10 weeks until marathon: 28km training run

I completed a 28km training run on Sunday afternoon in a time of 2:18.56. There are still 10 weeks until the Melbourne Marathon so I think I'm making good progress. The first 18km were relatively comfortable and my pace was around 4.40mins/k for the most part but my hamstrings started to burn during the final 10km and the last 5km was a struggle, with the pace slowing to around 5.30mins/k towards the end. I probably went out a little fast considering the number of hills I was facing.

The first 16km was going from Kings Cross out over the City2Surf course and up Heartbreak Hill, turning at the 8km mark and then the next 9km I went down to Farm Cove and around the Sydney Opera House and back. I would have run further towards Circular Quay but it was getting dark and the Botanical Gardens gates were about to close and I didn't want to get shut out! I had to run another 3km once I got back near home so I headed towards Paddington for 1.5km or so and then headed for home. It has got quite cold by this time so a nice bath helped me warm up again!

Next Sunday is the City2Surf (14km) which I am looking forward to. I'm pretty confident of clocking under 58 mins but I am really aiming for 55 mins. After that, the long runs will get even longer!