Post-marathon weight gain

After spending weeks watching everything I ate and limiting my calorie intake (1500 plus 100 for every mile run each day), I had brought my weight down to a lean, lithe 145 pounds for the Missoula Marathon. At 5 feet, 10 inches, that is a great fighting weight, but tough to maintain for a guy who loves to eat. So, for the month following the race, I've have been treating myself. I don't go overboard, but I have definitely been eating more for pleasure than for fuel. As such, I have gained seven pounds and I can feel it when I am out there running. Take, for instance, my attempt at a tempo run on Saturday. It was a humid day on Long Island, where I was visiting my parents for my mom's birthday, but that was no excuse for not being able to sustain my target 10K pace for a mere nine minutes. Or how about my long run, the following morning. It was raining a bit, so didn't bring my iPod, which also meant I had no stopwatch. And since I was still away from home, I didn't have any planned routes. So I had to estimate 90 minutes. Turns out I ran an extra 10 minutes or so, but only managed to make it 14 miles, if that. And yesterday's speed work? Pathetic. The three one-mile intervals that were supposed to be at 5K pace were instead only slightly faster than 10K pace. I hope to run the first 5K of my short-race season soon (that Fab Four 5K still looks good). That will be the end of the gorging and the reinstatement of the strict dieting. It's the only way to have a competitive and successful September.