Yesterday I finished my long run for the week. It was 11 miles. This is not an overly challenging distance for me. I was running 11 mile long runs prior to even starting official marathon training. In some ways, it makes me feel like I'm stuck in limbo; like I'm not actually progressing towards my goal of finishing a 26.2 mile race. And then I think of where I was a year ago.
One year ago, I had experienced the first twinging in my knee. One year ago, I was running distances of 10 miles multiple days in a row. One year ago, I finished a long run of 18.7 miles on a knee that started hurting 4 miles in. One year ago, I set myself to be hurt to the point that my knee needed surgery and I wouldn't be able to run at all for many months.
A few weeks ago, I started getting nervous about the emphasis that my training schedule was placing on long runs. As a rule of thumb, most coaches would advise that the long run consists of 40% or less of your total weekly mileage. Mine was pushing 50%. So I switched to a plan that was heavy on mid-week distances and quality runs, and more conservative on the long-run distances.
I honestly don't know how it will pan out in the end, but I can tell you that although my knee is still a little twingey, it feels strong. I've made it a little bit closer to my marathon date without an injury. Maybe there's a lesson to be learned in all of this. Instead of relying on my efforts alone to get me to my goal, I have to have faith in the plan and the preparations.
Regardless of my performance on October 30th or the outcome of the race, I'm looking forward to at least getting to the starting line. That's a heck of a lot farther than I made it last year!
Showing posts with label marathon training. Show all posts
Showing posts with label marathon training. Show all posts
Monday, August 29, 2011
Monday, August 8, 2011
No Excuses
Marathon training was going along just fine, and then I just stopped wanting to run. Obviously, this is a problem I've dealt with in the past, but it's kind of critical if I'm going to successfully complete a marathon in three months that I not let that happen. So what do I do? Two things.
1 - I switched to a different training plan. This plan still builds weekly mileage, but puts less emphasis on the weekly long runs. It also mixes up the types of runs a little more each week, which means that I get to tour different parts of my neighborhood depending on whether I'm going to do track work or hills or fartleks or what not.
2 - I implemented "no excuses" week. No matter what, I will complete my work outs and eat well this week. Period. No excuses are acceptable. I just need a solid week or two to stick to my plan without waivering, and hopefully that will get me back on track.
So far I got my run in this morning (on a track, no less, which is a huge victory for me!). I'll let you know how the rest of the week goes!
1 - I switched to a different training plan. This plan still builds weekly mileage, but puts less emphasis on the weekly long runs. It also mixes up the types of runs a little more each week, which means that I get to tour different parts of my neighborhood depending on whether I'm going to do track work or hills or fartleks or what not.
2 - I implemented "no excuses" week. No matter what, I will complete my work outs and eat well this week. Period. No excuses are acceptable. I just need a solid week or two to stick to my plan without waivering, and hopefully that will get me back on track.
So far I got my run in this morning (on a track, no less, which is a huge victory for me!). I'll let you know how the rest of the week goes!
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
A little push
I'm in week 3 of marathon training. So far, so good. Even though I'm using the same schedule I used last year, there are a few things I'm doing differently. Primarily, I'm actually strictly following the schedule.
Last time, I went into training thinking that since I started above the baseline capability for distance, I would just keep running the distances I had been until the schedule caught up with me. I'm not sure if that contributed to me getting hurt or not, but it probably did put some additional, unnecessary strain on my body. I'm also actually doing the speedwork drills the plan recommends.
I've never been fast, and honestly, that was never my goal. I just wanted to be able to prove to myself that I could run 26.2 miles at one time, so distance was always what was important to me. That's still mostly what's important to me, but I want to be able to run those 26.2 miles in a time I can be proud of. I want to know that when all is said in done, I not only ran a marathon, but I ran the best marathon I could. So I'm doing the speed drills.
I don't like speedwork. It's hard. It takes a lot of self discipline. A lot of times I want to throw up. And a lot more times I want to quit. But I'm pushing myself to do it. And the fun part is that after only a few weeks of incorporating one day of speedwork, I'm starting to see some results.
I don't think I've magically gotten faster in these few weeks. But I do think that I'm more comfortable pushing myself as a result. I'm learning that I haven't been giving myself enough credit. I've allowed myself to get comfortable performing at a level that is nowhere close to my potential.
It makes me wonder where else in my life have I let myself become complacent? Where am I comfortably settling into mediocrity instead of pushing myself to achieve my full potential? To be honest, I could easily a dozen areas in my life where that's the case. Maybe running isn't the only area where I need to give myself a little push.
Last time, I went into training thinking that since I started above the baseline capability for distance, I would just keep running the distances I had been until the schedule caught up with me. I'm not sure if that contributed to me getting hurt or not, but it probably did put some additional, unnecessary strain on my body. I'm also actually doing the speedwork drills the plan recommends.
I've never been fast, and honestly, that was never my goal. I just wanted to be able to prove to myself that I could run 26.2 miles at one time, so distance was always what was important to me. That's still mostly what's important to me, but I want to be able to run those 26.2 miles in a time I can be proud of. I want to know that when all is said in done, I not only ran a marathon, but I ran the best marathon I could. So I'm doing the speed drills.
I don't like speedwork. It's hard. It takes a lot of self discipline. A lot of times I want to throw up. And a lot more times I want to quit. But I'm pushing myself to do it. And the fun part is that after only a few weeks of incorporating one day of speedwork, I'm starting to see some results.
I don't think I've magically gotten faster in these few weeks. But I do think that I'm more comfortable pushing myself as a result. I'm learning that I haven't been giving myself enough credit. I've allowed myself to get comfortable performing at a level that is nowhere close to my potential.
It makes me wonder where else in my life have I let myself become complacent? Where am I comfortably settling into mediocrity instead of pushing myself to achieve my full potential? To be honest, I could easily a dozen areas in my life where that's the case. Maybe running isn't the only area where I need to give myself a little push.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
1 down, 19 to go!
I wasn't planning on an update today, but then I realized that it's been a week since my last blog post. Where has the time gone?!
To be honest, I don't feel like I have anything major to discuss or to note, but that in itself is noteworthy. I have finished my first week of official marathon training and I'm feeling good. I was nervous about increasing the frequency of my runs from 2-3 times a week to 5 times a week, but my knee seems to be holding out okay.
I guess the big reason I didn't feel I had much to write about was because I haven't had much that I was struggling with this past week. I've been looking forward to getting up and running, not trying to talk myself into just getting out of bed and putting my running clothes on. My head and heart have made a complete 180 from a few short weeks ago.
The funny thing is that these are the times that I should WANT to write about! The good feeling - when everything goes okay. I guess I take it for granted that there's no lesson to learn in these times, but there is! This is the pay-off for the frustration and difficulty that I've had to work through to get to this point. This is to be celebrated, and all praise directed to the Lord for His mercy.
On my run this morning, I remembered to thank God today for the strength He has given me, both physically and mentally. But I need to ask Him to also move my heart to cherish these good times and not take them for granted.
I have 19 weeks left to go. There's still plenty of time for things to go wrong, and plenty of opportunities to learn new lessons. For right now, I'll be thankful for the break!
To be honest, I don't feel like I have anything major to discuss or to note, but that in itself is noteworthy. I have finished my first week of official marathon training and I'm feeling good. I was nervous about increasing the frequency of my runs from 2-3 times a week to 5 times a week, but my knee seems to be holding out okay.
I guess the big reason I didn't feel I had much to write about was because I haven't had much that I was struggling with this past week. I've been looking forward to getting up and running, not trying to talk myself into just getting out of bed and putting my running clothes on. My head and heart have made a complete 180 from a few short weeks ago.
The funny thing is that these are the times that I should WANT to write about! The good feeling - when everything goes okay. I guess I take it for granted that there's no lesson to learn in these times, but there is! This is the pay-off for the frustration and difficulty that I've had to work through to get to this point. This is to be celebrated, and all praise directed to the Lord for His mercy.
On my run this morning, I remembered to thank God today for the strength He has given me, both physically and mentally. But I need to ask Him to also move my heart to cherish these good times and not take them for granted.
I have 19 weeks left to go. There's still plenty of time for things to go wrong, and plenty of opportunities to learn new lessons. For right now, I'll be thankful for the break!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Halfway
The last several months have been filled with uncountable frustrations and difficulties for me. Most of it was fueled by my injury and the havoc that wreaked on my daily routine. Regular exercise was out of the picture, and I was having a really hard time reigning in my eating habits. I've definitely struggled to maintain some control over my health, wellness, and fitness, and even though I managed to hang on without regaining all the weight I worked so hard to lose, I felt defeated.
I think I've reached a turning point in my efforts, though. For one thing, I'm excited about running again. It was a very strange experience to work so hard to be able to run and then not actually desire to go running once I was capable of it. I read an article in Runner's World recently that explained that some of that is related to fear of reinjuring yourself or of not being able to perform at your previous level, but most of it is simply because you're out of the routine. Hearing someone that had been a runner for two decades admit to the same struggle I was facing helped immensely.
Over the last couple of weeks, I've regained a lot of the enthusiasm for taking care of myself that I had lost. I've been eating much better, and I've been getting out and running on a more regular basis. This week I started my official marathon training. Following the prescribed schedule, I'll be cutting back on the distance of my long runs for a few weeks, but I'll be increasing my mid-week mileage (which means I'll be running five days a week instead of three). Having a schedule is good for me - it takes some of the pressure off of me to try to figure out what I should do/how far I should go.
I also have finally seen some significant results on the scale. I am now down 10 pounds from the most I weighed post-injury. I have about 10 more to go before I reach my pre-injury low (and unfortunately I had about another 15-20 to go before that). It took me six months to get back to this point. It was a difficult, emotionally challenging, frustrating six months, but being able to finally see these results validates the work, the determination, and the prayers that got me back here.
Maybe I'm halfway back to my pre-injury weight, but if I could measure the progress of my emotional and psychological health, my attitude, my heart, I think my spirit has progressed much, much farther than that. This experience has definitely tested my faith and determination, and I have a feeling that it will continue to test me. But I also know that every challenge we overcome makes us stronger, more confident, more faithful.
I make a point of praising God when I run. Maybe it hurts, maybe I want to throw up, maybe I'm tired and want to quit, but I'm capable of running, and I never regret the discomfort I went through once I'm back home.
Thank you, Lord, for my body that is strong and can run. Thank you for friends and family that have supported and encouraged me, especially when I was a depressed, emotional wreck. Thank you for showing me how strong I can be when I surrender my worries and cares to you.
I think I've reached a turning point in my efforts, though. For one thing, I'm excited about running again. It was a very strange experience to work so hard to be able to run and then not actually desire to go running once I was capable of it. I read an article in Runner's World recently that explained that some of that is related to fear of reinjuring yourself or of not being able to perform at your previous level, but most of it is simply because you're out of the routine. Hearing someone that had been a runner for two decades admit to the same struggle I was facing helped immensely.
Over the last couple of weeks, I've regained a lot of the enthusiasm for taking care of myself that I had lost. I've been eating much better, and I've been getting out and running on a more regular basis. This week I started my official marathon training. Following the prescribed schedule, I'll be cutting back on the distance of my long runs for a few weeks, but I'll be increasing my mid-week mileage (which means I'll be running five days a week instead of three). Having a schedule is good for me - it takes some of the pressure off of me to try to figure out what I should do/how far I should go.
I also have finally seen some significant results on the scale. I am now down 10 pounds from the most I weighed post-injury. I have about 10 more to go before I reach my pre-injury low (and unfortunately I had about another 15-20 to go before that). It took me six months to get back to this point. It was a difficult, emotionally challenging, frustrating six months, but being able to finally see these results validates the work, the determination, and the prayers that got me back here.
Maybe I'm halfway back to my pre-injury weight, but if I could measure the progress of my emotional and psychological health, my attitude, my heart, I think my spirit has progressed much, much farther than that. This experience has definitely tested my faith and determination, and I have a feeling that it will continue to test me. But I also know that every challenge we overcome makes us stronger, more confident, more faithful.
I make a point of praising God when I run. Maybe it hurts, maybe I want to throw up, maybe I'm tired and want to quit, but I'm capable of running, and I never regret the discomfort I went through once I'm back home.
Thank you, Lord, for my body that is strong and can run. Thank you for friends and family that have supported and encouraged me, especially when I was a depressed, emotional wreck. Thank you for showing me how strong I can be when I surrender my worries and cares to you.
Monday, March 14, 2011
The rhythm of running
I have a confession. I'm in a rut. I was so excited to be able to start running again, but I'm having trouble finding my rhythm again. I think a lot of it has to do with the amount of planning and preparation it takes to go on a run now.
Before I got injured, I would basically put on my shoes and walk out the front door. That was it. If it was a short run, I could take Abby with me and she would get some good exercise in with me. Otherwise, I would take her on a short walk first, drop her off at the house, and go on my way. It's not that easy any more, though.
First of all, I have to do a lot more to maintain my body in a condition where I'm able to run. In addition to time spent running, I have to spend time doing core strengthening and stretching and resting and icing. Second, I can't just walk out my door and go on a run because my neighborhood is too hilly. I have to drive somewhere else, somewhere mostly flat with no downhills. Because of the inconvenience imposed, I've found it difficult to get back into a routine.
I'm thankful that we have some nice bike trails in the area so I'm not completely confined to a treadmill, but I'm smart enough to know that running those trails alone when it's dark is a bad idea. So during the week, I'm largely stuck running on a treadmill, which mostly feels like torture for me.
I think a lot of the struggle I'm having right now is centered around the fact that I don't have a clear plan. I know I want to be healthy enough to start training for a marathon later this year, and I think I will be considering I ran five miles yesterday. But I don't have a specific schedule laid out right now that I'm trying to follow. My goal for this week will be to develop a schedule so I have some structure.
The initial thought I'm having is to stick to the trails and treadmill until I'm regularly running 6 miles or so without pain. Then I can start incorporating neighborhood and hill workouts into my schedule once or twice a week. I don't know if I'll ever feel comfortable running down hills again, but I can always walk those if I need to.
I need to try to remember that this situation is only temporary. By being conservative now, I set myself up for long-term success, which is the most important goal. I'm just tired of not being completely, 100% myself. I'm tired of all these restrictions. I'm looking forward to finding my rhythm again.
Before I got injured, I would basically put on my shoes and walk out the front door. That was it. If it was a short run, I could take Abby with me and she would get some good exercise in with me. Otherwise, I would take her on a short walk first, drop her off at the house, and go on my way. It's not that easy any more, though.
First of all, I have to do a lot more to maintain my body in a condition where I'm able to run. In addition to time spent running, I have to spend time doing core strengthening and stretching and resting and icing. Second, I can't just walk out my door and go on a run because my neighborhood is too hilly. I have to drive somewhere else, somewhere mostly flat with no downhills. Because of the inconvenience imposed, I've found it difficult to get back into a routine.
I'm thankful that we have some nice bike trails in the area so I'm not completely confined to a treadmill, but I'm smart enough to know that running those trails alone when it's dark is a bad idea. So during the week, I'm largely stuck running on a treadmill, which mostly feels like torture for me.
I think a lot of the struggle I'm having right now is centered around the fact that I don't have a clear plan. I know I want to be healthy enough to start training for a marathon later this year, and I think I will be considering I ran five miles yesterday. But I don't have a specific schedule laid out right now that I'm trying to follow. My goal for this week will be to develop a schedule so I have some structure.
The initial thought I'm having is to stick to the trails and treadmill until I'm regularly running 6 miles or so without pain. Then I can start incorporating neighborhood and hill workouts into my schedule once or twice a week. I don't know if I'll ever feel comfortable running down hills again, but I can always walk those if I need to.
I need to try to remember that this situation is only temporary. By being conservative now, I set myself up for long-term success, which is the most important goal. I'm just tired of not being completely, 100% myself. I'm tired of all these restrictions. I'm looking forward to finding my rhythm again.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Marathon Training
I know I already posted that I went ahead and registered for the 2011 Marine Corps Marathon, but because the general registration has been opened and the marathon has already sold out, it's time for another post about my marathon running plans.
Prior to recent events, I was very tentative about the idea of being able to train and participate in a 2011 marathon. I wasn't sure if my body was up to it or if my knee would recuperate quickly enough for that to be a real possibility. I realize that I need to take my recovery slow and not push my body too hard, at least not yet, but I'm much more optimistic that this will be the year I officially become a marathon runner.
I've run several two mile runs with no lasting pain. Of course, these runs have been on very flat terrain or treadmills with a 1.0% incline, but it's two more miles than I could run six months ago. The previous training schedule I used was a 20-week schedule and it picked up where a runner could comfortable run 6 miles. I'll need to start following the training schedule mid-June. That means that by about the end of May I need to comfortably be able to run six miles. That's three months. I think it's realistic.
The Marine Corps Marathon is unique in that it is the third or fourth largest marathon in the U.S. and it is THE largest marathon that doesn't offer a cash prize to the winners. Because of this, it has been nicknamed "The People's Marathon." I think that's appropriate. The people that choose to run the MCM really have nothing to gain (well, maybe going for the BQ time?) other than pride in accomplishing a goal alongside thousands of other participants.
Competitive runners sometimes cringe at amateur runners like myself participating in marathons. My goal is not to win, my goal is merely to finish. Does it disrespect the sport? I don't think so. I think it creates a lot more respect. It's one thing to be able to survive running 26.2 miles - it's another thing to maintain a pace of 5:45 per mile the entire way, something I don't think I'll even be able to do for a single mile in my lifetime. I don't think mere participation in a marathon disrespects running any more than playing a recreational softball team disrespects professional baseball. We're not all going to be all-star athletes, but isn't the important thing that we can share enjoyment of a sport at our individual levels?
I'm looking forward to running my first marathon with thousands of other people that just want to finish. If I decide to do it a second time (and if my body will allow it), maybe I'll consider adding a little more competition into the mix!
Prior to recent events, I was very tentative about the idea of being able to train and participate in a 2011 marathon. I wasn't sure if my body was up to it or if my knee would recuperate quickly enough for that to be a real possibility. I realize that I need to take my recovery slow and not push my body too hard, at least not yet, but I'm much more optimistic that this will be the year I officially become a marathon runner.
I've run several two mile runs with no lasting pain. Of course, these runs have been on very flat terrain or treadmills with a 1.0% incline, but it's two more miles than I could run six months ago. The previous training schedule I used was a 20-week schedule and it picked up where a runner could comfortable run 6 miles. I'll need to start following the training schedule mid-June. That means that by about the end of May I need to comfortably be able to run six miles. That's three months. I think it's realistic.
The Marine Corps Marathon is unique in that it is the third or fourth largest marathon in the U.S. and it is THE largest marathon that doesn't offer a cash prize to the winners. Because of this, it has been nicknamed "The People's Marathon." I think that's appropriate. The people that choose to run the MCM really have nothing to gain (well, maybe going for the BQ time?) other than pride in accomplishing a goal alongside thousands of other participants.
Competitive runners sometimes cringe at amateur runners like myself participating in marathons. My goal is not to win, my goal is merely to finish. Does it disrespect the sport? I don't think so. I think it creates a lot more respect. It's one thing to be able to survive running 26.2 miles - it's another thing to maintain a pace of 5:45 per mile the entire way, something I don't think I'll even be able to do for a single mile in my lifetime. I don't think mere participation in a marathon disrespects running any more than playing a recreational softball team disrespects professional baseball. We're not all going to be all-star athletes, but isn't the important thing that we can share enjoyment of a sport at our individual levels?
I'm looking forward to running my first marathon with thousands of other people that just want to finish. If I decide to do it a second time (and if my body will allow it), maybe I'll consider adding a little more competition into the mix!
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