Sakuma's Running Diary~Road to Sub 3~

インターネット企業の中の人がサブ3を目指します。

【Race Report】かすみがうらマラソンと来シーズンに向けて / Race Report] Kasumigaura Marathon and Next Season

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みなさん、こんにちは

 

シーズンラストレースであるかすみがうらマラソンを走って10日間。フルマラソンがあるからと先送りにしてきた飲み会をこなしながら、レースの振り返りと来シーズンに向けて思考を整理したので、備忘のためにブログに残しておく。

 

本日のContents

 

Race Report_かすみがうらマラソン2022

今シーズンラスト。3年ぶり3回目のかすみがうらマラソン。過去2回出走して2回とも撃沈しており、良いイメージは全くない。しかもエントリーした理由が3月の東京マラソンがコロナで中止になった場合の保険であったため、PBを更新した先月の東京マラソンと比較すると、モチベーションの面で劣後していたことは否めない。

東京マラソンから1か月半で上積みができている感覚はなく、むしろ疲労が抜けていないのかレース直前1~2週間になっても全然調子が上がらない。記録会を全力で走ってもスピードを維持できない。VO2MAXも超停滞してるし・・・とまあ、こんなコンディションでかすみがうらマラソンに臨むことになった。

その結果がこちら。

清々しいほどの撃沈である。3時間半すらカットできなかったのはいつ以来だろうか。レース前の過ごし方にもレース運びにもそれぞれこの大撃沈の理由があった。これを糧に、練習に活かせればと思う。

レース前の練習など

直前1週間の調整練習は東京マラソンの時と基本的には変わらない。

sakumichael-local-runner.hatenablog.com

直前期の練習の違いで言うと、1週間前の調整が5000mではなくクオーターマラソンになったくらい。ただそのさらに1週間前、つまりレースの2週間前が悪天候だったこともあり、ロング走を行わなかった。上述しているが、東京マラソンを激走した後も2回ほど30k走を行っていたこともあって、かなり疲労が蓄積している感覚もあるしまだレースまで2週間近くあるのでランオフで良いだろうと。今冷静に考えるとこれが多分良くなかった。なぜなら、フルマラソンの谷間とはいえ東京マラソンを入れても3月の月間走行距離は270kmくらいで多いわけではない。そう考えると疲労が抜けなかったのは走りすぎが原因ということではないはずだ。

食事・睡眠など

東京マラソン前の2週間はアルコールを絶った。これは良い方向にワークした。ただ今回の断酒期間は直前の1週間のみ。ここはマイナスだったかもしれない。そしてレース前日と当日の食事についてもミスをした気がしている。とりわけ当日の朝食の時間は早すぎた気がしており、東京マラソンと違い会場まで遠いこともあるが、スタート時間の4時間前には完食。レース終盤がガス欠気味になった。移動中にもう少しパン・おにぎりなどの固形物の糖質を追加で摂取しておくべきだった。

そして睡眠。これはこれは今も続いていているのが、ここしばらくぐっすり眠れたと思えることがほとんどない。年齢によるものなのか、何度も目が覚めるし、疲労が抜け切った感じられる日が少なくて、これが練習の疲労を引きずる最大の理由だと思われる。こればっかりは、酒を飲まずに早く寝ろということしかないと思うので、規則正しい生活を心がけることにしようと強く思っている。

レース当日~スタートまで

スタート時間は9:45。余裕をもって8時には土浦駅に着こうと考えて電車を検索。以下移動ログ。

上野駅からのスーパーひたちは奮発してグリーン車だ。座席は広くて足も伸ばせるのでとても良かった。数百円追加でこの快適さであれば、フルマラソン走る日くらいは払っても良いなと思った。

3年ぶりのかすみがうらマラソン。会場まで結構歩くイメージがあったのだが、駅から結構近くて8時前に会場に到着する。トイレも荷物預けも全然混んでおらず、スムーズすぎて時間を持て余すことに。まだこの時間だと結構寒く、ゴール地点であるトラックの近くの日向でしばらくじっとして過ごす。結果論だが30分後の電車でOKであった。これもミスの一つ。

とはいえ、レース45分前には荷物預けとトイレを済ませ、ウォーミングアップを始める。この時間になると急激に気温が上がってくる。アップをしても脚が心なしか重く感じていて、厳しいレースを予感させる。そうこうしているうちにスタート時間が近づいてくるのでスタート地点へ向かい整列。色々あるけどシーズン最終戦。いけるといころまで攻めてみようとのん気なことを考えながらいよいよスタート。

レース序盤(15kmまで)

スタートブロックはAブロック。フルマラソン参加者は6500人くらいに対して、たったの4ブロックということで、案の定レベルの異なるランナーが同一ブロック内に押し寄せており、大混雑である。せめてこの2倍くらいに分けてもらえると助かるなあなどと思いながら走り始める。ここでジグザグに走ろうものなら、無駄に体力を消耗することは自明なので、ウォーミングアップだと思って走ろう。なんだかんだ2~3キロ走ってれば落ち着くだろう。序盤から坂が連続して既に憂鬱になっている。とはいえ不思議なもんで、10kmを過ぎるころには普通に走れている。4'25/kmくらいでも全然平気。まあ、これが勘違いだったんだけどね。4'30/kmくらいで前を走っているランナーをどんどん抜いていく。

レース中盤(30kmまで)

4'25~4'30/kmを巡行速度で安定。心肺は全然問題ないのだが、日が出てきてかなり気温が上がってきている。給水のたびに首筋に水をかけるのだが、給水所が狭いのか周囲のランナーが多いせいなのか、どうも給水を取りにくい。途中で取り損なってしまい、「やっちまった」と何となく嫌なメンタルになる。やたらと周囲のランナーが気になって、集中力を欠き始める。

ハーフを通過。3年前はめちゃくちゃ暑くて「この辺ですでにいっぱいいっぱいだったなあ」などと思いながら走り続ける。今年はそんなことはないはずだと思っていたのもつかの間、ちょっと脚が重くなってくる。でもまだ粘れるはず。

25km通過。少しだけペースを落として走り続ける。一度抜いたランナーにパスされるが気にしない。はずなのだが今日はやたらと周囲が気になる。レースに集中できていない、注意散漫な感覚。何とか1キロ4分台で我慢するが、ずるずると失速し始める。

レース終盤ゴールまで

30km過ぎ。ついに1キロ5分台を超える。ここからはずるずるペースが落ちていく一方。

「いくらなんでも落ちすぎだろ」

自分の弱さに自分でびっくりしている。

「ここからキロ5分半でいければギリギリ3時間20分は切れる」

目標を下方修正しようと試みるが、ついに止まってしまう。脚が動かない。ここからは走って歩いての繰り返し。一回歩いちゃうともうダメなのね、知ってる。気持ちが切れちゃってるのもあるから、脳の命令を身体が受け付けない。まだ35km。7km以上残っているというのに。

「ここからキロ6でいければギリギリ3時間半は切れる」

「全部歩いても4時間は余裕かな」

下方修正に次ぐ下方修正。今思い出しても情けなさすぎる思考に陥っている。沿道の「がんばれー!」という応援に心が痛い。俺は全然頑張れていないというのに。

「クソッ」

生まれて初めてレース中に自分自身に対して悪態をつく。38km過ぎ。給水所でバナナを2本とって歩きながら食べる。すると後ろからまるおランシャツのおじさんランナーに「ファイト!あと少し!」と檄を飛ばされる。檄を飛ばす方も必死である。少しだけ力が湧いてくる。どうやらハンガーノック状態だったらしいが、そんなことはどうでも良い。ラスト2キロちょい。

「もう絶対歩かねえ」

もう一度前を向いて走り始める。きついなんてもんじゃないし、全くスピードも出ない。多分顔もここ数年で一番不細工な顔になっている。でもここで歩く方がよほどかっこ悪い。死ぬ気で走れ。あとたった10分だ。プライドにかけて歩くな。そんなこんなでゴール。

かすみがうらマラソン検証まとめ

以上物語調になってしまったが、今回やらかしたことをまとめると以下の通りである。

レース前
  • 走り込み不足。スピード練習はともかく、もっと距離を走るべきだった。
  • 疲労回復が下手くそ。睡眠をもっと研究したほうが良いな。
レース中
  • 自分のできるパフォーマンスを過信した。実力的に最後までもたないペースで入ってしまった。
  • 目標を明確に決めずに入っている。4'25/kmペースでいけるところまで!などというファジーな設定でフルマラソンを走り切れるわけがない。
  • 結果的に自分の走りに集中できず、無駄にメンタルを消耗した。

Road to Sub 3_今の自分に足りないものは何だろう

ここからは来シーズンに向けて、自分に足りないものが何か、現時点で考えていることを整理しようと思ったが、答えはシンプルで。最近一番感じるのは距離に対する不安である。特に昨年10月に怪我をしてからはそれが顕著で。東京マラソンはほぼイーブンペースで失速することなく走り切ることができたが、今回のかすみがうらマラソンも含めて、最近は終盤に失速することが多い。単純に、突っ込みすぎだろうという突っ込みも一理あるのだが、終盤で1分/km以上もペースが落ちるのはいくら何でも情けなさすぎるなと。スピード練習ももちろん重要なのではあるが、本番が長距離なのに長距離の練習に注力しないというのは本末転倒だろう。レース後の打ち上げでもアドバイスをいただいたが、改めて距離を踏むということを意識してトレーニングに励んでいこうと決意した次第である。秋ごろにこのブログを振り返ってみて、ちゃんと実行できているか、その結果はどうかを検証することにする。

サブスリーして自分も泣きたい。

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おめでとう、けん玉さん。

 

ではまた。

 

Twitter(フォローしていただけると喜びます)

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Hello everyone!

 

It has been 10 days since I ran the Kasumigaura Marathon, the last race of the season. As I went out for a drink, which I have been putting off because of the full marathon, I reflected on the race and organized my thoughts for the next season, so I'm leaving this on my blog as a reminder.

 

Today's Contents

  • Race Report_Kasumigaura Marathon 2022
  • Road to Sub 3_What am I missing now?

 

Race Report_Kasumigaura Marathon 2022

This is the last race of the season, and my third Kasumigaura Marathon in three years. I had run the marathon twice before and had been beaten both times, so I didn't have a good image of the marathon at all. Moreover, I entered this marathon as insurance in case the Tokyo Marathon in March was cancelled due to Corona, so I could not deny that my motivation was not as good as the Tokyo Marathon last month, in which I set a new PB.

I did not feel that I had improved in the month and a half since the Tokyo Marathon, and in fact, I was not in good shape at all even a week or two before the race, perhaps because I was still fatigued. I couldn't maintain my speed even when I ran the record session as fast as I could, and my VO2 max was also super stagnant... Well, I had to run the Kasumigaura Marathon in such a condition.

Here is the result.

It was a refreshingly disappointing failure, and I can't remember the last time I couldn't even cut 3.5 hours. There were two reasons for this huge sinking, one was the way I spent my time before the race, and the other was the way I carried out the race. I hope to make the most of this experience and apply it to my training.

Pre-race practice, etc.

The training for the week before the race was basically the same as for the Tokyo Marathon.

 

sakumichael-local-runner.hatenablog.com

The only difference in the training in the period immediately before the race is that the adjustment one week before the race is now a quarter marathon instead of a 5,000m. However, one more week before that, i.e., two weeks before the race, I did not do a long run due to bad weather conditions. As mentioned above, I had done two 30K runs after running the Tokyo Marathon hard, and I had the feeling that I was quite fatigued, and since the race was still almost two weeks away, I thought a run-off would be fine. Now that I think about it calmly, this was probably not a good idea. Because even though it was the valley between full marathons, my monthly mileage in March, including the Tokyo Marathon, was about 270 km, which is not a lot. So, it was not due to excessive running that I could not get rid of fatigue.

Diet, Sleep, etc.

I stopped drinking alcohol for two weeks before the Tokyo Marathon. This worked out well. However, the period of sobriety this time was only one week before the marathon. This may have been a negative factor. I also feel that I made some mistakes regarding meals on the day before and the day of the race. In particular, I think I ate breakfast too early on the day of the race. Unlike the Tokyo Marathon, the race venue is far away, but I finished my breakfast four hours before the start time. I felt like I ran out of gas towards the end of the race. I should have consumed some more bread, rice balls, and other solid carbohydrates during the journey.

And sleep. This is something that is still going on, but I rarely feel like I've had a good night's sleep for a while now. Perhaps it is my age, but I wake up many times, and there are only a few days when I feel exhausted, which is probably the biggest reason why I am dragging out the fatigue from the practice. The only thing I can do about this is to not drink alcohol and go to bed early, and I strongly believe that I will try to lead a regular life.

Race day - to the start

The start time was 9:45 a.m. I searched for a train, thinking I would arrive at Tsuchiura station by 8:00 a.m. to make sure I had enough time to get to the start. The following is my travel log.

  • 5:00 Wake up
  • 6:15 Depart home
  • 7:00 Departure from Ueno Station
  • 7:41 Arrive at Tsuchiura station
  • 7:55 Arrive at the venue

The Super HITACHI train from Ueno Station was a green car. The seats were spacious and I could stretch my legs. I was willing to pay a few hundred yen extra for this comfort, at least on the day of running a full marathon.

It had been three years since I ran the Kasumigaura Marathon. I had an image that it would be quite a walk to the venue, but it was quite close to the station and I arrived at the venue before 8:00 a.m. The restrooms and luggage storage were not crowded at all. The restrooms and baggage drop-off were not crowded at all, and it was so smooth that I didn't have much time to spare. It was still quite cold at this time of the day, and I spent some time sitting in the sun near the finish line at the track. As a result, we were OK to take the train 30 minutes later. This was another mistake.

Nevertheless, 45 minutes before the race, I checked in my luggage, went to the restroom, and started warming up. At this time of the day, the temperature was rising rapidly. Even after warming up, my legs felt a little heavy, which foretold of a tough race. Meanwhile, the start time is approaching, so we head to the start area and line up. This is the last race of the season, and we have a lot of things to do. I thought to myself, "I'm going to push as hard as I can until the end of the race.

First half of the race (up to 15 km)

The starting block is A block. As expected, runners of different levels crowded into the same block, and it was very crowded. I started to run, thinking that it would be helpful if the number of participants could be divided into at least twice as many blocks. It was obvious that running in a zigzag pattern here would be a waste of energy, so I thought of it as a warm-up run. After running a couple of kilometers, you will feel at home. I am already depressed because of the continuous hills from the beginning of the race. However, strangely enough, by the time I passed 10 km, I was running normally, and even at 4'25/km, I felt perfectly fine. I was passing runners in front of me at around 4'30/km.

Mid-race (up to 30km)

Steady 4'25-4'30/km at cruising speed. My heart and lungs are perfectly fine, but the sun is coming out and the temperature is rising considerably. I had to pour water on my neck at each water stop, but it was difficult to get water, perhaps because the water station was too small or because of the many runners around me. I missed the water during the race, and it made me feel bad. I start to lose my concentration because I'm so worried about the runners around me.

I passed the half marathon and continued running, thinking about how hot it had been three years ago, and how I was already full up around here. I thought that this year should be no different, but then my legs started to get a little heavy. But I can still hold on.

Passing the 25km mark. I slow down a bit and keep running. The runner who passed me once passes me, but I don't mind. I should be, but today, I'm very concerned about my surroundings. I felt distracted and unable to concentrate on the race. I manage to stay in the 4 minute per kilometer range, but I begin to stall out.

Toward the end of the race

Past 30km. Finally, I exceed 5 minutes per kilometer. From this point on, my pace begins to slow down.

I was surprised at my own weakness.

If I can run 5.5 minutes per kilometer from here, I can just barely break 3 hours and 20 minutes.

I tried to adjust my goal downward, but finally stops. My legs wouldn't move. From here on, it was run and walk all over again. Once I walk, it's all over, I know. I'm feeling a bit out of sorts, so my body won't accept my brain's commands. I still have 35 kilometers to go, more than 7 kilometers to go.

If I can keep the pace at 6minutes per kilometer, I can just barely break three and a half hours.

Even if I walk the entire distance, I'll still have enough time for four hours.

Downward revision after downward revision. Even now, I am still stuck in the same pitiful thinking. I was pained by the cheers of "Go for it! I was not doing my best at all. I'm not doing my best at all.

Damn!

For the first time in my life, I swear at myself during a race. After 38km, I grabbed two bananas at the water station and ate them while walking. Then a runner in a Maruo-run shirt behind me says, "Fight! Almost there! He is also desperate. The runner is also desperate. I felt a little bit of strength. Apparently, I was suffering from hunger knock, but I didn't care about that. I was just a little over two kilometers from the end of the race.

I'm not going to walk again," I said, and started running forward again. It was not even close to hard, and I wasn't going fast at all. My face was probably the ugliest it had been in years. But it would be much worse to walk here. Run like you mean to die. You only have 10 minutes left. Don't walk on your pride. And so, I reached the goal.

Kasumigaura Marathon Verification Summary

This is a bit of a narrative, but here is a summary of what I did wrong this time.

Before the race
  • Insufficient running. I should have run longer distance, let alone practiced speed.
  • I am not good at recovering from fatigue. I should study sleep more.
During the race
  • Overconfident in my ability to perform. I went into the race at a pace that I was not capable of holding until the end.
  • I went into the race with no clear goal in mind: as far as I could go at 4'25/km pace!
  • There was no way I could run a full marathon with such a fuzzy setting.
  • As a result, I couldn't concentrate on my running, and my mentality was unnecessarily drained.

Road to Sub 3_What am I lacking now?

From here, I thought I would try to sort out what I am lacking for the next season and what I am thinking about at the moment, but the answer is simple. What I feel most recently is anxiety about distance. This is especially true since my injury last October. I was able to run the Tokyo Marathon at an almost even pace without stalling out, but recently, including this Kasumigaura Marathon, I often stall out in the last half of the race. One could argue that I am simply running too fast, but I think it is a bit pathetic that my pace drops by more than 1 minute/km in the last half of the marathon. Of course speed practice is important, but not focusing on long-distance practice when the race is a long distance race is a complete disaster. As I was advised at the post-race party, I have decided to train hard with a renewed awareness of the importance of distance training. I will look back on this blog in the fall and see if I am doing it right and what the results are.

I want to sub-three and cry myself to sleep.

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Congratulations, Kendama.

 

See you soon.

 

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