Wednesday, January 26, 2011

the first 18 ...

So, National Marathon is eight weeks away, which makes this week is the first 50+ mile week on the training plan. It's not really the 50+ miles that seems intimidating. It's the first REAL long run on the plan that carries the intimidation factor.

18 miles.

Historically, 18 miles has meant 3+ hours of running. 3+ grueling hours that I was not looking forward to. Add that mental block to the fact my two marathon buddies are out for this week's long run, and I really wasn't feeling it. (Note: G is taking a forced rest week right now and KC is traveling this weekend.) Oh, and then there was the issue of J being away on business this week. And a busy weekend with guests and birthday celebrations ahead of us (Dilly is turning two on Friday). All I could see was that running was going to be a struggle. But then, I got a break ...

A split long run.

Dizzle's BFF invited her and Doodle to play for the afternoon. Eager to have a few hours with just one child, I agreed. And then I saw opportunity. I could send the girls to play and put Dilly down for her nap, which would give me two hours to run uninterrupted on the treadmill.

Two hours = 12 miles. Add those 12 miles to the six, I could run before sunrise and I would be all set. And that's exactly what I did.

Yesterday, at 5:30 a.m., I met 3L for a quick six miles. We finished in 53:17 (8:52 pace).

Then at 2:30 p.m. (once I put my plan into action), I jumped on the treadmill for the last 12 miles. 1:53:35 later, I was done (9:27 pace). It wasn't ideal, but the 18 miles were completed and that stress was taken off my plate.

But the best part was that the pace was crazy fast (well, for me anyway). I ran the 18 miles in 2:46:52 with an average pace of 9:16. The last time I ran 18 miles, my average pace was 10:29. And the last 16 miler of my fall marathon training took me 2:46:46. That just seems crazy to me. Talk about a confidence boost.

29 comments:

Rae said...

Great job getting your miles in! And on increasing your pace!

Kerrie said...

Slow running paying off?

Nice job!

Anonymous said...

Awesome job T!

Heather -Momma Running Amok said...

you are a master at time management! Isn't it great when you see improvements that radical in your running distance and pace? My 1st 20 miler this training cycle was done in 3:27 and the 2nd I actually ran 21 miles and did that in 3:25....a mile further and 2 minutes faster.

Silly Girl Running said...

Woohooo! :)

You are so going to get a sub-4 on that marathon! :)

Alinda said...

Totally betting on sub-4!!!

Laurie said...

That is a huge drop in your pace! Awesome job! I'm still amazed that anyone can run so far/long on a treadmill... very impressive.

dawn @ running the dawn said...

that's so exciting! last cycle my first 18 miler was the jump in pace and confidence that i needed to carry me all the way through the rest of the training. looking good girl!

Christine said...

Awesome!!! You are getting speedy! I'm also impressed you can run 12 miles in the treadmill! I'm way to bored and have to stop after 5 miles :) Good job!!

Twila and Scott said...

That is great! I love getting "fast". I am getting ready to take a jump in miles too! I agree its not actually running it; just how low it takes you away from everything

Runners Fuel said...

great plan and great time!!

Emz said...

awesome.
awesome
awesome.

loved. this. especially the 12 on the mill part!

Katye said...

you are going to rock national!

Shellyrm ~ just a country runner said...

I think splitting the mileage also helps avoid injury. Nice job getting the distance done.

Mel -Tall Mom on the Run said...

YIPPEE speedy!! I love the creative ways you fit it all in buddy!

Stacie said...

That's awesome!!! It gives me hope.

Julie @ HotlegsRunner said...

woohoo! Good job girl!!! =)

Stefanie D. said...

You are awesomesauce! :D

Kristin @NyceLife said...

That's so awesome! I never would have thought to split it (though I am such a noob runner, I wouldn't have thought of lots of stuff). I would have just not done it- but now I know better, yay for inspiration!

Rene' said...

great job my friend! i can't wait to be back on my plan on Monday. (fingers crossed!)

Aimee said...

Nice job getting that 18 miler done! Woohoo!

Ammie @ domesticallyobsessed.com said...

That IS stressful, and it IS hard to schedule with kids! I don't know how you do it, but GO YOU!!!! Good for you for sticking with it and committing, you go girl!

I got my treadmill today, hit it for the first time to break that puppy in, and couldn't stop smiling when I was done. Since it's my first time back in over 2.5-3 months (I Can't remember!), and I am in my second trimester, I started off slow. I got in 1.8 miles while my daughter hung out on my bed, and then took a small breather and decided to call it a day. I'll be back on tomorrow hopefully to finish 2 flat. The one thing I notice is my pace is MUCH more cumbersome and SLOW. Sheesh! I had a 10 minute mile pace and now I'm at 12-13! But as you say, noone's going to make fun of a pregnant woman at the race, so screw it.

Great post and AWESOME inspiration!

ps-everyone is A-Ok, but yesterday my daughter, 2.5 year old angel baby girl, had to be rushed to the doctor due to a dislocated elbow. It was HORRIBLE, it just hung there, I thought it was a break. So scary, but they fixed it in two minutes, thank goodness. I needed a few days to be away from writing and just focus on my babies, you know? Thanks for teh support, Tonia! You da best!

H Love said...

very speedy!

April said...

Great job! Speedy!

Carly said...

Aw yay!

ajh said...

Great job and great strategy for getting the run in.

ihaverun said...

Great 18!! I've done several split long runs myself. When it comes to having kids, you just have to make it work for you.

Kurt @ Becoming An Ironman said...

The treadmill makes it REAL easy to push your pace because you see it displayed right in front of you the whole time and it's maintained for you.

However, the furthest I've gotten on a treadmill is 3.22 miles. I get so incredibly bored with running unless it's outdoors. I keep meaning to give "books on tape" a try, but I've gotten away from wearing the mp3 player during workouts lately.

How do you find treadmill running compared to outdoors?

Julie D. said...

way to get it done!! the long run always intimidates me and it's always crazy to me the lengths we all go to 'get it done'. Enjoy your weekend!!