03/31/07 Practice Makes Perfect (In Theory!)

The marathon training schedule called for a long run of 21 miles today. The purpose of these runs, besides the obvious need to train for surviving the full 26.2 mile run is to have a dress rehearsal for what you are going to do on race day. It's never good to find out in the middle of a marathon that your new socks give you blisters, your shoes (or shorts!) don't fit quite right, Gatorade gives you a tummy ache, or you should not have coffee before you run, but a bagel is fine. So this run was about practicing not only running, but what I am going to wear on marathon day, as well as what I will eat before and during (McDonald's always tastes good afterwards!)

This was a solo run, but enjoyable. I ran from my house out to the North Chagrin reservation, where I detoured onto the bridle trails until the end of the park, then back home. I tried using some Clif Block Energy Chews and water for fuel and this worked great. The energy chews tasted pretty good (Cranraspberry) and were easy to eat. I will just carry them with me during the race, and take only water from the aid stations. (I already know that Gatorade and I do not get along!) I finished the run feeling pretty strong, so that was a good confidence booster. This will probably be my longest training run ( I will run one more 20 miler) before the marathon. Unlike races of shorter distances, it is not adviseable to train up to the race distance - it just wears you down too much and leaves you too tired to train properly the next week.

Only 7 more weeks until race day!