Monday, February 23, 2009

Longest Training Run Ever

Yesterday I ran 35.5 km (22 miles) in cold and windy weather. I don't care how much you train, a 22 miles run takes its toll. In my previous marathon training, my longest run had been a 20 miler, so this was a new training experience. I won't lie to you: by the end of it, I was in pain. Miles 5 to 14 were against VERY strong winds and I let my heart rate go too high. I paid dearly for that mistake in the last 2 or 3 miles. The last mile has numerous traffic lights and the stopping and going was just murder. 

BY the time I got near my house I was completely spent, my feet were just screaming and I was wondering how on earth I could expect to run 50km in two weeks. I was basically bonking as I got to my house despite my nutrition during the run. I drank about 1.3 liters during the 3.5 hours I spent running, or about 370ml/hour which is not too bad. I ate 6 Cliff Shot Bloks and half a Powerbar for a total of about 300 calories. I probably should have gone for 500 calories. My Powerbar was frozen and just got sick of chewing it.

I enjoyed using the blocks instead of gels. I just stuck one in my mouth and let it dissolve slowly while sipping water once in a while. Worked well although it made me salivate quite a bit and my mouth was frozen because of the incoming wind so I caught myself drooling a few times on my jacket without realizing it. Oh well.

Running with water instead of Gatorade is a lot of work. The reason I'm doing it is that my target race is sponsored by Hammer Nutrition, so they provide HEED which makes me gag just writing about it. I just can't drink the stuff. Also, I run with a bladder system, and I think it would be impossible to wash it properly if I filled it with Gatorade. You can count on water. You can carry bloks or gels. You can play with dilution if your stomach gets queasy.

I brought my iPod on the run, but never took the time to put it on. I just hate fidgeting with it while I run.

My legs and feet are surprisingly fresh today. No major aches and pain. That's a good sign. I didn't get any blisters, but I did have a few hot spots. I will experiment with taping some more. I was running with my Nike LunarTrainers though, and as much as I like them, they always give me some grief on longer distances. I have to find road shoes that fit better.

This week and next are fairly light, 40 miles this week and 25 miles the week after that, plus the 50k on March 7th.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I'm with you on the HEED. I can't stand the taste at all. And if I can't stomach it when I am sitting on my ass on the couch, there is no way it is going to sit easily in my stomach in the middle of a long run.

Learning to be self sufficient is hugely important though. I carried two fuel belt bottles of Infinit with me for my half mary last weekend and it was perfect. Had calories/water whenever I needed it and never had to get stuck in the clusterf*ck at each water stop.