#blizzard2016 long run

Last week, as I was following the weather reports on the approaching Snowzilla Jonas and the minimum 18" that were forecast for my area, I was thinking (dreading?) about the upcoming Sunday 18-mile run that will have to be done on the treadmill. Here's my preparation the night before (4 dates @ at Miles 5 and 10; PowerGel at Mile 15).

The previous longest distance I've run on a treadmill was something like 13 miles, so I wasn't totally sure I could go the distance. The NordicTrack goes erratic when the duration exceeds an hour and sometimes just stops. Maybe the programmer didn't think anyone could handle the "dreadmill" for more than 60 minutes and left out the "if (duration > 60)" part. Anyway, that was partly why I reset it every 5 miles, each time taking about 10 seconds, while my cell phone stopwatch continued. Thus breaking the 18 miles into four parts, 3 x 5 miles and 1 x 5K, helped somewhat the mental aspect of the run. At least, "dreadmill" became just treadmill.

Still, 18 miles on the treadmill was a lot tougher than 18 miles on the road! This was so, even though I didn't simulate the hills of my usual long run route and kept the treadmill level for the entire run. And, I didn't carry the water bottle. To break the monotony, I made full use of the WBS (Work Breakdown Structure) applied to running (see Running WBS, Intestinal runs, and Running WBS (2)). Starting with the 18 miles in four parts and Miles 5, 10, and 15 being fuel+water breaks, I further broke the run down with water breaks every 2.5 miles and then individual miles of each 5-mile segment, as follow:

Mile 1: Warm-up, getting into the rhythm (even after the first 5-mile segment).
Mile 2: "Historical," especially the second 0.5 mile. The NordicTrack shows distance with three decimals (i.e., 1.xxx). So, 1.620 would be Pilgrims at Plymouth; 1.776 would be Declaration of Independence; 1.860+ would be Civil War, etc. Once the distance gets to 1.900, the historical events get more personal (birth years, high school, college, work, etc.).
Mile 3: Water break at mid-point.
Mile 4: Toughest mile of the five!
Mile 5: Fuel intake starting at ~4.500; first date until ~4.700; second date until ~4.900; third date just before 5.000 then water; fourth date just after resetting the treadmill for the next 5-mile segment (more on this later). At Mile 15 (end of third 5-mile segment), PowerGel starting at ~4.500 and mostly finished just before 5.000 then water; last bit of gel just after resetting the treadmill for the final 5K segment.

Beyond the individual miles, there were the individual tenths of a mile. And, ultimately, there was the present moment and being mindful of it, so that, as I ran, I knew I was running. I knew whether or not I was relaxed; I knew on what part of my soles I was landing; I knew whether or not I was breathing properly. Ultimately, being mindful makes running on a treadmill not that different from running outside.

Back to why that fourth date just after resetting the treadmill and starting the next segment. I didn't take water after the fourth date, so the sweetness lingered in the mouth. I'm still testing the results from Chambers et al. (2009), who showed how rinsing the mouth with a carbohydrate solution without swallowing affected performance. For the same reason, I took that last bit of PowerGel at the start of the last 5K segment.

Another thought occurred to me during the run, as I was looking at the open container of dates. Usually, on an outside run, the dates would be in a plastic bag and out of sight in my hand. On the treadmill, those dates were staring at me. Could there be some biochemical effect (on performance) from the visual cues of dates? :)

Anyway, what was the result of 18 miles of mindfulness? An average pace that's just one second slower than my current marathon PR pace set at Harrisburg.

Oh, if I could only maintain this kind of pace in an actual race--overall even and progressively negative! Of course, using the treadmill as a pacer did make this part of the mental aspect easier. For the past couple some years, my GMP of 8:58 would not have been enough to actually get into Boston. I would have needed about 8:51. So, for the current 16-week training cycle, I've been using 8:30 as a stretch GMP on which to base my long runs.

In case I've gotten you all eager to jump on a treadmill, here are some treadmill workouts. :)

As for me, after this #blizzard2016 long run, I went outside and did 8 x 1 hour core exercises--of the non-standard kind.

Like fine wine, getting better with age

Day 2 of the new year. A good time to take a look at what's coming up. I've three marathons planned for the year, two in the spring (Rock 'n' Roll DC in March and Pocono in May) and one in late fall (Harrisburg in November). All are repeats. 2016 is the last year I can still qualify for Boston in my current age group (3:55). Only RNR and Pocono would be in time for Boston 2017; Harrisburg would be for Boston 2018. By then, I'll be in the next age group, with an additional 15 minutes for qualifying (4:10). I've already run three races faster than 4:10 (two under 4:00). Mentally, I now expect myself to finish under 4:00 for all future races. Thus, for Boston 2018, I would basically "age" into qualifying, which is not very satisfying. It wouldn't feel as I "earned" it. :) Which is why all three 2016 races but especially the two in the spring will be run on familiar courses. I want to keep the number of variables as low as possible. I feel quite good right now, in Week 6 of the 16-week training cycle for RNR, and cautiously optimistic about "earning" my BQ in one or both of the spring races. :)

One scheduling change I've made is to not do an early September race. A race at that time (e.g., Potomac) would mean another opportunity to qualify for Boston 2017. But, the Washington, DC summer being what it is, it's just too hard to properly train and be ready by September. Instead, I plan to modify the first half of the 16-week training cycle for Harrisburg to partly train for speed. This way, I'll be able to actually race the 5K and 8K in September that my kids and I have traditionally run together. Those are always a lot of fun. In recent years, with the focus almost solely on qualifying for Boston, all the shorter races (half marathon and shorter) have become basically training runs; or, in the case of last year's September 5K, which was on the day after the Potomac Marathon, a post-marathon evaluation run!

Before totally leaving 2015, a quick look back. The 3-minute PR at Harrisburg definitely tops the list. But, the Walnut Creek Half Marathon time is a new course PR (previous one was two years ago). And, in all the shorter races, the finish times are all within the year-to-year delta--even with no focused speed training. What else?

The most scenic course? Golden Gate Trail Half.

The most photogenic finish? Kensington 8K. At least compared to the more usual finish with the gaping mouth. :)

So, my finish times are still improving; the adaptation curve is still staying above the aging curve; it's still mostly a matter of training. This is the advantage of starting serious training later in life, past the prime long distance running age of around 30. Most of one's PRs are still ahead! With that in mind, I plotted my marathon finish times for the last five years, since I began seriously to train, and to train for Boston. I excluded one of the 12 marathons completed, the Grandfather Mountain Marathon, which is basically, well, running up Grandfather Mountain. It's not really comparable to the other 11. The trend line for the plot shows a nice downward slope with increasing years--and age. In fact, if one were to extend the line, it would eventually intersect a finish time of 3:00 at around the year 2020 ... :) :) :)

Like fine wine, getting better with age!