Chicago marathon 2013

Well, I haven't had a good marathon in two years. Two years ago in October I set my marathon PR. I then began training for my first Boston marathon with the hardest training program to date for me. Due to the heat, I ran slow and didn't take time to recover but jumped into more hard training because I really wanted to do well at the next Boston. Long story short, I was injured from all that for a while. For the Chicago marathon, I decided to switch up the training a bit using the Hanson approach and cut back a little on the miles.

All in all, I'm happy with this marathon effort and feel it was a good solid effort. I ran a 3:49:59 though my goal was 3:35-3:39. There were a number of positives for me which tell me that I am back in the game for solid marathons as long as I make sure recovery is there after each one. As I write this, I am on my 7th day of rest after the race - the longest I have gone without starting running again.

The weather in Chicago was good but not as great as I kept hearing the weathermen say it was for a race. I rate it a 7 out of 10. It was in the low 50s when we started and 61 at the end. The sun was bright and shiny all race long. Had it been cloudy, it would have been a 8.5 out of 10. And if it had been 10 degrees cooler in addition, it would have been a 10 out of 10. I only say this as I am definitely a cold weather runner. Looking at my splits and how I felt out there, it's clear to me that the warmer weather and sun in the last part of the race affected my times.

Some positives :
- Absolutely no walking other than through water stops
- No dizziness or "losing it" mentally the last 3-5 miles as often happens
- No 10 minutes miles

A few differences that I think helped me:
- I ate more than usual in the morning including double peanut butter to get more protein
- Weightlifting all year long was a big help in my hips and core. I didn't lose my form too much at the end.

Looking at my splits, they are not bad till mile 20 and on. I really believe the temps around 60 at that time were a bit of a slowdown for me. Keep in mind I've run marathons in the 30s and 40s in Philadelphia and loved those.

1	0:08:26
2	0:08:40
3	0:08:17
4	0:08:18
5	0:08:28
6	0:08:25
7	0:08:11
8	0:08:26
9	0:08:24
10	0:08:34
11	0:08:31
12	0:08:29
13	0:08:27
14	0:08:30
15	0:08:30
16	0:08:31
17	0:08:39
18	0:08:51
19	0:08:37
20	0:08:58
21	0:09:20
22	0:09:20
23	0:09:33
24	0:09:54
25	0:09:42
26	0:09:44
0.2	0:02:11

 
I assume the PF that came on to me about a month before the race affected me. I could feel pain every step. But a ton of icing, ibuprofen and stretching the few weeks before made it good enough so I could run on it. I feel the PF limits my ability to provide a good analysis of the Hanson training that I followed religiously, except for the last month with the PF limiting my running. Overall, I felt their program put me in really good shape to run a marathon. Though I did fade in the last six miles, that's really nothing new, and not walking was a very positive sign. I think the main thing I don't like about it is I feel it gets you in marathon shape only, not at all for other race distances since the bulk of the running is at MP or MP-10 seconds. In math terms, it seems like a more flat slope of getting in marathon shape but it did work for me. I never added on any miles to the 16 mile long runs.

Though I love the Chicago marathon, I wonder if next year if I shouldn't target a race at the end of October or early November to have a chance at more cloudy or cooler weather. Anyway, thanks for reading.

Congrats, John on a good race.  Remember you had many issues this past year with the knee and then the PF at the end, and you ran a very consistent race until the very end.  I would agree that the sun and warming temps probably took there toll as I even find that in training.  Keep up the good work and look to target a later race in the fall or early Dec and I'll be running Boston with you again.

Congrats John a good Chicago Marathon.  Overall, I think that you need to be proud of this race.  Like you had stated, it has been a while since you had a good race. Considering that you developed a PF issue prior to the race, being within 10 minutes of your goal and finishing without any worse PF issues, is a major win.  Now rest up, get healthy, and work on that next race.

P.S. It was great to finally meet you and Carol.

Good race John.  I like the Hansons plan and think you should stick with it for your next cycle to see if it really was a help.  If you need to add more miles, just do it in the warm-up cooldown phase of a few runs.  It adds up.  Congrats.

Nice race John.  Rest up and heal up and you'll be good to go for your next marathon.  I noticed that the trainer that helped me design my training plan used the Hanson type strength runs...I'm curious about the program so keep us informed if you use it again.

Well done. It was a good race. The nice, consistent splits seem to indicate that you ran about the right pace. 3:35-3:39 was probably not a realistic target, bearing your knee and PF issues in mind, but seems completely achievable next time, if you are careful to avoid injury.

Nice race John! Antarctica has a marathon I heard! lol Good to break bread you all again pre-race!

John, good race. You shall run Chicago as target race next year as I am not coming, and may come 2015. If history is any guide, i come to Chicago with heat. Haha

It sounds like it was a successful race John and you're past your injury problems and ready to press on.  Enjoy this weather we're having and best of luck in your next one.

Oh, Monumental is is a good option early in November.

Nice job, John - it takes a lot of heart to stick with something even when you are fighting injuries.  And congrats on not walking at all - that had to be a really good feeling!

Nicely done, John! Too bad about the PF hindering your preparation. It didn't seem to slow you down too much on race day, however.

If you're looking for a cooler fall race, Portland is always there in early October. And Seattle is in early December. And, of course, CIM.

But that's later. Enjoy your return to 26.2 and get rested up for your next one.

Nice job, John.  I know it wasn't exactly what you wanted, but as you listed, you did a number of things well in the race, and when an injury hits, it can be hard to control how the actual race turns out.  You definitely have gotten past the 4-hour plateau and are at least staying well below that, even with the PF.

I know what you mean about finding another race in terms of the weather / temps. Chicago always seems to be just a bit too warm, like it's 1-2 weeks too early.  For me, it's similar bad timing, but not so much the temps themselves, but because it always means being sick with a cold.  Whenever we really transition from summer to fall and it gets cold, I get sick, and that is always about 1 week before the marathon.  Then it warms up for the race again.  I should keep a tally, but 3/4 years I've ever noticed/cared, I've been sick during Chicago's marathon.  I vote for Philly

John, great job considering the injuries that you dealt with. Once you heal up and get started again you'll be right back down to PR range again.  Congrats.