TC 10 Mile

I’m not above stealing gimmicky writing crutches from other people’s blogs. My running life has been busy and there is too much going on for my usual ramblings, so I’m borrowing What’s Working and What’s Not Working from AM over at Goals for the Week. She actually sets goals for areas of her life and then evaluates how it is going. Things are a little less organized over here, but here’s

What’s Working:

Hal and I are getting along just dandy, having finished the first of his two 20 milers in fine fashion. I had a cut back week this week and I think I’ll be ready for the next one this Thursday.

CEP compression socks are now a part of my long run uniform. I’ve worn them for a few runs and they feel great. If they pass the test this Thursday, then I will be wearing them on Marathon day. I know I am a true running nerd because instead of thinking of them as granny socks, I get “Oops! I Did It Again” stuck in my head when I wear them. I’m guessing most non-runners don’t equate my support hose with the sexy knee highs Britney was sporting with her school girl skirt.

I ran the TC 10 today a little bit faster than I did two years ago. I tried to run at a training pace, not at race pace. Two years ago I was trying to run reasonably fast, so I feel like there is some improvement. The accomplishment was a little surprising given #3 of what’s not working.

What’s Not Working:

In an effort to minimize stopping during my 20 miler, I tried a new Nathan 4 bottle hydration belt. My 2 bottle belt is fantastic so I had high hopes for the 4 bottle model. The expanded version didn’t bounce which was great, but it left me pretty bruised on my abs and hip. It hurt for a couple days afterward which I did not enjoy. The 4 bottle belt will only be joining me on short runs or hikes.

My VO2 test was highly educational. While it showed that my heart is strong, my ability to burn fat as fuel is terrible. Once this marathon is over, I’ll have plenty of Zone 1 and 2 work ahead of me to try and teach my body to lay off the glycogen.

My race morning routine got an F today. I got up on time but was not able to… you know… go. Don’t act like you don’t know what I mean. I took some Imodium but it was not my day. I had to stop during the race TWICE to use the porta potty. The only saving grace was that Mike had decided to run with me, so he ran ahead and scouted out the porta potties and that saved me a little time. I guess I’m going to need to get up earlier before my next race and revisit my race week diet. I do not want the same thing to happen during the marathon.

I’m done riding on AM’s coat tails now and will stop copying her. The bottom line is that I’m feeling fine but have some tweaking to do before the marathon as well as before training for IM Florida starts next spring. I’ve got to get my race day act together and I need to get my metabolism working in such a way that it can burn fuel for the 15-17 hours that it’s going to take for me to finish an IM if I am so lucky. With the TC 10 finished I’m looking forward to my last 20 mile run this week. Plenty of porta potties along the way, thank goodness!