Long Runs and Tired Legs…What’s Next?

Today’s Run

Time – 1:54:27
Distance – 10.32 miles
Pace – 11:05 min/mi
Elevation – 241 ft.

Well, holy crap, that was a long way for my untested legs. I figure, based on rough estimates, that I haven’t run 10+ miles in 10 years. The funny part about it is that the first time around my pace would have been nearly the same, but I would run for about 10 minutes around 6 MPH, and then walked a minute, and done it again, over and over, until my run was completed. Today was just about all continuous running, without any walking breaks, except for a quick stop to fill up my water bottle. I even ate a Larabar while running an hour into the workout.

Crazily enough, I ran far enough and long enough to need to eat while I was running. That’s a strange feeling. In a 100-miler, however, you need to eat WAY more often (try about every 30=60 minutes until the race is completed). That’s a lot of food on the run!

And Now for the Big Question

What’s going to happen next? Where do I go from here? I know that I can run around a lot if I want to, and that I need to keep adding distance and time to my running to get into Western States-shape, but what is the follow-up to this workout and all the mileage from the last few weeks?

I think that next has to be a half-marathon, then the full 26.2, and then up from there. This will all be predicated on the successful and healthy birth of Baby Girl in December, and with enough time and sanity to train up to 26.2 mileage while helping the Wife recover and deal with Teenager and Little Buddy. I’ve got a half marathon in the bag now with the distances I’ve done and how good my legs are feeling. Time to go after the beast.

What race to sign up for is the question? This will be my first marathon ever, so I want to find something that I’ll enjoy. I can’t travel much, so that limits the game plan.

Time-wise, it will have to be in the spring. I’ll need to have some time to keep building up to it. I would like to hit early springtime, though, so that I can keep adding and working for Tunnel Hill in the fall of 2018. That will be a 2020 Western States qualifier (most likely).

So, any suggestions for a spring marathon in the central Midwest?