11 Mile Run / 5 Links for Friday

My Backyard Gate: Where My Running Begins

I ran 11.4 miles today. I stayed at around 9:30 pace after the warm-up. My legs didn't have that tired, heavy feeling today (maybe because I only ran a total of 20 miles this week). That makes me more hopeful for The Woodlands Half Marathon that I'm running in two weeks.

Pre-run: oatmeal with a banana and toast with honey (filled me up so that I wasn't hungry)
During: Mint Chocolate GU gel (yum!) at mile 5
Post-run: Chocolate Milk

Race Training - 12 Mistakes (Even Experienced) Runners Make. This article is packed with helpful information like, "Don't leave your race in your workout." That's something I didn't want to do today so even though it might have been fun to try to run faster because it's more of a challenge, I kept it on the easy side. I want to be patient with my body after running the Houston Marathon only a month ago.

Is Your GPS Watch Accurate? Certified race courses are usually accurate, and are more accurate than your watch, so don't worry that you've gone too long or too short. I know I've done this. However, in Denver one year, the marathon was truly marked incorrectly. They decreased my time by about a minute.

Increasing Mileage to Avoid Injury - This article examines a variety of ways to increase mileage. Usually, I increase my miles for 3 weeks and then I take a break with a week of lesser mileage.

5 Myths About Ultra Marathons - Tips for pacing yourself, eating, and drinking during an ultra. Even if you don't run ultras, you might find it helpful.

Specificity: Trail vs. Road - For ultras, you could run one 20-28 mile run every two weeks and increase mileage for two weeks. Then, other workouts are 1-2 hours long and include speed and hills.