I am currently in the middle of my marathon training schedule. I was scheduled to run 8 miles on Saturday, but I only ran 2 miles due to lack of time. Then I was scheduled to run 17 miles on Sunday. I did actually run/walk these miles. This Thursday night I am running a stair climb event for Cystic Fibrosis. It’s 19 stories. Since I have been training for distance events, this will be radically different for me. Yesterday was a cross training day for me, so I did aikido. Today I was scheduled to run 4 miles, so I ran it first thing in the morning to leave as much recovery time before the stair climb. I was scheduled to run 9 miles tomorrow night, but I am going to skip that. Then I have the stair climb on Thursday evening. I scheduled to run 4 miles on Thursday as well. If I get home early enough, and am not totally exhausted, then I will run the 4 miles Thursday night when I get home. This week is a cutback week, so I am scheduled to run 9 miles on Saturday, and only 12 miles on Sunday. I love that! ONLY 12 miles! LOL! Jeez, things have changed over the last six months!
This weekend’s runs were pretty tough. I was supposed to have run 8 miles on Saturday. But I was so busy throughout the day that I ended up only running 2 miles.
Then yesterday I was scheduled to run 17 miles. I managed to run/walk the whole 17 miles. Most of it was very slow, but I finished the 17 miles!
This week, I was scheduled to run 4 miles on Tuesday, 9 miles on Wednesday, and 4 miles on Thursday. But I have a stair climb event on Thursday evening. So what I may do is run my 4 miles for Tuesday in the morning before work. Skip the 9 mile run on Wednesday to allow my legs to recover. Then Thursday evening do the stair climb event. Depending on time, and how I feel, I might manage to get my 4 miles in Thursday evening after I get home from the stair climb challenge.
I wasn’t running yet when they had last years. I considered walking it. But it was on about 3 miles, and I thought what’s the point? Maybe if it was a longer walk. But I started running in August, and have run a half marathon, and a full marathon. So I have started to look forward to the possibility of running the Chase Corporate Challenge. It’s only a 5k. But it could be fun.
They just posted the dat for the race. May 31st. Ouch! That’s only 4 days afteer I am planning to run the Buffalo marathon (or Montreal marathon). I remember how I felt after I ran the Las Vegas Marathon. I gimped around the house for a day or two. I ran some short training runs, but they were slow, and not so much fun. I know it is doable. Let me see, the LVM was on Sunday, and I think I did a 3 mile run on Tuesday, and a 5 mile run on Wednesday, and couldn’t run on Thursday. So if I don’t do the Tuesday run or the Wednesday run, and then run the 5k on Thursday. Yeah, I can do that. I will not be at my fastest, but I can do it.
I just registered for it. I put an estimate to run the 3.5 miles as 30 minutes. We’ll see.
I am signed up to run an ultramarathon in July. It will be my first ultramarathon. Well, I did attempt the 50k on New Years eve, but DNF’d. I only got 15 ro 16 miles in. But I was still very new to running, and I had just run the Las Vegas Marathon 3 weeks earlier…AND I HATE RUNNING IN THE COLD!!!! Anyway, the 32.6 mile run is all trail with no water stations. So I will need to bring water with me. On their website, they have a bunch of gear recommendations. These inlcude a backpack style hydration system. I currently own a Camelbak Flashflo. It holds about 48 ounces of water I think. But the website recommends something like a Camelbak Mule, or Ultimate Direction “Endorfun.” These are definate options.
I am not going to be a speed demon. I will not be setting any course records. But I will probably be in middle of the back of the pack. But the thought of trying to run with 10 pounds on my back is harsh. And thats just the water. I could use a lumbar pack that holds less water. And bring water purification tablets. I am planning on bringing the tablets anyway. Maybe a water purifying pump too. Do I need to bring a bottle for the tablets. If I wear the pack, I think I may not need much more water than that. But who knows. If I bring a smaller amount of water, I will likely need to refill, and purify the water.
Right now I am watching an auction for a 2007 Camelbak Mule. I figure I can use it anyway for hiking in the Adirondacks. I will keep researching.
I sent in my registration for the Damn Wakely Dam Ultra last week. I had read that the due to returning runners, they were already full, and new registrations would be going to a waiting list. But I sent my registration in anyway. I got an email last night telling me that I had been accepted! Way cool! I have never run an ultramarathon before. My longest run was the Las Vegas Marathon. I am currently training for the Buffalo Marathon (which reminds me, I need to register for that). I just need to keep running! The Wakely Dam Ultra should be interesting. The LVM was flat, and had water stations every mile. The Wakely Dam Ultra has no water stations, and will be run through the Adirondacks, so will have lots of terrain. If I can’t run anymore, then I should be at least able to walk. I’ll need to do some research as far as what to do about water. I have a small Camelbak, but I may want to look at getting a larger one.