Why A Bad Run Can Be A Good Thing

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Thank you, God, for keeping me humble...

This was the refrain going through my mind yesterday morning as I struggled to complete the last 20-mile run of my training. And struggled is the word. I knew I was in trouble around mile 14 when I started slowing on what was already a slow pace day. All I had to do was hold an 8:50 pace. At this point in my training, that should be a no-brainer. But glances at my Garmin showed me my pace was creeping up to an 8:52... 8:55. I'd speed up to lower it back down but it's fighting a losing battle at that point as the speeding up sucks any remaining energy from you. 

I was having a hard time mentally with the fact that the run wasn't going well. Lately I've been not only nailing my paces  for runs but often beating them. I wanted to end this last long run on a high note. Instead, it was a reality check.

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Marathon Training: A Run I Want to Remember

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Bear with me, it's yet another blog post on running. I try to keep them to somewhat of a minimum but, as my October 11th marathon draws ever closer, I find myself thinking more and more often about physical strength, mental reserves, and race day strategy.

My 20-mile long run yesterday is one I want to remember for a number of reasons.

First, it was my fastest 20-miler to date, clocking in at a breezy 2 hours and 57 minutes, which is an 8:58/mile pace, a full 7 seconds per mile faster than my scheduled pace for the day. That alone deserves a big wa-hoo. 

Second, I did the run on a day where it was already 72 degrees at 6:30 am AND the humidity level was off the charts. We were dripping before we ever took our first step. 

And third, I want to remember this run because I was pretty sure by mile 5 that I was going to have to quit

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