Long Run 2.1.1
Poser August 24th, 2008
This long run was a bit of a pain. I picked up a water bottle to carry with me on my run, you know those ones with a mesh handle on the outside? Yah, I got one of those. 16oz’s of aquatic aid in case I get parched in between water stations. Oddly enough, I think carrying the bottle messed up my left shoulder, which is weird because I carried it with my right hand. In either case, its something I’m going to had to get used too. I only filled it with water this time, but later on I might throw some Powerade or something in there. It was a good run, and my start to longer distances for my long runs coming up to taper to 15 miles before I knock the miles back down for the San Jose Rock N Roll. So, read on…
The Conditions:
Distance: 8.59 miles (though probably 
Pace: 8′43″ / mi
Weather: Warm, really warm. Started at noonish, ended about 1, so it was sunny, but plenty of shade along the trail.
Route: Lower Bidwell Path. Same as last weeks 6 mile run, started at “Start” sign on 4th ST side of the park, headed to the 4m marker and came back. One thing to note, Nike+ picked up 8.59 miles that I ran, but the marker I ran too was the 4mile marker, and then back, so it shoulda been an even 8 miles, unless the marker isnt marked right. We’ll test soon when I get my Garmin Forerunner 405.
The Run
Before: I think a good amount of rest. ~7.5 hours, and spent my time doing my usual warm ups. I wanted to warm up right since it was a long run, so exercises consisted of 5×20 sec wall squats, 2×10 bicycle crunches, 2×20 pushups, 2×10 left lifts (for each leg), and my stretches. I also ate a bowl of cereal, I think Rice Chex, about 1.5 hours before the run. I woke up early, and wanted to eat something light, and that was a bad mistake. Because…
During: Got a stomach ache a little during the run. Thanks Rice Chex and Milk, bastards. Otherwise a goooood run. I felt strong through out the whole run, and ran at a comfortable pace. I wanted to just complete the run with as little stops as possible, if any stops. I did pretty well, going from start to the Bridge close to mile 3, walking about 45secs (maybe 1 min) drinking water, and bypassed the 1.5 mile station. Picked up my run again and hit 4mile mark and turned back, again stopping at 3mile mark and walking and re-hydrating till I got over the bridge. I stopped this second time because my lower shins area was bothering me. I’m almost sure now that its the shoes giving me problems, so tomorrow I might pick up new shoes. I skipped the long run today, to recover from a wild night out at the bars. While my shins were funky, I was able to keep myself going, slowing my pace down when I needed to in order to give my shins a bit of a rest. The last 1/3mile I picked up the pace a little, as a I like to save some energy in the tank for a final sprint. I was feeling really good during the sprint, so I think I could have pushed it more during the whole run itself. I now wish I had, as my average pace was 8′43″, and I was hoping to be at least 8′40″ if not faster. I’m hoping in coming up long runs I get my mile pace faster, so reach a goal of doing the San Jose Rock N Roll in under 1hr50mins, if not faster.
After: I was BEAT once I finished. I grabbed my Powerade and limped over to a park bench and just relaxed, drinking up my juice and waiting for my body to cool down. I sat there for a bout 10 mins, just recovering, doing very well though. Came home and showered, relaxed and was able to go about my lazy day with no real pain, just a slight ache in the shins later on, which was gone by the next day.
This 8 mile run was great because I felt really good after its completion. I havent done a run over 6 miles since last training for the Santa Cruz 1/2M. It was good to break a minor 6mile wall thats come up since all I’ve done lately is 10ks . I cant wait to get started on my longer runs, and get training for hydrating myself during my 1/2’s. I washed the Olympic Men’s Marathon yesterday, and felt totally inspired to get my ass in a better training mode. I really want to join a gym where I use machines for Strength training, and get started with using a pool for awesome cross training. I hope to do a full Marathon next year, and I’d like to be able to get a respectable time with my come out run. Who knows, maybe I’ll manage to train for and make it in the Boston Marathon sooner than I thought. Woo!