Running a Smarter 2015 Chicago Marathon

Last year, I missed my marathon PR at the Chicago Marathon by four minutes. In order to improve on that time and perhaps actually PR, I've outlined the things that I plan to do differently at this year's Chicago Marathon:

Around mile 8 in 2014

1) Negative split: I've run seven marathons and I've run positive splits all seven times. Check out the blue line in this graph of last year's marathon's mile splits.

My 2014 Mile Paces

All you need to see is that the line slopes upwards after mile 13. I would like to finally see that line that slope downward (or at least be flat) after mile 13!

2) Add extra time to pace calculators: According to the McMillan Pace Calculator, based on my last 5k time I should be able to run a 2:58:00 marathon, according to my last half, I should be able to run a 3:00:00 marathon. However, as I've learned in the past pace calculators don't work for me for the marathon distance. I am better off adding a few extra minutes to my predicted marathon finish time and go with that pace (say a 3:04:00). If I feel good later in the race, then I can speed up and attack the lower number.

3) Plan for a bathroom break: I've had to stop at a porta-potty in the first half of all of my marathons. I need to factor this extra minute "break" into my pace calculations. Also, once I leave the porta-potty I need to not speed up to try and get back with the "group" I was running with, or to try not to make back lost time as quickly as possible.

My 2014 port-potty stop according to my GPS map

4) Try not to stop: Besides the bathroom stop last year, I also had to stop because my heart rate monitor fell off. This year if I don't use the porta-potty (by not drinking too much pre-race), I could save a minute. Also, I recently bought a Garmin 225 watch with a wrist-based HRM. So, unless my watch somehow falls off, I won't have to stop to adjust anything this year.

Keep right on moving...

5) Don't surge at mile 13 or 14: At the halfway point of every marathon, I throw in a reckless fast surge (see chart above) for a mile that wears me out. After this surge, my pace gradually drops off and I start hurting. I simply need to cut that out!

6) Take extra nutrition: Last year, during the final four miles I got three separate leg cramps. Although a lot of that may have to do with diminishing form as I got tired, I need to get an extra gel down to deliver some carbs and sodium to my muscles which could help avoid the dreaded leg cramps.

No plan is ever perfect, but I just want to avoid repeating the same dumb mistakes that I seem to make at most marathons. Saving just a minute or two by racing smart, could mean the difference between a PR and not a PR.

Chicago Marathon Training: Week #8

Fast Start

On Sunday, my final Chicago Marathon training week (#8) got off to a fast start. I was still recovering from my final long run last weekend, so the plan was to run 11 miles and then add three miles of recovery later in the afternoon.  It was nice and cool at 7:30 am when I hit the road down to the Lakefront Trail. After a one mile warm-up, I decided to see if I could hold a sub-marathon pace for the entire run. 

 

Runnin' by the lake

I ran about a 7:00/mile average pace for the next 10 miles, which felt fantastic and was not a struggle at all. If the weather was a tad cooler that day, I might have opened up the speed a little more.  However, it shows a little discipline that I didn't get overly aggressive on this long run, which kinda goes against my nature. This slow start long run shows me that that is how I run best: negative splits. I would like my marathon split regression line to have the same general slope as the one that went through this run:

Regression line sloping from left to right = good!

Total Miles: 11 @ 7:07/mile.
3 Mile recovery later in the day.

Track Work Thursday:
I was really cautious going into this track session. I had been running fast all week, so I felt that doing the Hanson prescribed six miles at 10 seconds below marathon pace was too much and might be tempting "injury fate". So I decided to just do four, but do my warm-ups and cool-downs a little faster.

At the track between my intervals

My splits:

1.75 mile warm-up
2 miles at 6:28, .25 mile recovery
1 miles at 6:18, .25 mile recovery
1 mile at 6:15
1.75 mile cool-down

Okay, these splits were substantially below my marathon pace. I guess I can't help but run too fast when I hop on the track. That's just how I train: Too fast. I am just thankful that I had the forethought to step away after four miles and not to push myself too too hard.

Summary

I matched my second highest training mileage of this cycle and my taper finally starts. I am running faster than I ever thought I would after just eight weeks. Next week, I am just going to run slowly and put in around 25 miles. If the weather is cool next Sunday, I should at least be able to get a course PR sub 3:10 marathon.

Stay tuned for my next post when I summarize my training and make a final marathon pace prediction!

Week #8 Total: 53 miles
Average Pace: 7:20
Other Training: 4 strength workouts and 2 yoga sessions

Eight weeks down, one to go!

How Not to "Pace" a Marathon in Three Simple Graphs

As the 2013 Chicago Marathon approaches, I am thinking quite a bit about my marathon pace. After running a 5k a couple of weeks ago, I was able to use the McMillan calculator to determine that my marathon pace should be about 7:13/mile, which if I run the tangents correctly, should get me a course PR (sub-3:10). Lots of coaches say that even pacing is the best way to run a marathon. However, I seem to run the fastest when I run the second half of the race faster than the first (i.e. negative splits). So, it would seem that for me to run my best on marathon day, I need to run either even or negative splits. However, looking over graphs of my paces for three of my past marathons, I have done quite the opposite. Take a look at my average mile pace for each 5k split in the following marathons:

Whoa, this one was bad. What I wouldn't have given that day
to swap the pace of the first 5k with the pace for last 5k!

When your legs aren't ready for 26.2, and you run way too fast early on,
then you'll end up walking it in (if you're lucky)!

Okay, this one isn't too bad (it was a course pr), but I wish I could
have swapped out those 7:05s for 7:17s. I might have been faster overall.

My speedy marathon starts are usually the result of early race adrenaline and being overly aggressive (i.e. not targeting a realistic race pace). The downside of running those big positive splits (besides losing gobs of time) is that the last few miles are a painful struggle and in a couple of cases, simply a death march. I have to walk and watch lots better-paced runners fly by me after I've hit the wall near the end of the race. If only I had adjusted my mile paces upward by 20 seconds in each of these three races, I could have put off "the wall" a little later or maybe entirely.

So, I guess what I'm saying is that I need to take it way easy for the first few miles of the Chicago Marathon on October 13th. I want the graphs to have a slope line going from the upper left to lower right, or just plain flat, rather than the other way around. We shall see...