The week after the 30K plus

On Sat. I completed the 30K. At least the planned 30K. We ended up doing 19.3 miles in total. I can say that some of us (mostly me) complained about the extra .8 of a mile . . . a little bit. Mostly when it became clear when we were 8 miles away from the end of the route that we would be running almost a mile further.

This is my longest run since the marathon. Unlike my 15 mile run, there were no stomach cramps! The 15 mile run two weeks prior was very disappointing because I fell off-pace. This past Sat., I felt good and kept pace. I worried and thought about the stomach cramps a few times, but felt good. I tried to change what I eat. The night before went with pasta and then the morning before the run I woke up extra early and had a Peanut butter sandwich. I switched the GU for powerbar Gel. I also swapped the Cytromax for Nuun. No problems!

We ran at a 9:40 pace (due mostly to walking breaks). I'm not sure about the planned walking breaks. Last year in my training, I ran straight through and stopped only if necessary. Yet, last year I ended up injured so I'm up for anything.

The big key is that my knee is holding up. Both my knees were sore on Sat, but by Sunday they were getting better. Then by Monday morning there felt just as good as before the lone run. So on Monday night I did a 4 mile hill run and had a pace about 8:30. Tonight (Wed.) I went to the track and put in some Yasso 800s. I had a very busy week (had a speech on Wed) and got little sleep the prior two nights so I was very unsure of whether I would increase the number of 800s. I did 4 and 5 800s the prior two weeks. Today I ended up doing 6 800s (just what I had hoped to do). I ran them between 3:16 and 3:30. The first couple I ran a bit too fast (around the 3:16-3:20 mark). The last 4 800s I was between 3:26 and 3:30. It's a good workout.

Sometimes I just don't understand people. There is a group of Team in Trainers there every Wed night and they generally leave in a group (during my run). Some of them will cross the track, walking very slow, not paying attention, and leaving no room for runners to pass. I just don't get it. I almost ran into a lady today because she is fumbling around and changing her direction while she is walking across the track. One of her teammates had to tell her to watch out.

There also was a man who was at the track and he was running very fast. I was doing my 800s (about 7 min a mile pace or a bit less) and this guy was just going right by me. Impressive.

With my knee holding up, I am really excited for the marathon this year. I am starting to believe that I'll be able to complete my training injury free . . . while learning a lot about how to run.

My Yazzo 800s splits:

Split	Time	Distance	Elevation Gain	Elevation Loss	Avg Speed
1	0:02:13	0.25	85	38	8:52
2	0:03:16	0.5	38	36	6:31
3	0:03:03	0.31	25	43	9:50
4	0:03:19	0.5	84	54	6:38
5	0:03:20	0.31	27	27	10:48
6	0:03:26	0.5	28	33	6:52
7	0:03:32	0.32	28	50	10:59
8	0:03:26	0.51	28	24	6:48
9	0:03:57	0.32	30	16	12:27
10	0:03:26	0.51	88	35	6:46
11	0:03:31	0.25	49	65	13:59
12	0:03:29	0.51	0	57	6:53
13	0:00:04	0.01	9	0	6:51
Summary	0:40:08	4.8	520	476	8:22

Looking at my splits, I really went out too fast in the 800s initially and that slowed down my cool-down period between the splits later on.

Excited for the 30K training run this Sat

It has been a while since I have posted about my running. I am still plugging away. Hoping my knee holds up. The big test is going to be this Sat for a 30K run (18.6 miles). I'm planning to take it easy and just try to make it through the run. Here are some updates:

1. The longest run so far was a 25K (15.5 miles). My knee did just fine with the help of the tape and brace. The problem was after mile 10 my stomach had major cramps. It was very disappointing because I'm not sure what caused it: the Gu or the Cytomax (power form). I'm going to try different products this week (Powerbar gel) and I'll mix my water with a different electrolyte supplement. Last year, I had cramps a few times. Hopefully, I can determine what works with my body so that these cramps won't pop up in the marathon.

2. I had a great run last week through Redwoods for 8 miles and no one nearby except for wildlife, including deers. It was a great experience. There are a lot of hills which made the run tough. But, it was still great.

3. I'm trying to push my training program forward with Hills and Speed work. Because of my knee I have been very cautions about running Hills and even running too fast. The last couple of weeks I have built up my Hill runs to about 4.5 miles of Hills. For the speed work, I head to the a local track and have been doing Yasso 800s. I'm hoping these well help me get through the marathon strong.

4. I'm really starting to look forward to the marathon. I'm starting to believe that my knee will hold up (big test this weekend). I know I always comment about it. I'm trying to tell myself not to comment about it. But, for me, it's still one run at a time and see how things feels.

5. This week I'm also going to try eating a light breakfast before my long run (well maybe at least an hour before my long run). I generally do not eat before the run. I have to start reading up on what's good to eat before the run. I have some good ideas.

Overall - the training is going well. Most of all, I'm just really happy that I can run (there were about 4 months there when I could not run because my knee would be too painful).