My original plan for fall was aggressive - 3 goal races in 11 weeks. This goes against my normal grain as I know I can only peak for one race every 3-5 months.
The cornerstone of this plan was Badgerland Striders (BLS 24) 24 hour race, with the goal to run > 150 miles to try and make the 2013 USA National 24 hour team. After this race I planned on putting all my focus and effort into getting ready for the Glacial 50 mile trail race and finally the Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon.
The BLS 24 was the most important, so if I broke down or bombed the Glacial 50M or Monkey Marathon I could accept that fate.
Having failed to deliver on my 1st goal, this left me with a decision to make. Do I keep the same schedule?
Sadly - Now Glacial 50M and the Monkey Marathon are "for fun" races as I need to focus on Desert Solstice 24 hour track race December 15-16th. I plan no taper for Glacial 50M and a light 1 week taper for The Monkey.
It also means that I will have to spend more time on the track doing long (40+) mile runs in place of some 4-6 hour trail runs. Typing that makes my soul die just a little ...
I am changing 2 things for the Desert Solstice training: 1) I am adding leg weights (Most targeting hips) and core work 2) I will run a lot less total miles, but keep the same quality of hard workouts.
If I cannot execute at Desert Solstice, I think it is time to get into 100 mile trail races. These are so many wonderful adventures to be experienced around trails of the USA.
Good running to all!
Don't blame you at all for giving it a 2nd go, Mike! Based on history and training you know what you are capable of. Get after it. Me, I'm on to the North Face 50 Mile this weekend as training for the 24 Hour in Oct.
ReplyDeleteI think you are nuts for running 40 plus miles on tracks but it is what makes you the mentally strong beast that you are.
ReplyDeleteThe Monkey isn't a race anyway. Making the team, that's an awesome goal. Hours on the track, you are a beast.
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