Marathon Training Week 16

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 6 miles @ 8:47/mile
I decided to move my first run of the week to Tuesday this week as the ATT 10-miler is on Saturday. I ran at a very easy pace today as I'd only had one rest day since Sunday's long run.

Wednesday: Rest
Stretch & Foam Roll

Thursday: 6 miles @ 8:22/mile
The temperature this morning was down around 40F so I got a chance to test out my new $1 gloves that I will wear at the start of the Marathon. It was breezy enough that I kept them on for the entire 6 miles!

Friday: Rest
Stretch & Foam Roll

Saturday: 10 miles @ 7:49/mile
I stuck to my conservative plan (8:10/mile) for the first seven miles (7:57, 7:58, 8:11, 7:55, 7:57, 8:07, 7:59) before I got bored and cranked up the pace a little to finish with 7:27, 7:10, 7:22 and just under 78 minutes. Maybe next year I'll go all out and see what I can run on the flat, fast course. The 9am start for the race didn't really help with practicing my pre-race routine for the Marathon as that begins at 7am, but I did at least get a chance to run in a race and experience people passing me for the first couple of miles. I ran on my own for the entire 10 miles and used my watch to help me with my pacing as I found that whenever I settled in behind someone that passed me they seemed to slow down and our pace would drop. I felt like I was running an even pace (as my splits from the first 7 miles show) but there was one guy that kept charging past me then slowing down and he was a major reason why I speed up just past the 7 mile mark. There was also a guy in basketball shorts that were down past his knees that was just ahead of me at that point, and I wasn't going to be beaten by him! Overall I was pleased with the outcome and that I'd stuck to my plan for 7 miles. The course felt flat (although the elevation chart on my Garmin workout showed over 350ft of elevation gain over the 10 miles) and it was certainly pretty so I can see why lots of people make the drive down to Apex to run on the trail.

Sunday: Rest
Stretch & Foam Roll

Total miles for Week 16: 22