Coming off of the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon last week I found myself with some extra time on my hands as I have entered a self imposed rest/recharge period that will take me through Thanksgiving and the end of November.

It is not that I necessarily feel fatigued or worn out but following a pretty intense 12 month cycle of various training plans for Miami 70.3, Mercedes Marathon, Boston Marathon, Indy Mini, having a son, Ironman Wisconsin, and finally the IMM Half last week I feel it is best to take some time off before that fatigue or burn out sets in.

With that extra time, I have put together the skeleton for my training plan for Carmel. I want to make a big jump with this race and with a big jump comes big sacrifice,commitment , and consistency. In my past couple of dedicated cycles for a marathon I have used a condensed schedule usually between 12-14 weeks. With a renewed focus on running I believe I will benefit greatly from a full 16 week cycle.

The basic outline is below. I use the Smart Coach function from Runner’s World to make all my plans. It is free, very accurate and detailed depending on what you want to do. I have been able to go from a 3:49 first marathon to a 2:56 using it…so it works if you work! The way that the week is structured and the pace suggestions it falls in line with a McMillan or Pfitzinger type plan…but for free.

On a side note, if you have never visited the McMillan Running Calculator Page I highly recommend it. All you do is enter your current race time (distance option exist) and it spits out your appropriate training paces. It covers everything from 100M sprints for 5K work all the way to Long Run pace for marathons. 

The only changes that I think I am going to make is at week 12 or 13 I am going to sub out the Saturday long run for the Hanson’s Running ‘Simulator’. The Simulator is a 26.2K workout at race pace. It is long enough to be a mental and physical test but not so long that it is like running the marathon before the marathon. The other change that I would like to make is turning 2 or 3 of the long runs into Progression Runs.

I guess the last thing that is up in the air right now around the plan is the taper length. It currently has me set for a three week taper…at first glance that seems a little long to me but it has been a long time since I have done a 16 week cycle (really the 1st time for the type of intensity I am bringing to it.) so we will just have to play the taper by ear and see how I feel towards the end.

My current plan like I said is to rest and recover up through Thanksgiving. I am working out 2-3 days a week. Nothing stressful or structured. Just sweating a little to keep the brain clear. Like today, I am playing basketball with a bunch of guys from work at lunch…stuff like that is the extent of my November.

Come December 1st, I am going to begin ramping up my mileage so I am ready physically to tackle the marathon plan. You don’t want to be building your mileage in the middle of training cycle. The time to add mileage to your body is in the month or two before the cycle starts. Now granted, I will hit one of my highest mileage weeks during this cycle but you don’t want to go from 0-60 in the first couple weeks of a plan. Build before. Optimize during.

I am excited to tackle this. It is an ambitious plan but one that I believe I am ready to own. I look forward to the challenge.

Come New Year’s Eve 2012 it’s on!

Question: Thoughts on my training plan? Do you guys see anything that is missing?

Glenn

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Super condensed half marathon training plan. Focus was getting miles in and the quality speed/tempo stuff.

Race Morning:

Lindsey had a bunch of Back on My Feet stuff going on in the morning so we left the house early and got down the start line around 7:15. Earlier than I prefer, but it was nice to relax a little and use the bathroom a couple of times. After my initial warm-up, I hung with Lindsey and the Back on My Feet crew while they led the field in the morning Serenity Prayer (BoMF starts and ends every morning run with it.)

Once this was over I did a final 5 minute warm up. I felt pretty good during the warm up so I thought I might have a shot at 1:19:00.

Tucked into the ‘Level 2’ starting corral with a couple of minutes to spare. With it being a smaller race, they start the marathon and the half at the same time. I thought for sure based on my projected 1:20 I would have been seeded ‘Level 1’ right behind the ‘Elite Corral’ but for whatever reason the seeding didn’t seem to be based on pace per mile because I was standing in my corral with marathoners gunning for 3:00. 7 minute miles is a lot different than 6 minute miles. Not that big of deal really…it just meant the first .3 miles would be spent weaving around some people.

Once the gun went off I spent the first little bit getting to the proper front of the race. By the time we turned on to Meridian, the field righted itself and it was clear sailing.

I spent the first mile or two trying to figure out how  I felt…and I felt pretty good to be honest. Next item in my mind was to try and find a pack to run with to conserve energy and shield any headwinds that I was going to face. I found a pack early at Lucas Oil Stadium but they were marathoners gunning for 2:45…a little to slow for me so I soldiered on looking for another pack.

Around mile 2.5, I came up on a pack that looked like just what I was looking for: 2 guys and 2 girls packed tight running just at about 6 flat. Perfect! I quietly settled into the back…ready to rotate to the front if needed. Before I knew, the two guys were gone so it was just me at the two girls. As we neared the Circle to head north on Meridian the one girl dropped her gloves and decided to double back for them. The other girl slowed for her but I kept on.

I was alone again and in search of a pack. I quickly found 4 guys just up the road and tucked into the group as headed Northeast on Mass Ave. They were running what I thought to be about 6’s so I thought good I’ll run with them for as long as it goes. Turns out it didn’t last long. As we hit mile 5 I noticed that the pace had slowed to 6:05. If I was going to chase smoke and go for 1:19:00 I couldn’t do 6:05. Time to move on.

Mile 5 turns west on 16th St. and then on to Penn. and as we moved toward the 10K. I found my next partner. He was a  Brooks runner doing about 5:56 or so. Again perfect. We traded looks and switched lead shoulders for the next couple of miles but as we neared the full/half split he started to veer right for full. I once again found myself in ‘No Man’s Land’.

I make the left hand turn onto 29th St. and see the next group. 1 guy and 1 girl: together, but separate at the same time, the guy looks familiar from the Back on My Feet 42K Relay. (he was on team Honey Badger Project… they won the race) I tuck in behind the girl, as she looked to be the stronger of the two at that point. As we head North on Washington Blvd. we drop the member of Team Honey Badger Project on the only noticeable incline on the course. It is not an incline at all really but compared to the rest of the course it is something.

As we get to 34th St. and make the right hand turn toward Central Ave. I drop the girl. Once again all alone, but at this point I don’t care. I am feeling stronger and begin the old game of viewing the runner up the road as the next victim. “Hunter and Prey”.

Keeping my pace steady around 5:55 I run up on the next guy at 36th and Central at about mile 8.5. It is local triathlon legend and owner of the Runners Forum– Michael “Smitty” Smith. I promptly pass and he gives me some encouraging words of “go get ’em”. I think he dropped out with an injury as he was in the finish area without ever passing me again.

As I hit mile 9, I just told myself keep pushing. My legs are starting to hurt but my stride is the same and breathing is under control. Mile 9 was a 5:51. I had a shot I thought. Head down and go. Down Pennsylvania again. Left turn on 30th St by The Children’s Museum and a quick left on to Meridian.

Mile 10 I hit in a split of 5:58 and come up on the last person I am going to pass. He is fading fast. I make a smooth pass…and he fades behind me. I think he is an Athletic Annex runner. I keep pushing. My legs still relatively good. I hit the mile 10.5 water stop and see Lindsey’s parents. I don’t think Greg notices me and I hear a big “Go Glenn Go” from Lori. I keep going.

I get to mile 11 with a 5:56 and start doing some math. At this point, I had roughly 13 minutes to cover the last 2.1 miles. I confident I could it…but needed to keep pushing.

I run past the library. I head toward the Scottish Rite and then I hear some footsteps behind me. I was really confused because I thought there is no way is the guy I passed at mile 10 coming back. No, it wasn’t him. It was the girl that dropped her gloves at mile 2.5. She was back and I was shocked. She was moving. We run together for maybe a quarter mile and she drops me like I am standing still. I couldn’t believe it. She goes on to easily catch the guy in front of me that I could not catch the last two miles. I keep on. I make the turn on to New York. Come across Illinois, Capital, Senate. .25 miles to go. I hit West St. and then make the final turn to the State House.

1:18:33. Then I headed to the car to drive up and meet Lindsey at mile 20 of the full to run her in.

Overall, I couldn’t  be happier. It was a great way to end to 2012 race season. I had made it my new running  goal to qualify for the New York City Marathon and I wasn’t sure if I was going to do it in 2012. Who knows if we will actually make the trip out to NYC next year or not only time will tell. Either way I know this I am already looking forward to make next goal.

Sub 2:45 at the Carmel Marathon in April.

But until then…I will enjoy a month of doing nothing but enjoying the fam and doing what I feel like with running or not running.

Be Consistent.

Glenn

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Immediately following IMWI, I remember telling Lindsey and my family that I was never going to do anything like that again….but I also said that after we ran our first marathon together in 2008. I am currently on number 12. Slowly but surely in the days following the race my mind began to wonder. What if I do this? What if I buy that? Maybe I could try this? If only? Blah Blah Blah….it could go on and on. In the week following Wisconsin I kind of had a strong urge to race another one in 2013 but man I am glad now at this point that I did not pull the trigger and go sign up for one.

I do have a strong desire to race another Ironman in the future just not anytime soon. Maybe 3-5 years from now? All those questions in my head about what if I do believe I have the answer for them and can make big jumps in my performance (I’d like to crack the Top 10 in my Age Group and depending on the course flirt with breaking 10:00:00 hours) but alas that will have wait for another day and I am okay with that.

Ironman training is hard. Really hard actually and not just on the athlete. If you are not single this means getting a huge buy-in from your wife, girlfriend, SO, partner, whatever because if you are racing an Ironman they essentially are as well. Throw a pregnancy and a newborn 10 weeks out from the race and you  reach a whole new stratosphere of buy-in/commitment. Because when you are training, everything you do revolves around the training. I mean everything! You are consumed by it. It was all that I thought about. Day and night. It would not be fair to Lindsey and Marshall for me to jump back into that sort of thing and frankly I don’t think I have the mental horepower to jump back on the horse in 2013. I will live to fight another day.

I will never fully understand what Lindsey had to go through with Marshall and everything while my training block was at its pinnacle. I can only begin to imagine what it was like. I am and will be forever grateful for her sacrifice. Thank you Lindsey!

Moving forward my focus is shifting back to running. As that is what I really love to do. I believe running is a great test of mental and physical strength and endurance. I look forward to lacing them up again and really getting after it.

My current plan is to ride the wave of fitness from Wisconsin into a the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon in early November. I raced the Indianapolis Mini Marathon on May and really enjoyed racing that distance so I am going to take another crack at it. My goal for the race is break 1:20:00. That will be hard but I believe I can do it. In May, I ran in the low 1:24’s in some god awful conditions. Sunny and unbearable humid. So I am thinking in November race conditions should be a little more favorable. We will see how it goes.

After that I am going to do nothing! NOTHING! I mean nothing!!! I am planning on unplugging and recharging the mind and body for a few weeks in November. Probably until after Thanksgiving. I know so many people that go, go, go all the time. They never step back and recharge. 2012 has been a huge year for me both personally (Marshall…hello!) and training volume wise so I want to use the month of November as a   rest period and pivot point to mark the end of one year and the beginning of a new year because come December 1 its Marathon season.

In April 2013, I will run 2:45:00 at the Carmel Marathon.

-Be Consistent.

Glenn

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Marshall at 5 weeks

Just sitting at the table like an adult.

I feel like I spend 24 hours a day just staring at this little human being, and although I get frustrated for 2 seconds when he wakes me up at 3am every night, as soon as I pick him up and see this healthy, thriving baby, my heart melts and there is nothing more peaceful and perfect in the world. I just still can’t fathom that he literally came from nothing and then grew into a little human inside of me. It is the craziest thing. Ever.

My RUNNING plan: I should be cleared to run next Wednesday and I can’t wait. My mom and sisters and I are all planning on running the Indy Women’s Half Marathon on September 1st, will be a quick turnaround…. 24 days of “training”, but I don’t really care. I want to just run it for fun, but also don’t planning on being a turtle. As I write this, I don’t really know how I will feel, but I am hopeful I can at least run faster than the pregnant pace I had been running the past nine months.

Beyond the Women’s half, I want to sign up for the Monumental– I’m not going to commit until I run the half and see how I feel. I’ve ran marathons untrained before, and am OK with running it semi-trained, but don’t want to be miserable. I figure as long as I get in at least one 20 miler and a couple of 15-18, I’ll be good. It’s just a matter of making that happen.

Beyond setting my sites on these upcoming races– other than Marshall of course, our house has been consumed with Ironman training. Glenn will be doing Ironman WI on September 9th and he is right smack dab in the hardest part of his training. We didn’t necessarily time this perfectly, having a newborn baby right now, but he signed up before I was pregnant. Although we knew it could be a possibility, we have always known that you can’t assume or just plan that sort of thing, so kept on planning and doing all of our other “life” activities. (hence, why I was signed up for Boston this year, but obviously did not run!)

He is doing great with his training, but I know the lack of sleep (even though I’m the only one who gets up for feedings at night, he is going to bed later and getting up earlier) is having an effect on him. He gets up at 4:30-5:00am most weekdays and either rides or runs, then swims his lunch break and some days runs or rides again when he gets home. On the weekends it’s a good 6-8 hour workout on Saturday and Sunday. So, I know he will be ready for the race and realize that to even complete your first Ironman is a huge accomplishment in itself, but he hasn’t put all of this energy into training just to finish, he wants to race a respectable time. I am trying my best to support his efforts and absolutely can’t wait until race day, but trust me, we are both ready for it to be done and perhaps he can revisit the Ironman again when we don’t have a newborn baby in our house!

And the Marshman is growing, he eats like it’s his job (and I suppose that is his biggest job for now) and comes by it honestly as we all know that his dad eats insane amounts of food. 

He seriously looks so huge to me in this picture below. I keep saying I don’t want him to be so fragile anymore, but I am truly savoring every minute with him at each stage. I’m in love.

Getting big. 8.5 lbs already… up from 6.4 lbs at birth.

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