Another Record of Total Monthly Miles – 166!

During September, my marathon training was in full earnest and that can be easily seen when I look back on the miles I logged during the month. A total of 166 miles – mostly Easy Runs but I also had weekly Long Runs and a couple of Races. Notably, I finished the Rock 'n' Roll Philadelphia Marathon in 1:59:02 (a new PR!) and the Chestertown (Maryland) 5K in 25:25 (1^st in 50-59 Age Group and 9^th Overall!) Not bad, considering we had the rainiest month on record here in the Philadelphia area.

My October Challenge is going to be nailing long runs at distances that will be new to me. But, I am always up for a challenge! Over the next 3 weekends, I am planning to tackle 15, 18 and 20 mile long runs. That will take me to October 15 which will be just 4 weeks away from the Philadelphia Marathon!

I am feeling very confident that I can do this and it's a matter of staying focused, driven, and injury free!

Hoping that everyone out there who is training for a half or full marathon this fall is doing well….

Happy Running,
John

Week 9: Marathon Training

Training For:
Philadelphia Marathon
Sunday, November 21, 2011

Week 9:

September 26 – October 2, 2011

Day	Date	Session
Mon	Sep 26	45 min, Zone 1 – 2
Tues	Sep 27	60 min, Zone 2
Wed	Sep 28	REST
Thu	Sep 29	60 min, Zone 2
Fri	Sep 30	45 min, Zone 1 – 2
Sat	Oct 01	REST
Sun	Oct 02	210 min
Total		7.00 hr Run

Mon and Fri:
Optional Cross-Train Days

This is the last week of September, we are already into the Fall season and this begins week 9 of my 16-week training program for the Philadelphia Marathon. I've had a busy schedule these past 2 weeks and here are some of my more notable milestones:

• Set a new PR for a half marathon in Philadelphia on September 18 à
  1:59:02
  
• Finished 1^st in my age division (50-59) and 9^th overall in the Chestertown (Maryland) 5K on September 25 à
  25:25
  
• Logged 43 and 39
  weekly
  running miles over the last 2 weeks
  

My biggest challenge in this week's schedule is a 210 minute long run. I still need to plan when and where I'll be doing that so I still have more planning to do!

 

Happy Running!
John

1st – A New Accomplishment!

First in my age group (50-59) that is! Yes, this has never happened before so I'm a bit in shock. I ran the Chestertown (Maryland) 5K last weekend and I finished in 25:25 and that was good enough for me to place 1^st in my age group and 9^th overall! WOW. Finishing in the top 10 has always been one of my dreams and I was able to top it off with the 1^st place finish in my division. Sweet…. Very sweet indeed.

What made the event even more special is I ran with my nephew-in-law who also finished 1^st in his age group and he placed 4^th overall. Now, that is a great family team if I say so myself!

Now, I have to get serious about training for the Philadelphia Marathon. I am in week 9 of my 16-week training program and I need to focus on planning my long runs. The 20-mile long run is my next biggest milestone and I need to tackle it within the next couple of weeks. Wish me luck!

Happy Running,
John

Next Up – Chestertown 5K

This weekend, I'll be running the Chestertown 5K Race in Chestertown, Maryland. I haven't run a 5K since early July so this should be a good test for me. I've been mostly focused on easy and longer runs. And, of course, I competed in 2 half-marathons (Minneapolis and Philadelphia) since August.

I'll be visiting my sister and her family in Rock Hall, Maryland this weekend and I am taking advantage of participating in a local 5K while I am there. Also, I'll be running with (or I should say following) my nephew-in-law, Kirke! Although the weather does not look promising (rain is in the forecast for the next several days), it's going to be great fun to visit with family and get some good running in at the same time!

Happy Running Folks,

John

New PR Set for Half Marathon!

I did it! I was determined to beat my best time and I did beat it by 21 seconds! I have a new PR for the half marathon: 1:59:02. If it wasn't for the 'surprise' hill at the very end of the race, I would have come in under 1:59, I know it!

What I see as the biggest benefit of my training is the strength I feel in my running. Although I am only shaving seconds off my times at this point, I feel that I've been successful with building the strength phase of my training. I feel much stronger and more confident with my running and I continue to feel strong at the very end. Now, I need to add speed training to my program. I've read some programs that discourage first time marathoners from including speed training in their programs but I feel like I am ready. I'll take it easy and add speed workouts to my regimen once a week. I'll start that later this week.

As September (and summer) wind down, I have some wonderful reflections on my running accomplishments this season. I'll post more on that subject later this week.

In the meantime….

Happy Running!
John

Week 7: Marathon Training

Training For:
Philadelphia Marathon
Sunday, November 21, 2011

Week 7:

September 12 - 18, 2011

Day	Date	Session
Mon	Sep 12	45 min, Zone 1 – 2
Tues	Sep 13	60 min, Zone 2
Wed	Sep 14	REST
Thu	Sep 15	60 min, Zone 2
Fri	Sep 16	45 min, Zone 1 – 2
Sat	Sep 17	REST
Sun	Sep 18	Half-Marathon (Phila)
Total		6.00 hr Run

Mon and Fri:
Optional Cross-Train Days

It is so hard to believe that I am just 2 weeks away from being mid-way through my 16-week training program for the Philadelphia Marathon! Tomorrow begins week 7 and the highlight for the week is I'll be running the Philadelphia Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon next Sunday on September 18.

I am really hoping the extended weather forecast holds true as it looks like next Sunday will be a sunny day with a high of 69 degrees. Such a welcome relief from all of the rain we've had in August and September. I'm beginning to feel like a duck L

Happy Running!
John

Ready to Rock ‘n’ Roll Next Weekend

Today I finished my last long run (11 miles) before next Sunday's Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon in Philadelphia. I got an early start (7am) and I was thankful for that since more rain moved into our area later in the morning. Enough with the rain already!!

Looking at the extended forecast for next weekend, it looks like it will be a beautifully awesome day on Sunday, September 18 for a 13.1 mile run.

I am definitely ready for this race. I plan to proceed with my easy runs at the track this week and some light cross-training. No need to risk an injury at this point.

Happy Running!
John

Rain, Rain – Go Away!

My goodness we've had a lot of rain this week. After experiencing the wettest month of August on record for the Philadelphia area, September is starting off very wet, too! I've had to resort to running on the treadmill at the gym for the past couple of days and it looks like I'll be doing the same tomorrow morning for my last easy run of the week. Friday is going to be a REST day followed by my long run on Saturday.

I'm really hoping the weather turns around for the Philadelphia Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon which is quickly approaching on Sunday, September 18. That's just 1 week away from this coming Sunday!

Happy Running!
John

Week 6: Marathon Training

Training For:
Philadelphia Marathon
Sunday, November 21, 2011

Week 6:

September 5 - 11, 2011

Day	Date	Session
Mon	Sep 05	45 min, Zone 1 – 2
Tues	Sep 06	60 min, Zone 2
Wed	Sep 07	REST
Thu	Sep 08	60 min, Zone 2
Fri	Sep 09	45 min, Zone 1 – 2
Sat	Sep 10	135 min, Zone 1 – 2
Sun	Sep 11	REST
Total		5.75 hr Run

Mon and Fri:
Optional Cross-Train Days

Today begins week 6 of my 16-week training program for the Philadelphia Marathon. Bring it on!! My biggest challenge this week is going to be the weather as it is raining now and the rain is supposed to continue until Thursday – ugh! So much for running outdoors. As it stands right now, my plan is to make the trek to the gym around 6am tomorrow morning to get my miles and time logged for the day. It's been just about 8 weeks since I ran on a treadmill so this should be an interesting week.

Happy Running!
John

Lucky 13 – Miles That Is

Today was my long run day. Last weekend I did 12 miles for my long run and today I was targeting between 10 – 12 miles and as it turned out, I made it to 13! It was an overcast morning, about 71 degrees at 7:30am and very humid. I decided to run the roads in my community and it was the first time I hit these rolling hills in Bucks County, PA in a few weeks and they challenged me! I've been running at the track and doing my long runs on paved trails and I could really fell the difference – and, the humidity just made it worse. I was soaking wet at the end of my run and according to my scale, I lost 4 pounds in sweat – I think that's a record.

Today also marks the end of Week 5 in my 16-week marathon training program. For Week 5, I logged 39.6 miles in 6hr 46min 41 sec. That is a little more than 1 ¼ hour longer than my planned schedule and I feel good about my progress. I'll scale back a little bit over the next 2 weeks as I prepare for the Philadelphia Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon which is on Sunday, September 18.

Happy Trails Everyone!
John

144 Miles in August

Another month has closed and I have a new record for a single month: 144 miles! Yes, and all of those miles were outside – not a single step on the treadmill. I really feel like I took my running to a new level in August. After completing my week at running camp in July, I was determined to stay focused and keep logging those miles.

August also represented the beginning of my 16-week training program for the Philadelphia Marathon which will be on November 21, 2011. That will be the Sunday before the Thanksgiving holiday and it will be here before you know it.

Here are some of the highlights for my August running miles:

• The majority of my miles were logged during Easy Runs. One change I made towards the end of August was to slow down the pace of my easy runs. Initially, I was averaging a 9:30 pace and when I took a serious look at a realistic time for my first marathon (between 4 hr 10 min and 4 hr 30 min), I changed my target pace to 10:30. I will be sticking with this strategy over the next couple of weeks.
  
• I did manage to include Interval Training and a Tempo Run during the month. I did a lot of my running at a local high school track so it is the perfect setting for me to get more comfortable with speed workouts in the future.
  
• I ran the Minneapolis 13.1 race on August 21 and managed to come within 25 seconds of my PR for a half-marathon. Although I was a bit disappointed not to score a new PR, I was very happy with finishing in less than 2 hours (1:59:48).
  

So, today begins a new month and I will be moving into the Strength building phase of my marathon training program. To accomplish this, I will be adding either a Fartlek Run or Tempo Run to my schedule one day each week. This will help prepare me for speed work that will be coming in October.

Happy and Safe Running!
John