Wow it has been a long time since I have posted. I feel horrible. Well it is time to reflect on the training that I did for the Shamrock Marathon.
Over all I was very pleased with my training. Except for that time that I thought it would be a good idea to go ice skating for an hour an a half and then run 16 miles the next day. That took me out of training for a good 3 weeks. Not fun. Had that not happened I am sure that my time would have been a lot better then 5:24 and change.
Well I have decided to give it another try. I did in fact register for the Marine Corp Marathon. This was originally going to be my first marathon. In looking back, I do feel that I made a good decision. I learned a lot about myself in the training and actually running the Shamrock Marathon. I have a hard time starting out slow, which was part of my down fall for Shamrock. I walked way too much toward the end. But this is a learning experience. I know what I can do, I know what I am capable of doing and I will do a lot better at MCM.
The Shamrock course is very flat. With the Marine Corp, its a little different. With in the first 3 miles there is an elevation change of about +120 feet. From there to mile 6 it is about a change of -90 feet. From mile 6 to 8 there is a change of about +110 feet then you go down again to about 10' at mile maker 10. If you can make it through all of that then the course is very flat until the end. I would say that there are gentle ups and downs until you peak at mile 25 around 30' they you go down to about 15' at mile marker 26 and of course the last .2 miles is about straight up finishing about 80' above sea level. What a climb.
So with that, Marathon training has begun. I have continued to run keeping a very modest base. Looking to start to increase gradually. One thing that I am changing is my overall distance for the weeks. I am starting small first and then gradually adding days and miles. I will also be looking to update my blog on a more regular bases to keep everyone, including myself, tuned into my training.
Thanks for readying and following my journey.
