7 Weeks to Go: Wisconsin Marathon Training Week 11

I'm really trying not to psyche myself out this time around by obsessively counting down, but who am I kidding- I'm excited! This past week of training was a real high point for me. I hit 65 miles and topped off the week with a 21 mile run that I paced so well I was able to crank out the last 4 miles the fastest. It's a new thing for me to not be dragging at the end of a super long training run and I think I like it. I'm really trying to practice starting slow and building speed as I go since that will be my race day plan in May. Obviously qualifying for Boston is my #1 goal but I'm also dying to have a race where I don't hit a wall and get stronger and stronger until the finish. It's my turn to have one of those right? I'm working so hard.

Next week is a step back week in mileage again because I'm racing a 10K on Saturday. I'm feeling confident that I can break the PR I set in December. I hope I'm right.

View from the Shedd Aquarium last week on my 19-miler.
Another negative-splitter! It's what I do now.

Living on a Prayer: Wisconsin Marathon Training Week 9

We're halfway there! *insert Bon Jovi gif here*

It's amazing how much better I've felt in the last week and a half. I knew the tireds were just a temporary thing as I adapted to the mileage but I truly feel like a weight has been lifted. 60+ mile weeks? Pffft. I got this. 

Last weekend was another checkpoint of sorts. I raced a 5K for the first time in... 8 months or so? Sara and I drove out to Nashotah to run the St. Joan of Arc Frostbite 5K and despite the incredibly bitter cold we both had pretty stellar races. I actually kind of loathe how I feel while running 5K because it's so fast but I know it's over in just a little more than 20 minutes so that part is always good. In my case, it was over in 22 minutes and 27 seconds. Not too bad! I had hoped to sneak in under 22 but the course was a bit too hilly for me to do it. I suppose the 5 degree weather didn't help things either- it's super tough for me to breathe in deep when the air is that cold.

I know a 5K isn't the best indicator for projecting marathon pace but it was important for me to run strong. I actually ran negative splits (7:20, 7:19, 7:08) and finished the last tenth of a mile at a sub-7 pace when I thought I was dying so that was pretty neat. Sara and I placed 2nd and 3rd in our age group and got nifty icicle "medals." All in all it was a good day!

I'll be racing a 10K in a couple weeks and then after that is the Chi-Town Half Marathon where I'm super duper fingers crossed hoping for a PR. I'm working so hard this cycle I can't even tell you. 

February Miles: 217!

The Climb: Wisconsin Marathon Training Week 7

It's the middle of week seven and holy hell am I tiiiired. I'm not super sore or hurting or anything like that- just SLEEPY. I remember after the first month of training last summer when I got to this point. I had ton of energy at first (most likely due to adrenaline and the excitement from starting something new.) But about 6 weeks in or so my body realized what I was trying to sustain and I just shut down for about a week or so. Eventually I got accustomed to the mileage and I was able to press on but whoa, the sleeps were sleepy. And they are again now. Just typing this now, it's about 7pm and I'm already in bed and looking forward to lights out. Mmmmmm.

Am I stronger yet? Am I faster? I'm not really sure. It's so hard to gauge progress when you're in the thick of things. I've been bringing back hill workouts in to the mix because it helped me so much before Madison Marathon this year. I try to incorporate hills into almost every route I run now and earlier this week Sara and I tried out a completely bananas hill repeat workout that left me gutted. Even so, I feel mentally energized like every step I take is another in the right direction.

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Funny story: I actually drifted off and fell asleep in the middle of this blog post. Not LOL funny but... mildly amusing I guess? It's now Sunday afternoon and I'm encased in my Rest Day Blanket on the couch. I'm feeling less tired than I did in the middle of the week so that's nice. I also had a really strong long run yesterday at the Pettit with a nice stretch at goal marathon pace. I love Sundays because in addition to reflecting on all the hard work of the previous six days I get hyped looking at my schedule for the upcoming week. 60 miles on deck! Monster speed workout! Let's go! I swear if I don't see big improvements after this cycle I'm out of ideas.

Eff Yeah 200 Mile January!

No wonder I'm tired!

Ramping Up: Wisconsin Marathon Training Week 5

I love my new stripey tights.

Zoom! I passed my first checkpoint over the weekend! I ran a pretty solid 1:44:10 at the Icebreaker Indoor Half Marathon on Saturday and although I would have loved to have been magically a couple minutes faster already, I realize it's early in the process so that fact that I can still eek out a sub-1:45 time means I'm in a pretty good place right now. I really really REALLY hope that in 2 months I can improve on this time and dip below a 1:42. (In my Dream World I would be a 1:3X half marathon runner already but I guess I need to work a little bit harder first.) I'm excited that this is my starting point instead of my peak time this year.

So week 5 begins! I eased up a bit on the mileage ahead of Saturday's race but before that I was starting to rack up some serious (for me) miles: 42, 46 and 49 miles for the 3 prior weeks. (I even managed the 49 during the week I was at Ladies Rock Camp.  I'm super proud of that!) This week I'll top out hopefully at 52 miles and keep climbing from there. Build that aerobic base. I'm hoping to get back to some hill running again this week as well since the frigid temperatures seem to be letting up for now and most of the ice has melted from my neighborhood sidewalks. Too much time on the treadmill and track is making me a bit punchy.

Look! There's Sara behind me!

In other news I've been playing around with logging my workouts on Strava lately. I broke up with Dailymile at the end of the year because I decided I didn't need another social networking site in my life anymore but I obviously still need to keep track of my training. I have my written training journal which I'm enjoying, but I also like being able to see everything on nifty charts and grafts and stuff. (Also, doing math is boring. I want Internet for that.) So far Strava seems to be prettier and more functional than the Garmin Connect site so I'll probably hang around there for a while. I had hoped to keep everything private but some folks have added me on there which I'm cool with for now. (I swear EVERYTHING has to have a social component to it these days.) Anyway, we'll see how it goes. Sometimes I like the idea of keeping my training log just for me. You know, except for when I choose to write goofy, rambling blog posts about it.

Last one. Zooom.

WI Marathon Training Week #3

This kind of stuff if probably only interesting to me but I like to get these thoughts out of my system and I ditched Dailymile this year so this is where the brain dump is going.

Week 3 already! The start of this cycle is decidedly less bumpy than the last time around. (Granted, last summer I was coming off a zero-mileage week during our trip to Barcelona.) This time, my decision to keep relatively high, easy-paced miles throughout December has me starting out with a pretty decent base to build upon. I remember last July those first two weeks of training really kicked my butt- especially the speed workouts- so feeling energized in week three is definitely nice.

Once again, I'm doing with a modified version of one of the training plans from Pfitzinger's Advanced Marathoning book. (I've constructed something that falls between the 18/55 and the 18/70 plan.) I feel like his training methods definitely made me a faster runner last year. My problem was that I didn't execute my race plan (i.e. going out to fast) or in the case of Lakefront Marathon I don't feel like I tapered enough and wasn't fully recovered on race day.

SO. Here we are again. I've had 2 especially good speed workouts so far and a confidence building marathon pace long run this past weekend. I know it's early in the game but I can't complain. Next weekend is the Icebreaker Half Marathon and while I don't feel ready to go for that sub-1:40 yet, I'm still going to run hard and see what I can do. Then we build from there.

My Dailymile replacement.

Tagged!

Sun from Eat. Host. Run. Style. tagged me last week for this little meme. Here we go!

Four names that people call me:
1. Trace
2. Mom
3. Robot Lady (obviously)
4. @tmgessner

Four jobs I've had:
1. Dairy Queen cashier
2. Gas station attendant
3. Mom
4. Personal Trainer

Four movies I've watched more than once:
1. What About Bob?
2. Serenity
3. Mary Poppins
4. Billy Madison



Never gets old. Never never ever.

Four books I'd recommend:
1. The Time Traveler's Wife
2. Lord of the Rings
3. Devil in the White City
4. Unbroken

Four places I've lived:
1. Rockford, IL (1978-1996)
2. Chicago, IL (1996-2001)
3. Bartlett, IL (2001-2005)
4. Milwaukee, WI (2005-present)

Four places I've been:
1. Barcelona, Spain
2. Paris, France
3. London, England
4. Guanacaste, Costa Rica

Traveling is my favorite.

Four places I'd rather be right now:
1. Kauai
2. Costa Rica
3. New Zealand
4. Florida Keys

Basically I would like to feel like this.

Four things I don't eat:
1. Sushi
2. Mussels
3. Shrimp
4. Foie Gras

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Chocolate
2. Chili
3. Grilled Chicken Salad
4. Rissotto

Four tv shows I watch(ed):
1. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
2. Game of Thrones
3. Doctor Who
4. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Four things I'm looking forward to this year:
1. Qualifying for Boston (fingers crossed)
2. Trail running (Dances With Dirt, North Face Endurance Challenge)
3. Traveling with my family
4. Remodeling our 110 year old home

Looking forward to this view.

Four things I'm saying right now:
1. It's too $%^&*(# cold to do __________.

(Really that's all I'm saying right now!)


Thanks Sun! I'm going to tag Jen/The Harmonized Run and Amy/running4fromlife!