24.5km run

I had mapped out a 30km run...  I really wanted to be able to run 30km's before heading over to attempt to do a marathon after 180km's of bike, just for my piece of mind.

However, I have had sore shins and on my long ride with Jacque yesterday she pretty much talked me out of it and I have heard the same advice from many sources.  I am better off to be standing on the start line having not ran 30km's rather than having run 30km's and be out with a stress fracture.  My problem is that I am just so slow it is getting beyond a joke. 

I thought that the course I chose would be around 26-27km's, however when I got home and mapped it it was only 24.5km's, of which I walked the last 1km as I had reached the 3 hour mark and my feet were aching.  I was really disappointed as I ran the whole way with the exception of 1 toilet stop, a couple of drink station stops to refill my drink bottle, a couple of times I stopped to eat, I stopped to buy 2 Gatorades from the shop.  So, I guess that does add up to a few stops, but I figure that this is how I'll be 'racing' the Ironman.  On these times I will be out there over 6 hours for the marathon.  It is going to be a long hard day which I fully expected, but I just had a little hope that I would be slightly faster than that.  I was hoping for around 6:30min/kms rather than 7:30min/kms!

The good part is that I didn't need to stop and stretch and I felt pretty comfortable even though it was really, really hot and humid.

I ran with my Skins calf compression socks on and I found that these were excellent.  My shins were sore on the Friday, I ran on the Sunday, stretched well afterwards, iced my legs well, and really I couldn't feel my shins at all. 

I will do this same run next weekend and see if I can pick the pace up even just a little.