Marathon training
The final preparations for the marathon are on it's way and in 2 1/2 weeks it's "showtime". Yesterday I had a looong run; I'm pretty sure that it was the longest run in my training history. 38-39km or 3 times around Jväsjärvi and a clear message: Marathon is way different than halfmarathon. For the last 10km I really had a kind of feeling that I would hit the wall. I was planning to increase the pace towards the end (maybe up to close to race-pace of 3:25min/km). However my legs got really tight and all I could do was a 3:50 pace. It was such a strange feeling: I just couldn't increase the speed anymore, whatever I was trying to do. So I can say that I learnt another message and that I am better prepared for the marathon (especially for the last painful last kilometers) now. Next weeks' long run won't be so long and maximum will be 35km.
After yesterdays long run I took it easier today but still made 8(morning) + 13(evening) plus some strides to get rolling again. With less than 20 days to go till the marathon it's all about the fine tuning and staying healthy. Nevertheless I already know, that I will have to do more longer runs (35+ km) in preparation for my autumn marathon.