It's getting easier
ORN: 5.6 miles, 44:18.
Today, I ran the same route that I ran last week. Last week had better weather, because today was warmer, sunny, and had a stronger wind that kept shifting directions. And I ran it faster. I wasn't trying to; it just happened. It's really starting to get me worried about my marathon pacing too - time is running out before the big day, and bad pacing will really mess me up.
I'm sure that, when I am actually standing at the trailhead and the gun goes off, I'll hold back a lot more than when I am starting out on my driveway and only looking at a short distance. And it's nice to be going faster without any extra, noticeable effort.
Maybe I should start thinking about Boston as a "someday, maybe," instead of "only if I raise lots of cash for charity."
Today, I ran the same route that I ran last week. Last week had better weather, because today was warmer, sunny, and had a stronger wind that kept shifting directions. And I ran it faster. I wasn't trying to; it just happened. It's really starting to get me worried about my marathon pacing too - time is running out before the big day, and bad pacing will really mess me up.
I'm sure that, when I am actually standing at the trailhead and the gun goes off, I'll hold back a lot more than when I am starting out on my driveway and only looking at a short distance. And it's nice to be going faster without any extra, noticeable effort.
Maybe I should start thinking about Boston as a "someday, maybe," instead of "only if I raise lots of cash for charity."
posted by Garou at 8:41 PM
2 Comments:
I think you're asking too much of yourself before the first marathon. Finishing your first under 4 hours would be a great achievment. Don't think of it as "so far away from a Boston Qualifier". Running is something you improve at over years, not weeks. I bet you, the vast majority of today's Boston runners didn't smoke their first marathons either. Instead, they improved steadily, and eventually were good enough to BQ.
I'm actually pretty realistic with my goals for the first marathon: get to the start line without injury, and finish the race. I should be able to finish it in under 4:30 (based on my long training runs and my half-marathon performances), and I might manage to break 4 (but am not planning on it - though I will certainly try).
The problem had been that my times had been pretty static for over a year - not really slow, but nowhere near fast enough for Boston. The last few weeks have actually seen a pretty impressive jump - enough of one that I could actually see improving enough over the next few years to make the Boston qualifying time.
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