Sunday, March 11: To Centennial Park

1/2 Marathon Training

Important!  Location Change!

Where: Centennial Park!  We meet in the parking area half-way between West End Ave and the Parthenon.

When:  9 a.m.  (We may move up to 8 a.m. soon, but not this week.)

What: Time on your feet.  Just an easy, conversational distance run on the 1/2 marathon course.

Novice: about 10 miles easy

Intermediate: about 11 miles easy

Advanced: 14 miles easy

Note: you need to either know the half-marathon course, or print off a map.  Here is where you can download a map.  You may want to have the map beside you as you read on...

Course:  We are going to run the first 8 miles of the course.  Then, instead of turning right on music row, we will continue on Wedgewood, cross 21st, and turn right on Natchez Trace.  We'll pass the Vanderbilt track and football stadium on our way back to Centennial Park.  The extra mileage for the intermediate and advanced groups will come from laps of Centennial Park.  The advanced group will do two one-mile laps before the course, and two after.  The intermediate will do one lap before the course run.

No brunch this week, but use this as an opportunity to revisit pancake pantry, or, if you are coming back to the East Side, try  Marche or Sky Blue Cafe - my two brunch-time favorites.

Speaking of eating...

Over the last couple of weeks, I have brought protein recovery drinks out to the long runs.  Why? Because, for some reason, you body readily accepts and processes calories within 30-60 minutes of a workout.  After that, your body starts to slow down the recovery process.  It has also been found that protein and carbs (in a 1g of protein per 4g of carbohydrate mixture) helps even more than just one or the other.   With these longer runs, it is essential that you do everything you can to aid your recovery.  Please consume the cough syrup recovery drink that I bring, or bring something yourself!  (If is topic interests you, here is a great article (Update 3/10 - link fixed...sorry, but this article is definitely worth reading!) from Outside magazine from a long time ago that highlights research by Ed Burke.  The guy who invented Endurox.)

Also, as we complete these longer runs we need to practice taking in calories during the run. As a general rule, if your race is going to be under 90 minutes, calories are not really necessary  In fact, I would recommend against them because they may upset your stomach.  But after 90 minutes, calories are essential to prevent a major bonk.   From now on, we'll have gatorade out on the course, and for a couple of weeks we'll have some gatorade gu-type things.   Now is the time (during training) to check out different flavors / types of gels to see what you like, ecause most of us will be out on the course for longer than 90 minutes and you don't want to be trying something new on race day.   Head over to Fleet Feet or NRC and check out their selection / suggestions or gels, blocks and various other ways to quickly get calories...

See you on Sunday.

Mark