It’s been two weeks since I was cleared to run and I have been getting in runs whenever possible. I ran Friday and Sunday of that first weekend and then my mom came to town the week after I was cleared so I was able to get in two runs while she watched Siena that week and another that weekend, for a total of 5 weeks in 9 days. Since I’m not running with her in the stroller quite yet and it’s dark when Mike gets home from work, when I run is largely dictated by Mike’s work schedule at this point and I only got in 2 runs this past week. I’ve been careful not to run two consecutive days to let my body have a break and recover so that means no back to back weekend runs yet.
Despite the road blocks, I’ve been getting out there and have already seen some great progress. Even though my pace is significantly slower than before (I’m not even sure I could run one mile at my former marathon pace of 8:10), I enjoy wearing my Garmin so that I can track my pace during each run. My time on the 3.15 mile trail loop near my house (which begins with a huge hill that I have to hike) is my basis for comparison and since my first run to my most recent, I’ve dropped over 4 minutes off my time! I also have done two 5 mile runs, one of which I ran basically the entire way with the exception of a bathroom break and a walk break on one hill (I drove to the coast for that run). Both 5 mile runs averaged in the 10 min mile range which was actually an encouraging pace for me at this point!
On Thanksgiving Mike and I started our family tradition of participating in the Encinitas Turkey Trot. The route was exclusively on the 101 and was basically the same route we used to run all the time when we lived down by the beach. We decided to just walk it together pushing the stroller and we had a great time! It was the first time I’ve walked a race so it was definitely a new experience but very enjoyable. It was fun to get outside with the community on a holiday.
Surprisingly, Siena slept the entire time (she often wakes from her morning nap after 1 hour or so), even when we took a photo next to the marching band at the start. I fully expected her to wake up during the 55 minutes it took us to walk the race but instead she slept peacefully and long enough for me to shower afterward! This race was great because it was super close and parking was easy. We left our house at 7:25, started the race at 8 am and were home at 9:25!
I was strongly contemplating joining a friend for the Carlsbad Half Marathon on January 19th but I think I’ve decided against it. I think I could probably work my way up to a 10 mile long before then but I already know the race would be very hard and it’d be a lot of work to coordinate feeding Siena and/or pumping before and after the race and waking up super early to make it there (ideally she’ll be sleeping through the night by then but I really don’t know!). I’m thinking I’ll look for a race in March or April instead when I’ll have more time to get back in decent shape and Siena will be sleeping more and eating less frequently.
If you’ve been in my shoes, how long did it take you to get back to your former running pace? When did you do your first longer distance race?
You have already come so far in two weeks. There was no way I was running 5 miles that quickly. In fact, I didn’t run 5 miles until last weekend. I’ve now been running for six weeks and am now starting to see more 8:##s for pace. I did my longest run of 6 miles this morning and it felt really good. Slowly but surely, things are coming back. The biggest obstacle for me has been my lungs and breathing. I am SO out of shape. Haha.
That is great that you were able to do the Turkey Trot with Siena… and that she slept the entire time. Axel always sleeps when he is in the Bob. I keep looking at your pictures thinking it is still summer… then I look outside and see snow everywhere. Must be so nice! Glad you had a great Thanksgiving with your beautiful family. <3
Ha that’s funny you said that because I totally forget it’s Fall/almost winter and then I see your photos and others who live in Bend and it reminds me that we’re not still in August… I can’t believe how fast time has gone. When you wrote in a recent post that you have a 12 week old I did a double take!!!
My limiter seems to be my leg strength (and sore hip flexors) over cardio which seems weird since I did so many squats and a lot of yoga during pregnant and very little cardio after I stopped running outside of hiking/walking (which let’s be honest, was cardio). When I run I just feel like my legs are dragging and stuck in quick sand at times!
I started training for a 15 mile race at months after my daughter, Maggie, was born but, it was a slow walk/run plan. I basically walked when I felt I needed it and would run most of the distances. Also, it was based on time (actually it was a Garmin Training Plan based on time not mileage and heart rate [16 week program]. You can upload the plan to your watch if the watch has the capability) I also included strength on days I wasn’t running (sometimes I would so both) I would do the strength during nap time usually 15-45 Mins long. I would bring her with me in the jogger for the medium to long runs so she could breast feed when needed. I would LITERALLY sit on the edge of the stroller seat and feed her if she needed but, honestly, she usually slept right through most of the runs. (She’s 20 months now so, THAT’S A DIFFERENT story now LOL) On days she didn’t come with me, daddy would watch her and I would run routes nearby in case she woke up and needed to eat (my Maggie never took a bottle so, I was her main source of food until we introduced food to her) I truly believe, if it’s meant to be, it’ll work out. It takes some adjusting (I had to run in the afternoon on days I wanted to go alone say, for a track workout [would even do those with the stroller if I had to] because hubby worked nights and would wake up at 1:30pm. I was used to running in the AM prior to baby. Honestly, the half marathon-15 mile race was ideal for time for me AND I was able to fit in strength work which, you know, is SUPER IMPORTANT. I struggle more now trying to train for a marathon time wise. Hope this gives you hope! Best of luck! 🙂 🙂
That is great! It’s definitely encouraging and you’re right about strength training. I’m actually about to focus on that more so than running – more to come!
I can’t believe you did all that without baby taking a bottle! We’ve incorporated the bottle and so far it’s going ok – she definitely doesn’t like it and cries when we try to pace her (otherwise she’ll chug it all and spit it all back up) but she at least drinks from it which I’m thankful for.
Sorry, my last comment I meant to type I started training at 2 months postpartum
Sounds like running is going great after just two weeks! I still haven’t made it to 5 miles, but maybe this week. Most of my runs are about 9:45-10 min pace, but I did the turkey trot at about 9:30, with one mile at 8:55! I was so pumped! You will keep improving quickly.
It’s so funny how things change so quickly!!! 8:55 is great – that would make my day!
She’s so cute! Yay for walking Thanksgiving races — we did the same thing this year!
Love that you did the turkey trot as a family! Sounds like you are being smart getting back into everything, that will pay off!