August 7th Preview

We’re back at it with fall marathon training this Sunday, and we’ll stay at it every weekend through the October 9^th races. You will run the first 3.1 miles this Sunday with the half-marathoners, who are going 6.2.

Or you might choose to start early. In the case, the run will be cooler but we can’t promise drink service.

The route (from Eugene Running Company at 8:00): Oakway and Coburg Roads to Ferry Street Bridge and don’t cross. Turn left onto bike path, to Autzen footbridge and across. Turn right, to Owosso footbridge and across. Back to Alton Baker Park. Turn AROUND at east end of parking lot, then to Valley River footbridge and across. Turn left, to Ferry Street Bridge and across, then back to store. GPS distance is unchecked but close to 15.0.

Bring a drink for delivery at 3.1 miles (senior center), possibly 6.5 (Owosso), 10.5 (turnaround) and finish. This all will depend on when you start and the available helpers. Weather forecast: starting temperature in 50s and partly cloudy, moving toward a day’s high of about 80.

WEEK 13 LESSON: YOUR SPEED

Question: Should I train for speed during the week? And can I run short-distance races to improve my speed?

Answer: Do nothing for speed that might interfere with going long. Distance is far more important than speed in this training program. You’re mainly preparing here to go the 26.2 miles, not to meet or beat a time goal. Never substitute fast for long. Add a fast-training day in midweek only if you have recovered fully from the latest long run, or if you can be ready in time for the next one. Run a short race, of 5K to 10K, on the weekend only if it replaces a semi-long training run scheduled for the team that weekend. Running a short race does give you experience in dealing with the race-day atmosphere, which differs greatly from ours during training.