MARATHON (MY plan)

So, you want to run a marathon!

Where to begin?

Well, I think step 1 is to begin with a plan! Ordinarily, I would say step 1 is to get get fit for your most important piece of equipment, a pair of shoes, by the best running specialty store in town, i.e. The Trak Shak, but I'm assuming if you're considering running a marathon, you're seasoned a bit and have already made this wise decision. (Note, I will obviously be talking about shoes in future installments of this marathon blog.)

So, back to The Plan! There are many, many things to consider when choosing a marathon training plan. You must consider your running background, your goals for this distance, your lifestyle, and the conditions under which you'll be training. There are also many, many generic and successful plans you can find by clicking on a link embedded in a marathon website. For instance, check out the Mercedes Marathon training program here! If your goal is to simply "GET TO THE FINISH LINE" follow this plan to a T, and it will get you there! There are also a multitude of other plans on major marathon websites that can help you achieve time goals and even get you to a Boston qualifier! My plan? Well, let's just say it was a bit more "fluid"!

It all started with a friend and fellow Trak Shak'er, Q, and me deciding to train for a marathon in 2014. We threw a couple of races around and came up with 7 Bridges in October. The decision was made about 22 weeks out from race day. Most training programs you see are around 20 weeks, thus my first snafu! Most of my training "blocks" in college were around 10 weeks! This meant 10 weeks of focus and very hard training centered around a goal race. TWENTY WEEKS sounds like an eternity! So, I did what I think all aspiring marathoners, half marathoners, 10K'ers, and 5K'ers should do, I USED MY RESOURCES! When you hear the term resources now-a-days, the first thought in everyone's mind is the internet, but when you live in such an awesome running community, like Birmingham, with magnificent coaches, an unbelievable track club, running Mecca like The Trak Shak, and dozens of accomplished marathoners running and training every day, you shouldn't surf any further. I am extra lucky to work in "Mecca" with college coaches, Boston qualifiers, everyday runners, and my old coach, who just so happens to be an Olympic Trials Marathon qualifier! So, I asked the old coach, Scott, what do you think about me training for a marathon in October? His first response, "How many weeks?". When I say 22, he automatically, knowing all of the aforementioned criteria and most importantly, ME, says "It's too long."  These simple words of advice meant so much for me and my plan!

OK! Finally! MY PLAN! Considering the factors I mentioned in the second paragraph. My running background: I ran in college, have run a bit since, have trained for and attempted one marathon, unsuccessfully, and have had a long laundry list of lower leg running injuries. My goals for the marathon: honestly, to finish! My lifestyle: I work full time, have a beautiful family, travel some, run regularly, and like beer. The conditions under which I would be training: A FREAKING, ALABAMA SUMMER!

The first 10 weeks were focused on two things, strength and consistency, AND there was no thought of the marathon. I wanted to keep my mileage around 40 miles per week, with one hard work out, mainly hills, and one long run no longer than an hour and twenty minutes. It seems pretty straight forward and maybe to a few, rather conservative. The main goal was to stay healthy! I basically committed to a 12 week marathon program!

The first 10 weeks, CHECK! Consistent and healthy! Now, down to the nitty-gritty! Two main focuses during this last 12 week block, the long run and the workout. Considering my struggles with the heat and humidity of the Summer, I decided to focus more on time with my long runs, rather than distance. I knew I was going to have to adjust my pace considering the humidity, so I didn't "sweat" the distance. If I was going for an hour and 40 minute run and only got in 12 miles, so be it! The long runs were to start at an hour and a half and increase by 10 minutes each week. That would have gotten me to a 3 hour long run, 3 weeks from the marathon. PERFECT! Or so I thought! About 7 weeks out, my wife and new head coach, said, you may want to think about picking it up a bit, and she was right! While focusing on time rather than distance helped me slow it down a bit, struggle through some soupy conditions and not force mileage, it was really holding me back from getting in those 18 & 20 milers that are necessary for the marathon. Luckily, the weather started to cooperate a bit and I was able to nail down two 18 milers, a 20 miler and a "sufferfest" of a 22 miler!

The one workout a week shifted from the early hill repeats to intervals. I knew I needed to do some longer intervals, and was really dreading it! Why? The first workout of cross country season, after returning from Summer break was MILE REPEATS! I dreaded that workout every year! The first was 4 x mile at 1 minute faster than easy run pace, so 6 minute pace. I nailed the first workout and that boosted by confidence! The next three weeks were 5 x mile, 6 x mile and 6 x mile. During the last workout, I tweaked my calf a bit, and knew from past bad experiences with calf issues, I had to change something. This is where age really helps! I actually listened to my body and shifted my workouts from repeats to more tempos. That next week I hit a 5 mile tempo at just over 6 minute pace, and what do ya know, no calf issues! The tempos increased to my final workout before the marathon, a 12 miler with 10 miles at just under race pace. Those 10 miles were all around 6:40's.

FINALLY! The taper! When I was younger, I hated the taper! You go from this intense routine of not missing runs or workouts, moving your schedule around to make sure you fit in your long run, trying to get in bed early, and focusing on hydration, to BACK OFF! BUT man I was craving the taper, and I took advantage. If the schedule said 8 miles, I did 5 or 6. My last "long run" was a 13 miler two weeks before and then after that, there wasn't a run longer than 6. I really felt fresh come race day.

Well, I may have gotten a bit long winded with this post! I think my reasoning and point of sharing this plan is to relay to our customers and followers, while you HAVE to have a plan, it's very important to listen to your body and adapt accordingly! If I would have followed a 20 week, intense workout plan, I would have ended up on the injured reserve, looking to do Rocket City in December! While my mileage wasn't really high, and my workouts weren't overly intense, I was very pleased to have reached my training goal, which was simply to make it through healthy, because what's the point if you can't make it to the start line?!!

OK! What's next? Another opportunity for me to get long winded!!! 22 weeks and over a dozen pairs of shoes to mention!! Stay tuned!

MARATHON (in retrospect)

Well, I DID IT!!! It's been a LONG time coming, but I finally marked "Finish a Marathon" off my bucket list! I had all intentions of posting throughout my training, but then two thoughts occurred to me! First, while the training was difficult in the hellish Summer, I was healthy, and call me superstitious, I didn't want to jinx it! Second, while I have known the fundamentals and basics of training for a marathon for a LONG time and have been lending my advice to our customers for almost 20 years, I had a bit of a struggle with my confidence during this training block and thought maybe I should finish one of these things before I start posting "my" training tips! So, here I am, a marathoner, as one of my friends put it in a text on Sunday, and here's my blog plan! I'm going to start with a commentary in this entry and then follow up with a "series" of my learning experience, because training for and racing 7 Bridges Marathon was NOTHING if it wasn't a learning experience!

The race started at 7 AM, which on the western border of the Eastern Time Zone, means DARKNESS! The temperature was around 50 and the humidity, while we were right next to the river, was surprisingly low. Everyone gathered in Coolidge Park, which as I mentioned, is right next to the river with the John Ross Bridge overshadowing. I'll be honest, I had no idea how I was going to feel and how the race was going to go!! My training over the prior 3 weeks went pretty piss poor. OH, and did I mention I had never run that distance before! The only confidence I had was in the plan I had come up with.  Every single marathoner I talked to leading up to this race warned me NOT to go out too fast, so the plan was to go out around 7:15's to 7:20's through at least 10 and hopefully, gradually increase the pace to the finish!

The race started, and man, I have to say, race day really makes your legs feel good!! The adrenaline! The crowd! That bib on your shirt! It all adds up to making it really, REALLY hard to hold yourself back and stick to your plan! BUT, I did it! I held that comfortable pace through 12, averaging just over 7:10's. Now, this next part, you may have read about on Facebook or noticed if you just so happened to look at the results. Miles 8 through 11.5 are on the Tennessee Riverwalk. Just after mile 12, you are supposed to exit the Riverwalk through a parking lot and take a right to the next bridge. Well, I did that, and I believe I may have been the first person to do so. The leaders kept following the Riverwalk and ran the course backwards. When I crossed paths with them at mile 15, I began to wonder how the race directors were going to handle the situation. I know most of the rules and understand the reason for time checks on a course. As of now, I am listed as the overall winner, but I know I don't deserve it. I hope this can somehow be resolved!

Back to the race!! At mile 13 is when my gradual progression run began. The pace comfortably dropped, each mile faster than the previous by a few seconds, except for the 16th mile which was a steady uphill bridge for what seemed like forever! The progression continued on 18 through 22, going from 6:45 to 6:37. I looked at my watch with 4.2 to go, had 31 minutes til 3 hours and thought, "Oh, I've got sub-3!!"!! Then mile 23 happened! My right groin cramped just before a water stop. I couldn't believe it! I felt so good to that point! My first thought was to try to run through it, but since the water stop was right there, I decided to walk through and drink some Powerade. When I started back up, I again gradually picked up my pace paying close attention to my groin. Then, at mile 25, my left hammy cramped, and I knew sub-3 was gone. I wisely walked through another water stop, taking some Powerade, took it really slow up the final climb, and jogged it in to a smooth 3:05, which won me 1st Place Master (HA!), NOT 1st Overall!

Going back to what I said in the beginning, I had no idea what to expect! I've heard countless stories of first marathon experiences! There are two things I was extremely surprised by. One, I can NOT believe how good I felt at 20 miles! I kept waiting for the same sluggishness that developed in my 22 mile long run to creep up on me, and it never did! I chalk that up to a proper taper. Two, to answer the age old question, will I run another? I am completely surprised my answer is a resounding YES! I mean, I have to run Boston, right?

So, lessons learned! Keep an eye on the blog for some installments about training, shoes, nutrition, and race weekend. I can finally properly lend such advice! 

FINALLY! I have to mention a key reason for such a great first marathon experience! My wife Lena and Mom, Shelia! Man, they took care of everything! From travel, reservations, restaurant, OUR KIDS!! I literally only had to worry about getting my ass to the finish line! It was HUGE! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!