Well, it's ironic that on the day of the 114th running of the Boston Marathon, I had my very first crash and burn during a 22 mile long run. And it was MONUMENTAL! To start with, the day ended up being sunny and far warmer (close to 80 deg. F) than expected. My allergies were hitting, too, and my lungs never opened up. My breathing was labored from the start. My heart rate crept up far too quickly, too. Add to that some dead legs and it was inevitable. I could tell by mile 5 that this wasn't going to be my day. If I was a smart, reasonable man, I would have turned around and returned with an easy 10-miler and lived to fight another day. But I'm "better than that" (or dumber and more stubborn that that - more on that comment later) and hey - it was in my plans for today to run 22 miles, dagnabbit! I ran out of liquid at mile 14, but was able to refill at around 17.5 mi. I was carrying a 22-oz bottle of weak Heed/water mix, a gel flask with just water, and a gel flask with watered down Hammer Gel. I also took a couple of Endurolytes, since I was sweating a lot in the heat. By mile 13, I had to start taking walk breaks. First a tenth of a mile walk followed by 9/10ths of a mile run, then a 2/8 ratio, then a 2.5/7.5 ratio. That lasted until about mile 18, when the walking and running was about 50/50. But even that was too much (my stomach wasn't having it, and I was getting dizzy), so I walked, painfully and completely shot, the last mile and a half. When done, I called my wife from my truck. She was concerned about me driving home. It was justified, since I barely made it. I went straight to the bathroom to take care of business and saw myself in the mirror. I was as white as a sheet, with sunken in eyes and cheeks, and pale lips. I ended up laying on the living room floor for several minutes (too bad there wasn't a medical tent) before eating some tomato soup and starting to join the living once again.
This run taught me some lessons. I've hinted in recent posts that I've been pretty fatigued lately. I had a 7-day stretch recently that totaled 62.5 miles, including a road race and 21 miles of pacing a friend in an ultra (just over a week ago). I've come to the realization that, for my level, I'm training over my head. I got caught up in the miles (as heard in the latest song parody I did for Chris Russell's Run, Run, Live podcast, ep. 117) and have been just pushing too hard, too much. Add to that the realization that running is starting to feel like a chore and the joy has diminished, and I know I'm ready to back off. I was starting to believe that, since I'm training with an "advanced" marathon plan (for my first marathon, for crying out loud) that I AM that kind of runner. The reality is…no, I'm not. I was humbled today, and I needed to be.
I'll be taking a few days off this week to hopefully let my body, mind and ego recover a little. Sorry about the long post, but I had a lot to get off my chest.
Wow... I feel sorry to hear about this...and sometimes I feel like you...just try to get a break and realign your objectives...may be on a longer period of time?
ReplyDeleteCheers from Hong Kong!
"XTB" Xavi.
62.5 miles in a week ! Stop over-training ! for my first marathon, I am training 3-4 days a week for a total of not more than 36 miles a week. You are reaching alot of milestones, enjoy it. Pace yourself. Theres alot of guys from our group that are finding out the hard way that they aren't 20 anymore.
ReplyDelete-Mike
You got that right, Mike. Last year, I started VERY slowly and conservatively...all the way up until December, when I started ramping up the miles. Then I became seduced by that mileage and thinking, "wow, I'm building a huge base. If I can survive this, I'll be ready for the marathon". But alas, my 43-yr old body doesn't recover as quickly. Not yet, anyway. I still think that, eventually, I'll build up to that kind of mileage more comfortably. But for now, I do need to back off. Hopefully it's not too late!
ReplyDeleteColin, I think you have the answer already. It took me 3 years to finally "get it" that I should not push it, and follow a training plan that is appropriate for me.
ReplyDelete-Chris
Thank you, I had a really scary and crappy run last week crashed and burned after 3 miles out of 8, stopped at 5. not been able to recover after 10 hours of sleep and been sluggish all week before that run. Been training for my first sprint triathlon and because I am already a runner and do spin classes for cross training, picked an accelerated intermediate level training schedule. I thought I was really ready for it...Thank you for sharing this, maybe I am training above my means! Food for thought...
ReplyDeleteRoxanne, it's good to know we're not alone! Sounds like we'll both learn from our over-ambition!
ReplyDeletePushing through a tough training run teaches you how to do it during a race. Nice job not giving up.
ReplyDeleteTake it easy tomorrow but don't taper too fast, I think you're ready.
My thinking too, Arthur. And while it was going on, I was even thinking ahead to ultras, and although I wasn't going that far today, I'll need to learn how to incorporate the walk breaks once I do, and push through the fatigue. I guess there's some silver lining to today's cloud!
ReplyDeleteWhat Arthur said. Also, what did you learn from all of this? Let's see some answers buddy!!! If you didn't learn from it ... but I'm sure you did.
ReplyDeleteBTW: You need to update your "Longest week" ->
Well, I learned:
ReplyDelete•That I should have gone with my inclination to do this run NEXT Monday instead of today. I've gotten away with relatively high mileage (for me) for a couple of months now. I've know that I've been walking on the edge of overtraining for a couple of weeks now.
•That I need to hydrate more than I did (I didn't top off when I first passed the water fountain at mile 4.8 since there was a cyclist filling his bottles, so I had to refill on the way back, at mile 17.5 - should have been patient & waited on the guy to finish).
•And I guess I learned that one long run does not a training cycle make. This is probably my last 20+ mile run until the Marathon, and I hate to end on this note, but I've got a few medium distance runs left that will have much better results. Onward & upward!
Oh - as for the longest week category...that 62.5 miles was actually from Sunday to Saturday. I always count my weeks as Monday to Sunday, so that figure isn't "official" in my (a bit anal) records.
Oh, and I also learned:
ReplyDelete•That I don't seem to run well in the heat (which I already knew) - especially when I'm already tired.
I don't do well in the heat as well. Living in Africa doesn't really help that. Rest well and learn. I think these runs help a lot as time goes on. If you hit a bad patch again you'll know you've been there before. Taking enough fluids is vital. You'll be stronger after this. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteTake care of yourself Colin! Listen to your body and get some rest:)
ReplyDelete"Momma said there'd be days like this." Rest up then press on!
ReplyDeleteEeeeeek. Running out of water / nuun whatever is NEVER good. But, you learned a lesson it sounds like - and that is the important thing.
ReplyDeleteBTW - for the record, your run run live songs have been a RIOT.
Thanks all. Just wrapping up my second day of rest after my ugly bonk. Eager to get back out there.
ReplyDeleteAdam, thanks for the comment. I always enjoy recording those. I hate to admit that several of them are mostly autobiographical!