Marathon Training - Weeks 10 & 11 Recap

If it's not one thing, it's another...a recent move caused major delays in my updates on our blog, both for my training recaps as well as more important posts for group runs and that sort of thing.

Week 10 Recap

Total Mileage:  6 miles (yep, only six miles!)

Workouts:

• Easy bicycle trainer session
• Easy six-mile run
• 7:58/mile average pace

Had to take it very easy during Week 10 since I was nursing that borderline injury with my left leg.  I ended up taking off four days straight, which was a test in and of itself as lame as that sounds.  I'm glad I rested so much, however, because Week 11 was a great turnaround.

Week 11 Recap

Total Mileage:  36 miles

Workouts:

• Two bicycle trainer workouts
• Including an aptly-named workout from the Sufferfest series called "A Very Dark Place"
• Interval run
• 2 x 2 miles (6:31/mile average pace)
• 1 x 1 mile (6:18/mile average pace)
• Nine-mile race pace run
• 1 x 5 miles (6:50/mile average pace)
• 1 x 4 miles (6:41/mile average pace)
• Six-mile maintenance run
• 8:16/mile average pace
• Sixteen-mile endurance run
• 7:48/mile average pace

I was very pleased with how I bounced back in Week 11, although a healthy dose of rest tends to yield favorable results.  I made an all-too-common mistake by running outdoors too late in the day for my race pace run, barely making it a few miles out before cluing into the fact it was far too hot and humid to run outdoors.

So I had to bag a few miles initially, but I quickly drove to a nearby gym where I hopped on the treadmill and pushed it for a faster-than-race-pace finish.

My sixteen-mile run was decent, but the weather really started to heat up for the last handful of miles.  Still doable and my nutrition lasted for the duration of the run, but only barely.

Time to start getting psyched...I have a twenty-miler coming up next week.  Now my training program is really starting to pour it on...