Wow last week really flew by and I didn’t have a chance to get in my weekly recap. I know you guys were losing sleep over when I’d post it – sorry to keep you waiting (ha)! The good news is, part of the reason I was busy is because I was getting in a lot of miles! These last two weeks were by far the best training weeks yet and I really feel like my speed is starting to make its way back. Enough so that I signed up for the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon, which takes place Memorial Day Weekend, with the intent of chasing a Boston Qualifying time for my fourth time. I’ve also given myself a “would be nice” time goal for the New York Marathon (which isn’t even close to a BQ), though my #1 goal for the race is still to enjoy it.
Since we have two weeks to recap, I better get to it:
Week 10 – 9/26-10/2
This week I hosted a free sugar detox. It was great for me to take some of the unnecessary sugar out of my diet (natural sugar in things like fruit and honey is totally fine!). I thought I might notice an impact on my running but I didn’t. I did still take Gu during my 20 mile run and made a few exceptions but I did successfully avoid my coffee creamer and all dessert for one week!
Monday – 5 mile run with Kelly during sunrise. Kelly just lives a couple miles west and we met at her house and ran to the beach. It was beautiful! It was so nice to run along the coast during sunrise – it’s always hard to get out the door early in the morning but I NEVER regret it!
Tuesday – 8 miles with 9 x 800s. This run went great! It was all on the treadmill and it went by quickly. I find the intervals on the treadmill actually make it a lot more pleasant – running steady on the treadmill is the worst in my opinion!
Wednesday – PiYo Sweat. I really enjoyed this workout! It was the second time I’d done it (It was the one they offer on Demand and I tried it a month or so ago) and it was a better workout this time since I knew the moves a little better. While I still like 21 Day Fix more, PiYo is growing on me.
It was our 3 year anniversary and Mike and I put Siena to bed a little earlier and opened the third of four bottles of wine we brought back from our honeymoon and had dinner together uninterrupted. It was lovely (we had also celebrated the weekend before). 
Thursday – 10 mile run on the treadmill. My goal was 10 miles but given it was during Siena’s nap I wasn’t sure I’d make it. Sure enough, she slept through and I was able to get in nearly two episodes of Scandal while running which helped with the monotony. I changed the pace a few times as well to try to keep things interesting but honestly watching the people on Scandal try to simultaneously kill and save each other helped more.
Friday – I did PiYo Define Upper & Lower first thing in the morning. This is technically two separate workouts but it’s only 40 minutes in total. Later I ran 6 miles with Siena in the stroller.
Saturday – 20 mile run with Melissa. This was such a fun run. We ran from Fletcher Cove into Carlsbad and back along the coast and it was nice and cool and cloudy and we chatted the entire way. Toward the end I was pretty tired and couldn’t wait for it to be over but that’s pretty normal! 
Sunday – Rest Day. This was Siena’s birthday party and there was no time for a workout!
Weekly Totals:
- Miles Run: 49
- Strength: 1 hour 15 min
Week 11 – 10/3-10/9
Monday – 8.4 mile progression run . My mom was still in town so she watched Siena and I head to the coast to run. I had just planned on doing an out and back to Fletcher Cove nice and easy since it had only been two days since my long run (I usually allow at least 3 days before a hard run), but I was feeling really good. I decided to see how a progression run would go and picked up the pace a little bit for every subsequent mile. The last mile was 7:40 and my overall pace was in the mid 8s – by far the fastest run of this training cycle!
Tuesday – PiYo Define Upper in the morning and then I headed to the coast for a run with the stroller later. I intended to run 6 miles but my body was TIRED so I cut it back to just 3.1 miles with some walking on hills. I knew not to push it.
Wednesday – PiYo Core and 5 miles moderate with stroller. This stroller run felt a lot better!
Thursday – 7 miles with 6 @ marathon goal pace (or faster). Again, a treadmill run. I set the treadmill to 1% incline, warmed up with 1 mile and then set the pace to “race pace” which I estimated to be a 8:45 min/mile. It felt pretty good so I kicked it up for the final mile (also because Siena had woken up part way and I put her in the high chair with her lunch while I finished – Mom of the Year?). I didn’t get do my cool-down due to the aforementioned baby situation, but I was happy with the run overall!
Friday – 3.1 miles easy BEFORE sunrise. Mike has a call on Friday mornings at 6:30 but Allison wanted to run so we met at 5:45 and did a 5k before I had to be back. It was dark for the majority of the run but so great to have a friend to run with! 
Saturday – 20 mile run . This was my best long run of the entire training cycle. I met up with the girls down in Mission Bay and I was able to keep up with my fast friend Brooke for the first 8 miles, maintaining a pace in the high 8 min/mile range. I slowed down a bit after she took off to pick up the pace and ran with a few other girls. In the end, we ran 20 miles at around a 9:05 average which is a lot faster than all of my other runs (usually in the high 9s on average).
Sunday – Rest day. I had planned to do a PiYo workout during Siena’s morning nap but we had a lot to do around at house and I prioritized that. In the afternoon I considered doing it and decided to eat ice cream and sit in the backyard in the sun instead. #balance.
Weekly Totals:
- Miles Run: 46.6
- Strength: 1 hour 15 min
I’m feeling good about the race. I know at this point I’m more than ready to run it. I am now shooting for a 3:50ish finish which I think is realistic given my training. I’m still not going to put too much pressure on the race – whatever happens on race day will happen. I plan to do more race specific speedwork in the next two weeks and then it’ll be time for the final taper!
Random other thought – I was wondering if perhaps my newfound speed and energy this past week had anything to do with the fact that I’ve now fully weaned Siena. Has anyone else noticed an increase in speed and energy immediately after stopping breastfeeding?
Who else is going for a BQ next year? Anyone else running Mountains 2 Beach?
Sounds like you crushed it the past couple weeks, congrats 🙂 At what point post partum do you think running started to change back to your usual speed?? I feel like you’re making an awesome comeback!
Thanks! Honestly I’m still not back to where I was before. I guess I feel a little more like my old self now – it’s hard to say what your old speed was since it totally depends on where you were in the training cycle. But I do know I”m not even close to my PR in a half or full – BUT at least a low 9 min/mile doesn’t feel hard anymore! Its a work in progress for sure!
Hey Nicole! Its been really fun watching you come back from having Siena and now seeing you get your speed and confidence back! It seems like you have really found a great balance! NYC is by far my favorite marathon and I hope you have an amazing time running it! (I also think you will crush 3:50 ;))
Thanks Corey!! I can’t wait for NYC – I have a feeling it’ll be my favorite too!
You will definitely crush your goal!
Thanks! I can’t wait to read your race report from St. George!!! Congrats again!
It’s so inspiring to see how you’re progressing and improving! You’re gonna crush it!
Thanks! I hope so!
You did so great on those 20 milers! I think I’m not quite back to my pre-baby speed yet either…. though I’m still breastfeeding. I think nursing takes so much energy away from the rest of our bodies. I’m working on weaning now, so hopefully I’m heading in the right direction. 🙂 Excited to see how NYC Marathon goes for you!