long runs...(kinda long)

I pretty much started with a handful of 2 miles runs per week at the end of August and now I am currently running 4x per week on regular days.

I've generally been doing 3 medium runs (about 30-40 minutes, usually 4 miles at various paces) on mon, tues, thurs, and then a gradually longer run on Saturday. My long run is now up to 11 miles and I kinda feel like it's starting to take more out of me than I'm used to. It's not like I'm having to really exert myself, or feel any real pain or anything like that, but I'm just feeling fatigued during the last 1-2 miles or so, to the point where I start to think 'im not sure I'm really enjoying this'.

I guess I'm just now getting a feel for what endurance fatigue feels like,...not like the simple huff-puff 'fatigue' that is felt during a fast shorter run with a fairly high HR (which I do enjoy).

I have a feeling that Im getting to a point where I need to change something in my routine, but can't tell for sure what...

I eat a large bowl of cereal an hour or two before my long run, as well as a generous helping of some high-carb fruit juice, etc...and I'll down a 20oz gatorade before hand as well. Maybe not enough fuel?

now my long run mileage is almost the same as 1/2 my total weekly mileage,...is this problematic? perhaps adding another 3-4 mile run into my week, for a 5 day run week would help?

I stop for a water drink close to the halfway point, and that seems to get me through to the end with little problem, at least I dont really feel the need to drink anything at any other point...seems like hydration isn't a problem right now...

I'm hoping to get to 13.1 miles in the near future and keep that distance for a while until I can run it comfortably in < 2h

Its just that I can't seem to simply tack on an extra mile each week so easily now, as before...

You went from 2 mile runs to 11 mile runs in a couple of months??? Doesn't sound to me like you have a problem...

Lots of things you might try, but I would suggest two up front: 1. back off by 3-4 miles next Saturday and then go back to 10-11 miles the next week, see if it makes any difference. 2. try gel, sports drink, bar (take your pick) at around 5-6 miles.

I find I need a gel every 5 miles or so if I'm going more than 8 or 9 miles. I can't wait for the 8 mile point, either, that's too late. YMMV. You will probably have to experiment a bit to see what works best for you. You might also try deferring some of that gatorade until mid-run.

If none of that helps in the short term, don't worry about it, give it several weeks and see if your body just needed time to catch up.

maybe too much, too soon?

I've just been quietly adding either a mile or a 1/2 mile to my long run each week for the last several weeks now, and here I am, ::hrug:::. First time I really felt like I kinda wanted to stop running was near the end of my first 10 mile run, but it was quite a warm day so I attributed it mostly to that. Same thing happened this last saturday after around mile 9.5,...I just plodded my way for the remaining 1.5 miles or so. (nice cool day)

From reading some articles I've found, apparently it is recommended to give oneself an easy week every 4-5 weeks or so, which I've never done at all. I think I will do this actually this week, and then see how it goes two saturdays from now, going for either 11.5 or 12 miles.

gotcha

Yeah,..I'll brink along a power bar or something like that and eat it at the 1/2 way point,...worth a shot at least...

Thanks Karl,

It doesn't appear that your running during the week support the increase in your long runs. Stay consistent for awhile with the long runs and juggle the runs during the week; get a 6 or 7 miler in there somehow. The other thing you may want to try is to slow your pace during the long run...speed is not important at this stage...time and miles are the things you should be concerned with. Good luck!

Oh I guess I should have mentioned before that I do make sure to keep my long runs much slower than my regular standard 4-5 mile pace of around 8:00 or slightly slower. Long runs generally seem to start out around 9:50 or so, then gradually turn to low-mid 10:00s after Ive been getting that fatigued feeling furing the last 1.5 miles or so.

whats a good rule of thumb to follow for planning a support miles / long run ratio?

sounds like I should plan to have my long run be about 40% of total weekly miles? or is that still too high? (right now it's just under 50%)

thanks for the reply,

You're on the right track. As your distances get longer, you may want to add distance every other week (or every 3 wks as they get longer still) rather than every week. And every so often, back off substantially as has been suggested.

The important thing is to allow time for recovery - no matter if you are just starting or have been running for 40 years.

I recently read an article In RW mag about the subject. The number that comes to my mind is 30% for long run. I'd have to look it up though. Another rule of thumb is try not to increase the distance of total weekly mileage or any individual run by more than 10%. This is a hard one to follow when you first start as the increments seem so small. Even though you have progressed quit rapidly and have increased your mileage significantly more than the 10% rule, it may be a good idea to hold or even back off a little. Even though you may feel that you can handle the distance both physically and aerobicly it is quite possible that the underlying tissues still need time to strengthen.

I personally use around 30 percent of total for Long Run. Works for me so far.

thanks again guys for the feedback,...now I've been looking over a popular marathon training guide (hal higdon?) where the weekly long runs are almost always 50% of the total weekly run, even at my current point (11mi long run + 4+4+4 regular runs during the week)

::hrug:::

Im not specifically marathon training, but still...hmm

I've been doing easy 3 milers this week and I'll plan for an easy 8 miler on saturday, then I'll shoot for a 12 miler long run the following week with no additional 'support' miles beyond my regular 12 and see how it goes. Hopefully the rest week will help and I'll be sure to take a powerbar to eat around the 5th mile or so (along with a brief walking break), and I'll see if this helps how I feel towards the end of my run. An extra packet of oatmeal for breakfast probably wouldn't hurt either...at least this should help be determine if the fatigue I've been feeling is related to lack of food-energy. Looking forward to finding out...If I don't notice a difference, then I'll see about bumping up the mileage mid-week (while keeping the long run the same) and try yet again...