Marathon Training Week Eight Recap
So, I didn't anticipate writing a marathon training recap that didn't involve running, but I found myself at a bit of a crossroads at the end of last week. I started this week as usual...with rest day, which was a good thing considering I had a really horrible run to end the previous week. I also spent the day seeking advice from friends about how to proceed...see I was pretty sure that I needed to switch things up. I felt like I was running way too much, way to far and that I was getting burned out and on the verge of an injury. After talking to a couple friends who have been there/done that, I was lead to the conclusion that I was severely over-training. My marathon plan had me running 5 days a week, with very little recovery built in. I was so blinded by my need to follow all directions to a "T" that I couldn't understand that I didn't need to be pushing myself so hard. All the joy had been sucked out of my running, and to get it back I had to start with a new perspective: Running a marathon doesn't have to mean running all the time. I have to give myself permission to take a day off here and there, to listen to my body instead of blindly following a plan, that sometimes, it's okay to (gasp) WALK during a long run! I was so focused on pounding out these miles and making sure I ran a certain pace that I didn't ever stop to think about how I really felt. And I felt horrible!
So I needed a new plan. I am not an experienced enough runner to just do a marathon without some guidance, so I picked a new training plan, one that was a little more forgiving and one that had a lot of flexibility and recovery built in. I also decided that I was not going to run at all during this week. The new training plan emphasized that cross-training is just as important, so I figured it would do me a world of good to let my body tackle some other kinds of exercise. Monday I hit the spin bike. My first Triathlon will be an indoor race on April 26th, so I need to kick my biking up a notch anyway. I also wanted an excuse to watch my new favorite show, "The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" on Netflix. It is really hard not to laugh out loud sometimes during these episodes, which makes it impossible not to be in a good mood no matter what you are doing while you are watching. 16 miles flew by in just 40 short minutes. I can't wait until my next bike session to watch more! I did a little bit of core work after, some planks and push ups...my arms need some serious work! Tuesday I needed to meet with our Master Swim group to discuss some upcoming changes to the team, so I decided to get in a practice with them afterwards. Let me tell you, nothing will wake you up like a 6:00 am swim practice with a bunch of crazy masters swimmers. We did 2500 yards, which is a lot more than I have been doing lately. It was nice though to have company and a coach, and I actually swam some butterfly and backstroke (which I never do by myself). I admittedly crashed at about 2:00 that day, but the rest of my morning was super productive!
Wednesday morning I stayed home with Logan since Bill had some appointments. I decided to take advantage of not being at work to take a morning class at the Y (plus Logan loves going to the child care center there, where I swear it was like Cheers...as soon as he walked in all the teachers and kids yelled "Logan!"). I picked a class called RIPPED, it's apparently an acronym for something, but let me tell you, no one's getting ripped in here. I read the little blurb about it on the website, which stated "R.I.P.P.E.D. is an active workout that combines resistance, intervals, power, plyometrics, and endurance. Great for people with intermediate and advanced fitness levels." Sounds great, right?!? Well, I guess our instructor didn't get that memo. We did some Zumba-esque dancy stuff to warm up (I am way too uncoordinated to deal with learning Zumba at 9:00 in the morning), then we did some sort of kick boxing routine, which I would normally enjoy, but she put so many steps together that I just ended up looking like I was trying to swat at a bug or something. We finally got to the weight portion of class which consisted solely of shoulder presses and arm circles. Back to more aerobic dancing stuff, then a quick 5 minutes of abs that included more punching...I quickly just decided to do my own thing here to salvage some sort of workout. The instructor was very sweet and came up to me after to see how I liked it (I was very clearly a newbie in a room full of regulars), and I told her that I felt a little lost most of the time and that I was hoping for a little more weight work. She said, "oh, we like to switch it up, you'll get used to it the more you come". I just smiled and nodded, but this is definitely not going into the regular rotation. Thursday was busy with meetings, so I ran into the Y for a quick turn on the elliptical and some core work on my way home. Friday I got back into the pool with the Masters group. I hopped in a little late so I only eeked out 1800 yards today. But we did a set of 100's on the 1:40 that felt really good. I definitely need to make a habit of trying to get to at least one Masters practice a week from now on.
Finally it was Saturday...running day! My new plan called for a 7 mile long run this week, which should have seemed like a breeze compared to the 13/14/14 mile long runs of the previous three weeks. But I was a little nervous. I hadn't run all week and my hamstring and knee still had moments of soreness that I was dealing with after last week's run. But I geared up and headed out. It was a lovely day, sun was out and temps were in the upper-30's. I had on a t-shirt, arm warmers and light pullover on top, power core tights on bottom. I started out with mittens, but shed them after a few minutes. I planned to focus on maintaining an easy pace, between 10-10:30 per mile. As usual, my first mile was much faster, clocking a 9:40. I really felt like I was going slow. I didn't wear my pace watch because I wanted to run more on feeling this time, but clearly I need something to keep me on the right path. I slowed down even more and ran the second mile in...9:28, yep, faster than the first. Seriously, I apparently suck at pacing myself. So, I ran what I felt was just a little faster than a walk, and clocked mile three in 10:25...there! Now, I just had to run the next four miles exactly the same way. This worked for the next two miles, I felt good and ran nice and steady. Then during mile six I started to feel my hamstrings start to tighten up, so I did something that the "old me" would have never considered...I walked. I was right next to the lake, so I walked down and went out on the beach...the lake is still half frozen and there were tons of ducks sitting on the edge of the ice, likely feasting on the tiny fish swimming in the open water.
I took a potty break, ate some Clif Bloks (strawberry, yummy!) had a little water and walked back up to the trail. I had about a mile and a half left and I started to run again. I was definitely a little stiff, and the wind had kicked up quite a bit, so I was starting to get chilled. I ran the last bit to home holding about a 10:40 pace, and it felt good. I had done it, I had survived a week without running during marathon training! I'm still a little concerned about my knee and hamstrings, so I am going to go see my Physical Therapist next week and check in, but I'm back on the wagon with my eye on the prize. I have four runs planned for this week with some yoga, swimming and biking mixed in...but we'll just see where the wind takes me!
Oh! I almost forgot, in the post title I promised you new pants! A month or so ago I read a race recap by Sarah Bowen Shea, of Another Mother Runner. She ran the Victoria Marathon and raved about her Saucony Bullet running capris. She talked about how comfortable they were and how the back and side pockets were perfect for holding the five packs of energy gel she carried during the race. I had been wondering about how I was going to carry my gels along the route since I don't want to wear my hydration belt during the marathon (there are water stops every mile!) Anyway, long story short, I ordered the same capris, and of course they arrived during my Week Without Running! I decided it couldn't hurt to try them on since it was too cold to run in capris anyway last week:
She was right, these things feel like BUTTAH! I cannot wait to try them on my long run next week. Never underestimate the power of new gear to make you feel like you can conquer the world :)
So I needed a new plan. I am not an experienced enough runner to just do a marathon without some guidance, so I picked a new training plan, one that was a little more forgiving and one that had a lot of flexibility and recovery built in. I also decided that I was not going to run at all during this week. The new training plan emphasized that cross-training is just as important, so I figured it would do me a world of good to let my body tackle some other kinds of exercise. Monday I hit the spin bike. My first Triathlon will be an indoor race on April 26th, so I need to kick my biking up a notch anyway. I also wanted an excuse to watch my new favorite show, "The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" on Netflix. It is really hard not to laugh out loud sometimes during these episodes, which makes it impossible not to be in a good mood no matter what you are doing while you are watching. 16 miles flew by in just 40 short minutes. I can't wait until my next bike session to watch more! I did a little bit of core work after, some planks and push ups...my arms need some serious work! Tuesday I needed to meet with our Master Swim group to discuss some upcoming changes to the team, so I decided to get in a practice with them afterwards. Let me tell you, nothing will wake you up like a 6:00 am swim practice with a bunch of crazy masters swimmers. We did 2500 yards, which is a lot more than I have been doing lately. It was nice though to have company and a coach, and I actually swam some butterfly and backstroke (which I never do by myself). I admittedly crashed at about 2:00 that day, but the rest of my morning was super productive!
Wednesday morning I stayed home with Logan since Bill had some appointments. I decided to take advantage of not being at work to take a morning class at the Y (plus Logan loves going to the child care center there, where I swear it was like Cheers...as soon as he walked in all the teachers and kids yelled "Logan!"). I picked a class called RIPPED, it's apparently an acronym for something, but let me tell you, no one's getting ripped in here. I read the little blurb about it on the website, which stated "R.I.P.P.E.D. is an active workout that combines resistance, intervals, power, plyometrics, and endurance. Great for people with intermediate and advanced fitness levels." Sounds great, right?!? Well, I guess our instructor didn't get that memo. We did some Zumba-esque dancy stuff to warm up (I am way too uncoordinated to deal with learning Zumba at 9:00 in the morning), then we did some sort of kick boxing routine, which I would normally enjoy, but she put so many steps together that I just ended up looking like I was trying to swat at a bug or something. We finally got to the weight portion of class which consisted solely of shoulder presses and arm circles. Back to more aerobic dancing stuff, then a quick 5 minutes of abs that included more punching...I quickly just decided to do my own thing here to salvage some sort of workout. The instructor was very sweet and came up to me after to see how I liked it (I was very clearly a newbie in a room full of regulars), and I told her that I felt a little lost most of the time and that I was hoping for a little more weight work. She said, "oh, we like to switch it up, you'll get used to it the more you come". I just smiled and nodded, but this is definitely not going into the regular rotation. Thursday was busy with meetings, so I ran into the Y for a quick turn on the elliptical and some core work on my way home. Friday I got back into the pool with the Masters group. I hopped in a little late so I only eeked out 1800 yards today. But we did a set of 100's on the 1:40 that felt really good. I definitely need to make a habit of trying to get to at least one Masters practice a week from now on.
Finally it was Saturday...running day! My new plan called for a 7 mile long run this week, which should have seemed like a breeze compared to the 13/14/14 mile long runs of the previous three weeks. But I was a little nervous. I hadn't run all week and my hamstring and knee still had moments of soreness that I was dealing with after last week's run. But I geared up and headed out. It was a lovely day, sun was out and temps were in the upper-30's. I had on a t-shirt, arm warmers and light pullover on top, power core tights on bottom. I started out with mittens, but shed them after a few minutes. I planned to focus on maintaining an easy pace, between 10-10:30 per mile. As usual, my first mile was much faster, clocking a 9:40. I really felt like I was going slow. I didn't wear my pace watch because I wanted to run more on feeling this time, but clearly I need something to keep me on the right path. I slowed down even more and ran the second mile in...9:28, yep, faster than the first. Seriously, I apparently suck at pacing myself. So, I ran what I felt was just a little faster than a walk, and clocked mile three in 10:25...there! Now, I just had to run the next four miles exactly the same way. This worked for the next two miles, I felt good and ran nice and steady. Then during mile six I started to feel my hamstrings start to tighten up, so I did something that the "old me" would have never considered...I walked. I was right next to the lake, so I walked down and went out on the beach...the lake is still half frozen and there were tons of ducks sitting on the edge of the ice, likely feasting on the tiny fish swimming in the open water.
I took a potty break, ate some Clif Bloks (strawberry, yummy!) had a little water and walked back up to the trail. I had about a mile and a half left and I started to run again. I was definitely a little stiff, and the wind had kicked up quite a bit, so I was starting to get chilled. I ran the last bit to home holding about a 10:40 pace, and it felt good. I had done it, I had survived a week without running during marathon training! I'm still a little concerned about my knee and hamstrings, so I am going to go see my Physical Therapist next week and check in, but I'm back on the wagon with my eye on the prize. I have four runs planned for this week with some yoga, swimming and biking mixed in...but we'll just see where the wind takes me!
Oh! I almost forgot, in the post title I promised you new pants! A month or so ago I read a race recap by Sarah Bowen Shea, of Another Mother Runner. She ran the Victoria Marathon and raved about her Saucony Bullet running capris. She talked about how comfortable they were and how the back and side pockets were perfect for holding the five packs of energy gel she carried during the race. I had been wondering about how I was going to carry my gels along the route since I don't want to wear my hydration belt during the marathon (there are water stops every mile!) Anyway, long story short, I ordered the same capris, and of course they arrived during my Week Without Running! I decided it couldn't hurt to try them on since it was too cold to run in capris anyway last week:
She was right, these things feel like BUTTAH! I cannot wait to try them on my long run next week. Never underestimate the power of new gear to make you feel like you can conquer the world :)
Rest is very important and very under rated in a lot of marathon training plans, so good for you for identifying it early on. Your first marathon is an experience, and should be one that you enjoy. It doesn't matter how hard you train if you can't make it to the start line. Good luck with the rest of the cycle :)
ReplyDeleteGreat job "forgiving" yourself and giving yourself a walk break. :)
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