Now in the fifth week of a 100-day training program for Steamtown 2013, on October 13. So far, so good, thanks to Joe Henderson’s “Marathon Training: The Proven 100-Day Program for Success" http://amzn.to/15DmV56
To date, on Day 30, as for longish runs, I’ve managed only an 11.8 miler (in part because the temps in late June and through mid-July have been too brutal for pushing any harder) and a simulated 10-K race, which in my neck of the woods means twin revolutions of the roadway in Prospect Park.
It seems odd to be marathon training again since my last one was Boston 2012. Training to finish is one thing – for me and my outsized goals (3:14 for the New York City Marathon and 3:40 for the Boston Marathon) it’s something else. But I think if I run a smart race in Steamtown (Scranton, Pa.) both could very well be a reality. (Well, New York City may be a stretch … but if I run Steamtown 2015, then at 60! the QT slims to 3:24 …)
Given the October race day temps aren’t likely to be anywhere near as punishing as they are now – closer to 100 degrees under the sun than 90 – I’ve been doing a lot of treadmill training at the gym. It’s important, as I’ve learned in training for previous marathons (on the morning on October 13 I will be at the starting line of my seventh 26.2 miler) to get in the miles, but not at the risk of affecting your overall health or, heaven forbid, losing training time to injury. Pushing yourself in the heat and humidity will do just that.
Henderson’s manual is BIG on rest days and alternating hard days with easy days. In the past, I haven’t been very good at that, and, instead, tried to take the course straight up to the mountaintop rather than via the slower and smarter switchbacks: that meant every week I’d just get tougher and tougher on myself, without going easy, and without taking day breaks, or cross training days. This time, though, I've been much more conservative: through the first four weeks, I’ve run the following totals: 27.3 miles, 29.2 miles, 28.6 miles and 29 miles.
Tomorrow (July 17) it’s forecast to be close to 100 degrees at midday, and I still plan to put in my longest run yet – 14 miles on the treadmill of my local gym. It’s hot and humid, baby. Fine, for a two, three, even six miler, but anything more grueling and I’m opting for the indoor (i.e. air-conditioned) track.
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