The Light at the End of the Tunnel

I remember back in January, when I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do this year as far as running goes. I was coming off a 2 minute PR in the Chicago Marathon, but to be honest, running was beginning to lose some of its appeal to me. I had progressed from a 3:35 debut marathon in 1998, down to a 2:51 marathon in 2000. From there, I spent the next couple of years hovering around that 2:50 mark, never improving it and on several occasions regressing from it. Finally in 2004, after an 8 month layoff from running, I was able to put in my best summer of running ever and finally lowered my PR in the marathon down to 2:48. That was done on a yearly total of 846 miles, but since I didn't start running until June of that year, that number is a little misleading.

The next year, the goal was to run more consistently leading up to the summer so I could hit the ground running, so to speak. I accomplished that and was able to nearly double my yearly mileage totals, to around 1750 miles. I once again PRed in the Chicago marathon, lowering my PR down to 2:46:08. While I was happy with the PR, I must admit, I was wondering if I was nearing the end of my potential. I was following traditional 18 week programs, doing the speedwork and longruns, and I had managed to take a total of 5 minutes off of my PR in 5 years. Was it really worth it.

Finally in January of this year, I decided that I was sick of nickel and diming my PR down. I wanted to take a chunk out of it. I wanted to run in the mid 2:30's. When I made the declaration I had no idea how I was going to accomplish it really. I knew I would have to train harder than I ever have before, but I wasn't sure of the specifics behind it. Finally I settled on a high-mileage plan that would take the emphasis off of trackwork and traditional speedwork, instead focusing on higher weekly mileage, tempo runs, and long runs. When I first made the plan up, I figured if everything went perfectly, I should run around 3300 miles the time the Chicago Marathon rolled around. Here I sit, less than a week away from the big day, and my mileage for the year is 3245 and things definitely haven't gone perfectly.

The last 2 months have been extremely difficult, but as Andrew mentioned in one of his comments, you cannot deny the training. Sure there are doubts, but there is also a strong sense of confidence somewhere under the surface. Is a mid 2:30's race possible this weekend? I don't know, but to be honest, I don't even know that I care anymore. What I took away from this year's training cannot be measured by a guntime. If I don't hit it this weekend, there will be other races. This is just the beginning.