TIME TO REDEFINE MY LONG RUN. Coach put me in for 14 miles today, with surges to half marathon pace at miles 11 and 13. That’s what I get for showing off last week and doing 14 miles when I was scheduled for 10 easy ones. But I got through them fine. Even finished with something left in the tank. Which is as it should be – I’ve been guilty of running too fast on these long runs. Mid-week is for my fast work, Marie told me. Saturday runs need to be long and slow, to kick in the fat burning and build endurance. So I followed orders today and kept my pace around 8:30 per mile.

I reminder her of my goal to run a sub-20:00 5K, and she said that my current training plan should do the trick. In addition, I’ll be working up to 20-mile runs as part of training for the Chica go Marathon, and that will also help with my short races – provided I don’t overdo it by running too fast on the long runs.

Why not run faster on the long runs? Apparently running too fast kicks the heart rate up above the ideal fat-burning and cardio zone. So a slow run done too fast is actually counter-productive and results in mediocre performance. According to the latest book on DVD I’m listening too, the same is true for cycling. Long rides need to be slow to get the best results. Something for me to consider on my long rides as I train for the rehearsal Dunes ride this summer.