End of Week Eighteen (3-7-08)

This week I ran the highest mileage week so far (34 miles) and the fastest overall pace for all runs (9:04).

On Sunday I ran a flat 12 miler through Swarthmore and Morton at an 8:43 pace. That was a good run at a good pace. This was the first of the three runs I mentioned last week to help me target my pace for the race. This 12 miler was not the toughest test in the world, but the pace for this run was good enough (even for 12 miles) to maintain my goal of a 9:00 MPM pace for the race.

The rest of the week, I managed to be consistent with 4 and 6 milers. I pushed the pace on most of these miles. My run on Wednesday was supposed to be my fastest tempo run, and I just didn’t have enough steam. I realize that I should limit the amount of miles that I run too fast. Nevertheless, the faster running is working. I feel stronger and can see my times improving. I just need to be careful.

Next week is my final long run of the plan: a 20 miler. It has been seven weeks since my last 20 miler. Since that time, I have run a lot of base miles and some tempo miles. To be honest, I will be happy when this run is complete. Like the 12 miler last week, I’m looking for a good training run that helps build my physical strength as well as confidence. I’m hoping to run the first 10 miles at approximately 9:50 MPM, then pick it up over the last 10 miles and finish close to 9:00 MPM. I would be happy with a blended pace of 9:35.

I’m fast approaching the high point in my training. After this 20 miler, it will be mostly downhill. (that’s figurative). I still plan to run plenty of miles next week (40) and some fast running in my taper, but the end is in sight.