Let me just say this: I have never done a 22 mile training run for a marathon. I’ve always thought I should but never did. I thought this was the weekend to remedy that situation.
Kind of.
Here’s the thing: This 20-miler has been hanging over my head for WEEKS. I was going to try for at least 2 of them but things kept getting in the way: like wanting to sleep in, lunch plans, stomach aches and well, just not wanting to spend 4 hours running alone on the weekend.
But this Saturday it was happening. I would get up when I wanted and go as slow as I wanted and there would be no rush because I had no plans until like 4 or 5. Perfect. It makes me feel better doing 22 miles instead of 20 because…it just seems so much darn closer to 26!
Let’s Do This
I started with a nice 6 miles on the treadmill reading my new People Magazine, devouring the details of Brad and Angelina’s wedding — yay! I knew getting a few miles out of the way first would help me with my out and back.
It was a beautiful day but I know how I get when I’m trying to run 10 miles in one direction. Seven seemed so much more do-able. Then, I realized, if I would just run 8 miles on my out and back, I’d end up with a total of 22 miles for the day. Seemed scary but I was in.
They always say…run slow on your long runs! I rarely listen but I couldn’t poop out so I went really slow. I was going at “talk pace” and reallllly focusing on running evenly on both sides. Ever since my back injury, I’ve got this weird thing where I run on my right side and then my right leg is super sore. So uphills, it was all on the left.
I also needed to do those first 6 miles on the treadmill because my Camelbak isn’t enough for 20 miles! I get SO thirst in the last five miles, I can’t get enough. Even running 16 miles, I ran out by the end! I have no clue why the Mt. Vernon Trail has literally NO water fountains. It must be some weird regulation but it’s terrible.
Food & Music
Pre-run, I ate toast with almond butter. During run, I had 3 margarita-flavored Shot Blocks from Clif and 1.5 Gus (Espresso Love & PB!)
Anyway, love my Camelbak Marathoner vest because it has plenty of pockets and I can carry all my stuff easily. I listened to Pandora (yes, I do pay the $5/month for unlimited because I hate those damn commercials!) pre-game hip hop station, then some Latin workout and then Rihanna….with about 4 miles left, I turned it off. It gets old after awhile!
Though of course my legs and feet were tired, I felt surprisingly strong even towards the end. I definitely could have finished out 4 more miles if I had too. I wore my Mizuno Sayonara 2’s this time, instead of the Altras…gotta say, Mizunos WAY better for long running, at least for this girl. I’m not sure if I have the right kind of Altras for long running so maybe that’s it.
Dunzo
Yes, I felt so accomplished after finishing that 22-miler but I wasn’t done yet. I made sure to go home and foam roll right away, as well as use The Stick. I didn’t have ice for an ice bath but I think I did okay. I also immediately had a glass of Cherry Limeade Nuun, a mini-chocolate protein shake and some salty chips! Nuun did send me free samples of cherry limeade and pink lemonade but I buy Nuun on my own regularly and LOVE those flavors! I continued drinking lots of water the rest of the day for a strong recovery. I never feel awesome after a run like that so that kind of sucks for my appetite but oh well.
Overall, I think it’s a good idea to do one 22-mile training run. If you want to finish strong in the marathon, rather than just “get through it,” it seems like a good idea, at least for me. I used to be strictly 20 miles but that’s because I just didn’t WANT to do the extra 2. I’m not the expert, I mean, I’m only doing ONE of these for training. I’ll get to that finish line in one piece though!
Where you at Marathoners? Do you do 22-mile training runs or stick with 20s? What are the benefits of doing 22’s or not? What did you run this weekend?
I’ve never done a 22 miler or 21 but if I ever start up my relationship with marathons again after yesterday, I may do one. I do however do an 11 or 12 miler before a half so I guess it makes sense. Great job on the run and good luck with the rest of training!
I LOVE those NUUN flavors too!!
Thanks Ashley! Good job on your marathon too — I’m glad you PR’d even if it was hard day!
OH man I just realized your blog post said “a personal best was set on the course” not a PR. Sorry for my mistake! I read your other post just now about taking a break and I can totally understand that feeling. I have considered sticking with halfs because they are not NEARLY as mentally exhuasting in a million ways. Wishing you the best, you’ll know when the time is right again.
I didn’t do one for my first two marathons but mentally struggled a bit in both marathons around 21-22. This training cycle I decided to do the 22 in hopes to remember the training run on race day 🙂
Best of luck, girl! I’m hoping it helps me too…just mentally knowing I already did 22 and 4 more is possible!
I am not one to need to go over 20. I am pretty high mileage though so I do try to load up at least one 20 where I do 6-8 the day before and 8-10 the day after a quality 20 (so some tempo or sustained marathon pace work during the run). That sustained hard effort has really helped me get my push to the end and know my limits.
I think if you are doing much higher mileage all week, it makes a difference. Since I’m mostly crosstraining with minimal running, this gave me some security but I see your point!
My sister in law, who has more races under her belt than I do (as do you!), swears by her 22 milers. She doesn’t feel prepared without them, mentally. It isn’t a physical thing, it’s mental. And we all know that this crazy race is more mental than physical after a point. So if you feel you need it, you HAVE to do it! I think for me, because I do those weekends where I get stupid high miles in, it gives me that mental boost I need. VERY excited for you that you are making your comeback. I’ll never forget that you were there to catch me (quite literally!) at my first race ever!!
For experience marathoners, I typically plan a 22 (after their first or second 20 miler). Everyone is obviously different, but I’ve found this to be a very approach for many!
Yeah I wish I could have gotten myself to do two 20s first!
I saw Jeff Galloway speak a few weeks ago and he said that he actually sees runners go even faster when they run MORE than 26 miles before their marathon! I thought that was pretty crazy, but I guess it works. I would think that the more endurance you can do, the more your body is prepared. As long as it’s far enough out from your race, of course!
I’ve read about professional runners doing 26-28 miles for training, which makes total sense. I guess I’m just not that willing to go THAT far. I feel like I would get to 26.2 and be so disappointed that no one was there to congratulate me, ha ha
I did a 22 mile training run for one of my marathons and I think it did help. I do wonder if it was more psychological though! Knowing I had run 22 miles in training made me feel like those last miles of the race were more doable.
Definitely was psychological for me!
i ran 21 miles before my last marathon. i’ll run 20 before my next one but that’s just because i don’t have time to run 20 + 21/22. i agree that at that point, it’s just the mental preparation. good job getting in 22!
Thanks! We’ll see if it did any good!
I ran 22 this year also! 20 was my longest training run last year. I do think it was a good mental prep because it’s *just* 4 more miles rather than the final 6 they talk about where you don’t have anything left and don’t know how you’ll do. I ran 8 out and back one way, then 4 out and back the other way. AND I forgot my earphones. I felt very mentally tough 😉 PS-I do love the pink lemonade too!
Love those out and backs!
I think the longer you go, the better your body is prepared for the distance. Think about a 5K. Beginners run less than 3.1 miles in order to train, but for those trying to improve their time, they run MORE than a 5K. To me it just makes sense to practice doing at least 26.2 if you want to do your best on that distance.
I agree. If I was really training to hit a PR, I would do a 26 early on — way before taper.
I think 22 may be a bit much for beginning marathoners who are just getting used to the toll that that higher mileage takes on your body before the taper, but I think after a few marathons, it’s a really good idea to help with both that mental block and to experiment with fueling in case 20 is a block/bonk for you. My last marathon, I was supposed to do a 22 and ended up doing 20 instead and freaked out, but I did a really strong 22 before we did MCM and felt really good mentally going into it.