Getting Along With Galloway

Maybe there is something to this run:walk method promoted by Jeff Galloway. I did my fourth run:walk long run and my second in a row using a 5:1 run:walk ratio. Today's run was sort of weird. My legs got tired early, like only 2.5 hours into the run, but my pace got faster not slower. In fact, my pace got faster with each consecutive 5 mile split, the first 5 miles the slowest and the last the fastest. Go figure?



Sweet,soft single-track twisting through the trees. Happy feet!

It was a pretty warm day and when I reached for my S-caps 45 minutes into the run they weren't in my pocket. The plastic bag I was storing them in must have fallen out somewhere on the trail. I was a little concerned the lack of sodium would cause problems later in the run but then I remembered I packed some pretzels in my CamelBak. I would have to rely on them for my sodium intake. I only used 2 gels and ate pretzels instead. I didn't get hungry late in the run like I usually do. Maybe eating solid food instead of gel is the answer.



Plenty of water and wet feet on today's run.

I learned today that I can handle a lot of fluid on warm days. I normally drink about 22 oz of Succeed on my long runs, even on hot days. Today I decided to bump it up to 30 oz to see if the additional hydration would help me from fading late in the run. It seemed to do the trick since my pace never slowed. I think the extra drinking may have caused me to get a side stitch. I never get them but today I got one around 2 hours into the run and it stayed with me off and on until the end of the run 4 hours and 39 minutes later.



I thanked the builders of this boardwalk over the swamp. Dry feet are happy feet.

I did 24 miles today. I'm sure I can finish the 50K next month but that still leaves 7 miles of uncharted territory. I'm not sure if I should go for 26 on my next run or not. My legs feel fine after a cold water bath so I guess I can handle more training miles. I'm pretty sure I'll stick with the 5:1 ratio for the 50K but I may try a 4:1 split on my next long run to see if the results are different. Decisions, decisions.