I’m starting to worry that I’m not even going to have enough time to get ready for a proper marathon in Philadelphia now. I’m supposed to start my 18 week training plan tomorrow, but there’s no way that I can jump back into that serious of a regimen yet. My knee is just not ready.
I went out yesterday for an 8-9 mile run to test the waters a bit. I planned to run from my house to Central Park, do a loop, then run back. I didn’t make it. After finishing up the loop, my knee was throbbing (ITBS band pain again, not the stuff inside the knee that has been more of the problem recently) so I decided to throw in the towel and walk home. The 7.5 miles was the longest I’ve done in over a month, so that I was even able to run that is a good sign. And, after icing and stretching and medicating and all that, the knee was feeling strong enough for me to play a couple sets of casual tennis last night and then go for an easy 4 miler today — also a good sign.
But, being able to barely finish a 7-and-a-half mile run is not where I need to be the weekend before starting the toughest training plan I’ve ever attempted. I’m supposed to do a 15 this Saturday. There’s no way. And, speedwork and hills and all that are still out too. Although I’ve been getting some miles in, they’ve all just been steady paced flat runs. My P.T. told me not to do hills and my legs tell me not to try sprints.
So, if I can’t get the necessary workouts in and I can’t get the quantity of miles on the calendar, how am I going to improve my performance from Delaware (when I was healthy the whole training period)? And, if I can’t improve, what’s the point? Should I scale back and just call this season a loss? Should I just run the two marathons slow, focus on building up my base and then try for the sub-3 in Boston? Or, should I just try to follow the training as closely as I can now and then pick up the intensity in a few weeks when I’m able to?
I really, really don’t want to throw away the whole rest of the year, but I suppose that would be a better scenario than pushing hard and still not achieving my goals and ending up weakened because of it. I guess that’s what it boils down to — Which path will have the best long term impact on my running? Thing is, I have no idea… Anyone out there have a crystal ball I can borrow? Or some good advice?
Hey Robert, sorry to hear that your knee isn’t 100% yet, but it seems like there has been some progress, so that’s good. You just need to be a little patient with the recovery…I know it’s hard!
Concerning your fall marathon plans, you ask questions that unfortunately no one has answers for. Without that crystal ball you speak of, it is impossible to know the extent of marathon training your body is capable of at this point. The most practical approach would be to let your body recover completely and then train as diligently as you can for Philly and see what happens on race day. You might have to temper your expectations a little bit though depending on how training goes…maybe train just for a PR, instead of sub-3…
As long as you take it easy and not push yourself beyond what you think your body is capable of, you should not suffer any ill effects from training…maybe except a bruised ego.
Best of luck in your training!
I agree with laminator… Just because you won’t be able to do the training you planned to, and/or PR, I don’t think you should just give up, not yet!!! Just give it a couple of weeks and you can decide. You might still be able to race it and do a decent time if not what you had in mind.
I can only imagine how frustrating this might be for you, I’d be pulling my hairs out trying to figure out what to do or deciding if it’s worth it, or if I even want to put the effort to do something that’s not what I wanted, but just give it a couple of weeks and who knows… ;-) don’t lose the dream though!
Congrats on making it to 7.5, that’s progress!
Even if it takes you 6 more weeks, you’d still be able to do a 12-week plan, and that’s a solid amount of time for improvement. I’m not sure I’d play tennis though or do anything physical that might take away from fresh/healthy legs for running – you need to eek out every morsel at this point. Here’s hoping the MSM helps asap, too. Keep the faith!
Darn — Flo said exactly what I was going to.
More thoughts: Philly may not be your best race. Given the issues you’re having, it’s a lot to expect of yourself that you a) recover completely from your physical woes to then b) get in the best shape of your life in three months (especially off of a base that’s been compromised).
I’m looking at my December race this way. I may as well go in to training with reasonable expectations so I can take pressure off myself come race day. I view every marathon as valuable learning experience, even the terrible ones (and most have been terrible).
Totally different thought: Maybe you can run Philly slower and pace a slower runner who’s trying to PR? That might broaden your experience further and take the focus off your own run a bit.
To some extent I face the same dilemma, training not where it should be (although yours is injury-related), looking to a fall marathon. My thought is to train initially without regard to race day, i.e., adhere to the 10% rule and don’t overdo it. See where things stand come Labor Day. You may well feel strong and confident with your injuries a memory. You can still get good training in at that point.
If at that point you don’t think you’ll be able to race Philly, re-focus on shorter stuff finishing, perhaps, with Kleinerman in December. All along keeping your eye on the prize, i.e., Boston.
I fear that if you do Philly underprepared, you put yourself in a hole for Boston because you’ll need to recover and you’ll delay basebuilding.
Joe’s comment was clearer than my own. My “pace another runner” comment was based on the worst case scenario: you can’t train properly to PR in Philly, but would like to make good use of that bib anyway.
I didn’t want to leave the impression that I’m completely pessimistic about your chances. A lot of magic can happen in 4-6 weeks of patient recovery. And 12 weeks is more than enough time to prepare for a great run if everything else is in order.
These are all solid suggestions. It seems like the consensus is to just keep up as well as I can and see where that leaves me later on in the season. Makes sense. So, that’s the new plan. Thank you, everyone.
The only thing I would add is to adjust your expectations so that it remains fun and enjoyable rather than one disappointment after another. A sub-3 marathon is quite a feat, and there are more chances this winter if Philly doesn’t line up right. And with over use injuries (with which I am way too familiar), it can be frustrating and a bad week can set back weeks of patience and rehab. But it will get better!
Thanks for the comment on my blog. I found Acclerade Gel at the Vitamin Shop on 5th Ave and 35th (across from City Sports), which is the largest vitamin/supplement store I have seen in New York. I haven’t seen it anywhere else, and the only reason I saw it was because I was looking for something else (Accelerade Hydro, a relatively lower calorie recovery drink), and there it was. I didn’t even know they made a gel until I saw it.
i agree with everyone too robert. even though you may not make a PR you have to stay in it for the love of the run. remember, even finishing a marathon is an accomplishment unto itself.