13 Weeks Until Boston

Daily Quote: "Any runner who denies having fears, nerves, or some kind of disposition is a bad athlete or a liar." --Gordon Pirie, 1956 Olympic Bronze-Medal Winner for Men's 5000 Meters.

Today is a Tempo Run as scheduled in the book, "Runner's World, Run Less, Run Faster," for a 3:40 marathon result, pg 235:

6:30 a.m. Life Fitness Treadmill set at a 1% grade. Warm-up, 1 mile @ 6.0 mph (10 minute mile). Tempo: 4 miles @ 7.7 mph (7:48 minute miles.) Cool-down: 1 mile @ 6.0 mph. Average heart rate: 167 bpm. Cardiac Drift: 185 bpm! Note: my maximum heart rate is 190 bpm.

Today's workout was very tough for several reasons, I had to run earlier than normal as our team "One Wonders" would be bowling at the Orleans Hotel & Casino bowling lanes later in the morning. (My team members had today off from work due to it being Martin Luther King Day, unfortunately I had to work.) The gym was unusually warm, I found the thermostat set a 77 degrees, and was already sweating profusely during my warm-up! Therefore, during the end of my tempo run my heart rate had soared to 185 bpm, which is above my goal for a threshold workout. I also didn't eat breakfast before the run, just didn't feel hungry so early. I was able to survive the run and now look forward to tomorrow's cross-training.

13 WEEKS UNTIL BOSTON MARATHON REPORT, JANUARY 14-20, 2008

Finished third week of Boston Marathon Training and ran a total of 29 miles. I'm still following the guidelines of "FIRST Training Program" as explained in "Runner's World, Run Less, Run Faster" book and happy to report that I've ran the workouts exactly as written! This FIRST Training Program is challenging, yet the workouts are so varied that I'm not bored or exhausted from the training, whether or not I'm successful in Boston as the saying goes..."the proof is in the pudding."

I lost one pound and now 176 pounds on a six foot frame. I'll continue eating 500 calories less per day. I hope to lose another 1-2 pounds this week.

I've completed three weight circuit training sessions last week. I'm now using free weights for biceps, triceps and shoulders rather than the usual machine workouts, I still use machines for the other muscle groupings. Thankfully, I'm not bulking up, and I'm getting noticeably tighter and stronger.

I slept well again last week and every night slept at least eight hours; this may be due to the cab business being so slow with no conventions and I'm not under the usual amount of stress. Also, the cut-back in mileage definitely helps me with more time to sleep. My morning heart rates have remained low, 38-41 bpm.

A short recap of last week's training:
Monday: Tempo Run, 7 miles.
Tuesday: Cross-training, weight circuits and stationary cycling.
Wednesday: Long Run. 17 miles.
Thursday: Cross-training, weight circuits and stationary cycling.
Friday: Intervals, 5 miles.
Saturday: Rest Day.
Sunday: Cross-training, weight circuits, rowing and stationary cycling.
Total weekly mileage: 29 miles.