I've never had an uneventful marathon training cycle; probably because running doesn't really come naturally for me. I mean, I wasn't the last one picked for races/relays in school, being picked second to last wasn't much better. So when I started running in 2013 I knew it was going to be an uphill battle. This year, and this training season has been no exception...
This training cycle I've been feeling exhausted... all the time. Despite getting a full nights sleep I still don't wake up feeling rested. And, to add "injury to insult" (so to speak) I'm having shin splints and other areas of concern that are more tender/sore than normal. Some of my usual fixes haven't been implemented yet, i.e. I haven't focused on cross training and strength training as much as I should; I foam roll about as frequently as I'm able to achieve a sub-11 minute per mile pace (in other words, rarely); and every day I set ambitious hydration and nutrition goals only to be undermined by my sweet tooth (and salty tooth... and "any kind of red wine" tooth).
In isolation (and moderation) any of those things probably aren't horrible per se... but the combination is certainly not ideal. And unfortunately they have all been the background tapestry of my marathon training. I have just about two months to go before Pittsburgh so I still have time and (fortunately) I haven't veered completely off course, but I'm definitely not as far along as I would like to be. So the time to auto correct is right now; and after my long weekend off I'm refocused and re-energized...
The next two weeks will have 4 days of running each week, followed by three weeks of 3 days of running per week. Then in April I go back to 4 days of running and before I know it Race Week will be here! My swimming will also pick up steam (in terms of frequency but not necessarily intensity). I'm capping my swimming workouts at 60 minutes (with a minimum duration of 30 minutes). I decided to focus on duration for cross training because I want to ensure it's adding to my overall fitness without making me too exhausted to complete my runs. And I'm definitely keeping my commitment to have a solid rest (and sleep in) day.
So the countdown is on... 2 months to go (just about), which means I have 4 really long runs, 4 moderately long runs, and my taper runs left. I've got this!
You still have time to sign up and join me in Pittsburgh in May! Register (via the link below) and use my discount code (YOUNGDSGPM18) for any of the race distances!
What do you do when your training isn't going according to plan?
Do you find it hard to stay motivated and focused during long training cycles?
How many running vs. cross training days do you complete each week?
