What a Week I'm Having

I went back to John Hill's clinic on Wednesday.

The time off was good.  I had done some treadmill runs to prepare for the 2 x 2 miles, but outdoors was something else.

It was freezing.  Temperature was likely in the single digits, but a strong breeze ensured uncomfort. And to add a bit, I stepped in a puddle before the intervals began.  Anywho, I'm out there and happy.

I see some regular faces, but also a few new ones.  I always feel a little awkward running with new people.  I don't want to be out of place, nor do I like pushing the pace.  We went out strong, but started too slow after 1/4 mile.  By the 1/2 way mark (i.e. 1 mile) we were already about 14 seconds behind.  I don't mind leading, but I don't want people to perceive I'm trying to show them up.  I decided to take the lead.  I always have a twinge of guilt.  I finished 14:14, no PB.

The second interval, I took the lead early on.  Tiffany, who was supposed to pace us for a 14 min said she was recovering from the holidays and apologized for not being able to pace us.  Regardless, I still felt a bit guilty, yet I couldn't crack it, and came in at 14:06.

With JH down, I had one more event for the week.  Running with my cousin (in-law), Darren.  He's fast.  He's sub 3:05 and shooting for a sub 3 on his next marathon.

I was pretty nervous about running with him.  He's so much faster than me.  38 minute for his 10k, 46 for mine.  I told him I'd be running my tempo at 4:40-4:45 / Km.  His slow pace.

The day started off cold and wet, so I gathered my cold gear.  By the time I start my warm-up run, the rain slows down and the sun started to break. I arrive at our meeting spot about 2 mins early and see Darren too.  We have some brief chit chat and the tempo, for me, begins.  Darren helped the time fly by.  I'm watching him run.  He's not sweating, he's hardly breathing, and he has a leisurely cadence.

We spoke afterwards.  Some of the nuggets of wisdom I gleaned were:

• Wearing less is more. If you need one, get a Value Village hoody to keep warm beforehand.
• Enter a few races before the "big" event to get your head more comfortable/familiar around races.
• More mileage.  80-100Km per week.

I'm looking at doing the above.  It's tough being close to a goal, but not quite there.  I mean, if I were stuck at 4:30 marathons, I'd give up.  But this is so close, I can taste it.  These little things might give me the slight edge to go from a 3:31:24 to a 3:30:52.... squeak right in.