The Longest Yard
Well, for the first time in a month, I went on a long run. I won’t say it was an unmitigated disaster, but finding anything to call “successful” is going to be a challenge. 
First of all, I was tired. So tired, in fact, that I woke up at 5:30 and reset the alarm for 6:30.
Second, I didn’t have much in the house to eat before a long run. I should have stocked up on bananas and bagels. The best I could do was a whole grain english muffin with peanut butter, and a GU before setting out.
Third, I ate almost immediately before starting my run. Not a good idea as my “breakfast” kept repeating on my throughout my run.
Fourth, I started out too late (again). About 7:20. After a few miles, the sun was high in the sky and things were getting warm on that blacktop.
Fifth, I was still sore from Friday’s 8.5 mile run. Probably should have used the 3 day weekend and delayed the long run to tomorrow.
So here’s the breakdown:
Run 12 miles
Walk 1 mile
Run 1 mile
Walk 3 miles
I made the decision to walk the last 3 miles because I started to feel some pain in my groin area, same area that sidelined me last year.
So I traversed 17 mile, but I only ran 13 of them, and not concurrently. That’s not even a HALF Marathon
Well, like I said, this is my first long run in a month. If I had to come up with some positives, it’s that I implemented the changes I needed to make from my last long run a month ago. This time I had a GU every 4 miles instead of 5 miles. I also made sure to stay good and hydrated (I actually ran out of water walking the last 3 miles).
I’m hoping that my long runs over the next 2 or 3 weeks will go much better than this one, and that I snap back into shape quick. I don’t want to increase my long run mileage up to the marathon. I tried that last year, and you all know how wonderful that went 
This year, I’m going to taper off the last 2 - 3 weeks so I can avoid injury.
Stay tuned…
September 1st, 2008 at 11:11 pm
Don’t beat yourself up over it. That was great mileage. I wish I were going that far right now. You’re set to peak at exactly the right time.
September 2nd, 2008 at 6:37 pm
You’re doing much better than I am. I am doing ‘fixed time’ training with my cardio. You RUN, I run to ‘do cardio’. Given that it was not too long ago that you started running again, and it’s been interrupted at that, you’re doing very well. I only wish I had the stamina you have. Keep it up and I’ll see you at the Ironman.
September 6th, 2008 at 3:53 pm
Wow! Hey, thanks for the encouragement guys. It really means a lot. Scott’s right, it’s a matter of not giving up. Unfortunately, the remnants of Hanna are going to interfere with my long run this weekend. I’m still going to get a long run in tomorrow morning though. Hopefully the weather won’t be too bad!