December has absolutely flown by, and I don't have a blog entry to show for it. So, here goes my 2007 year in review.
After an up and down year in 2006 that started with my first marathon in Miami and ended with a complete meltdown at the 2006 Bay State Marathon, there was lots of room for improvement. I spent much of 2006 battling injuries, so my primary goal in 2007 was to stay healthy. I never actually wrote down my goals for 2007, but here's what I can remember from the start of the year:
1. Stay healthy, avoiding serious injuries
2. Run 2000+ miles
3. Qualify for the Boston Marathon, i.e. a 3:10 marathon
4. Qualify for the New York Marathon = a sub 1:23 half-marathon
5. Run a sub-18:00 in the 5K
6. Develop and maintain core strength
I think the biggest motivator for me this year was with the inspiration of the Flash and Ryan, I started up a weblog and have largely stuck to putting in an entry every week. I don't know if its the cathartic act of writing, or sharing training tips, or just developing community with other runners, but somehow its bootstrapped me towards becoming a better runner. So how did I do with my goals?
1. Stay healthy, avoiding serious injuries
This was a success. I didn't miss time due any serious injuries, although there were some nagging ones here and there. I remember a strange tibialis tendinitis from doing a long run in new shoes that lasted for a week. The only chronic one was some minor plantar fascitis in my right foot that I've managed pretty well, even through the Philly Marathon. I think staying injury-free, more than any training regimen, has directly contributed to my improved performance this year. Its allowed me to develop and maintain a good aerobic base throughout the year.
2. Run 2000+ miles
1974, so I fell 26 miles short on this goal, largely because I turned into a slug during the month of December and only managed about 100 miles for the month. I can't really complain because I needed the downtime after Philly to rest and recharge.
3. Qualify for the Boston Marathon, i.e. a 3:10 marathon
Austin Marathon Race Report, 'nuff said.
4. Qualify for the New York Marathon = a sub 1:23 half-marathon
To be fair, this didn't become a realistic goal until I started putting together some unexpectedly fast times during the summer racing circuit. And, if you read my race report, if it wasn't for some timely in-race motivation from my friend Ramses, I doubt I would have made the time goal. Still, this puts me in good position to run the New York Marathon in 2008, provided they don't tighten their qualifying standards.
5. Run a sub-18:00 in the 5K
My only attempt at a 5K this year was at the Lynnfield 5K on July 4th. Its probably not the best time of the year to try to set a PR, but I took a stab at it anyway. Funny thing is I just noticed I never entered a blog entry for this race. Long story short, I failed to check my watch over the last mile and started my kick too late. So, I managed a 18:02, a measly 3 seconds short of my goal.
6. Develop and maintain core strength
After spending the latter half of 2006 battling an ITB injury, I was introduced by Flash to Peter Stone, who did an incredible PT job. I came out of the treatment session bolstered with some new core exercises and they have now become an integral part of my training regimen. I'm convinced this allowed me to achieve goal #1, so maybe this should have been listed as goal #1A.
OK... 4 out of 6 a'int bad!
Races
Overall, this has been a fantastic year of running, which saw me set new PRs at distances from 5K up to the Marathon. Here's a chronological summary:
Overall impressions
If there's one major transformation I've noticed during 2007, its that running for me has evolved from just a time goal into something that I truly enjoy. At the beginning of 2007, I was absolutely obsessed with qualifying for Boston. It may have begun to change while I was running Boston this year. It may have also been all the new forest trails I discovered in and around Brookline and Newton. It could also have been the geographic variety of all my runs: I was blessed with the opportunity to run in California, Texas, Pennsylvania, New York, Alaska, New Hampshire, Virginia, Vermont, as well as in other countries (South Korea, Japan, Canada, and The Bahamas). There wasn't a running epiphany, but at some point I started to enjoy my runs for just the feeling of running. Its a feeling I hope to carry through into 2008. More on my goals for 2008 in my next entry! I look forward to hearing how your 2007 went as well.
6 comments:
Hi wayne, A great blog and congratulations on your sub 3.00 hr marathon. I was wondering what your Hr max is ? as I think mine might be similar.
Many Thanks
Ray Brighton UK
Ray,
my max is between 192-194.
Wayne, what an incredible 2007 you had. Thanks for the shout out, and you can be rest assured your progress and great performances gave me a swift kick in the behind. Looking forward to your 2008.
Hi Wayne. I have been doing the Jon Hadd training. I have only been running for just under a year. Since starting the Hadd low Hr base building my times have improved quite a bit. I did a 10k in the summer in 44 mins in perfect conditions . Last month I finished one in 40.30. with NO speed training since the summer. If you read the Hadd long winded web page he gives an example of Joe who has the same HR as you. 193 hadd says with the right training (lots of miles at slow pace 145 you should be able to run a marathon at 175 HR which by my reckoning knock about 20 mins off your 2.55.................2.35 ish. what do you think........its just an observation. you have to read the web page to fully understand it.
ray
Now I've found your blog too! You seem to have run Philadelphia pretty fast considering your mileage. When I did my sub 2:55's, I was averaging close to 70 miles per week.
Hi, I figured I'd check out your blog too! Good to hear you are truly enjoying running. It's a great feeling. I was once obsessed with a sub-3 marathon, but now I just enjoy running and especially trail running which is slower.
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