Marathon Training While Traveling: Why I Skipped Workouts

When Marathon Training Starts Taking Over Your Life

Confession: I’ve put “life” on hold in past marathon training cycles, because I didn’t want to disrupt my perfect training routine.

My kids get a week off in October, which is a great time to travel, but we never do because I’m always weeks away from my November or December marathon.

I didn’t host my Friendsgiving party last year because I was in peak marathon training.

I’ve said no to girls nights because they’d keep me up past my 9 pm bedtime.

I’ve obsessed over my sleep score, HRV and resting heart rate….

The Pressure of Optimizing Marathon Training

And what does all this optimizing do for me?

It just adds pressure.

Pressure to one “get the most” out of race day.

Pressure to make the sacrifices and the training “worth it”.

There’s a fine line between setting yourself up for success in marathon training and obsessing over it.

And as a high achiever with big marathon goals, who shares her training publicly on the internet – there’s been times I’ve gone too far. I admit that.

Traveling During Marathon Training

But things feel different right now as I’m training for the Chicago marathon.

When I booked this trip to Barcelona for 1 week to see my best friend, I knew it wasn’t ideal timing to travel 6 weeks before the marathon. I’d leave 3 days after a half marathon tune up race. I’d be jet lagged. I’d be staying up late (they eat dinner at my bedtime in Spain) and waking up early to run in 70 degree weather, before it got to 80-90 degree weather.

Learning to Train in Less-Than-Perfect Conditions

Part of this was intentional — one of my big areas of growth in this training cycle is to show up in all conditions and let go of optimizing everything.

And on this trip, I did that:

Saturday, I ran 13 miles along the ocean in Barcelona, instead of the 18 on my schedule.

Two female runners stand together on a seaside path after a run, smiling at the camera with the ocean and city skyline behind them.

I completely skipped a 3-5 mile recovery run because I went to a comedy club & then danced at a nightclub, and ate kebabs at 2 AM, took the metro home and slept til 11 AM (I haven’t slept in that late since college!).

Woman in a blue dress and sunglasses posing in front of the Sagrada Família in Barcelona on a sunny day.

After saying yes on Monday to another glass of Vermouth on at a cafe in a square because I was enjoying the company of a British expat friend of a friend (I never drink the night before a speed workout), I modified my marathon tempo run and it was slower than planned.

Female runner training along the waterfront in Barcelona during marathon preparation.

You Don’t Need a Perfect Marathon Training Week

I didn’t follow the plan perfectly. But, I still ran 4 times. I still marathon trained.

While the majority of the time during marathon training, I prioritize my sleep, recovery, fueling and hitting 95% of my training schedule, this week I put this special trip with my best friend above my running goals.

Why Consistency Matters More Than Perfection

Because you know what happens when you get to race day after a near “perfect” training cycle, but then on race day, you don’t get a good night of sleep, your HRV is trash from the flight and travel, it’s warmer than you expected and your legs don’t feel as “snappy’ as you hoped after the taper?

You mentally give up on your goal during the race and you finish the race thinking “I know I didn’t give that my all.”

I know. Because I’ve done this.

Learning to Troubleshoot Instead of Giving Up

This, along with carbs of course, is how I was able to run a course PR at the AFC half a couple weeks ago (after running it 6 times!) – because I’ve practiced running in the heat, I’ve practiced running race pace up hill, I didn’t bail on a speed workout because my legs were heavy, or I started too late or I slept poorly. I may modify, but I have been building the mindset that I troubleshoot – I don’t give up.

Marathon Training Doesn’t Require Perfection

Reminder if you’re anything like the majority of high achieving female runners I coach: marathon training IS a big deal. It requires consistency, sacrifice and patience. But it doesn’t require perfection.

Give Yourself Permission to Train in Imperfect Conditions

So, if you’ve been holding on a bit too tight to the training lately, this is your nudge to challenge yourself to do some runs in less than “perfect” conditions. You might surprise yourself. Or better yet, you might have a little more fun.

Happy running,

Nicole Dobransky