First, thank you to everyone who participated in my Fit Mob sponsored Athleta gift card giveaway. The winner is Amie from @runandrepeat! Amie, I will be emailing you to get your mailing address so Fit Mob can get you the card.
This past week was tough for training. I was coming off the Long Beach Half Marathon yet also would be unable to run all weekend because of Asia and Jeremy’s wedding festivities, so I had to balance recovery with getting some quality mid-week miles in before the weekend. If you can believe it, as of yesterday we are only 7 weeks out from the big race. This last week probably didn’t increase my fitness too much but I’m hoping that some of the time off provided some recovery so that I can get after it for the next 4 weeks before taper begins!
I basically feel like I have 5.5 weeks left to make gains before the race and I plan to make the most of it. Although I was a bit iffy about my performance at Long Beach, and honestly that, along with hearing about some people’s Chicago marathon experiences (some achieved their goals, some who I thought would did not – a reminder that anything can happen on race day) rocked my confidence a bit. However, after reflecting a bit more on my race, I am at peace with the outcome given the circumstances. I have quite a few solid weeks planned including 3 key long runs which include a lot of miles near race pace, and the result of those runs will give me a better indicator of my potential for CIM.
Monday:
Rest day to recover from the half marathon. I went for a walk with Mike in the evening but that was about it!
Tuesday:
AM: 6 easy recovery miles along the coast in the morning. My legs were tired, but sore at least. Just tired. I was happy that Asia wanted to run with me because this was a tough run to get out of bed for. This was the last run with Asia before her wedding!
PM: 25 minutes of yoga – DoYogaWithMe.com Injury Prevention for Runners. Lots of stretching and I added some foam rolling at the end. My IT bad was still really tight and a bit achy at this point.
Wednesday:
AM: 8.4 miles moderate. I kept the effort basically in Zone 2 (my heart rate monitor is on the fritz again….probably needs new batteries but I don’t think my heart rate actually was 220 at any point on this run). At the end of the run I added 6 x 30 seconds of pick-ups, which due to the heavy legs, ended up being in the low 8s.
Thursday:
AM: 16 mile long run, moderate effort. I was SO happy when Mike said he’d join me for this long run before work. I knew I would not be able to get in a long run on the weekend so I got up early and got in this run before work (I went into work late). Toward the end of the run, my legs definitely weren’t happy with me, but I got it done, no matter how slow it was!
Friday:
AM: 5 miles, easy effort. These miles were SLOW. The only reason I dragged myself out of bed at 5:30 for the 4th consecutive day is because I told myself I wouldn’t make myself run on Sunday after the wedding, when I’d likely be tired and hungover. Somehow this rationale worked and I ran in the dark by myself for the majority of this run, moving at a snails pace.
Friday afternoon I headed down to the US Grant hotel in downtown San Diego to kick off Asia and Jeremy’s wedding festivities. I stayed with Asia on Friday night in her suite after the rehearsal dinner.
Saturday & Sunday:
Rest.
Asia and Jeremy’s wedding was wonderful! It was so much fun and It was such an honor to be Maid (or Matron I suppose) of Honor. I was super anxious about my speech but the nerves disappeared when I started to talk and I’m proud to say I delivered it without the use of notes! Asia looked absolutely gorgeous and there was so much love in the room. The band was a hit and we danced our faces off!
Sunday we attended the brunch hosted by the bride and groom and then went over to Mike’s parents house to have lunch, go in the jacuzzi and lounge on the couch while the Chargers lost. I actually napped for half the game on the couch! I was exhausted!
Now I’m just amped up to get to business. Time to put my head down and focus – it’s go time!!! CIM I’m coming for you!
Weekly Totals:
- Miles Ran: 35.4
- Hours of Strengthening/Stretching: 0.5
- Total Time: 5.3 hours
How do you alter your training if you have to go out of town for the weekend?
Congrats to Asia and Jeremy! The couple photos I saw on your IG (and here) are gorgeous! Glad you took a couple days off to just enjoy the festivities!
And wow- kudos for a 16 miler before work! So nice Mike did it with you.
I think the wedding was actually perfect timing to give you a little break before the last few weeks of tough training.
Thanks! I barely got any good photos because I was so involved in the fun! I’m sure there will be some good professional photos!
I agree – good timing for a break!
I just wanted to drop you a note as I feel like I know you as I’ve been reading your blog for as long as I can remember! I just ran my 17th marathon this past weekend and not only did I beat my goal time but I qualified for Boston. I am still awe struck and shocked! I so relate to your posts and it was worth the journey! I will see you in Boston 2016!
Woohoo!!!! Congratulations!!! And I’m so glad you finally commented. It always makes me happy to learn of long time readers!
Hoping to meet you at Boston 2016!!
Gorgeous photos from the wedding! Definitely have had to adjust workouts due to other things going on during the weekend, usually I’ll shuffle the week around and do key workouts on different days so I make sure if any runs are missed it isn’t a big workout or long run.
I am so so happy you were my MOH and thrilled that we got to spend the entire weekend together! I know you’re going to qualify for Boston at CIM. I can just feel it. I think the extra rest days were good for the mind and body (and the bride.) 😉 Love you!
Thank you friend! Love you too!
And yes I’m gonna do it!!!