Monday, April 28th: 4:18:32

My journey is complete. I have run a marathon.

Warning: Since this is my ultimate entry, it's extremely long. I know not everyone can read through the whole thing, but I hope you'll read as much as you can and let me know what you think!

I have a lot of emotions right now, almost a day later. It's going to take some time to sort them out. I'm obviously proud of what I accomplished. I'm relieved that I can start getting my life back to some semblance of normal. I'm just so incredibly touched by everyone who helped me along the way -- especially my wife, Jackie. I am wondering what, if anything, I could have done better along the way. And I am wondering if this feeling of void is going to go away after I get back into a normal life routine.

As you have probably noticed, I've been lying low of late. I decided a few days into the taper that it wasn't really worth blogging about. There was really just nothing to say about those shorter, easier runs. And I kind of wanted to use that time to try to dial back my emotions and excitement, to save them for the race.

But before I really get into the emotional stuff, let me tell you about race weekend.

I took Friday and today off from work, so that I'd have an extra day to get myself ready, and so I'd have a day to recover. On Friday, I made my way down to the race expo to pick up my race packet and check out the scene. It was somewhat small, but I did enjoy myself -- especially when I sat in a fantastic massage chair, then used another machine that gave me an awesome foot massage. I also added a shot glass to my burgeoning collection. And I took the opportunity to check out the scene, so I would have a sense of where things would be in the morning.

$370 will get one of these bad boys

I bought one, not all of these

That is a lot of porta-johns!

Saturday morning, I went out on my short shakeout run -- 2 miles, just to limber up. I also made sure

Couldn't get the whole thing in the pic

I had all my gear together and made myself one last pasta dinner. Jackie and I had to run a few things over to my parents' house, and on the way home, we saw a horizon-to-horizon rainbow. It was much brighter on one end, but it went all the way across the sky. I thought of it as a symbol, that even if I faded a bit at the end, I would make it all the way through the race.

Sunday morning started early: 4:30 a.m. I had bought a ticket for the special New Jersey Marathon express train, so that I wouldn't have to worry about traffic, which I'd heard could be a bear. It arrived at my train station at 5:50 a.m. So I got up and moving, got my race gear on, put on some warmer throwaway clothes, and headed out.

Here I am, all set to go. (courtesy Jackie Richter)

I looked like a homeless guy! (courtesy Jackie Richter)

Some sleepy runners waiting for the train.

The train got to Monmouth Park, in Oceanport, a little bit after 6:00, so that the half-marathoners could get there in time for their race, which went off earlier than the full. That's why I'd geared up in my homeless garb. I had a newspaper to read -- though I couldn't much focus -- and a black garbage bag to sit on so my butt wouldn't get wet while I was waiting. I wound up using those porta-johns three times in the course of an hour and a half. And I made sure to be one of the first into the corrals.

Those are the people in the three corrals ahead of mine.

I wanted to be at the front of the corral for a specific reason. When I signed up for the race back in August, I had no idea of my expected finishing time, so I left it blank. That got me into the last corral, with all of the people who were expecting to do 4:30 or slower. I was concerned that I would spend the first few miles of the race weaving in and out of traffic, and use up valuable energy in the process. But as it turned out, that didn't matter a bit. When the horn blew, more than a dozen people flew by me almost immediately, and the group stretched out before we'd even hit a quarter mile.

Now, my race plan was to start out slow and work my way up to race pace. So when all those people started beating feet out of the gate, I said to myself, "Good. Let them go. Run your own race. You know what you're doing." Of course, that didn't stop me from running a sub-9:00 first mile, even trying to keep my pace in check.

After I got by the 4:25 pace group -- which actually started in the corral ahead of mine -- I settled into an easy pace. I talked to a few people who were shooting for that time, but had gotten out ahead of their group a bit. And just as planned, I eschewed the first two hydration stations, knowing that I had plenty in the tank that early on, and I didn't want to have to hit a porta-john on the course.

Jackie, our kids and her mother were waiting to see me right around mile five -- my first real pick-me-up of the day. The race was still in Oceanport, actually -- right down the street from Jackie's school, which made it a great place to look for her. I stopped off, handed off my headband and gloves (which I'd hung onto as much for sentimental reasons as anything), got a quick kiss and was back out on my way. Right after that was the only significant climb of the race, on the bridge into Long Branch. And honestly, even that wasn't much of a climb compared to the hills I'm used to. At this point, I was feeling really good.

The course wends its way into Monmouth Beach from there, looping through residential neighborhoods before turning south. Someone -- not sure if it was the race organizers or someone else -- put up a gantlet of motivational signs along the road. One read, "You've done dumber things when you were drunk." My thought: "Yeah, like commit to doing a marathon."

South from Monmouth Beach, we were back in Long Branch. I would say that leg -- from roughly mile 8 to mile 11 -- is probably the lowlight of the race. It actually goes right past a sewerage treatment plant and through some pretty run-down neighborhoods. Fortunately, it's still fairly early in the race, so it wasn't the kind of downer it would have been if I were tired. It also was a good spot for me to put in a little faster mile, just to kind of get my overall pace closer to race pace.

Around mile 11.5, I befriended a woman who seemed to be struggling a bit. Turns out, her kids are in the Oceanport schools (but not yet in Jackie's school), and she's a teacher herself in Little Silver. She was definitely pacing slower than I was at that point, but I took the opportunity both to have some pleasant conversation about something other than running, and to slow my pace a little bit. We did about a mile and a half together, till close to the halfway point, when I moved on.

This is probably a good time to mention why I was being extra careful about my pace. The weather forecast was for northwest winds between 15 and 20 miles per hour, with higher gusts. That meant that the last 6 miles of the race would be directly into the wind. I knew by the halfway point that 4:00 was out of the question; I crossed the timing belt at 2:05:46 -- 9 minutes slower than my half-marathon in March. There would be no making that up into the wind, and I really wanted to leave something in the tank for late. I'd say I was still in good shape at this point.

Mile 14 (courtesy Mark Stalford)

Not long after that, my parents and Aunt Susan were along the road. My stepdad insisted that I not wave or anything, because he wanted to get some good action shots. But he didn't say anything about making sure to give Mom a kiss along the side of the road.

The three of them trailed me along that bottom half of the course, and I saw them again just a couple of miles later, right before the race moved into Asbury Park. I was getting a little tired, and it's always great to have a cheering section.

Convention Hall in Asbury (courtesy Christine McDevitt)

I got a nice surprise in Asbury. My friends Dan and Christine were there waiting for me. I knew they'd be somewhere along the course, but I didn't know if they were just going to the finish or what. And there honestly weren't a ton of spectators out in that area. It's not very residential at all, so anyone local would have had to walk a little ways. That meant that Dan and Christine were able to spot me easily, and I was able to spot them. Super-exciting! Got a couple of high fives, and then headed for Ocean Grove.

The turnaround for the race is at the very south end of Ocean Grove. I was both looking forward to it and dreading it. I was excited for the turn to come, because it was the last major milestone before the push for home. But I was dreading it because of the wind. You get only half as much push from a tailwind as you get against you from a headwind. And the turn is at 19, with a little jog to the east before we headed straight into it. By now, I was pretty tired. Not ridiculously tired, but as tired as you'd expect someone who'd run 19 miles to be.

Getting a little tired at this point (courtesy Mark Stalford)

So then there was the wind, for real. It was killer. It was, frankly, my undoing. I saw Dan and Christine around mile 20, and my parents around mile 21, and I'm sure they could see I was dragging. It was a total fight, and my legs were just really balking. I tried taking some extra fuel, but that just made things worse, as my stomach wasn't happy about all that GU all at once. It's where the race plan went out the window, and where things really became about just seeing the finish line.


Those guys in the gold shorts were just as bushed as I was (courtesy Mark Stalford)

And then, at mile 23, I decided I needed to walk some. The gusts of wind were just awful, and my legs were burning. I was able to walk at a good pace, not a trudge, and I was confident I would make it to the end -- it was just a question of how long it would take. I walked for a few tenths, and then I would run a bit. When I was running, I made sure not to get myself to the point where I couldn't go on at all -- like when I bonked on that training run -- so that the walking jags would actually help me recover a bit. And I kept this up basically through the last three miles of the race.

I look a lot better than I feel here (courtesy Christine McDevitt)

As I got past mile 25, I got a lot more encouragement, both from friends and total strangers. In Pier Village, Dan found me again and ran alongside me, slowing when I slowed and keeping my spirits up. We were even able to chat a bit about Rutgers football, which was good because it meant that my aeration was still OK, and I wasn't on the verge of collapse. It's one of my favorite memories of the race.

After my final walking jag, I took off in a dead sprint for the finish. I actually checked up maybe 50 feet short of the line, but it was still fun to be going balls-out with everyone -- including my family and friends -- cheering me on. I saw everyone -- I promise -- but I'll never forget my neighbor Julio, up on a bench, yelling louder than anyone in the crowd. What a rush!

As the title of this entry says, I finished in 4:18:32. I'm happy with that for a first try, but I'm not totally satisfied. I know you're never going to encounter totally perfect race conditions, but I am left wondering how much time that wind really cost me. My best guess is about 5 minutes. None of the people around me during those last few miles were able to run straight through -- everyone had to stop and walk some. So I know it wasn't just a matter of conditioning and running out of gas. And as I mentioned above, I was able to chat with Dan at the very end, so my cardio was good -- my legs were simply fatigued, and I have to believe it was from pushing against that wind.

After the race, because I had so many people pulling for me, rather than eat lunch at a restaurant, my parents hosted an afterparty at their house not far from the finish line. Some more friends were able to come out to that, even though they couldn't make it to the course to see me run. It's just really something to have all of these people who've been invested in this huge journey I've been on for eight months now. I can't adequately express how much that means to me. But I want to give one last shout-out to Dan, who brewed a beer especially for the occasion -- Marathon Man IPA -- and created a label with my image and the letters AR in marathon highlighted. It's really, really cool. And the beer tastes great, too!

I also want to thank my parents. They supported me last fall at my first

There's the frame, with my medal draped over the course map

half, and they saw me in four different spots on the course yesterday -- before rushing back to their house to be ready for more than 20 people to come celebrate. And my stepfather, just in the time between when I saw him at mile 24 and when I got to their house, created this great frame with a photo of me running and the course map. It's really just awesome.

And of course, I have to, have to, have to thank my incredible, beautiful and beyond patient wife, Jackie, for all of her support over these eight months. She's done many things for me over this time -- adjust her schedule around my running, nurse me back to health after long runs, deal with my ridiculous diet -- but most of all, she's listened. There have been times when all we've talked about for days has been running. She's offered wise counsel, she's been my rock when I need to let out my emotions, and she's simply understood how important all of this has been for me. She probably knows more about marathon running than any non-marathoner you'll ever meet. There is no way -- NO WAY -- I would have gotten to this point without her.

So as I said, this 100th blog post is the final entry in this blog. My journey is complete. I am a marathoner. It's a great feeling of accomplishment, but it's weird, too. I posted on Facebook last night that I was checking the weather forecast, and for the first time in forever, I wasn't worrying about overnight lows or when exactly the rain is going to start on Tuesday. I am no longer in marathon-training mode. And there's kind of a void there.

As I said, I'm just a ball of emotion right now, and I think it's going to take a little time to untangle.

I know I'm not done with fitness or running, and I imagine that at some point down the road, I'll do another marathon -- though not this year. But it's been all-encompassing for me for eight months now, and especially for the past four months. There's no more thinking about what I can do better, or mapping out my runs for the week. There's no need to read article after article after article about running stride, nutrition, interval training, tapering... And there's no more excited anticipation.

Anyone who's talked to me over the past eight months has talked about running. It's just kind of been who I am for a long time. And now that it's not who I need to be, who am I? What will fill that spot in my life? Will I feel normal in a couple days, or a week? Maybe once I stop being sore and my black toenails fall off, my psyche will start getting back to normal, too. Maybe in a couple days, I'll stop thinking about that wind, and having to walk.

4:18:32 is still a darn good time for someone who, 14 or 15 months ago, was 240 pounds and doing absolutely nothing to take care of himself. But 4:18:32, I think, is motivation to give it another go at some point.

So with that thought, I'm signing off. It's been an amazing journey, and I've learned and experienced more than I ever could have imagined. I hope you've been able to experience a little of it yourself by reading my posts. Thank you, thank you, thank you for every ounce of support you've given me.

Total miles since starting the blog: 650.6

April 16th: Back on the Belt

I guess it's a good thing I'm into taper week 2, because I'd be pretty annoyed at the weather otherwise. I've been back at Planet Fatness the past two days.

Yesterday was rain and wind. So I did an easy 4 on the belt -- and hated every minute of it. Then overnight, we got a coating of snow. It was still windy, too. So back to PF for a pace 5k. I actually wound up averaging 8:53s, mostly because I was bored.

I'm definitely starting to feel the rest in my legs. After today's run, I barely felt like I'd done anything. I do need to get my work and home life in order so I can get my sleep schedule worked out. And I'm starting to plan my final week's diet -- lots of carbs and lean protein.

Tomorrow I'm off from work, so I'll sleep in and then do another 4. If I wait until 9:00 or so, I should be OK in shorts. Then rest, and then 8 on Saturday. And then its race week! 

Total miles since starting the blog: 602.8

April 13th: Is Yardwork Cross Training?

The taper continues, and it's still weird.

Yesterday morning, I ran a 12-miler. The weather was absolutely perfect. I took Lily along for the first 6 miles here in Cliffwood Beach. She made a friend for a bit down by the water -- a nice woman was walking a big black dog. I dunno what breed, but the two of them got along great. Unfortunately, since we were running, I couldn't hang around, and I didn't get a photo. (Also, it would seem kinda weird for a runner to stop and ask a stranger for a photo, right?)

After I dropped the dog back at home, I looped around for about another mile in the 'hood before heading west to my friend Dave's house -- we live about 5 miles apart. This is the route I took back in September, in one of my first blog entries. Sometimes you just need a change of scenery, but there are a few parts of this run I don't like for safety reasons:

Looking northbound near exit 120

• The sidewalk across the Garden State Parkway is very narrow. Although I'm always fascinated by the view from the bridge.
• There's a bend on Morristown road near Cheesequake Park where there's really no shoulder, and it can get busy.
• There's a 90-degree bend on Partridge Road in Old Bridge with no shoulder. And because of the way it bends, and the zero visibility, it's one of the few spots in which it's safer to run in the direction of traffic.

Right after that last bend is what I used to perceive as a big, big hill. Here's what I wrote back in September:

But...in the last mile, there's a HUGE hill. I knew about it, I was planning for it, and frankly, I was dreading it. I turned the corner and got my first view, and wow, it really is big. But you know what you do? You just keep on pushing. And let me tell you, once I got to the top, it was great.

It's still a fun climb, but I think this is another example of how far I've come: I was looking forward to it instead of dreading it. Nice, solid climb at the 11-mile mark, and since I'm limiting my miles and overall energy output, I enjoyed dialing up my climbing gear and motoring up.

I got to Dave's neighborhood a little short of 12 miles, and I still felt great. I looped the long way around his block and wound up with 12.35 on MapMyRun. I easily could have gone quite a ways farther. That's the weird part -- shutting it down when you know you have plenty left in the tank. Dave drove me back home as part of his morning errands, and then we went about our day.

First front-porch beer of 2014

Jackie and I went to a friend's child's 3rd birthday party yesterday -- it was one of those mostly adults parties with a few rugrats running around. Let me just get this out of the way: It was beer, not Gatorade. I also had a couple when I got home. I figure that's probably the last beer I'm going to have at all until after the race, so I decided to give myself a little license -- a last hurrah.

The other highlight of the party, for me, was getting to talk to the birthday girl's uncle, who's running Boston next week. He's a marathon vet and is shooting for a time in the 3-hour range (because he hasn't really been training that hard!). I picked his brain about training, tapering, race strategy and a bunch of other stuff. It was really great to get his insight, and it felt good to get some confirmation that I'm on the right track. I'll be watching for him next Monday.

Today I was going to go to WOW for some strength training, but this nagging abdominal strain hasn't really healed up yet -- and probably won't until after the race. I'm not sure how much good work I could get done there. Plus, with the gorgeous weather today, I think it's a good opportunity to do some yardwork. It's probably reasonable for that to count as cross training, right?

Total miles since starting the blog: 595.7

April 10th: Tapering Is Weird

I have to say, it's an odd feeling getting to the end of my Thursday run and still feeling fresh.

This morning's run was an easy 5. It was pretty cold when I started out, so it took me a bit to hit my rhythm. But once I did, I settled into a real comfortable pace that would actually be pretty fast on race day. But I was nowhere near VO2 max, and my legs had plenty in them. The course was nothing remarkable, though there were a bunch of fishers out this morning.

Switching to chocolate milk for recovery.

The strangest thing about it is that I had two beers last night and woke up a little hung over. (It's kind of amazing that two beers can do that to me.). I figured it would be a slog -- I even contemplated skipping it. So that I ran 9:00s without any big effort was a major surprise. Another example of what should be hard turning out easy, I guess.

I'm really curious to see how I feel at this point next week, when the total mileage is way down.

Total miles since starting the blog: 583.4

April 9th: Two Days of Tapering

One of the weird things about running is that, sometimes, what's supposed to be easy is hard, and sometimes, what's supposed to be hard is pretty easy.

First, the supposed-to-be-easy:  With the brain yesterday, I headed to PF for an easy 5 on the belt. It was horrible. The air in the gym was sticky and static, and I just couldn't get into a rhythm. Despite running 9:35s, I was just praying for it to end. And when it did, I was a sweaty mess.

Good day, sunshine!

Today I'd originally planned to go to WOW, but a hectic morning put the kibosh on that. It was 41 degrees at 6:30, so I decided on an outdoor run instead. My schedule called for a pace 4, so it seemed like a reasonable time to take the dog. Even wrestling the leash, I wound up way under race pace. First two were around 8:37 each, and the final two were under 8:00. Wound up finishing in 33:00. Then I through in a couple of planks and a set of bicycle crunches for good measure. And I feel great.

It's hard to find consensus on the finer points of tapering. Some experts would say today's run was too fast and is going to be to my detriment. Others say that you should reduce distance but keep up intensity. And I've even read one person who wouldn't have me in the taper yet. So I think the best thing is to be sure I feel fresh, and that will let me know if I'm going too hard or not hard enough.

Tomorrow looks like an easy 5 -- the challenge will be in regulating my pace. Rest Friday and 12 on Saturday.

Total miles since starting the blog: 578.3

April 6th: Not the Way I Wanted to Go Into the Taper

I'll save you the suspense: I bonked at 19 miles today.

I ran pretty much the entirety of the Henry Hudson Trail in both directions -- well, it would've been the whole thing back and forth had I made it back to the car. But I was just completely and utterly spent.

No pics today. Just wasn't feelin' it.

In hindsight, I made a lot of mistakes.
--Friday night, I stayed up way too late, and so I really wasn't well enough rested.
--My fueling on Saturday was just OK -- we went out for Italian (i.e. carbs), but I didn't really eat very well throughout the day.
--We weren't out super late, and I got to bed at a reasonable hour, but I did have two beers with dinner. Not usually a deal-breaker, but maybe it didn't help with hydration and probably not with my overall sleep quality.
--Speaking of hydration, the morning was cool, so I wore my sweatshirt. I shed it when I got back to the car around 11 miles in, but the small drink I took there -- the only one during the workout -- probably wasn't adequate for how much I had sweated out.
--I probably should've eaten something in the morning to top off the tank, rather than relying on the Chia Fresca.
--I did get to WOW yesterday. I had a good workout there, but you have to figure that took some miles off of what I could do today. That wasn't such a big deal when a long was 12 miles. But when you're trying to do 20+, that hour takes something out of you.
--And for reasons I can't explain, I started out way fast this morning. I averaged under 9:00 for the first 10 miles.

And of course, there's just the accumulated fatigue in general. Even with today's 19.1, the last three weeks have added up to 132 miles.

So in retrospect, all that adds up to a bad workout. I'd say by 12 miles I had an inkling that things weren't going as well as I'd hoped. By 14, I knew I was in trouble. By 16, I was on adrenaline and willpower, and I wasn't surprised when I had to shut it down at 19. I think on most bad runs, you know pretty early on that it's not your day.

The worst part -- I still had a mile and a half or so to walk to the car, completely exhausted.

Well, they say that you should make all your mistakes during training, not during the race. And I would be happy to chalk this up to a subpar experience that will help me during the marathon. But the thing is, I wish I had another long run so I could put the lessons I learned into action and see how I do with better prep and pace. Now I just have to hope that my overall fitness will get me there.

Last week, when I finished my 20, I thought that I could surely do the last 6 if the race were that day. Today, I don't think I could've gone another 100 yards before I literally fell over. So I feel like I can make it, and I'll be OK come race day, but I don't have quite the confidence I was hoping for. Sure, I know with good rest and proper pacing, I have the capability. And frankly, given all the negatives, that I got to 19 is probably a good sign. Again, I just wish I had one more chance to find out before race day.

Now we start the taper. Higdon calls for 5 on Tuesday, a pace 4 on Wednesday and 5 on Thursday -- then 12 next weekend. 26 miles in a week? I can go for that.

Total miles since starting the blog: 569.2

April 3rd: One More to Go

Look for these on 4/27.

After yesterday's pretty intense tempo run, I was glad to have an easier run on the docket today. It also gave me a chance to put on my new running shoes in a low-key setting.
 

Sun coming up over Keyport

I've been trying to vary my routes some to break up the monotony, so today I did some loops right near my house till I'd hit a mile or so, then headed down to Keyport.  And I'd have a hard time explaining this, but everything just seemed to have a feeling of optimism, of the start of a good day. Maybe it was the good spring weather. Maybe it was the idea of looking out over Matawan Creek as it empties into the harbor, just as the sun was fully up. Maybe it was just a better night's rest. But things felt good.

That's Clffwood Beach in the gloaming

The idea was to go easy today, and the first mile did that -- 9:36. But most of the rest was at an under-9:00 clip. I certainly wasn't killing myself, so I really do think that's a workable pace for me. I finished 5.6 at a 9:07 average.

Near the Keyport boat ramp. Tide was low.

That brings me to a minor concern for the race. As you know, I registered in August. At that point, I think my longest run was around 7 miles. So I left the "expected finishing time" box blank, because I really had no idea. Well, that got me a corral placement with the 4:30+ crowd. My race plan involves not expending a ton of extra energy running around people early on. But I don't want to get stuck behind people running 11:00 miles. I have to hope it thins out quickly enough that I can get a move on. I will be seriously annoyed if I finish just over 4:00 because of this.

Tomorrow is a rest day. Saturday will be cross day to give my foot an extra day to feel better. Sunday, I may go run with the group the marathon is organizing in Long Branch. I just am not sure I want to be in a crowd of 500 people.

Total miles since starting the blog: 550.1

April 2nd: Tired Tempo

Back in the fall, I mentioned on a few occasions that sometimes I don't know what kind of run I'm in for until I get on the road. The rigors of marathon training have forced me to be more disciplined about this and generally keep to a schedule, but it happened today. The run I did wasn't the one I'd envisioned.

As I start to wind down the training, this will be my last week of hardcore workouts before tapering. And the plan today was to do my "kinda long" and get into double digits, as I have for the past two Wednesdays. But I woke up very tired this morning, and though I got out there, I wasn't real thrilled about it. So I wasn't surprised when my pace after 3 miles was in the 9:25 range.

One of the reasons for the slow early pace was that I got a bunch of good photos today. Great sunrise over a super-flat Keyport Harbor.

Look how dead calm the harbor was

The sun peeking through the clouds over the water

An earlier shot during mile 1

The old Cliffwood Beach boardwalk, visible during low tide

But come on -- even tired and cranky, I know I can do better than that. So I picked up the pace. Around mile 4, I ate a GU packet, and just as I came across a garbage can to throw it out, MMR gave me my split -- 8:34. Next mile was 8:41. Then 8:18. And then...7:50!

I realized around the time of that 8:41 mile 5 that I was doing a tempo run. Start at a comfortable pace, then go hard for a few miles, and dial it back to a more comfortable pace at the end. It's a marathon-specific workout designed to boost your VO2 max within the context of endurance training. And at least for me, it also gives some insight into how I'll feel coming toward the end of the marathon -- tired and not done yet.

Overall: 8.2 miles in 1:12:16 -- an 8:49 pace.

My foot gave me a little bit of a harder time today, but much less than on Saturday -- even beyond mile 6, which was where it started being a problem then. I think the real solution is rest, but I'm still at a crucial point in my training, so as long as it's not getting worse, I'm just going to live with it.

I've been BSing a lot about how I need to get to the gym to do some core work. It hasn't happened. And I'm feeling it. I am considering, during the taper, cutting back to 3 runs a week -- adding a few miles each to the 2 mid-week runs and keeping the Saturday runs on the Higdon schedule. And instead of the fourth run, I'd go to the gym. And I'll also get my cross day back. I sacrificed strength training to get my endurance to where I wanted it. OK, mission accomplished. Now I want to be sure that I'm strong enough for the race.

I was having a jokey E-mail exchange with my other friend Dave on Monday, and he said that my blog indicates that I'm not lacking in confidence. I'm not sure if that's how I've been coming off, but it's definitely not true. When I fell apart at 15 miles a few weeks ago, I was doubting whether I would have the endurance. Now I'm doubting whether I have the core strength to keep me in good form. It's hard to fit all the training you want and need to do into an already full life. I'm hoping that an effective three-week strength plan, along with a good taper, will have me both rested and strong on April 27th. Sure, I'm confident that I can hit the finish line. But can I do it in a time that I'll be proud of? Can I avoid falling apart at the end? Still two very open questions.

As I mentioned yesterday, it seems to make sense for this week to comprise 4 runs -- the Richter plan got the job done in two weeks, and I'm where I need to be on the endurance front. And there's no time at this point to rehab from an overuse injury. So tomorrow is the junk 5, and then a long (probably 22ish) and ABSOLUTELY A TRIP TO WOW over the weekend. And then the taper!

Total miles since starting the blog: 544.5

April 1st: Foolin' Around

Minor miracle: an outdoor run.

Today I just wanted to get some miles in to test out my foot after the pain I felt during my long on Saturday. At the suggestion of my friend Dave, I tried an alternative lacing pattern to give my foot a little more breathing room. Unfortunately, the anxiety over the foot has my sciatica acting up a bit. So even though the acute problem stayed in check, I kind of have some all-over soreness in the foot. I assume that will work itself out, though.

I figured that since I wasn't planning any huge distances, I could take the dog along. I think that's going to be the last time I do that until the race, or at least the taper. She just pulls on the leash too much, and I really wind up expending a lot of unnecessary energy. Oh, and poop stops are really annoying unless it's garbage day and everyone's can is at the curb.

The other problem: I somehow managed to shut off my phone at the 2-mile mark. I kept waiting for MMR to call out the 3-mile split, and then I realized it was dead. I thought it was the battery, but when I plugged it in when I got home, it had 30 percent charge. Argh. Fortunately, I remembered exactly where I was at 2 miles, so I was able to recreate my route -- I just had to guess at the pace.

I think I shut the phone off when I unsuccessfully tried to get a sunrise shot over the water. Next time, I'll be ready. But no good pics today. Anyway, by mapping out my route, I figured out that I did about 5.4 miles. That's good for the start of the week. 

My big decision will be whether to try to add in a fifth run this week (like the last 2) and go long on Sunday. One day will need to be speedwork, and one will be the kinda long, so should I do junk on Friday or just accept that I'm on target and start dialing back?  As I write that, the wisdom of injury avoidance is really striking me.

Total miles since starting the blog: 536.3

March 29th: Mind Over Matter

Week 2 of the Richter plan is complete. One week -- 5 runs -- to go until the taper.

The story of today's long is about pushing through when everything is working against you. I fought fatigue, a sore foot, bad weather, a cranky dog... There was nothing fun or interesting about my run this morning. This one was about the end result. And the end result was worth it.

Let's start with last night. Actually, let's start with all of last week. This five-runs-per-week schedule

This is actually Jackie's photo -- I'm stealing it.

is definitely taking its toll. I've been to bed before 10:00 more in the past two weeks than I have since junior high. And with my penultimate long coming up today, I really wanted to be sure I was rested, fueled, hydrated and ready to rock. One little thing: Carol was one of the stars of her school's fashion show last night, a fundraiser for the photo club. It was a lot of fun -- the kids were cute, they really worked hard to put on a good show, and the house was packed. However, it was warm in there with the crowd, and I couldn't resist donating a little bit of extra money by chowing down on some baked goodies. So instead of rest, fuel, hydration, etc., I got fatigue, dehydration and bad-for-me food. But, much like my adventure on Sunday night, this one was worth setting aside training concerns. And Carol was really something on the runway.

That was one half of the inadequate-rest equation. The other issue was today's forecast. As I type this, it's raining. The weathermen said the rain would probably start around 11:00 a.m., so I was looking to get up and out early. So much for sleeping in and logging a little extra rest. And more on the weathermen in a bit.

I got up around 6:30 so I could get out early and beat the rain. The dog normally sleeps with Carol, and on the weekends I can generally slip out the front door before she sees me in my running gear. But Carol slept at a friend's house after the fashion show, and Lily decided to stay downstairs all night. Which meant she saw me in the morning and knew what I was up to. So of course, I felt guilty and leashed her up. Mistake. She was a complete nudge, yanking at the leash from the moment I opened the front door. It didn't help matters when three little dogs came running up to her to try to scrap -- the owner kept apologizing, but those dogs would have gotten seriously hurt if Lily had gotten into them. After a bit more than a mile, I had to deposit her back at home -- she was just to hyper for me to deal with, and I didn't want to expend too much energy that early in the run.

Looking southwest over the Matawan Creek marsh.

I decided early on that since I was kind of tired, and there was a threat of rain, I'd keep it in the neighborhood today. There's nothing inherently wrong with that, except that it's the same old stuff I've run past dozens of times. I tried to get a few new shots -- here's one looking back over the marsh toward Cliffwood Beach.

I wound up doing a lot of loops and circling blocks to add in extra tenths wherever I could. I made it over to the Old Bridge part of Cliffwood Beach, but I never ventured out of the neighborhood at all. Given the distance, you can imagine how repetitive that got.

But not feelin' it soon moved well down on my list of concerns. Around mile 6 or 7, my foot started to hurt. It's a localized pain on the outside of the right foot. I've felt it before, but never really enough to register more than a raised eyebrow. However, today it really hurt. I tried adjusting my sock a couple of times, thinking maybe it was out of kilter. That helped a bit, but not entirely. By mile 12, I was concerned I was going to have to cut it short.


Terrible pic -- that's a still flag to show the lack of wind

And, right around mile 12 is when it started to rain. At first, it was just a light shower, which really didn't bother me much at all. The one saving grace: No wind to speak of. But it got steadier and steadier as the run progressed, and between that and the foot, as I headed back to the house to get a swig from my water bottle, I seriously entertained the idea of packing it in.

But I didn't. The main reason I didn't was that, aside from the foot, all systems were pretty much go. The early morning malaise was gone. (By the way, I am a convert and now swear by GU packets.) I had lots of energy, and the real gains in a long run don't come by stopping when you're still feeling good. So I gritted my teeth a bit and headed back out.

And an odd thing happened -- or maybe it's not so odd. The pain started bothering me less. I think this was definitely one of those instances where the mind overrides the body so that you can soldier on. So I soldiered on. I decided to stick really close to home: In case it got really bad -- or if the rain got really hard -- I could get back without too much issue. So that meant a lot more circling and looping and backtracking. But I was feeling much better -- yay!

I hit mile 16 back out on the waterfront walkway (where I'd already been a few times today), and there was another runner maybe 100 yards in front of me. It was kind of fun blowing past him, knowing that the odds are he was in like mile 2 of his planned 4. I was polite and all, and mentioned the rain when I passed him again after the turnaround. But yeah, there's a little bit of a competitive snob in me, and I like that feeling when I'm well into a run.

I should mention that at this point, the showers had turned to rain. It wasn't pouring, but it was steady. I was wet. My shirt was chafing because it was waterlogged. In the home stretch, I passed a friendly lady who'd just left her house with an umbrella. She said, "You're getting wet." I replied, "I'm already wet."

What was left was to achieve my distance. Hey, guess what? I did it. I cleared 20 miles! 20.27, according to MapMyRun. Woot! Double-woot!

I've mentioned this a couple of times before, but today's run really drives home the point: The runs where you're fighting it the whole time are actually the best ones. When you get to the other side, and you know that -- despite whatever challenge was in your face -- you hit your goal, it's just a great feeling of accomplishment. Hey -- it'd be awesome to run 20 miles in the most optimal of circumstances. But to get it done today? I'm just over the moon.

And for those keeping score at home: That's 48.3 miles for the week.

I'm still hoping to get to WOW tomorrow for some strength training. I was better on the hills today than I've been, but I could still use some core work. The Richter plan would put me back on the road on Monday; I'll have to monitor my foot a bit. Given that I've already hit the peak of the Higdon plan, I can probably afford to dial back to 4 runs this week if I need to. I'll just have to see how it feels. Right now, I'm going with RICE.

Total miles since starting the blog: 530.9

March 27: One Month to Go

Light on the horizon!

Tomorrow's rest day is welcome. Even though I did a slow 5 today, I was really pretty wiped by the end. Sure, I could have gone longer -- after all, that's what I do -- but it's now time for some recovery before the weekend long.

They're open 24 hours...

There's really not much to tell about today's run. Fourth straight workout on the belt. It's beyond getting old. Finished in 48:11 -- an easy 9:38 pace. But I'm keeping an eye on the forecast now. It's supposed to pour on Saturday, and I refuse to do 3 hours on the dreadmill. Right now, it looks as though there's a small window of clearing in the morning. If I have to push till Sunday, it'll throw my whole schedule off, with the best solution to start the taper a day late.

I know I've been a bit fixated on the countdown, but today is a day worth noting -- it's exactly a month till race day. I've been working at this and thinking about this for so long, and ish is about to get real. Its amazing to consider how far I've come, and terrifying to think about how far I have to go. And it's also a little weird to think about a life without 26.2 on the radar. It has defined me for seven months now. Will I feel accomplishment, emptiness, both, or something else?  I just don't know.

What I do know is that I won't be running tomorrow. By tomorrow morning I'll have ants in the pants, but right now, that sounds good. Then I'll have an eye on the sky -- need to clear 20 this weekend.

Total miles since starting the blog: 510.6

March 26th: A Subdued Milestone

Today was "kinda long" day. Three months ago, we would have just called this "long."

The snow moved through without too much bother last night -- a little coating on the grass, but that's it. However, the wind was picking up this morning, and it has gotten progressively harder throughout the day so far. Even though the temps were OK for an outdoor run, I'm glad I didn't do it -- I think the wind would have killed me.

There's really not much to tell about my treadmill run. I've been looking for accumulated fatigue, and I certainly found it. Since yesterday's run was a real push, I was definitely not on fresh legs. And I'd say I was feeling a little tired even before I hit the 5k mark this morning. But there's no use in punting now -- I have just a week and a half until the taper. And I know I have it in me to go, so I went.

This is how I felt after 11.1 miles.

The second half of the run was just a slog, and I'd like to believe that the last few miles were similar to how I'll feel when I get into the 20s in the marathon. I kept the pace reasonable except in the very last few minutes, and when it was all done, I'd logged 11.1 miles at a 9:31 pace -- that's right around 6.3 mph. I gave some thought to getting to 11.25 -- not exactly a huge amount more -- but I was done done done. 17.6 miles in two days and 23 for the week so far is puh-lenty.

Tomorrow will be a junk 5 -- nice easy pace. It'll be on the belt, since we're expecting record low temps and still some wind. It will also be exactly one month until the race. Still need a game plan for Saturday, and I have to get to WOW on Sunday for some core work. I am really feeling weak in the mid-section, and that just won't do.

Total miles since starting the blog: 505.6

March 25th: Surprise Speedwork

Another entry where I complain about the winter. Well, not exactly. 

Last night, I looked at the hourly forecast, and it said the temp would be around 29 or 30 at running time. That's the very bottom of what I'll tolerate, but with basically no wind, I was hopeful. And then I woke up and it was 23. Ties the record low.  Jeebus. Off to Planet Fatness.

It was supposed to be tolerable this morning...

Damn weatherman.

Of course, Carol's bus didn't get there until 6:30, and then I wound up spending a couple extra minutes in the locker room (had to pee). So I was 7 minutes behind where I wanted to be.

And all of that turned out to be a good thing.

Getting in the miles I wanted today was going to require a pace run -- actually, quicker than race pace. And I'm simply better at speedwork when the treadmill tells me how fast I'm going. So I started out at a 9:13 pace and then went progressively quicker. By 2.5, I had it up to 8:57s, and by 4 I was doing 8:33s. I eventually cranked up to below 8:00s, and I blasted the final 3 tenths at a 7:30 pace. Why? Because dammit, I was getting to 6.5 miles today.

So the late start pushed me in a direction I might not have gone otherwise. If I'm going to hit my pace over 26.2, I can't just jog. Yay lateness!

Tomorrow is double digits -- 9:20s will be fine, but I'm likely back on the belt. Saturday is looking good for a long -- have to decide where to do it. And I have to get the photo taking figured out.

Total miles since starting the blog: 494.5 (which makes tomorrow a milestone day!)

March 24th: About Last Night...

Week 2 of the Richter plan got going this morning. I'm looking to exceed last week's beast output and maybe even get to 50 mikes this week, and I'm off to a reasonable start: 5.6 on the belt in 52:51 -- a 9:26 clip.

These were definitely not the easiest miles I've ever logged. First of all, why the hell am I on the belt on March 24th? 21 degrees at 6:00 a.m.? Ridiculous. But the real challenge was short rest. Saturday night, there was a critter on the roof above my bedroom, and I didn't sleep well. Even went outside with a flashlight to try to find it. But that wouldn't have been a big deal had I not had the plans I did on Sunday.

Ira Robbins (left) and Handsome Dick Manitoba (right)

Jackie and I drove into the city on Sunday evening for a very special celebration: the 40th anniversary of Trouser Press magazine. My boss, Ira Robbins, and his best friend Dave Schulps published the first issue of the Bible of Alternative Rock in 1974. Over the next decade, they interviewed and wrote about just about everyone in the rock world. And though Trouser Press never became the kind of household name that Rolling Stone is, it unflinchingly persevered and influenced a generation of musicians and music fans. The number of people who turned out last night to celebrate with Ira is a testament to how much of a mark he and the magazine have left, even three decades after its final issue.

Well, some things in life are more important than marathon training, and this was one of them. So another night of short sleep (and McDonald's at 11 p.m. since we were starving) was just the way it was. And so that meant a sluggish run this morning, but so be it. It's done, and I'm on my way into week 2.

Tomorrow will likely be as far as I can get in an hour. Wednesday is supposed to be my kinda long, but snow is on the way, and the thought of 10+ on the belt is already turning my stomach. We shall see. At this rate, I won't be surprised if it snows during the race.

Total miles since starting the blog: 488.0

March 23rd: Restoring My Faith Amid Technical Difficulties

OK, now I feel better about things.

Yesterday was the first long of the Richter plan. I decided to go to Thompson Park -- where some of the half-marathon was a couple of weeks ago -- and invited Jackie to join me for the first few miles. I've been wanting to spend more time together doing our thing, and I also figured it would help me keep my pace down a little bit early on -- conserving energy for late in the run. Then we decided to bring the dog along for Jackie's portion of the run, which we figured would be about 4 miles. I hadn't settled on a final mileage, other than "long."

It didn't turn out as perfectly as I wanted to, but there was a valuable lesson to be learned. My heart rate was in a really manageable zone for those 4 miles, leaving plenty in the tank for the rest of the run. My early marathon pace will be a bit faster than what we were doing, but -- kind of like with the half -- a slow go in the first few miles will surely pay big dividends later on in the race. What I need to figure out now is how much time I can give away in the first quarter of the race and make up later on. For example, if I average 9:39 for the first quarter of the race, can I realistically go 8:59s the rest of the way?

After Jackie headed home with the dog, I was able to get into closer to my normal pace. As usual, I improvised some of my route, crossing into Cross Farm Park in Colts Neck a couple of times, and adding some distance on the roads near the park. I also followed the Thompson Park trail along Newman Springs Road across Brookdale and the Middletown portion of the park, all the way to Lincroft School and back. As I've mentioned before, I like to find different spots when I'm able to -- running is traveling, and nothing is more boring than taking the same route every day.

Not everything worked out as perfectly as I wanted it to. Those early miles weren't quite where I was hoping, pace-wise -- and I wound up holding the leash for most of that distance. And, as usual, it was hella windy. Everything heading west was laborious, and even crosswinds were somewhat uncomfortable. But the temperature was good, so I didn't have to wear extra layers. And I had a couple of GU packets, which I used around miles 8 and 13 -- and yes, they helped a bunch. Takes about a mile for it to kick in, but then you feel three or four miles fresher, for sure. And overall, I was just in better shape. Unlike last week, by the half-marathon point, I still felt good. And though I started tiring as the miles got up there -- particularly the miles into the wind -- I really had a lot in the tank.

And then, somewhere between miles 17 and 18, my phone died.

I know my splits from mile 5 through the end were all in the 9:00 range, and I estimate my distance to be 18.4 in an overall 3 hours. That puts the week at 45.65 overall -- by far my longest week.

Also, the new armband is great, but I wound up taking a bunch of pictures of the inside of it, because I can't wiggle it out easily, and I couldn't really see the screen in the bright mid-afternoon light. So you get a picture of my Friday night carb loading instead. Sorry.

I actually have an evening in New York planned tonight, so I'm hoping I'm good to go for 5-6 miles tomorrow. Not sure on temps, so it might be on the belt. Tuesday will be a pace run, or at least a "maximize distance in the amount of time I have until I have to head out to get the train" run. Wednesday is a kinda long -- looking at the snow forecast, that's going to be on the belt. Ugh. Enough already. I'm practically at the taper and still griping about bad outdoor conditions! Thursday is junk miles, and then Saturday will go long -- let's push for 20! Well, let's hope I can do it outside.

I've been looking forward to the taper, since I'll be able to ease off the life throttle more so than the workout throttle. But one thing that's been put on the back burner lately has been strength training, and I think the taper will be a good time to work on that without overloading the system in general. It felt so good during the half to be strong in my core and hips, and I want to have that feeling again during the marathon. Obviously, I have to be sure I'm resting and recuperating. And giving Jackie some relief from the grind of this training schedule.

Total miles since starting the blog: 482.4

March 20th: Junk

A mostly uneventful Thursday. I was on the fence about treadmill vs. outdoors -- it was warm enough but still wet out. But the decision came together as I walked out to the car to drive Carol to the bus stop (which has become our morning ritual): A passing car splashed water all over me.

That's how dark it was when I got there.

The problem with PF was that it was hot. I guess they had the heat on winter mode. I was doing an easy 5,so it wasn't a real problem today. But it sheds some light on a few challenges I'll face. First off, its been months since I ran in heat and humidity, and I have no idea how I'll adapt. The other issue is with hydration. I went to the water bottle a few times over the 5 miles, but I'm not used to drinking that much. In fact, I took no fluids during my recent half-marathon. So getting the balance right -- and not having to use a porta- john -- could be tricky.

I'm at 27.25 for the week. Assuming no setbacks or complications, I'll have my longest week ever after Saturday. Tomorrow is all about rest. Still not sure about strength on Sunday -- my back is better than yesterday, but there's still a ways to go.

Total miles since starting the blog: 464.0

March 19th: Gotta Keep on Pushin'

Day 3 of the Richter plan was a success. 10.5 outdoor miles, bringing me to 22.25 for the week so far.

Red sky in morning...

I got going a little later than I'd planned, because Carol's bus never showed up and I had to drive her over to the high school. That actually wasn't the worst thing, because it meant that there was plenty of light by the time I did start.

Site of Ye Cottage Inn, destroyed in Sandy

I knew what kind of run I had in mind today, but I didn't know where I'd be going. I started out on one of my normal Cliffwood Beach routes, but then I decided to take it into Keyport and the Henry Hudson trail. One of the great things about getting off the belt is that you actually get to experience something. If you just keep running the same streets again and again, you lose that.

Of course, it was windy again. I think it's just always windy. Or maybe the wind knows when I am running outside. But it was generally out of the east today, and so I wound up doing most of the into-the-wind miles on the front end of the run. That's a big help. When you start getting bushed, it's tough to keep going into a stiff breeze -- as I found out on Saturday.

Even when everything's gone, there's still hope.

I turned back at the washed-out bridge on the trail in Union Beach -- the one I first encountered on Super Bowl Sunday. That was about 4.5 miles into the run and seemed like a good spot. As I wrote then, UB is still recovering from the storm, and the still-standing holiday tree near the trail really symbolizes the town's struggle.

My goal this week is for the accumulated miles to start piling up, and they certainly did. By mile 6, I was pretty tired -- the kind of tired I normally don't feel on a long until I hit at least 10. I hit 8 miles on Front Street near Matawan Creek, heading back for home, and boy was it tempting to turn down Gulden Street and cut it short, rather than go out to the water and back to get into double digits.

But that's not part of the Richter plan. This 3-week crash course is going to be about heavy mileage and pushing past previous limits. I will be ready for this marathon, and I will have done my homework by the time I hit the taper. Period. Normally, I advocate rest days, switching things up to do weight training, and even extra rest. But for this short amount of time, I plan to push myself to go as big as I can. Once I hit the taper, it will be time for rest and even to catch up on some of life -- the stuff you put on hold so you can train. That's a good goal for me: Get to the taper.

So I went out to the water and even did the big hill coming back. Checked MMR as I was getting close to home, and saw I was at 10.4, so I figured there was no point in not evening that out to 10.5. Total time: 1:36:34. A 9:11 pace, which is a little faster than I'd planned for. But I wasn't pushing VO2 max, so I'm really starting to think that my race pace is going to be below 9:00. Generally, I ran negative splits, but it wasn't an exact science today.

I tried out my new armband today, and it worked well. The phone wedges in there pretty tightly, so I used the camera on the screen side so that I wouldn't have to take the phone out. Still got some decent shots.

Also, my back doesn't seem to be improving. It doesn't affect my running and doesn't seem to be affected by my running, so I'm not concerned from a training standpoint, but I do think there's a doctor's visit in my future. It's worst when I'm lying down, which is making sleep less fun than it should be. The challenge is finding a time to go.

Tomorrow, I'm doing a nice slow 4-5 miles, almost certainly on the belt. Rest on Friday, and then Saturday is a big day: I'm going to see how I do in more optimal conditions than this past week.

Total miles since starting the blog: 459.0

March 18th: My Shoes Know What You Did in the Dark

Day 2 of the Richter plan. So far, so good.

Today I was going for time, not distance. I had exactly an hour on the belt. I've promised myself no pace, interval or tempo runs -- this week, and likely the two after it, are all about miles. I did most of the run at 6.4 mikes an hour, but cranked it a little bit just in the last mile to get to 6.5. Felt great afterward, like I had plenty more miles in me.

Then I got to the locker room, where I stretch. I began to do my calves when I saw that I had mismatched shoes on -- my left was my crappy old shoe. When I dress for the gym, I leave the lights off because Jackie's still in bed. And I never noticed. Fortunately, it was the left -- the "good" leg. Still, I must've looked pretty dumb.

Last week when I was home sick, I wrenched my back something good. It's not a problem for my running, but I think lifting is out for a while -- which is just as well during my crash three-week sprint to the taper. The roller we bought over the weekend helps, and I'm going to do an ibuprofen regimen for a couple days, but it really hurt last night in bed. Don't know how I slept at all.

So double-digit miles tomorrow (outside) and five on Thursday. Right now, they're calling for rain on Saturday. I don't mind a little bit but don't want to run 18+ in a driving rainstorm, so I'll have to keep an eye on that. If my back improves, I'll lift Sunday, then do the whole thing again next week. I'm also cutting out beer for these three weeks -- maybe I'll have one Saturday after my long, but that's it.

Total miles since starting the blog: 448.5