Marathon Training – Weeks 5,6,7 – Back from vacation

Here’s an update on my last three weeks of marathon training (or lack thereof).

Week 5

Coming off a 15.5 miler on Sunday I got two easy runs in before flying to Europe for a vacation with my mother. We visited Spain, Gibraltar and Portugal. I brought running gear with me but in the end I didn’t do any running while on vacation. I don’t feel the least bit guilty about this. We were just too busy sightseeing and doing cryptic crosswords!

Week 6

This was my second zero mileage week of the year. The last one was while I was on vacation in Scotland in March.

Week 7

I took a rest day my first day back in Seattle but then I dove right back into training this week. Tuesday’s tempo run was a bit of a shock to my system. The tempo miles were much slower that I would normally have liked to see but the percieved exertion seemed spot on. It may take a few weeks to get the speed back.

I think I overdid it in the gym on Wednesday. I did a 60 min hill climb workout on the elliptical machine and then what I thought was a reasonable weight routine. I was a little sore on Thursday but it didn’t really affect my run that morning. However, my legs felt shot only a few miles into Saturday’s long run. Of course it didn’t help that I purposely chose a hilly route. By the end my left quad and my right hamstring were very tight. It definitely felt like soreness and not an acute injury so I was able to complete the run without too much discomfort. I’m frustrated though. I know that leg strength is one of my weaknesses but I just can’t seem to lift weights to make them stronger and maintain the training volume I need to get ready for the marathon. Obviously the volume is a higher priority so I’m going to have to scale back at the gym. For now though I’m actively encouraging recovery by icing, stretching and using my rolling pin to do some self massage.

I’m pumped and frightened that the marathon is only eight weeks away. I feel as though I’m in a good place when it comes to my long run mileage. I have one 16 miler, one 18 miler and two 20 milers planned in the upcoming weeks. As long as I complete these I will be confident in my ability to complete the marathon distance on race day. Completing that distance at my goal pace is another matter. I’m not sure my speed is where I need it to be. I have a big test coming up in two weeks. I’m planning on running the Victoria half marathon at a pace of 9:09 min/mile for a 1:59:59 finish time. It will be interesting to see how that goes!

Marathon Training – Week 4 – Substitution

This week I substituted a 5K race for a 15.5 mile run. Make sense right?

Originally my sister and I were planning on running a 5K today but we called it off a few weeks ago because her ankle isn’t up to running right now. I was coming off three weeks of 30+ miles so convention probably would have told me to make this week as an easy week. However, I’m going to be on vacation for most of the next two weeks which will probably mean little or no running. In the end I didn’t build my mileage this week but I certainly didn’t take it easy either.

Tuesday’s speedwork session was pretty good. I mean it was tough but I got through it and felt good about it in the end. Sunday’s long run was a bit of a slog though. I covered miles 18 – 25.5 of the marathon course so that was a good experience. Those hills still are not getting any easier! My legs felt pretty dead at the end of the run. I’m not too worried though – the rest I’ll get over the next two weeks will surely cure that and I’ll be refreshed to restart training upon my return.