Last 2 weeks of training

Here's a brief summary of the last 2 weeks of training.

8 - 14 Mar

Mon: 7M easy
Tues: 6M easy
Wed: 7M including 4 x 1K (3:10, 3:10, 3:07, & 3:08)
Thur: 6M easy
Fri: 5M easy with 5 strides
Sat: 4M easy
Sun: CPC Loop Den Haag Half-Marathon in 1:13:17 (5k - 17:26, 10k - 34:54 (17:28), 15k - 52:24 (17:30))

Weekly Total: 49 miles

This was a very low mileage week as I tried to taper and freshen up the legs for the CPC Loop Den Haag Half-Marathon.  There's no doubt the legs needed it because I had put in 486 miles over the previous 5 weeks (avg. of 97 mi/wk).  I ran a new personal best in the half-marathon (1:13:17) by 22 seconds in very windy conditions.  Was aiming for a sub-1:13, but I'll use the wind as an excuse. ;-)  Regardless, I'm very pleased with a new PR, overall race performance and my fitness leading to Rotterdam.  You can check out my video clips here.

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15 - 21 Mar

Mon: 12.2M easy
Tues: AM - 6M easy; PM - 5M easy
Wed: 8.2M easy
Thur: AM - 6M easy; PM - 6M easy with 5 strides
Fri: 12.6M including 3 x 3K (10:02, 9:59, 9:58)
Sat: 11M easy
Sun: 24.7M (16M easy followed by 10K race (36:03) at MP, then 2.5M cooldown)

Weekly Total: 91.7 miles

Following the half-marathon on Sunday I did easy running from Mon-Thur to recover from the race. The calves and quad were a little sore early in the week, but they were ready for Friday's workout,  3 x 3K.  I did this same 3K workout three weeks ago; surprisingly, I was 5-6 seconds per km faster on this day.
On Sunday, I did a key long run with marathon pace. I ran 16 miles from my house in the Netherlands to a 10K race just over the border in Germany. My plan and timing was perfect because I arrived at the race with just enough time to pin on my bib-number and do a few strides.  I ran the race as planned, running marathon pace and aiming for km splits of around 3:38.  I ran the 10K in 36:03 (3:36/km or 5:48 pace) and finished in 4th place overall.

23 miles with 4 at MP

Ran 23 miles with 4 miles (18-21) at marathon pace.  It was my 5th 20+miler in as many weeks and the best one I've had so far. I ran the first 17 miles comfortably in 1:58:50 (6:59 pace) ending up at a small pond in the nearby city of Sittard.  I then ran laps around the pond at marathon pace, or what I thought felt like MP.  I ran miles 18-21 in 5:44, 5:44, 5:50 and 5:56.  I forced myself to slow down after hitting both miles 18 and 19 at 5:44, a bit too quick and definitely not my planned MP.  Mile 20 was 5:50 and 21 at 5:56.

The run put me at 100 miles for the 3rd consecutive week.  This coming week will be a down-week, in terms of mileage, as I'll freshen up the legs for next Sunday's half-marathon.  It also works out perfectly because I'll be working long hours at work.

1-7 Mar

Mon: AM - 10M easy; PM - 4M easy
Tues: AM - 3M very easy; PM 13.5M including 15K tempo at MP (15K - 54:22; 5:50 pace)
Wed: AM - 3M very easy; PM - 9M easy
Thur: 10.5M easy
Fri: 13M including 4 x 2K (6:39, 6:40, 6:38, 6:37)
Sat: 11M easy
Sun: 23M with 4 miles (18-21) at MP

Weekly Total: 100 miles

The importance of pacing

Ran 4 x 2K intervals last night at the track in 6:39, 6:40, 6:38, and 6:37.  In the first two repeats my pacing was a little inconsistent in the early lap(s). I'd go through the first lap in 76 seconds, slow down (not intentionally) in the 2nd lap to about 82 seconds and then hold the remaining 3 laps at 80 seconds for a 6:39-6:40 2K. I decided to approach the last two intervals differently and force an 80 second first lap, realizing that running the first lap a few seconds faster wasn't doing much to the overall 2K time and probably just making myself tired faster.  Amazingly, I was dead on at 80 second laps for 1600 meters (5:20) and felt like I had still had some fuel left in the tank in the last 400, so I pushed on and finished strong.  I ran 78 and 76 seconds respectively for the last lap of the last 2K repeats. 

This goes to show how important pacing is and that running 1-3 seconds too fast early on makes a huge difference.  For proof, take a look at the below marathon splits analysis of my Hamburg and Berlin marathon.  I hope to apply the lessons learned and run a much smarter race, similar to Hamburg, at Rotterdam. 

Easy running

12 miles easy in two runs today. Ran a very slow 3 miles in the morning to loosen up the legs before work, and then 9 miles in the Brunssumerheide during my lunch hour.  The legs felt tired in the early miles of the 2nd run, but much better as time went on. 

Tomorrow will be another easy run of about 10-12 miles and then a track workout of 4x2K on Friday. 

If you haven't noticed yet, I added the City-Pier-City Half Marathon  (14 Mar) to the list of upcoming races on the right. This is the race where Samuel Wanjiru (2008 Beijing Olympics Marathon) broke the world record in the half marathon when he was only 18 years old. 

15k Tempo

Ran a 15K tempo run on the track (37.5 laps) at approximately marathon pace (~3:38/km or 5:51 pace).  I took my split times at each mile (1600m to be exact).  Thinking about it now, I should have split my watch at each kilometer since that is what will be marked in Rotterdam, just like in any other European marathon.  I did take a glance at each km of the mile though.  I ran the 15K (9.3 miles) tempo in 54:22 (3:37/km or 5:50 pace).  The cardio felt very controlled and comfortable, but the legs were heavy by the end of the run. 

Splits for the run were:

5:53
5:48
5:49
5:49
5:49
5:49
5:45
5:46
5:46
2:08
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54:22 (15k or 9.3M)