Here we go! Another school year is about to begin. I'm kind of in denial that I no longer have a kid in elementary school, but the big change this brings is that everyone is out of the house before 7:30am now. We'll see if that means I get out the door to run earlier or not. Fall is my favorite time of year. It's also prime marathon training time. My training plan calls for multiple double digit runs per week, starting this week. Gulp! Thankfully, the weather tends to start cooling down and the return to school gets me back on a running schedule. Know what else changes about my training? Races! I've got a lot coming up and will talk about that soon. I don't race a lot during the summer. Between vacations and the weather and the … [Read more...]
Lessons Learned from Summer Training
In the month of August, I ran 148.9 miles total. Yes, it did pain me not to run 1.1 more miles, but I also knew I was doing a long run on September 1, so didn't feel like pushing past my training plan. Anyways, I've only run more miles in a month 6 times before- and only one of those was during a summer month. I'm just thankful that while I've had some really awful hot runs, much of August has not been as hot as the typical Virginia summer. Here are my lessons learned from this summer. Some of them are not new, but I always need a reminder... Humidity WILL slow you down. How much depends on the humidity level, the temperature, and how much you personally are affected by it. If I look up what a certain heat and humidity are going … [Read more...]
August running by the numbers
It's that time of month again - the last Tuesday of the month. It's the one where we evaluate how our running/training went for the month. Join Marcia and Patty and me as we talk about the ups and downs of running through August. I'm going to take a little different approach this month. What do the numbers show this month? Number of states I ran in: 3 (Wisconsin, Virginia, and South Carolina. I just missed running in 4 as I ran in Colorado on July 30. Maybe I should make sure to hit DC in the next few days...) Number of total miles: 131 and counting. I have 3 more runs yet this month. This is the highest mileage I've run since May 2016 when I ran 7 half marathons in 7 days. In fact, I haven't run more than 110 miles in any … [Read more...]
Runfessions of a Marathon Runner
Here we are, two months out from the Marine Corps Marathon. As seems to happen every August, I'm a little bit fixated on my training. Unlike last year, I actually feel like I'm doing a decent job on following my training plan. I'm not 100% on it, but I'm closer than I've ever been. So, I'm joining Marcia for some marathon training runfessions... I runfess that today is my birthday and I don't plan to run 47 miles to commemorate it. I'm not even sure I'll hit 47 miles for the week (although it may be close.) Instead, I'll run my 10 planned miles, spend all my birthday money on new Skirt Sports items, and then head out for dinner and beer with Beer Geek. I runfess that I have fallen in love with the Altra Escalante. They have even … [Read more...]
Fueling my way through the Marine Corps Marathon
For today's Friday Five, the topic is running/fitness fuel. I tend to train up to about 10 miles without fuel. In fact, often, I haven't eaten since about 7pm the night before a pre-noon run. But once I start going longer than 10 miles, my strategy changes. Since I'm about to run my first longer than 10 mile run (15 miles, eek!), this topic has been on my mind anyways. I have to confess that I don't have any idea what I'll take with me on the 15 miles, but I do know my marathon plan. How I Fuel a Marathon Pre-Race Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich - This is my go to for any long race. It's cheap, extremely portable, and tastes good. Even better, I find that it's easy to digest, sits well in my stomach, and keeps me fueled for lots of … [Read more...]
Marine Corps Marathon Training: Almost halfway
I can't believe I am entering week 9 of Marine Corps Marathon training! Usually by this point, I'm starting to struggle with burnout and am desperate for fall weather. This has been such a crazy summer that instead, I'm finding myself actually almost back on my training plan and ready to buckle down and get it done. Last week was the first week in about a month where I actually ran every run on my training plan. I'm not going to lie - I didn't run every run exactly as planned. Life was just too busy and there was no way I could jump from a low 20s week up to a 40 mile week. So, here's what went down... Monday - Plan: 6 easy miles. Actual: 6 easy miles. Woot! Tuesday - Plan: warm up, 6x800 at 5k/10k pace, cool down. Actual: warm up, … [Read more...]
Marine Corps Marathon Training: Back on the Wagon
A few weeks ago, I was doing a great job of following the Hansons beginner plan. "Beginner" seems a bit of a misnomer as it's a challenging plan compared to most beginner plans. While the long run tops out at 16 miles, the overall mileage each week is similar to some of Hal Higdon's advanced plans. Anyways, things were going well and then we headed on vacation. Even worse, I caught that awful bug that sapped my energy more than the first trimester of pregnancy. (Between the unsettled stomach and the exhaustion, I would have been freaking out, except Beer Geek was feeling just like I was.) While we were on vacation, we did a lot of hiking and walking, but it wasn't until close to the end that I tried to run. I managed a 3 mile run in … [Read more...]
An amazing weekend and 15 minutes of fame
Some weekends you have incredible plans and go out and do adventurous things. Some weekends you take it easy and just enjoy the life you have. This weekend was one of the latter types, but it was still an amazing weekend for me. Friday night we stayed in and took it easy. We also finished the remaining beer from Ragnar Trail Richmond. Yes, there are benefits to being sponsored by a brewpub and being the captain. Saturday I got up early (but not crazy early) to volunteer at a Ragnar event. The weather was crummy, so it didn't go as well as expected, but I had a fun time. Then I came home and went for a run and did some chores around the house. I'm wearing the new Skirt Sports Hover Capri here (affiliate link) and it's super … [Read more...]
Marine Corps 17.75 2017 Race Recap
Marine Corps 17.75 March 25, 2017 1:58:22 Temp: mid-50s What I wore: hat, short sleeve shirt, Skirt Sports Happy Girl skirt, compression socks, and my Altra Escalante shoes I love this race. It's one of the hardest races I run each year, but I keep coming back. I didn't originally sign up to run because of a scheduling conflict, but had a change hours before the transfer period closed. A quick plea to the Facebook group and Boom! I was in. Life continued to be a little crazy right up to the race. My Saturday plans changed more than once and then on Friday Shoo stayed home with a stomach bug. Thanks to him just feeling icky and a mom friend being "on call", I was still able to shoot down to Quantico with friends to pick up my … [Read more...]
Marine Corps Marathon 2016 Race Recap
Marine Corps Marathon 2016 October 30, 2016 4:55:10 Temp: Low 60s and slightly overcast at the start, low 80s at the finish What I wore: hat, MRTT MCM tank, Skirt Sports Happy Girl Skirt(this is an affiliate link), Crazy Compression socks, , and Altra Running One 2.5 (affiliate link). I carried a handheld water bottle, one GUs, a cut up rice krispy treat, and an extra nuun tablet. (Oh, and my metro card in case I decided that I needed to DNF.) As I mentioned many times over the last few weeks, I was undertrained for the Marine Corps Marathon 2016 race, so my plan was to have as much fun as I could. I totally succeeded in my plan, but in a very different way than I thought I would. Marine Corps Marathon 2016 Pre-Race I was more … [Read more...]
Final Countdown to MCM
Three more days until it's time for my 3rd and final Marine Corps Marathon. (OK, I reserve the right to run the 50th in 9 years if I want to.) I'm as ready as one can get, but I swear I'm all over the place mentally. On the bright side, I did manage to vote on Tuesday and go for a run down to Iwo Jima. I also worked on my DuClaw recipe for this month. Lesson learned: unsweetened baking chocolate is not the same thing as bittersweet chocolate. Also? When you chill it, it turns into a brick. So, I had to go to the store to get the right kind of chocolate and discovered that going to the store when you are tapering is even worse than when you are hungry. But on the bright side: BEER! Yes, folks, it's time for the … [Read more...]
MCM Goals: The Elephant in the Room
The topic for this week's Tuesdays on the Run is "goals", specifically what goals do you have left for the year. Oddly, the main goal I have left for the year wasn't even on my list of goals for the year. What goal is that? Finishing the Marine Corps Marathon. At the beginning of the year, I had no intention of running Marine Corps. In fact, I had no intention of running 17.75. But then I got caught up in FOMO and quickly registered for the 17.75 race in the five minutes that it was open. How does that even happen? How does one go from not really wanting to do something to participating in the crazy rush to get into a race? Yep, definitely FOMO. Somehow I also entered the lottery. Seriously people, what was I … [Read more...]
