Thank You Notes

It's now one week out from the Boston Marathon.  That's usually when I check my inbox, return some emails, and of course, send out my marathon-versioned thank you notes.  If you guys do not mind, I am running a bit behind schedule and was wondering if I could write them out now.  Here goes:

#1 Thank you to my sponsors: my family and friends.  You guys rock!  I would not have been able to get to this point in my training without your support.  I know I have been a lot to put up with, having only talked about running since December (and probably even before that), but all of you have been with me from the start and words cannot express how much I appreciate and need that.

#2 Thank you to my running shoes: the Brooks Launch.  You are the perfect date, always ready when I am and willing to stay out late.  You really treat me well.

#3 Thank you to my Training Logs.  I update three separate logs and use all of them to look back at my past training and paces.  If I were to lose two of them, well then, I would still be just fine.

#4 Thank you to Luna Bars.  You are a feminine brand of protein bars that I have been consuming after many of my training runs.  I get them for free, so it's whatever.  I did just get a new batch of Cliff-Bars, but I will not forget what you did for me.

#5 Thank you to getting injured!  Hey there, yeah IT Band, I'm talking to you.  You thought it would be a great decision to give out right at the end of February?  No, you're right, that was probably for the best now that I am healthy when it counts.  You were quite the nuisance but I can rest happy this week having fully recovered.

#6 Thank you to Smith Hill.  You instill fear even into the infamous Heartbreak Hill.  I waged battle against you countless times during this training cycle.  You threw punch after punch at me, hoping I would give up and not conquer you.  I hope we have reached a new level of respect for one another and can move forward as friends.


#7 Thank you to the wind.  You just had to have wild, raging parties for the past few months.  It was very rare to run on a day under 10 mph of wind and I was much more likely to see 20+ mph.  When you come strong at me, in my face, you slow me down and make it difficult to run.  Without you, however, I would not be ready to handle whatever the elements throw at me come Monday.

#8 Thank you to all the Dunkin Donuts' and Starbucks along my running routes.  I am never looking to make a purchase from you.  I enter into you with the sole intention of getting water and leaving as quickly as I can so that I can continue my run.

#9 Thank you to investment.  Since December, I have run 1018.75 miles in 117:55:57 (hours, minutes, seconds).  This marathon thing is not that easy and it takes commitment to go out everyday and try to get better at it.  Running has fully consumed my life and this is why I have trouble not mentioning it.  It's part of who I am and who I want to be.

#10 Thank you to all the haters.  At this point, doubters can suck it.  I just do not understand why people feel the need to put runners down as a whole.  Try to be nice, okay?

So those were my thank you notes.  I tried to mention some very important things to me over the past few months.  My training for this week involves a couple of off days and very low mileage.  There is a lot that I cannot control about the marathon, but I know there is nothing I can change now to help me.  I will surround myself with good people this week and hope for the best.

“I had as many doubts as anyone else. Standing on the starting line, we're all cowards.”

- Alberto Salazar

ONE WEEK UNTIL BOSTON!

Run Happy,
David

If you didn't get the reference to the whole thank-you note layout above, it's what Jimmy Fallon does every Friday night on his late night show.  Enjoy:

The Marathon Beard: It's a thing!

(Hopkinton to Boston)

With just two weeks to go until the Boston Marathon, I will be tapering and making sure that I am able to stand on the start line in Hopkinton ready to go.  This past week, I nailed a great 2 x 6 mile workout with the repeats in 40:55 and 40:40 (6:49 and 6:46).  The target was 10 seconds faster than goal marathon pace.  I also completed my simulator workout on course, running miles 6-23.  I was lucky enough to have someone (Serge) out there with me, helping me take in fluids throughout the run.  I averaged a 6:48 pace for 17.5 miles.  The run included the infamous hills of Newton and I previewed Heartbreak for the first time.  The hills did not seem to be worse than anything I have gone up in Providence (Smith Hill shout out).  I now know that I am ready for my first Boston.  There is nothing more I can do in training at this point.  I am going to be restless for the next two weeks, with my mileage steadily being cut.  It is an exciting time for me right now and I cannot wait for Boston! 

Runners are one of the most superstitious groups of people, myself included.  There is one essential items that I need to ensure that I have to give me confidence come race day.  I keep a CD, called Love and Politics by the Franchize in my running bag.  It fell into my possession following a trip to New York City.  It is some of the worst music I have ever heard, but it is important enough for me to keep with my running stuff.  It is a rap album, that the artist advertised to us as a jazz album on a random street corner.  Another supersition I have going on right now is the growing out of my "marathon beard."  I started to grow it out in March, prior to the New Bedford Half Marathon.  Since that point, I have found success in many of my workouts leading into Boston.  The "marathon beard" has to be a thing because so many greats have gone this route as well:

(Forrest)

(100 yr. old marathoner)

(Ryan Hall)

These famous people have some pretty awesome beards.  I am in some good company here.  The main point that I want to stress is that the next two weeks will have me in a constant panic.  Every time I take a step, I will think that I just pulled a muscle.  I will be obsessive over what I eat and drink.  I will be checking the weather religiously over the next two weeks.  In short, I demand nothing short of perfection.  Things will be crazy at times, but I just need to keep telling myself that I am ready. 

Run Happy,

David

All of the Miles (remix)

All of the Miles...(fast miles, slow miles, painful miles, fun miles, cool-down miles, all of the miles)

(my girl Rihanna just killing it)

"Go for it, just don't hurt yourself." -Andrew Nelson on if running 100 miles in a week was a good idea. (good problems, right, wrong.)

I set out to run 100 miles (for the first time) in my peak week leading into Boston and did it!  My schedule looked like this for the week:

3/19- 8.45 miles 1:00:00 (7:06 pace)
3/20- 10 miles (AM) 1:09:40 (6:58 pace), 3 miles (PM) 21:00 (7:00 pace)
3/21- 12.6 miles (AM) 1:30:10 (7:09 pace), 4.3 miles (PM) 29:30 (6:52 pace)
3/22- 10 miles (AM) 1:10:20 (7:02 pace), 3.1 miles (PM) 21:30 (6:55 pace)
3/23- 12.55 miles (AM) 1:25:15 (6:47 pace), 3 miles (PM) 20:50 (6:57 pace)
3/24- 8.45 miles 1:00:50 (7:12 pace)
3/25- 25.75 miles 3:05:30 (7:12 pace)- negative splits on a route filled with hills
TOTAL: 101.2 miles. Objective completed!

What did I learn from my first 100 miles week?

Running 100 miles in a week does not:
- get you a hand written letter inviting you to join to 100 mile/a week club (because it does not exist)
- get you any high fives
- get you any fist pumps
- get you any dates
- get you street cred (mine is almost maxed out)
- get you fresh legs
- keep you injury free
Running 100 miles in a week, however, does:
- give you major confidence leading into Boston
- give you a new respect for those elites logging even more than that on a weekly basis
- force you to stretch a ton and use ice constantly
- allow you to eat whatever you want (true dat)

My pros/cons list is mostly a joke.  Nobody actually wants to hear about your running 100 miles in a week.  This is an accomplishment that I can feel really good about reaching.  I put in a hard week of running and hope to see it pay off in the near future at Boston!  Now, with only 3 weeks to go until the Marathon, I plan on properly tapering.  It's a huge confidence booster to be able to run 25.75 miles at the end of a 100 mile week (on tired legs) and average 7:12/mile.  I felt great today, negatively splitting my long run, and did not hit the wall (none of the walls).  I am going to slowly cut my mileage (maybe even take a rest day- say what?) and plan on toeing the start line in Hopkinton with fresh legs to give myself a shot at a 3:05 and BQ.  For now, let the restlessness start to build!

Run (rest) Happy!
David

Maybe this is the song that I should have centered my post around:

(Tech N9ne, ft. Hopsin & B.o.B. Am I a Psycho?)

The answer is yes, yes I am a little psycho (hopefully a joke).  But I think you do have to be a little crazy to enjoy doing this to yourself every day.  Or maybe running is what keeps me sane?  When you are chasing your dreams, does much else really matter?