Marathon week is officially HERE! Those are some scary words to say. Scary but exciting all at the same time!
I did one of my last few workouts Monday morning. The main goal of the workout was to just keep my confidence up that I could hit marathon pace and to just keep my legs moving a little quicker. I’ve never done short workouts before during taper week, but figured I’d give it a try this time.
1.25 mile warm up
800 meters (7:24 pace)
1.5 miles at marathon pace
800 meters (7:24 pace)
1.25 mile cool down
It went well and it actually felt nice to cut the run at 5 miles. Plus, it meant that I got to sleep a little later on my Monday morning which is always a win!
Tuesday was an easy 5 miles. I just ran whatever felt easy.
It’s been raining all week here, but as long as the weather stays nice for Saturday that is fine by me!
I’ve got some short and quick strides this morning and then a tiny shake out run Thursday morning and I am done. The next time I will run after that will be on race day morning.
I’ve posted about my marathon goals in the past, but I figured since it is offically race week and I now can see where I’m at that I would review and finalize my goals for Saturday.
Marathon racing (or any racing) is tough. There are so many small details that go into have a successful race, and there are time when you can do everything right and still have a bad race. It just happens. However, you have to plan and goal yourself assuming everything will go as planned.
Here are the time goals I have come up with for Saturday:
1 – Finish HEALTHY
2 – Sub 4:00
3 – Sub 3:45
4 – Sub 3:35 (Boston Qualify)
Just looking at those goals scares me a little. Not because I’m afraid to fail, but looking at where I started those are some lofty goals. I know without a doubt that I’m going into this not afraid to fail. We all take risks and chances when it comes to racing. Sometimes you have to put it all out there knowing that if you are succesful you will reach all your goals, and if you don’t well it’s ok to fail.
My first goal will always be to finish healthy. Over the past several years this has become more and more important to me.
I’ve been training and using Hanson’s Marathon Method with the goal of a BQ. However, that is still my stretch goal at the end of the day. There will be a little dissapointment if I don’t but looking at it realisticly no matter what I run I will PR and that is always a great accomplishment!
I believe regardless, assuming I don’t get injured or have a HORRIBLE day, I should be able to break 4:00 hours. I have traiend well over that and feel confident in the abilities that I have gained. Each goal after breaking 4:00 hours will be an added bonus!
I’ve had some personal goals for myself throughout this week leading up to the marathon.
1 – RELAX
I’ve always been one who really gets worked up for races. It’s usually not a problem but I am really focusing on keeping myself relaxed. Nothing that I do at this point will change the outcome Saturday (aside from proper nutrition).
Due to my work schedule and my husbands we aren’t able to leave to head down to Kiawah (a 5.5 hour drive) until 3:00 pm on Friday. That’s not ideal and has been stressing me a bit. However, I am taking all measures to make sure I stay calm about it. I will have pasta ready for us to eat on the way and thankfully they offer packet pick up on the morning of, which is a life savor!
I want to get to the start line feeling relatively calm and confident.
2 – Nutrition
Proper nutrition leading up to race day is vital for me. I want to avoid any unnecessary stomach problems but assure that I am properly fueld and ready to go.
I always pay attention to an extent, but my goal is to not only pay attention but to make sure I am eating the right things to help my stomach not go crazy come race morning. It’s always a little bit of an experiment, but I’ve been experimenting with a few changes to hopefully help this issue!
Went and stocked up on my chocolate Gu’s for race day. This marathon is providing any gels so I wanted to make sure I had a stock of the only flavor I can stomach. They aren’t all for me, half are for the hubs!
3 – Run a Smart Race
In the past I have always seemed to do the common rookie mistakes. i’ve always gone out too fast, didn’t properly fuel throughout the race and I have always hit the wall too early.
These are all mistakes that I am really focusing on correcting this time around. If I want big results then I have to be prepared to make sure these mistakes don’t happen.
There you have it. Nothing really earth shattering but a simple and thought out plan is essential for making sure that I have a successful race. I will go out there and give it my all and the outcome is what it is. That’s really all you can do!
Trying to remember this as well! Well said Sara Hall!
Do you set goals for your races?
Anyone else racing this month?
I have faith that you will BQ Sara! I’m really excited for you!
Thanks so much Michele! Hoping for the best!!
That quote is so true! I know that you are ready to run an awesome race! I trained at alot of the same paces as you, but didn’t get my mileage as high, and ran a 3:46 a few weeks ago. I felt like I could have run faster, but my body dind’t want to cooperate that day. Just from following your training and your recent half-marathon time I have a feeling you will be getting that BQ!
Thanks Lisa! I hope but I also don’t want to be too hard on myself if for any reason I don’t. That’s why I like setting multiple goals! The only part that makes me nervous is the max 16 mile long runs. My husband assures me that I’ll be fine but I’m still nervous! I Guess we will find out! That’s the beauty of the marathon and the scary part, you never really know how your body will respond come race day! 🙂
Good luck this weekend. I have followed your training. Wish I could do that well with my own training. You’ve got this!!! Trust your training and have fun.
Good luck this weekend Sara. I love your 4 different goals, right down to the BQ goal. Believe in your training and yourself and have a great race this weekend. I wish I lived closer as I would love to come down and cheer for you on the course. I will be cheering from far away (Canada), but still cheering very loudly. May you be light and fast on your feet with the wind at your back giving you that gentle push forward to reach your running goals for the day.
I love that quote and your goals! I admire how you stuck with training plan and adjusted it to fit your needs. Have I mentioned that I am in awe of your speed and determination? Your going to rock that marathon and have a great time doing it! I cannot wait to hear how it goes. 🙂
Good luck this weekend. The weather should be beautiful for it. It looks like you did a great job with the Hansons plan, and of course anything can happen on race day but you can definitely look back and say you trained hard and did all you could to reach your goals. I hope you have fun at Kiawah!
Your training has gone really well and your half marathon was a great indicator of where you are fitness wise. I ran a 1:37 half prior to my BQ which was a 3:27 so I definitely think the BQ is in reach for you. I would be interested in hearing your race plan as far as pacing goes.. I am sure your husband has given you a lot of tips on that.
That last quote is very true! It’s easy to forget what a huge difference taper makes. Good luck on the BQ! When I tried Hansons, the furthest I ever ran was 13 miles. My time wasn’t great, but I did feel prepared to run the whole distance. I’m sure if I had actually stuck to the plan, I would’ve seen huge improvements.
You put so much work into the training and you are ready!!! Can’t wait to hear about the race.
How do you plan to pace yourself? There is a big difference between a sub 4 pace and a Bq pace!
Hey Kimmie! Well I have been training at a marathon pace of 8:00. I’ve hit all but 1 tempo run (way back in the beginning of training I cut one by a mile) and my last 10 mile tempo at that pace went really well. The goal right now is to play it conservative for the first 8 miles or so. I will probably try for around 8:10-8:15. Once I hit 8 and based off how I feel I can start to get around an 8:00. Then once I hit around 22 depending on how I feel I will go from there. If I feel good (or as good as you can feel at mile 22) then I will try to pick it up a bit, if not I’ll try to hold it or slow down as needed.
That’s the tentative plan but we will see how it goes race day! Not trying to put too much pressure on myself and make sure I am going to enjoy it as well! Obviously I can’t pace myself at a 4:00 hour marathon for half and still have a chance for a BQ…so it will be broken up into segments and see how I feel. Hoping for the best!
Good luck! I’ve been following along with your training and you’ve worked so hard. I’m a goal setter before races too.
Good luck Sara!!! Let us know how your legs feel post race. I always struggle for a few weeks after and am curious about others.