Can we get a name so we can follow you during the race and see how you are doing - I want to make a couple of casual wagers with friends.
Mile 26.2 is perfect. Don’t change that part.
Nope you have to wait for 8 weeks for a name. Enough work and you’ll be able to figure it out though. Look for representation by the Centennial state in Philly. Also should be able to see enough results to see this is not a pipe dream time.
Hi Mike Sharkey.
I should be ready to run 2:22-2:24
if you are going to run that time you don’t need anything more than a couple of sips of water on the course from mile 6 on.
you could just take a gu packet with caffeine @ 13.1 and mile 18, by the time you get to mile 20 your stomach will not have enough blood flow to uptake any significant amount of calorie. if you try and take in too many calories late in the race it will make you feel sick, you should have the mitochondrial density from running 90 miles a week all summer where you won’t have any problem with the distance, assuming you come in well rested.
More important than worrying about stuffing yourself silly out there is to super-hydrate (6-8 liters) the night before until you are waking up pissing clear the night before the race. in the morning drink 1 liter water and 1 large gatorade, 300-600mg caffeine, 3 hours before race. you should be pissing clear 1 hour before start. take last piss before race (on the start line for all that i care) and you should be good to go! make sure you eat big 2 days before the race and just eat normal the day before. also… take 2-3 days off prior to race, 3 days off is what i find ideal for marathon.
also the from 7 days out from the race… run no more than 60 mins per run, doubles are ok, but you don’t want to run for more than 60 mins, last long run should be 14 days out longest run should be 4 weeks out (maybe a 30 miler for you?), 3 weeks out should be highest volume week, maybe 100+ miles for you.
also
DON’T EAT ANYTHING ON TRAINING RUNS, YOU SHOULDN’T “BONK” IF YOU ARE RUNNING FOR 180 MINUTES OR LESS, IF YOU ARE BONKING ITS MEANS YOU ARE RUNNING TOO HARD! ITS FATIGUE NOT GLYCOGEN DEPLETION! DO A 30 MILER @8min/mile pace or S-L-O-W-E-R…
As promised I’m reporting back. Cliff notes version:
- I got pretty sick right before the Philadelphia Marathon, but still started the race. Went thru the half in 1:11, but dropped out @ 14 due to cramping and inability to keep gels down.
- Was able to beg my way into Cal International 2 weeks later.
- Jogged around for a couple of weeks, did one workout once my calves were sorta recovered.
- Ran CIM just on HR, keeping it at the low end of MP for the first 1/2, came thru @ 1:13, planning on a slight negative split due to the course profile.
- Despite my best efforts (roughly 3 gels over the first 20), I still bonked at 23, really locking up at 24. There was an aid station @ 23 I bypassed, thinking I could gut it out to the finish. Big mistake (you’re not exactly on your mental A-game at mile 23). Went from 5:35’s to 7:00+ for the last 3. Finished in 2:32 after dragging it in for the last 3. Those were some pretty horrendous miles.
A few conclusions:
- First off, my altitude conversion (from Denver) was about 5 sec/mi too optimistic. I was thinking ~8-12 when it was more like 3-7 sec. A suitable goal range would have been 2:24-2:26 (vs 2:22-2:24). Part of that was the sickness and 2 week layoff after try #1, but 2:22 would have been a miracle-of-miracle performance. I felt like my HR intensity at CIM was dead on, if my gel consumption skills would have been up there with my running skills.
- The practical side of fueling needs much more work. It was 28 deg at the start and my hands were totally numb until about 10K. I dropped my gels twice (luckly I was smart enough to stop and backtrack to get them), and once I got them open they were pretty frozen & I was probably only getting 2/3 of a gel. It sounds stupid, but I felt like a total spaz.
- Need to carry 100% of my own nutrition. I carried 2 gels and relied on the aid stations for the other. Trying to navigate the aid station with a bunch of other dudes running 5:30’s with crocodile brain is easier than it sounds. Worth it to take the 1 oz weight hit. Also I want to have a emergency gel to avoid the death march.
- CIM is a really neat race, I’d go back for sure. Not so with Philly. That is the end of the frekin’ earth. Looking at my CIM GPS file, almost every mile has a section run at near-or-under 5:00 pace. I tried to keep a sorta steady HR, so many miles had 6:00+ sections as well.
- Driving the 10K and half time down will be the focus of this spring/summer. I need to improve mechanics and lose about 5-10 more pounds until another attempt is a good idea. If I looked like a linebacker compared to the other sub elites.
So that’s that. I appreciate all of the help for ST, it is nice to have a place to throw out ideas.
Mike
hire a coach
.