I woke up at 5:30a to get to my dress rehearsal. I started my longest training run before I begin to taper off for the Chicago Marathon around 8a. This was a day to test my plan and pull it all together. I learned a lot Sunday about what works and what doesn’t.
Strategy and Pre-Race Food
I decided to stick to my pre-race breakfast of a cereal, non-milk, and a cup of coffee a few hours before the race. It helped me last year and for August’s half marathon. I slowly munched on a Cliffbar and sipped an energy drink with electrolytes until an hour before my run. I stopped at around 7a so I wouldn’t need to use the washroom during my run.
My strategy this year is to roll out slowly and be consistent so I’m not burned out by mile 19 and crawl to a walk around mile 23. The marathon will be long and slow since I’m still a big boy. I’ll be hitting all the aid stations for a sip of Gatorade for hydration and energy. A Cliff bar will be in my pocket to stave off my hunger and a shot of GU as emergency energy. I brought along 16 ounces of Gatorade, half a Cliff bar, and two packets of GU to practice my strategy.
Gear and Clothing
I killed my pair of Smart Wool running socks and The North Face running socks. I made a ginormous holes by my toes. The shirt is a toss up. REI no longer sells their OXT Fleet running shirts. I am kind of bummed because they felt great and didn’t chafe my nipples. I’ll be buying an assortment of socks to test out before the marathon. I don’t know what I’m going to do with the shirt.
My feet survived running in shoes with less support. Overall, it felt much better running the ASCICS GT-214o. My was a bit more sore when I was done. I think I’ll be staying with the GT-2140 for race day.
Run!
My twenty miler was a lonely run between my home and the forest preserve. I dodged orange traffic barrels and cones as I left my street. They’ve been working on the infrastructure in my neighborhood for months. Dust floats everywhere! There wasn’t anything too exciting to report until the forest preserves. Cars whizzed by. I ran. I discovered the bridge to the forest preserves were closed off at I-90 and Golf Road. I knew there had to be a way around and found the path the construction works take. I proceeded to into the preserves and towards Woodfield Mall. I went out and back.
On my way back, a Toyota Prius driver almost hit me. I guess he felt that pedestrians don’t have the right of way while the pedestrian was already in the intersection. If I weren’t aware, I would have been road kill. I resisted yelling at him because his wife and child were in the back seat and I didn’t want to interrupt my run.
Different muscles became sore during this session. I focused on maintaining different mechanics. Other muscles just haven’t been conditioned well like my abs. I’m glad that I didn’t dip into the Powerbar Gel and GU Energy Gel I brought.
Post-Run
I felt a bit disappointed immediately after the run. I ran about as fast as I did last year. I worked on my mechanics and it clicked in my brain that this is how the body is supposed to move. My abs were sore… again. I definitely need to work on to strengthen my core. Looking back, I believe it was a good run, a run to be proud of.
I stretched and took a quick nap before watching the Bears game and do homework. I woke up with energy and felt alive. I think I can learn from the disappointment and plan for a better race on October 11th.
Thank You!
I just want to thank everyone who has supported me and donated to the organizatioon I am running for, Children’s Memorial Hosptial. I especially want to thank my friend Olivia for her donation to the Hospital. Olivia, you rock!
