Archive | 4:00 pm

Marathon Training Thus Far…

24 Apr

In the past 9 weeks:

  • I have ran 183.07 miles.
  • My highest mileage week was @ 25.48 (although technically, my highest mileage 7-day period was last week @ 37.59 miles but I track Monday – Sunday, not Sunday – Saturday).
  • My longest run was 13.1 miles.
  • I set a new half marathon PR.

What’s Not Surprising about Training:

  • I’m tired often. Going to bed at 8:30 is tough when I run after work and then cook dinner. We usually don’t even eat until around 7:30 or 8. But I have maintained my motivation to cook actual dinners, which is good.
  • My feet have developed giant calluses/blisters on the outsides of my big toes and balls of my feet, and the nail next to my big toe on my right foot has died but has yet to fall off. Wearing different socks seems to help with the blisters. Apparently, my feet don’t like Smart Wool.
  • Most days, I have good runs. Other days, bad runs. It happens to everyone. Generally, I see a correlation between being tired and having a bad run.
  • I have skipped strength training or cross training at least once every week. I don’t really care though.
  • I have been chafed by my sports bras about 3 times on long runs. Be more careful with the Body Glide application!
  • I have bought at least 10 new items of running apparel and 1 pair of shoes (soon to be followed by another) and earned 2 race shirts. But I think I’m still a pretty frugal runner, comparatively.

What Is Surprising about Training:

  • I haven’t really experienced any runger. My appetite is pretty normal overall. In fact, since I’ve started eating oatmeal for breakfast, I don’t usually get hungry at work until 11 at the earliest. I used to get hungry around 9. My cereal love has been replaced. Sorry Oatmeal Squares!
  • I haven’t lost any weight, even though I don’t feel like I’m eating a ton to compensate for running. I kind of expect the appetite to pick up soon here though…
  • I feel thirsty. This might not seem strange to most runners, but I used to never feel thirsty. I don’t really drink that much more than I used to (64 oz a day), but now, I actually feel thirsty.
  • I am a lot warmer than I used to be. Most days, I am too warm at work to wear anything but a short-sleeve shirt (even though I sit at a desk all day). When I do wear sweaters, I end up taking them off. This is strange for me because I used to be cold constantly and everywhere.
  • In the past 9 weeks, I haven’t skipped a single run. My stubbornness at its best.
  • I think I might enjoy solo or duo long runs more than running a race. I don’t like having to run around people and it’s harder for me to zone out.
  • I actually really like gels for fuel during runs. Who knew?

I have convinced Travis to run the Taste of Louisville Half on June 2 with me! That race will be part of my longest long run of 20 miles.

Looking forward to it.

Did you observe anything surprising while training for a marathon?

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