I’ve been MIA on here for far too long, so this week I’m catching up on my Ragnar SWATing in August and September, giving highlights from my first ultra attempt this weekend and an exciting announcement! Here’s a sneak preview of some of what’s to come…
You can always follow me on Instagram for the most up-to-date pictures of all of my activities (or as has happened recently, all the spiders I’ve been finding at my house)!
It’s been a crazy few months with travel, work and running the soccer league, so I’ve definitely been slacking on my posts, but that’s not to say there isn’t a lot to talk about! I’ve done 2 half marathons, started and finished training for my second marathon and just yesterday completed Rock ‘n’ Roll Savannah. This week I’ll be catching up on everything I’ve done, so tune in tomorrow for my recap of the Vacation Races Great Smoky Mountain half marathon.
Well, it’s official, I will be attempting a second marathon this year after all. After having to drop from the full marathon to the half at Rock ‘n’ Roll DC, I was disappointed and was contemplating whether to try to add a fall marathon instead. Originally, I registered for the Marine Corps Marathon lottery and even convinced my boss to sign up too. Then, in a moment of brilliance insanity, while I was waiting to hear about that race, I registered for the Asheville marathon & half challenge which will take place next March – a half marathon and a full in one weekend!
Unfortunately, when the emails started coming out last month for the Marine Corps Marathon, I didn’t get in (but my boss did, so he’ll be doing his first full in October!). So, I started looking at other fall marathons since I don’t think it would be a good idea to have my second marathon ever come on the heels of a half… which lead me to: Rock ‘n’ Roll Savannah in November! With this race, I’ll get to check off a few things: a marathon, a race in GA, my 3rd RnR in the Southern Charm series and my 4th RnR overall.
As an added bonus, a few days after I registered, I found out they will be offering the sweet finisher jackets for the Savannah marathon too! I was really disappointed to miss out on this swag, especially after I saw it in person in DC. So, in November, this will be mine!
Anyone else going to be earning this jacket with me in November?
I’ve been sticking to my overall plans to do marathon #2 on March 14 in DC, but I’m definitely starting to rethink that plan. This weekend was my first real step toward that goal, with a 16-miler on the schedule. The weather for this weekend was supposed to be pretty lousy with rain on and off all weekend. My plan was to go out Saturday morning, but after an awesome game night with some friends on Friday, I just wasn’t feeling it, so I figured I’d push it off a few hours and see how I felt in the afternoon. Short story – not any better, longer story (don’t laugh): I think I overused my abs by laughing so hard Friday night! Every time I tried to move, my abs hurt! So, I spent most of Saturday on the couch and while I definitely thought it was muscle-related, not sickness-related, I didn’t even think to take anything for the pain until about 8pm last night (which cleared it up pretty quickly), so yesterday was spent not doing anything and not really eating anything because every time I moved my stomach hurt.
Fast forward to this morning and I still planned to do my 16 mile run today, especially because when I woke up, I felt fine. I grabbed a bagel and some peanut butter crackers and headed to watch some soccer games before coming home to prep for my long run. I got my hydration pack ready, stocked up on GU and more crackers and headed out into the drizzle to do my 16 miles. I started with my 4:1 ratio and while I wanted to stick around 11 minute miles, I decided I would just run by feel and see how things went.
Mile 1 – 11:05
Mile 2 – 10:49
Mile 3 – 13:34
Last .31 – 17:06
Woof! The wheels just fell off today and I’m not sure exactly why. I’m sure that the lack of food yesterday had a lot to do with it, but some of it is lack of motivation too. Last year at this time, all I focused on was getting out there every week to get my miles in, but this time around, I’m just not there right now. I ended my run after 3.31 miles, but since I was 3.31 miles from my house, I turned around and enjoyed the unseasonably warm weather with a long walk back to the house. I came home and took a nap and I feel better tonight, so I’m not ready to scrap the marathon just yet, but I’m running out of time for training (just under 10 weeks to go) if I want to get past the half marathon distance and still come in under the time limit (5.5 hours).
So the next few weeks will be trying to figure out exactly what I want to do in March. I definitely want to do another marathon at some point, but the question for now will be is this the right time?
Its official, in less than 4 months, I’ll be running my second marathon. I’ve registered for the Rock ‘n’ Roll USA marathon which will be held in DC on March 14, 2015. I’m toying around with a few different marathon training plans for this race, but I think the biggest thing I want to change is to focus on adding another 20+ miler into the training plan. For my first, I did a 20 miler and a 23 miler before the race, but I’d like to add another one in there too. Since I’ve been doing halfs all year and I’ve increased my mileage in the relay race I did in September, I think it would be beneficial to focus on the (even) longer distances. I also need to add in core work as part of my training plan so that I can keep myself on track with those exercises instead of just saying “I should do more of that.”
After looking at the Cool Running marathon training plan as well as a few others, I decided that I would go back to the Galloway training program but make sure to add another 20+ miler this time around. This also allows me to run fewer times during the week but still get my long runs in on the weekend. I really do think that the training plan I had for my first marathon was good for me, I just had a bad day. I’m also planning to keep my soccer playing to a reduced schedule this time around, so I can add in some additional days of just running in the middle of the week as well as the aforementioned core workouts!
Just like last time, I’ve put together a marathon training plan for this one and as I finalize more of my 2015 racing calendar, I’ll update that as well. I’m hoping that I can add a race or two into the weekends where I have my long runs planned so that I can do like I did last time and just add a couple of miles before the race starts. A couple of races that I’m looking at are:
Top (right-to-left): Ragnar Relay team campsite, Bruceton Mills, WV; Flight 93 Memorial, Stoystown, PA
Middle (right-to-left): Quincy Market, Boston, MA; Portland Lighthouse, Portland, ME; Potomac River, National Harbor, MD
Bottom (right-to-left): BB&T Center, Sunrise, FL; Old Town Alexandria, VA
A full moon on Friday the 13th? Sounds like a great day to run in the middle of the woods!
My Facebook wall was blowing up the past few days with this challenge and I’ve decided to join in. The last time I tried a “do something everyday” challenge, I failed miserably. I have a lot coming up in June with work events and races almost every weekend, but core exercises are one area where I know I need to get better and there will always be an excuse available, so why not now?
Each week, I’ll do an update on how successful I’ve been at keeping up with all of the exercises. Who’s going to join me?
So it’s been over 2 weeks since I’ve posted anything and I’ve been trying to figure out why it’s been so hard to get started writing again and I’m just going to blame it on the post-marathon blues… and the fact that it’s been beautiful outside so any chance I get, I’ve been working in my yard. I actually ran a 10k race on May 17 (recap coming soon), but other than that, I haven’t done any running outside of soccer. I always feel really good once I get up and actually start running, but I definitely haven’t been motivated to get out and do any solo runs lately. I’m finally getting back on track with my running with a 10 miler planned with a friend today, and I’ve got some pretty substantial races coming up in the next two months, so I’ve tried to come up with a plan to ensure I’ll be ready for them:
Check out Instagram for more #rockthetutu photos.
