The Happiness Project...

Too often I've found myself faced with disappointments. Whether that be with performance, or pace, or how my legs feel during/after a run etc. I know that's not unique to me as a runner (we've all been there at one point or another) but I've definitely dealt with them often and, it seems, with increased frequency recently.

To be fair, it is entirely possible that my unwavering commitment to elevated expectations is directly proportionally to the frequency with which I am disappointed. And some would say that an "expect nothing" philosophy would unburden me of the daunting weight of unmet goals. But if I approached my running (or my life) with that view... what would be the point? Yes, I want to be happy with my running, but I am most happy when I meet the running goals I set for myself.

That being said... I decided to cancel the Chicago Marathon this year.

The decision was not easy (although I have to admit it became a lot easier when I remembered how much I suffered with blisters during Summer training last year). But once I made it... and cancelled my hotel reservation... I was sure it was the best decision for me.

The reality is my body needs a break and I refuse to have another disappointing marathon experience. I've trained hard for all of the marathons I've done and my current statistics do not contain the type of motivation and encouragement I need to start training for another one (at least not right now):
# of full marathons completed: 4
# of marathon training cycles with injuries: 3
# of marathon finishes over six hours: 3
# of marathons where I got injured on the course: 3
# of times those injuries included my left knee: 3
# of times I cried after the marathon was over: 2
# of times I cried during the marathon: 4
# of marathons I still want to complete (Plan A goal): 22
# of marathons to reach my Plan B goal: 9
# of marathons to reach my Plan C goal: 3

The 2018 Chicago Marathon would have been my 5th marathon and a good option for a marathon PR (since everything about the event is amazing)... but I need a break.

So instead of focusing on a Fall full marathon I've decided to focus on a Fall half marathon and aim for a PR at that distance. This goal is now the mission of my Happiness (running) Project for 2018. On my way to achieving a half PR, I've also decided to throw in a 10K PR, a 15K PR, some goals for strength training and swimming, and an optimistic (while still being healthy) goal range for weight and body fat %.

I've got 7 months to get all that done... let the challenge begin!

Training restarts next week (as in the week starting on Monday May 21st) and I've tentatively created a diverse plan for myself as a starting point to what the rest of the year is going to look like. There are a lot more cross training activities included in the plan (each one with a different goal) and I'm limiting my running days to 3 days per week. I'm still going to do my group runs with my running BFFs Mimi and Suzanne as they train for Chicago, but I'll do less mileage for the long runs (since I'm focusing on a half marathon PR).

2019 will come with its own set of goals (and yes, I'm already planning for what next year will look like), a lot of which will depend on if I get into the London (or Tokyo) marathon. I'm really hoping for London since it will give me more time to train and would be less likely to disrupt my revised goals/plans for 2018. Because I always have a Plan B... I contemplated trying to get a marathon PR at Big Sur if I didn't get into London (but I revised those thoughts when I read the course description... I'm not a fan of hills right now). Then I thought about the New Jersey marathon (which is the same weekend so training would be the same), or even the Prague marathon (on the first weekend in May).

I still haven't decided.

One thing I do know is that the next time I start training for a full the goal will be to PR (not just finish), and as a result the choice of event will be significantly impacted by course difficulty, weather, and the potential for an overall amazing race experience. Training for "lucky marathon #5" will also be designed to my specific needs... which I'm about 90% 75% sure I'm fully knowledgeable of.

Anyway, for right now my focus is on getting stronger, faster, and healthier... and earning my half marathon PR. All that's left to do is pick a goal race (in December).

What does the rest of 2018 look like for you?

Have you ever had to start from scratch with your training?

What was your favorite half marathon?

The Last "Long" Run {a late post... kinda... but a timely update}

There is something about completing your 20 miler long runs that make you feel a slightly bit more confident about marathon training. Granted, I did my last 20 miler last weekend (and somehow my legs are still sore), but I still feel great about it... mainly because it was my fastest 20 mile training run ever!

The training run distance and pace translated into a pretty decent estimation of my upcoming marathon finish time...

This past week I've been nursing my tired legs through short distance mid-week runs (and my run this morning)...

And I even managed to earn a "highly improving" badge from Garmin on Thursday...

I run again tomorrow (for my last double digit mileage run of this training cycle) and next week I'll continue with my moderate mileage + decent intensity plan. After next week it will be RACE WEEK! 

I'm grateful for this training cycle. It has brought back the joy of running that I've missed for some most of the past two marathon training cycles. The Pittsburgh Marathon may not bring me a PR (p.s. you should always check the course elevation and difficulty level before you set a PR goal at the beginning of training); but it will be an amazing event and I'm determined to enjoy every aspect of my racecation!

Do you have any racecations coming up?

What big event are you training for right now?

Have you ever been to Pittsburgh? What restaurants would you recommend? 

The Long Weekend...

Last weekend (yes the one that just ended yesterday) I took an unscheduled weekend off from training and went home. The trip itself wasn't unscheduled. It had been in the works for a while as a belated Valentines Day celebration trip. But the break from Pittsburgh Marathon training (and not doing a long run last weekend) definitely wasn't planned, but it was well needed...

The truth is my body is tired and I'm tinkering dangerously close to pushing myself into "overuse injury territory". I've been there before. In fact I've been there so often that I recognize the signals long before I reach that dreaded destination. But now that I'm approaching year 5 as a runner I'm wise enough to force myself to stop before I get too close. The wisdom doesn't erase the frustration and disappointment I feel though. And despite knowing that not pushing the limit was the right thing to do, I still feel sad that I'm not getting the mileage completed.

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!

(register here)

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?

DNF...

At some point in our running careers most of us have had a DNF ("did not finish") for a run. Usually the acronym is reserved for not finishing a race, but for me I use it when I don't finish my designated mileage for my training runs as well. I've (fortunately) never had to DNF a race, but training runs... that's a completely different story.

Today was one of those DNF training run days. My legs felt like lead from the very beginning; and between not getting enough sleep last night and being mentally exhausted from a very long, equally frustrating work week, I just could not push myself to do more than 6 (of the planned 10) miles.

I've been trying different strategies to work on mental preparation for my runs and my races because 9 times out of 10 the problem is less of a physical limitation and more of a "I'm not confident that I can do this" limitation. Mental training is hard. Especially since I'm not one of those overly confident individuals to begin with. And when it comes to running I doubt myself a lot.

This morning there was an "awkward yeti" type battle between my various organ systems...
Brain: Can I get through 10 miles?
Legs: I'm tired
Heart: I want to go back to bed
Stomach: I'm hungry
Brain: Well...
Legs: I'm still tired
Heart: I'm really sleepy
Nose: *sniff*
Stomach: Is that fresh baked bread?
Nose: *sniff sniff*
Stomach: *grumbles*
Brain: Well...
Heart: If I was sleeping right now I would be so happy
Brain: Fiiine
Legs: No I think I can
Brain: Too late I'm done. Let's stop at 6 miles
All: YAY!!!!!!

So I stopped at 6 miles. I was running with Mimi who continued on to complete the remaining 4 miles (after we took a quick post-run pic)...

Considering I did a (virtual) half marathon last weekend and I have the Tropical 5K and Miami Half Marathon next weekend, I'm not upset that upset about my DNF training run today. I may do a few miles if others from my running group want to hit the road tomorrow morning. If not, I might just sleep, or swim, or sleep, or do some weight training, or sleep.

This week (so far) I've done two 4 milers and two 6 milers. The distance sets were almost identical...

I'm trying to focus on incremental measurable goals for each week so that I can track my improvement (and not get thrown off by any one run). This week, for example, the group increased our run:walk intervals to 90s:30s and my personal goal was to maintain a sub-12 mins/mile average pace for all my runs (mission accomplished). Next week the running duration won't increase, but the new pace goal will be sub-11:45mins/mile. Each week will have a new goal and I will continue to set new weekly goals once I have accomplished the goal of the current week.

I'm doing the same for cross training. My goal was to swim twice this week for a minimum of 30 minutes each session. I only got through one 30 min session (on Monday) so next week I will aim for the same 2 swim session goal 💪.

What are your plans for this weekend?

Any races planned for the rest of January?

Did you accomplish all your training goals this week?