Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot

Well, this morning was the Kirkwood Annual Turkey Day Trot race offering either a 3 mile or 6 mile option. In a crazier week I probably would have run both (a friend of mine actually did both races this morning running the 3 mile with his brother), but I opted to just focus on the 6 mile race with my marathon rapidly approaching. I went out too fast early at about a 7 minute pace (it didn't feel that fast) and paid for it in the second half of the race. I reached the 2 mile in 14:10 and the 3 mile in 22:20. My overall time was 46:30 which translates into a 7:45 per mile pace but that means I slowed down over 2 minutes in the second 3 miles---definitely not what I am hoping to do in the marathon. However, that was my fastest average pace for that distance since college but still, I could have run faster if I had run even or negative splits. Not a big deal though since this was mostly an excuse to allow me to eat more turkey and dressing this afternoon. However, it does give me confidence going into the marathon knowing I can peel off 8:00 to 8:30 miles without working too hard.

I recently read an article online about a guy describing the 3 perfect runner's high moments of his career and they all happened to be within 1 week after a marathon. Well, normally I have taken off after running a marathon except for my most recent Frankenstein experience. Exactly one week post Frankenstein marathon I ran in the Clayton half and in retrospect I think I was on a runner's high during that race. The half marathon just felt so effortless for the first 10 miles and my pace of about 8 minute miles was much faster than I had run before or expected to run. After the Clayton race I speculated that the marathon may have helped my running economy by increasing my leg turnover etc. and that may have been a part of the explanation but I also think the body may have also released some endorphins that kick in a few days to a week later allowing for potential breakthroughs in athletic performance.

So, the next question, is will it happen again? The other runner I mentioned who pointed this out to me wrote that once he looked back and realized these runner high moments were post marathons he tried to replicate the circumstances but could never re-acquire the runner's high again post marathon which makes me think it may be partially or wholly psychological. Having completed a marathon recently may convince our subconscious that no matter how much the immediate pain of a fast but shorter race is, we can get through it since we just ran a longer marathon leading to breakthrough efforts in shorter raced etc. Time will tell I suppose. I know I have a race scheduled for a week after I return which is either a half marathon or a 4 mile run. I am signed up to do the 4 mile but if the weather is nice I may do the half marathon instead, though I think I would be hard pressed to run any faster than I did in Clayton since my training has mostly been in maintaining fitness for the past 2 months. But isn't that what makes life interesting: showing up, competing and seeing what happens. Enjoy your thanksgiving holiday.