The D-Day is 31 days away. Last week was the second toughest week of training, that ended with 29km run. I had missed the long run the week before that (19km, part of step-back week, where the distances are reduced), fell ill, must be the training. Pushing body to such levels is bound to weaken immune at times. The good part was that the illness helped the body to recover from the tedious training routine, but at the same time i lost out on a little bit of stamina. So i obviously had apprehensions about how will i last the longest run in my training so far, 29km. But the strength of apprehension seems to have reduced over the course of training. I know i can do it, most of the time. I worry more about state of mind than state of body. I was more eager to try out new things to help me sustain the run better. To improve the quality of the run and not just to finish it. So the focus was on Pre-Race food and liquids during the race. And as much as i have never liked the concept of carrying a water bottle while running before this training started, its least likely that i will be found leaving without one now. Water just turns it around, entirely. Its amazing how much of what you eat and drink pre and during the race can add to your performance. And its even better to know how much it can help you post race, as i discovered this time.
For a change i decided to start run with glucose water than plain water, and had a little extra milk 45 minutes before the run. I had late dinner, so was hoping that it will come into effect too. The last record of me feeling hunger into a long run was 13km. This time i pushed it to 22km! its a big achievement. I realised that the secret lay in not getting hungry for as long as you can, which brings it all to energy levels ,obviously related to hunger. Hunger is body's message to you for dropping levels of energy, from where it starts to put more pressure on muscles and drain them of all reserves. In a long run i guess its not entirely possible to be not hungry, but the performance depends in how much you can push it, hunger. And i could not have learnt this lesson any better than how i did this time. I was running without music this time (i carried it, just in case), because i think it helps me focus on my running rhythm better. And at the point of 22nd Km i was out of energy and hungry, almost together. While contemplating how much i will have to suffer on the time i targeted this run to finish in, i saw a Banana vendor, and if i am going to suffer in the next 7km , i realised i might as well eat one to curb the hunger. However it did more than that. Suddenly i found an extra load of energy that lasted me the rest of the run. I did walk but i also ran faster to make up for it. With this i switched on the music too. It helped a bit. Music can at time annoy too. Here though it blocked the traffic noise. Running faster in patches and walking is not a bad strategy. Helps you sustain the last few Kms.
I survived and improved the last 7kms, thanks to the Banana and Music (more banana :) ). Finished it 3hrs and 04min, as planned.
What i also discovered later was the hydration and eating helped me recover from this long run better than any i have done so far. There were no post run headaches that i normally get out of dehydration. The cramps loosened themselves rather fast. Except for sore calves i did not carry any pain for too long. This is a very important lesson, on how you handle your run can also affect your recovery. Benefits of a well handled run stay beyond the run. That also is the ulterior motive of any training program, to not just finish the marathon, but to cross the line with a smile on you face.
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