Friday, November 17, 2006

Just ran a fast, hilly 2 miles…bad idea?

I’m running the Philadelphia Half Marathon this Sunday.  This represents my 3rd half marathon this year, and I have a goal for this half marathon: 2 hours, 10 minutes, putting me at 10 minute miles throughout.  Regarding my training, I believe I’ve been putting in the miles and have just come off the Philly Distance Run at 2:22.  I believe my goal for this Sunday is realistic and I plan to hit the mark.

However, I’m still learning how to train, and I believe I may be overtraining for this race.  Last weekend, I did a LSD of 12 miles in 2:04, and this week I’ve run a slow 3 miles followed by a brisk 2 miles today.  I’m thinking perhaps the fast 2 miles was a mistake, but I needed it psychologically.  It reminded me that I’m limber, in good shape, and prepared.  But at a 9:22 pace on a somewhat hilly course, I may have just burned up some of the glycogen stores I’ve worked to build up.  I’m basically posting this for posterity so I can refer to it next time the half marathon training begins. 

I’ll report back to ya’ll after the race when I can better assess how my approach has affected my performance, if at all.