow was left behind after the storm. The wet snow quickly turned to ice and was so fun to walk through. With warmer temps on Thursday, the ice started breaking off buildings creating a need to wear a hard hat while outside down town. 
 As a result of the ice breaking off, CB got so freaked out that by Thursday he had opened a shut door in our place and tried to open several other doors. I made the executive decision to board him for the night because I didn't want to worry about him at work on Friday- nor did I want him to hurt himself further. (His paws were torn up from scratching...)
The 20 miler was good because CB wasn't home and I wasn't worrying about him.He was off having fun at doggy play time all day Friday. Lucky dog.
The fountains celebrating St Paddy's day

Thoughts this week:
Well, taper officially begins Wednesday at sundown. Post tempo run I can become the cliche of "Taper Madness." ok, not really. I've got a lot going on this week to keep me busy.And I don't waste my energy on stuff like that. 

I'm feeling really good about the past 8 weeks worth of training. Every single mile has been quality. And while I would have preferred to be running outside, the conditions were pretty much shit for one reason or another. The melting snow causing puddles mid week were turning into ice by the weekend. I ain't got time for falling and injuring myself this late in the game.   Oh, and running in 20-30 degrees would certainly impact my ability to run a race in potential 50-70 degrees race day. The gym has been my savior for acclimatization. It's the "silver lining" I keep telling myself. I'll be prepared for warmer temps because my gym is a sweat box. 
 He was so chill when I brought him home Friday afternoon. 

So with 2 weeks, 2 WEEKS until Knoxville, I'm starting to make a list of all my running accouterments that I'll need to take with me. I've already placed an order to restock my supply of the drink I use, and pretty much have my outfit picked out. That sounds so silly, but the "outfit" is important. Need to avoid chaffing, need to be comfortable, and of course, lets not forget "if you look good, you feel good." I've also got a small list of other things I'll need to purchase this week from Fleet Feet- some more GU, Body Glide, stuff like that. This will be my 11th Marathon, but the one of the things I've learned is leave nothing to chance. Routine and consistency are key to a solid race performance. And I pretty much have a routine that works very well for me. No need to change it up now. 

So finally, going into these last 2 weeks, I'll continue to visualize the race and how I want it to go. Mental prep is SO IMPORTANT. I'll also keep thinking only the most positive of thoughts, because why the hell not? There's no room in my head for negative shit. (that's just a waste of energy)  

2 weeks to go! YAY. 

7 comments:

  1. WOW two weeks until the big day! Sounds like you are READY!!

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  2. I smell a lot of awesome coming from you... ;) SO. STOKED.

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  3. So happy that this speed session went well compared to the one from two weeks ago! When you are not wasting your time over taper madness, remember not to waste it with worry about how the race will go... keep reading these recaps and focus on how well training is going!

    LOL, I am happy you found the silver lining to that hot gym! 20 would be a beast in that!

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  4. Yay taper time! Here's hoping race day temps in Knoxville are warmer than Chicago, but a tad cooler than your "sweat box" of a gym! :)

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  5. How on earth do you run 20 miles on a treadmill before work?! That's impressive.

    Break a leg in Knoxville!

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  6. I hate being hot when I work out. There's a studio up near me that always feels super warm during classes. I only go because I have a Groupon.

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