Oh, I didn't mean the running the marathon part. I meant how fast I want to become.
Oh, I already enjoy it. I knew the only way I'd stick with it was if I decided I'd enjoy it.
And like I said, I often do start feeling quite good around the 40 minute mark, especially if the weather's nice with a cool breeze, just not quite orgasmic yet. But after all, that's quite a high standard.
Oh, I hate that! Salt crystals=chafing. (Incidentally, that happens because your sweat is highly concentrated and can't evaporate anymore — it happens when it's very humid or when you aren't getting enough water.)
...So I'm at 35 miles per week now...hoping to double that by October.
I know I'm a freak liking the salt thing. I just think it's cool. I dunno why.
I don't tend to chafe much, except around the running bra area. But I can tell you that
body glide is the magic bullet.
I'm sure you've already heard this, but I'll say it anyway. Be careful when ramping up your mileage that high that quickly. I
won't say don't do it, but
do listen to your body and back off a bit if you find you need to do so. Some people do fine ramping up quickly to high mileage, but a lot of people (even young people) start breaking down, which can get ugly. Stress fractures are not a happy thing. (Even Lance Armstrong got stress fractures when training for the NYC marathon. He was in damn fucking fine shape, obviously. But he wasn't used to the pounding on the pavement, which is harder on your body than you might think. I have never had a stress fracture, but some of my running friends have, and they suck.)
I have no problems at all with mileage of 35-40 a week, plus cross-training. Knees, ankles, joints are all fine. I got to that level pretty quickly, as you did. But once I get to around 50 running miles a week, I find I have to start ramping more slowly and taking better care of myself after runs. YMMV -- some people have a higher threshold, and many have a lower threshold. Running is awesome, but running injuries decidedly are not. You'll learn soon enough what your own body can handle.
Running books generally advise building your mileage no more than 10% a week. I think people differ so much that it's hard to give blanket advice like that. I found I could build faster than that, up to a point. (I think I've got good biomechanics. My brother is also a distance runner, and my dad was athletic in his day. That helps. My brother in his days as a state champion ran about 100 miles a week!) But I do know a LOT of people who got too enthusiastic too quickly and had problems.
So anyway -- listen to your body if it tells you to go easier or take a break. It's not wimping out or holding back your training -- it's being smart. Other than that, I say have fun and go for it!
