Marathoning in Perpetuity

Hamstring still hurting.  87 minutes of stairclimber at Level 16 (supposed to be 133 steps/minute, actually 131 steps/minute).  heart rate pretty constant 160 but i felt like i was killing myself.  can't wait to get back to running.  thinking about doing a lot of treadmill hills when i come back.  

Whole back of upper right leg still hurting.  Did 1 hour 52 minutes of stairclimber at level 14 (supposed to be 118 steps/minute, but the machine can't count, it's actually 114 steps/minute).  Heart rate was usually 144, except when I was dehydrated and toward the end, sort of bonked, was gonna get the closest thing to a replacement for a "long" run (albeit at an easy "pace"), but just totally bonked.  

Hamstring still hurting me a little.  Still sore and tight.  Today level 17.0 for 38 mintutes after level 16.0 for 7.5 minutes.  Had to finish up and get to bible study.  My heart rate was only 160 but I really really felt like I was working, like practically a tempo effort.  

did 94 minutes of stairclimber at level 13.1 (112 steps / minute, level 13 is supposed to be 111 / min & level 14 is supposed to be 118 / min), then squeezed my clothes out and got some water, then ran 6 miles in 38:17 with the last mile a comfortable 5:56. 

Last mile in 5:39 (progressive from 5:56 to 5:24 pace), last 6 in

39:00, first 4 at 6:49 pace, first 8 at 2 - 3% incline, last 2 flat. 

Pit stop necessitated after first 4 miles.  Otherwise just an ordinary

10 mile run.  My hamstring is still sore deep inside up toward the top,

I think it's sustained some sort of damage.  But I haven't run for 5

days, and I gotta get back in the swing of things with now Phoenix

scheduled for mid-January, I don't have time to baby it.  It is

drastically better.  Probably what I'll do is very little fast running,

and I think now I'll focus on getting a minimum of essential volume in

(like 70 miles including a long run and a day off for recovery each

week), and focus on getting a lot of incline for strength, and

finishing out the runs maybe a bit faster than marathon or half

marathon or 10K or 5K race pace depending on how good I feel.  Running

within myself has felt good the last two days.  It feels good to be

running again, even if I don't feel like my body can handle right now

the volume I really want to be putting in every day.  

After running tonight, in a totally dehydrated state I was 140.2 lbs nude.  That's the lightest weight I've seen on a scale in 9 years.  I've really only got 12 lbs left to lose--from 148 to 136, but I no longer have enough time before my next marathon, since it's Phoenix in January.  And I'm scared I won't be healthy.  There isn't much time to train, and my hamstring, and now right Achilles are bothering me.  In order to get my heart rate up to 160 on the stairclimber I have work, what seems to me, very very hard.  That's what's aggravating my Achilles.  Tonight I did 60 minutes at level 16 (average 15.9, 16 is supposed to be 133 steps / minute, I counted it at 130 steps / minute).  Then squeezed the sweat out of my shirt and socks, grabbed some water from the drinking fountain in the gym, and hopped on the treadmill for 7 miles in 41:27, finishing the last couple of miles at 5:46, at which point I was thoroughly done working out.