Consistency.

Long story short, I followed the plan I posted above (well, 85% of it, anyway), including hills, long runs, speed work, and a bit of time off to let the body and mind rest.

Then I put myself through a two week build phase for my VDOT test, the Santa Monica Classic 5k. Ran the Santa Monica Classic 5k, which is a point to point course with approximately two miles of gentle uphill. Finished in 23:25, good enough for 5th place in my age group, and 101st place overall out of 1,500 or so runners. Not sure why I’m throwing those stats in there; most likely a salve to my ego that four years ago I ran the exact same race with the exact same course about 40 seconds faster. But it was a good enough result to tell me that my base building had not been in vain, and that with proper training I can gain all that speed back, and then some.

VDOT: 41. Does that number sound familiar? It should, because it’s the exact same VDOT I started this blog with. But that’s okay (I tell myself, reminding myself to breathe). Positive changes take a bit of time to percolate through the system. And in the meantime, here is what I gained through the base building phase, and where I am now a month into my quality training phase with 10 weeks to go until the California International Marathon in Sacramento on December 8, 2019:

Consistency. Yep, that word again. Consistently following a training plan for a period of time is more valuable than a series of sporadic fits and starts, even if those little run bursts are impressive in their own right. I have a schedule, drawn up by David Levine (of The Idiot’s Guide to Marathon Running fame). That schedule is my running brain. I run what it says, with very little, if any, variation. A VDOT of 41 equates to roughly an 8:30-8:45 marathon pace, which would cut in half the distance between my PR at Mountains 2 Beach and 3:30, my BQ PR minus five full minutes. Consistency in training at a pace congruent to my current ability is 90% of what I need to do to hit my goal.

Flexibility. Fell off the wagon a bit here. Was doing specific stretching for several weeks in a row when when most those niggling running pains disappeared into memory. Slacked off a bit, and wouldn’t you know it? They came roaring back like a bad habit.

Excess weight: I have ten pounds I can easily lose without trying, without doing more than making a few minor adjustments over the next two months. I’m 5’8″, a bit “thick” (i.e., not whipcord thin), and carry a little bit around the waist I don’t need. No gut to speak of, but I feel it around my torso like a weight belt. I can lose it, easy. Dropping from 180 to 170 pounds will give me more energy and running strength in those last few miles than I can imagine right now.

My “why.” That’s the biggest gain. I know exactly why I want to do this. I know I have it in me to run at least 3:30 in the marathon, which is a five minute cushion of my actual 3:35 Boston qualifying time. I know of too many people who have reached similar goals and crashed through them to think of myself as the lone guy who somehow, for genetic or other reasons, couldn’t pull it off. My ego isn’t that big. All I need to do is put in the work: lots of long, slow mileage to build fitness at the cellular level and increase stamina, most of it during the week on short (4-6 miles) and medium length (7-10) runs, with a long run every weekend. Tempo runs at 30 seconds per mile faster than marathon race pace. Some repetitions to increase turnover. The right foods. Flexibility and rest. And sleep, blessed sleep. Nine hours of it each and every night.

I’m a month into quality training now. Starting Monday, October 7th, I’m going to post my weekly workout, and follow up on how it felt, and how well I did. Flexibility, diet, weight management, it’s all going to be in there. I’ll try to keep it entertaining, but I’m not going to pretend that this blog is going to make history, or even inspire someone who reads it to push through their own personal walls. I’m writing this blog to hold myself accountable. To prove to myself that I can do it. Because I can.

So there.