Everything Counts

AM: PROGRESSIVE TEMPO RUN

Met Ken on base at 5:15 to get in an early run.  We looped around the base.  5.72 miles easy then started into a 5-mile progressive tempo run. 

Goal Splits were 5:40 5:30 5:20 5:10 5:00

Actual Splits were 5:34 5:28 5:17 5:09 4:54 (miles 3&4 are slightly aided)

We finished the loop with the last 1.28 miles easy.  It was a really good run to get the week started.

PM: 4 miles easy @ 7:15 pace.

AM: 8 easy miles at roughly 7:10 pace.  Met Dave and Jed at the Parkway at 5:45 to get in an easy run this morning.  My watch's battery drained halfway through the run, but I know the 4 mile turnaround from before I had a garmin.  Nice run and good company.

PM: 5.11 miles at 6:43 pace.  Late evening run around South Weber.  I saw lots of people out doing fireworks along the way.  I did my 10.5 minute ab workout afterward.

7.43 miles at 7:00 pace.  I ran the north base loop.  I picked 1/4 mile on the uphill again in 76 seconds; I gain 60 feet during this quarter mile.  Other than that just some slow, easy miles.

6.1 miles @ 6:50 pace.  Just an easy out and back on the base perimeter road.

3.4 miles @ 6:53 pace.

MORGAN VALLEY MARATHON

I had a plan to use this as a good, quality distance and as a trial run on trying to nail down in-race marathon nutrition.  I've had bad experiences of running out of fuel in marathons, so I wanted to use a small, low-key marathon to practice taking in more calories.

I had a great support crew this morning who drove the whole way and gave me water and gatorade every few miles which was sweet.

My plan was to run 20 miles very conservative and then use the last 6.2 as a tempo.  In short, I executed that plan perfectly.  The course is very honest.  It's a loop course with rolling hills, you gain and lose 600 feet over the race; and the elevation is just over 5,000 feet.

I ran the first few miles with Bryant Jensen who planned on running a bit faster than I planned so once he was ready to get rolling at his faster pace I was on my own.  We were in 2nd and 3rd place for quite awhile.

I had to take a whiz on mile 6 and I had to take two additional pits stops along the way.  The stomach was just not cooperating AGAIN.  Everytime I was about to pass the second place guy, I had to stop for a pit stop.  These last two stops were during miles 9 and 13.

I finally caught the second place guy right as I started my 6.2 mile tempo during mile 21.  The last 6.5 miles felt awesome and I had plenty of fuel to finish strong. 

We were midirected in the second mile and from mile 2 on my watch was consistently beeping .25 miles before the marker.  The cops had taken us down the half marathon route and it adding an early quarter mile.

So my official time was 2:43:32 I think; my watch had me at 26.2 miles in 2:41:49.  And my moving time (minus the three potty stops) was 2:41:24 for the 26.53 miles.  So, I was stopped at breaks for like 3 minutes.

Overall, I feel good about this.  Clearly, it was easier to not bonk when you run conservative for 20 miles, but it's nice to feel awesome the last 6 miles of a marathon. 

Splits (potty break miles marked with *): 6:40 6:22 6:19 6:11 6:14 6:30* 6:05 6:06 6:48* 6:01 6:12 6:21 7:29* 6:04 6:07 6:09 6:15 6:16 6:07 6:03 5:43 5:52 5:47 5:46 5:37 5:28 and 2:50 (5:21 pace) for last .53.

Garmin report: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/203989053

Oh and the highlight of the week was I tied my weekly mileage all-time PR at 72 miles.