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Katandra Reserve this morning.
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After dropping my car off for a service in North Gosford this morning, I ran an easy
20km home via a route that maximised trail and minimised suburbia. It was another beautiful morning for a run - mild and sunny with wisps of fog in some valleys. Despite residual fatigue from Sunday's 37km road run, my legs are feeling stronger and I spent much of today's run pondering my running objectives for the next six months.
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Clyde Road, this morning.
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Incredibly, I'm getting to the point where the sub-3 hour marathon goal is again entering the fringes of my thinking. I can't quite believe I'm even contemplating it, but assuming my
heart problem at Christmas was just a blip, resolved by the
Cardioversion, then why is a sub-3 less likely this year than last. I fully accept it's a remote possibility, but it makes no sense to rule it out. But maybe a change of approach is needed. Since resuming running eleven weeks ago, I have been remarkably (for me) sensible in my training. I haven't aggressively ramped up my mileage, I took a few days off for a minor injury, and I have mostly avoided back-to-back quality (fast or long) training days. Although it has taken a bit longer than in the past, there has been steady improvement in my speed and endurance and that seems set to continue.
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View from Clyde Road this morning.
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My new thinking is that I should avoid focussing single-mindedly on the sub-3 hour goal. Last year, I was trying to run as many kilometres a week as my ageing body could handle, and feeling pressure to improve my base speed. However, when I look at how I'm running at the moment, and what training I was doing when at my best early last year, I was pretty much running for enjoyment, without sweating on kilometres or speed.
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Kincumba Mt this morning.
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Although a sub-3 hour marathon is not easy, there were times in my life when I could do it comfortably. Maybe I need to fine-tune my approach to have fewer quality sessions (fast or long) and run those sessions fresher. Maybe I also need to avoid targeting a particular marathon and, instead, when I think I'm ready, find one.
It seems to be worth trying, though it runs counter to the approach adopted most of my serious running career. Counter-intuitively, it may require more self discipline for me than the high-mileage run-regardless regime of the past.
