Introducing some speed into Brooklyn Half training

Today's run (treadmill): 3.1 miles

I skipped Tuesday's speed workout due to a timing conflict but I put it back on the schedule for today. According to my training plan, this was supposed to be a tempo run that peaks at 10K pace. I've gotten out of sync on my speed work and thought I'd do intervals instead. Although this morning's weather was very nice, I was running behind schedule and elected to save time by staying indoors.

It wasn't until I got on the treadmill that I decided which workout to follow. Thinking at first that I'd run intervals, I began with a warm up at half marathon race pace. I wanted to go into the repeats with a harder than usual effort to prime myself for speed. Once I got going, I considered the tempo idea. I then thought about SIOR's suggestion that I introduce some sustained speed into one of my weekday workouts for a couple of miles. I decided to continue with this half marathon pace for the duration of the run.

Except for intervals, I have not done many runs lately at sub-10 paces. This is because I've focused on endurance and distance rather than speed. I was surprised to find myself comfortably running at a mid-9:00 pace this morning. I wondered if I could keep this pace the entire way through and it turned out that I could. All this distance and hill running are clearly helping my stamina.

It's scary to think that I only have four more training weeks before my taper week. The longest run I've done so far this year is eight miles, but I did fairly well with that. I'm hoping that I'll continue to progress as I move into double digits. My average HR finally exceeded 85% of max today. If I can push a little harder and sustain it, I should start seeing my speed improve as well.

It's been four months and we still don't miss you

Vitamins or diet? She's on the case!

Today's run (street): 5.9 miles

Back in December, I wrote about a study that was reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine about the efficacy of multivitamins. According to their findings, taking multivitamins provided no preventative benefits related to cancer, heart disease or any other chronic illnesses. Unlike medicines such as ibuprofen that show benefits within the hour, we've all taken it on faith that multivitamins work. According to the Pfizer Consumer Healthcare (Centrum vitamins) marketing department, "Multivitamins are intended to be used as part of an overall healthy lifestyle and can help fill the gaps in one’s diet to help ensure people get the recommended amount of key vitamins and minerals needed each day."

So do they actually help? Well the Emerging Runner family decided in December that those findings were a good enough reason to stop taking them. Almost four months have passed since we last took our daily doses. Besides a few days of sneezes and sniffles in February, we haven't missed them at all.

Our family eats well, with plenty of whole grains, vegetables, salads, lean meats and plant-based proteins. I'm betting that our diet provides sufficient protection. Therefore, I'm going to conclude that multivitamins are unnecessary, at least for healthy eaters. I did have a rough patch with my running this winter, but I attribute that to poor training rather than to either diet or the lack of a multivitamin.  

And those horse pills are no joy to swallow, either.

Men's Journal had an article in the March issue that restated these findings and offered other evidence that vitamin supplements don't work. I'd be curious to know how these conclusions have affected vitamin sales, or if most people continue to take them just to be safe.

This morning I had a very nice run around my surrounding neighborhoods. Now that I'm regularly exceeding five miles when I go out, I can feel a real difference in my endurance. Curiously, I started to feel a drop in energy around 30 minutes in, but within ten minutes, I felt as strong as I did at the start. This structured training seems to be working. Why did it take me six years to start following a plan?

High winds and slow paces

 

Today's run (street): 3.1 miles

There was a point in this morning's run when I told myself, after calculating my final pace, to remember how windy it was today. I know from many track workouts how wind can restrict speed. I once ran 400's where my pace varied by over 15 seconds depending on which direction I was running. Today's run, in terms of perceived effort (PE), felt much harder than Thursday's, but I ended up running 10 secs per mile slower.

The purpose of today's run to was to maintain my targeted half marathon pace over the prescribed three mile workout. That's exactly what happened on Thursday's 3 miler, but I barely broke a 10 minute pace today. During the few times on this run, when the wind was at my back, I felt like I was moving. That made me feel good about my form. I'd like to be running the easy 3-milers at around a 9:20 pace, but I'm not there yet.

The Runsketeers are doing a long run tomorrow morning. For me it's seven miles, TPP is doing 11 and SIOR is doing 16. We're trying to coordinate our rendezvous so we can all run together. Between our different paces, start times and meeting points, it's an interesting math problem. The route we chose will be hilly (I'm told). Seven miles of that should help me make progress on my endurance, but I'm expecting to be sore by the end.

Half training is coming together but I'm running out of road

Today's run (street): 5.8 miles

Busy route

I had hoped that yesterday's speed workout would spill over to today's base run, but that didn't happen. Right now I'm experiencing a gap between speed and distance. I can do one or the other, but not both. I'm trusting that it will eventually all come together. Today I focused on getting in my miles and had another good run. Good, but not fast.

Now that I'm getting beyond my usual training distances it's becoming harder to plan longer routes in my neighborhood.  I got around those limitations on Sunday by running the same loop multiple times. I couldn't face doing that again, so I played it by ear and hit almost every road, some of them two or three times.

It wasn't a particularly stimulating route but I did see lots of Town of Oyster Bay workers fixing roads. I guess it really is spring. I also ran by a woman sitting in her car brushing her teeth and spent the rest of my run wondering what that was all about. I ended up running longer than planned, but not by much. Tomorrow's workout is 3 miles plus strength training. I may not be hitting my ideal pace on long runs yet, but I'm feeling good about my training right now.

Long run, short route

Dark blue: primary loop, light blue: last mile

Today's run (street): 6.75 miles

I thought I had eight more weeks to train for the Brooklyn Half, but I discovered this morning that I'd mistakenly added an extra week into the schedule. I'm glad that I noticed this before it created a disruption with my plan. I had originally built in two 11 mile Sunday runs prior to my final 12 miles the weekend before the race. I needed to eliminate one of them to make the schedule work. I have two consecutive 10's before that and could have reduced that to one. However, I think I'm better off going 10, 10, 11 and 12, especially with the extra long runs midweek.

Corrected Sunday schedule

I had early plans today, but was still able to get today's base run done by mid-morning. Rain was threatening, so I decided to forgo Bethpage in favor of my local streets. I really dislike running in the rain and was concerned about getting caught in a downpour. I came up with the idea of running a set lap of roads that are close by my house. I figured, no matter how hard it might rain, I'd never be more than half a mile away. The thought of running the same one-mile loop 6-plus times wasn't appealing, but it was a practical approach.

Coming into this weekend, my batting average for good Sunday training runs was .000. The last two week's efforts resulted in difficult and demoralizing performances. I suspected the very cold temperatures on those days were the reason, and anecdotal evidence supported that. I had a miserable five mile run on Wednesday, but much of that can be blamed on the freezing winds. Today's temperature was over 40°, even with wind chill. I felt more comfortable as a result.

I was prepared for a tedious experience running the same loop over and over, but it turned out to be fine. The route I designed began with a moderate uphill section that lasted for the first half mile. The only negative about that part was the noticeable wind that made progress somewhat more challenging. Once I got past the incline, I had a reciprocal downhill almost back to my starting point.

It never rained, but a constant mist coated my glasses and required me to occasionally clear the lenses while I ran. Not a big problem. I started slowly and that really helped. I tend to start too quickly on long runs and it sometimes accelerates fatigue. Today I maintained a steady stride all throughout the run. I was happily surprised to find my energy level increasing midway through my fifth mile (ketosis?).

I was on the fence about whether I'd complete a full seven or cap the run at six. The lap I had charted was actually 1.05 miles, so I knew I'd get to 6.3 by default. I decided to go off route halfway through what would have been my sixth mile and added some distance. That ended up increasing my total by almost half a mile, not quite bringing me to 7. With the addition of an extra two miles on Wednesday's run (compared to the Higdon plan), I was fine with that.

Next Tuesday I'll attempt 6 x 400's outdoors and aim for 5.4 miles on Wednesday. Next Sunday the long run total jumps to eight. With a trouble free, almost-seven run under my belt today, I'm feeling much better about my training.

Running at "pace", as Hal Higdon puts it

Can my training get me here in 2014? 

Today's run (treadmill): 3.2 miles

Today's workout, per my training program, was 3 miles at "pace." I like Hal Higdon's site because he leaves nothing to interpretation. He explains it clearly on the training schedule page: "What do you mean by 'pace?'" I mean "race pace," the pace at which you expect to run the half marathon. That of course prompted me to ask myself, what I am targeting for race pace?

I ran my last Half in 2:08:47 which is approximately a 9:49 pace. In order to break 2:00 I would need to pace 40 seconds per mile faster. That's a stretch for me, but crazier things have happened. My 2:08 finish in 2012 was a full minute per mile improvement over my 2011 time. Still, I have little expectation that I'll break two hours this year. As a practical point, I have slipped in my race performance and didn't break 9:00 on any of my 2013 10K's. It will be interesting to see if my recent rebound, coupled with a focused half marathon training regime, will make a difference in May.

This morning was busy and that forced me to wait until 10:00 AM to start my run. My wife said that rain was expected mid-morning, so I decided to do my 3 miles @ "pace" on the treadmill. I chose 6.3 MPH which, if sustained for 13.1 miles, would yield a 2:03 finish time. I am feeling much stronger since last weekend, but I still have far to go before I can manage goal pace throughout a long run. The race pace training plus the weekend base runs will theoretically bridge my stamina and endurance enough to at least break my 2:08 PR.

Tomorrow is my second Sunday base run and I plan to meet the Runsketeers for 6 miles of fun. SIOC will be running Boston in April and needs to cover 17 miles tomorrow. We plan to meet at her 11 mile point and do the rest of the distance as a group run. TPP is still battling a respiratory issue and is forgoing a five mile race tomorrow in favor of our easier paced run. It's supposed to be cold on Sunday, so I need to figure out the right combination of gear. I'm dreading the hills on the Bethpage trail, but I know there's no easy path if I want to reach my goal time.

Winter winds down and training ramps up

Safety first!

Today's run (street): 4.4 miles

Spring starts tomorrow at 12:57 PM but you wouldn't know it by this morning's chilly temperatures. I was excited to get back to my neighborhood roads after so many (many, many) treadmill workouts. It's inevitable that I'll be writing a lament about the tedium of neighborhood running in the coming months. Right now, access to the roads is a treat.

I was anxious to get out today to validate that my recent sub-par running experiences were an aberration and not a trend. I was going on two day's rest and despite the cold, I felt like I was in for a good run. I wore my day-glo orange long sleeve jersey over a short sleeved bamboo-cotton running shirt. I was tempted to add another layer (the temperature was 33°) but I didn't want to feel restricted. I wore my medium weight track pants, a warm hat and gloves.

One new piece of gear I brought along was a clip-on blinking red LED light that I attached to the back of my shirt at the top. This light was a giveaway from one of my 2013 races and I came across it while looking for my HRM in my gear drawer. It's a really nice gadget and it barely weighs an ounce. Even with a bright orange shirt, I felt it couldn't hurt to also have a flashing beacon to get the attention of drivers.

Ten seconds into my run I knew I was in for a better experience than Sunday's. My target distance was 4.2 miles and I ended up covering almost 4.5 today. I didn't worry about my speed at all. Before I can sustain race pace over 13 miles, I need to increase endurance. My plan is to run increasingly longer Sunday runs and then run 80% of that distance on Wednesdays. Next Sunday I'll move up to six miles and the following Wednesday, my target moves up to 4.8. And so on, until the penultimate training week, where I'll run eleven miles on Sunday and 8.8 the next Wednesday.

Getting through today's distance was not a big challenge and I enjoyed the parts when the cold wind wasn't hitting head on and freezing my face. My pace wasn't impressive, but I ran a minute a mile faster than on Sunday. I'm buying into the idea that more miles and weekly speed work will eventually lead to better performances.

Tomorrow I'll get a break and will only need to cover three miles plus "strength" whatever that means. I know what it means. I just have to do it.

Why bad runs don't really matter

The long unwinding road

Both Saturday's relay and Sunday's half marathon "Week 1" training runs were disappointing for me. The good news is that it really doesn't matter. Running is one of those things in life that can lift your spirits or temporarily disappoint you. But as long as you aren't suffering a running injury as a result, there's really no excuse for feeling badly about one or two bad experiences.

That's why I'm looking forward to getting out tomorrow. I rested yesterday and took an additional recovery day today. It's still winter-y cold outside, but at least it's sunny and the snow is gone. The Hal Higdon Intermediate Half plan says that I should run 3 miles, plus strength training, on Wednesday. However, the Emerging Runner Training Plan™ says that I should run 80% of the prior weekend's longest run on Wednesdays. So that's what I'm doing. I do appreciate Hal's attempt to add more diversity to the training schedule, so I may add in a small amount weight or core training.

I gave myself a break on speed training today, but I will resume that next Tuesday. Without weekday access to the track, I can either do treadmill intervals inside, or run 400's along a road that's adjacent to my street. That long road has a slight grade when running south to north, but SIOR says that shouldn't matter. I'll need to figure out how to manage recovery periods if I choose the street route because I'll need to start each repeat at either the beginning or end of the road.

Steep road to the Brooklyn Half

Scene of the crime

Today's run (Bethpage Bike Trail): 5.25 miles

Have you ever had one of those long runs that felt so effortless that it seemed you could run all day? If that's the case, I am extremely envious, because today's kick-off to my Brooklyn half marathon training was the opposite of that. The one positive that came out of today's workout was that I planned to run five and I did it. However, the experience itself was not good and it raised some questions about my fitness.

I had every reason to think today's run would go well. Yesterday's race was only a two mile leg. Although it was a tough two, it wasn't an endurance challenge. I wasn't pleased with my lack of stamina that caused me to slow considerably a couple of times, but my Garmin showed I'd averaged under 9:00 for a good part of the time. I figured an easy run on the paved Bethpage trail would be a nice recovery.

It was much colder this morning compared to yesterday's race conditions. The temperature display in my car showed 28° and it was breezy outside. I had dressed for the cold, but the wind made it feel far more uncomfortable. But that was an irritant, not an obstacle. I felt fine for the first few minutes and it helped that my route went downhill for much of the first mile. By the time I reached the wooded section, just east of the park drive, I started feeling an energy debt. I made my way up some short but somewhat steep sections and realized this was not going to go well.

I often hit a wall around 30 minutes into a run, but I can usually manage through that. Today that wall came at the 10 minute mark and it never went away. Even at a 10+ minute pace, I felt weighted down. I think I'm starting to react to tree pollen that was released with the spring-like weather we had earlier this week. It may just be that all the indoor training on the treadmill at easy paces has softened me up for cold weather endurance running.

The tough running continued and I considered truncating today's distance to 4 miles. I decided to stick to the script and adjusted my speed to maintain forward motion. I wasn't happy to be running so slow, but I reminded myself that this was supposed to be a recovery run and I'd committed to this schedule. All the indoor training and the lack of real elevation on my neighborhood roads were working against me. The hills really took a toll on me today.

One down, nine to go

But this is why we train, right? I remember going from middle distance to double digit mileage the last time I did half marathon training. In a way it was tougher to get through a hilly six miles those first weeks than to double that distance after many weeks of base runs.  Next weekend I go for six. I'm thinking about resting Monday and Tuesday and then going for another four or five miles on Wednesday. Perhaps I'll run 80% of my previous weekend's distance on each mid-week run. I may use Tuesdays for weekly speed work. But not this week. At this point I need a couple of days of rest.

Wisdom of the (running) crowd

 

Today's run (treadmill): 3.2 miles

I found it interesting that three knowledgeable runners (Carla, Karl and SIOR) have all recommended a mid-week long run as part of a half marathon training plan. I generally run shorter distances in the middle of the week. My excuse has always been a lack of time. But people with schedules busier than mine seem to get them done. Here are strategies I heard this week that I will take to heart for my training:

Carla: "The key for me ended up being doing at least two 15+ milers. and another 7-10 mile run during the week. Plus a 10k, 15k, and 10 mile race, and progression runs in the buildup phase. In effect, more overall mileage. And more of it at hoped-for race pace."

Karl: "It's all about stamina and endurance. Speed is largely innate. The stamina (tempo and progression runs) and endurance (long and easy runs) workouts allow us to maintain whatever speed that we have over longer period of times."

SIOR: "I would run speed work on Tuesdays, a longish run on Wednesday (7-9 miles), and easy runs on Thursdays and Saturdays. Then when all is said and done, I would sign up for a fall marathon." [Editor's note: SIOR is a troublemaker who knows I will never run a full marathon.]

Right now, seven mile mid-week runs are a challenge, but once I get my base closer to double digits it could be managed. If I'm going to go out for four miles anyway, what's another half hour? And now that I'm comfortable with using the treadmill for speed work, I won't have the excuse that I can't run weekday intervals due to restricted access to the track.

Today's workout was another treadmill run. I had planned to run slowly in deference to yesterday's speed session, but I ended up doing a more intense workout. I hope that by resting on Friday, I'll be properly recovered for Saturday's relay. I keep telling myself that it's only a two mile leg, but going all-out for 17 minutes (if I'm lucky) will seem like a very long time.

Half Marathon training, your opinion is requested!

 

Today's workout (elliptical): 40 minutes

According to Athlinks, I've run thirteen 10K's, eleven 5K's, four 4 milers, four 8K's, two half marathons and a 5 mile race. There are a couple of other races that Athlinks doesn't list, but for the most part, that's my racing history. 10K is my favorite race distance because it requires both speed and stamina. Unlike 5K's that allow me to go all-out because I know that it will be over inside of 30 minutes, 10K's require a much more strategic approach.

10K, or 6.2 miles is also a friendly distance. Even if I've slacked off on my base training runs (likely), I can generally get through a 10K without much race specific training. In those cases, I don't come close to PR'ing, but I can manage through the distance. Half marathons are a different story. There's something about double digit distance running that requires me to really focus on my training. The toughest run I ever had was my first half marathon. It was so bad, a race volunteer offered to call a doctor as I crossed the line.

That experience taught me a lesson about being prepared. I'd thought I'd be okay running my usual 6 miles or so on Sundays, then upping that distance to eight and nine miles the two weekends before the half. It didn't help that I'd also acquired a knee problem at that time, but I blame my poor race performance on my failure to plan.

My Plan

I fared much better the next time. I realized that building a proper base was the key, so I dutifully headed to Bethpage every weekend and ran increasingly longer distances. I ended up improving my time by 15 minutes the second time I ran a half. The chart above shows the Sunday long run distance plan I created and followed. I updated the schedule to coincide with this year's dates leading up to the Brooklyn Half.

NYRR "Moderate" Plan

NYRR's does a good job sending updates about the Brooklyn Half to people who are registered for the race. The last email redirected me to their site where they'd posted three free half marathon training plans. The categories are Conservative, Moderate and Advanced. I'm not apt to follow a plan that prescribes training through the week, but I was interested in the weekly long run distances. I created a second schedule around the Moderate guide to compare it with my current plan (see above).

I did well the last time by increasing my long run distance about a mile a week, topping out at 12 miles the weekend before the race. The NYRR plan steps up and down, with a decided taper near the end. I assume NYRR knows a lot more than I do about this stuff, so there must be a reason for reducing the long run distances near the end. I'm reluctant to change from what worked for me last time, but maybe I should consider following the Moderate plan.

I will take advice on this, so please share your opinion.

Great progress, suddenly

Surprising results

Today's run (street): 3.4 miles

I think my training program is working. I've been encouraged by the improving paces I'm seeing after taking a more performance-oriented approach to my training runs. Overall, my average pace has dropped about 5% since I started training for Cow Harbor. The trend line was getting me closer to 9:00 per mile, but I hadn't yet reached that goal. That is, until this morning, when I blew right past it.

I wasted no time getting out today, hitting the road about 7:00 AM under very cloudy skies. Going out fast is becoming easier now, although I still suffer through the first few minutes while I hit my aerobic stride. The visual I keep in mind these days is putting my foot on the gas with no letup. Just like in a race, I know that to run faster, I have to think about running fast. Complacency only leads to slow results.

Like yesterday, I used my heart rate as a guide and saw that I was pretty much where I wanted to be. I considered breaking out of my 3 to 3.5 distance range that I typically follow on weekdays. I decided that while I'm developing my speed technique, I'll take a careful approach to adding weekday distance.

When I reached the last few streets that lead me back home, I decided to step it up even more. No reason to reserve more energy than what was necessary to get me to my driveway. After reviewing the metrics, I saw that I'd covered the last half mile at 5K pace. After mapping the run, I calculated that I'd paced 8:50 overall for the run. That was the fastest training run (excluding speed sessions) I've done since early February.

I was both surprised and pleased to have cracked the 9:00 threshold and encouraged that I surpassed my target. Tomorrow may be a good time to start working in a little more mileage while I try to hold the gains. I'm not expecting to repeat today's performance, but hey, you never know.

Cow Harbor training dissonance

After Bayview, the nightmare begins

Today's run (street): 2.5 miles

This morning's run was my last before Saturday's Cow Harbor 10K. As I worked my way through my daily route, I thought about the luxury of waking up tomorrow without the obligation of a run. I pushed myself to a reasonable level, mostly after the first mile, and completed the run close to my normal time. I was happy with the workout but, almost immediately afterward, I started to question whether I've properly trained for the race.

James Street in Northport, otherwise known as "Widow Hill", is Cow Harbor's vindicetis maximus. It's a half mile of steep road that starts close to the two-mile point in the race. In the past two years I've trained on the Cow Harbor course to ready myself for that hill. It's helpful to know at the start of the race that I've run that monster in recent weeks. This year, my training has been less focused. Though I did run some hills over the past few weekends, they pale in comparison to what I'll face on Saturday.

I'm also thinking about my taper. Some might think it's overkill to rest two full days before a 10K. But I like  knowing (even if it's just psychological) that my body is using that downtime to repair and strengthen my leg muscles. I'm debating whether to run through core exercises on Thursday and Friday to give my glutes, quads and hamstrings some extra conditioning. That's an impact free workout that just might make me feel better about my training so far.

The crossroad of speed and volume

My overall time at last May's LI Half Marathon was 2:08, which translated to a 9:49 pace. As race paces go, that was fairly slow (even for me). But my 2012 finish time improved almost 14 minutes over the year before. I would have liked to break two hours on the half, but my stretch goal for that race was to break 2:10, and I did that.

To prepare for this year's race, I'd looked at the challenge of running the half marathon as one of stamina, not speed. Interval training can be an effective way to prepare for a 5K, but I knew that the only way I could achieve a credible time for the half would be to train for distance. A lot of distance. Between mid-March and and May, I spent almost every Saturday morning at Bethpage State Park, doing progressively longer runs until I was satisfied with my conditioning.

This volume training was the key to managing my effort across more than two hours of continuous running. There's obviously a big difference in training for a 5K versus a half, but what about a 10K? A 6.2 mile race is double a 5K, but not quite half of a half. There's speed involved, but also enough distance so that endurance can become an issue.

For my upcoming 10K, I've decided to focus on pace during my shorter runs, but work primarily on volume and hills during my longer weekend runs. Hopefully, both strategies will meet somewhere in the middle to allow me to run my best at Cow Harbor.

Alarm clock rest day

Snoozing through my workout

I'm sure it wasn't a subconscious decision, but I forgot to set my alarm this morning and missed my opportunity to run. I wasn't too disappointed to see that I'd slept 30 minutes late, because I know I don't get enough sleep during the week.

I have meticulously planned this week's workouts so that I'll be close to peaking before Sunday's race. However, I don't think that missing today's run will make too much of a difference. I was planning to do core exercises or some light upper body work tomorrow, but I may swap that for a final pre-race run. The major training has been completed. I'll know on Sunday how well I prepared.

Learned my lesson, but can I handle the mileage?

Today's workout (elliptical): 25 minutes

As I come closer to the anniversary of my first half marathon, I'm thinking about both the training and my increased risk of injury. Most training programs recommend a careful approach to adding to weekly mileage, usually no more than a 10% increase per week. The idea behind this is to prevent overuse injuries that come from running longer distances than your body is ready to handle.

Last year I played my half marathon training by ear, occasionally stepping up distance without regard to the consequences. In my case it wasn't the aggregate mileage that hurt me, but the fact that I arbitrarily threw in long runs without building up to them. A nine mile run on the trails at Belmont Lake a week before the half marathon created a knee problem that plagued me throughout the race.

This year I'm taking a practical approach to my training and, hopefully, I'll be better prepared on race day. Since I can't really increase my mileage between Monday and Friday, I'll need to step up my long running on the weekends. This weekend I'll need to total 13 miles, by April 7 weekend I'll target 18 and, before my taper, I'll need to cover 21. Easier said than done, but it looks like I'm going to become very familiar with the Bethpage bike trail.

The challenge of fitting in my training miles

Today's run (treadmill): 25 minutes

This is going to be a busy week. In fact, yesterday I didn't even have enough free time to post. This morning I eased back into my running routine with a treadmill workout that seemed to go by very quickly. Perhaps it was the distraction of all the things that I need to to get done that offset the usual tedium of treadmill running.

I've been thinking a lot about my approach to training for the half marathon. Last year I made the mistake of under-training in March and early April and then over-training in the weeks leading up to my race in May. The result was a woeful performance caused both by a knee problem and insufficient conditioning. I'm looking to correct that this year.

Right now I'm aiming to cover at least 90 miles for both March and April. That plan will have me averaging just over 20 miles per week. The key to this will be my weekend runs where I'll have time to cover distances greater than six miles on a single run. I really need to figure out whether the bike trail at Bethpage is open because it provides me the most practical way to stretch out a run of ten or more miles.

This weekend will be the start to this training. Ready or not, here I come.

Committing to the distance(s)

It was a good weekend for running. Two colleagues who always check in with me on their weekend running both reported great experiences. I had a decent long-ish run on Saturday and an invigorating trail run yesterday, on a course best described as nature's roller coaster. This morning I was pleased to hear that my friend and colleague FS achieved a PR for a 10K race on Saturday. She wasn't even trying to do that. It was the zen of the run.

My goal for this month was to exceed 70 running miles. After tomorrow's run I'll probably come in just at 69. I averaged 73 running miles per month in 2011, plus three miles per week on the elliptical machine. I think I made a critical mistake by under-training on distance in the three months preceding my half marathon. My training mileage peaked in March at 74 and plummeted to below 60 in April. No wonder I struggled in the last miles of that race in early May.

For the first time ever, I'm going to write out a training plan that will help ensure that I cover the distances I need to get my base up where it needs to be. It's nice to head out the door with no plannned distance. I can cut it short anytime I feel like it. But if I go out knowing that I can't come home until I've reached seven miles, I'll make sure I do just that.