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Marathon Training Week 16 Recap

Marathon Training Week 16 is done!  Wow, was that a total change in mileage!!  Plus a nasty cold that crept up on me didn’t help either!


Sunday 10-18-15
Today was a much needed rest day!!!  I slept until 8:30 am after going to bed before 9 last night!  I so needed that extra sleep.  It was heavenly.  I spent the day doing laundry, running errands, and cleaning up the yard for the winter.  We put away all our lawn decorations and our patio table and chairs.  It was a lot of work and I was sweating a bit.  Just enough work so that I didn’t feel like a total bum today.  I did overindulge a little on some splurges this weekend, not many, but enough that my tummy was not happy this afternoon.  I am slowly learning my lesson.  My body craves real food and not the processed junk.  I’m learning!  I just need to remember how my body feels when I eat real food versus how it feels when I eat junk.  I never remember when I’m craving it or enjoying it.  It will get easier, I’m sure.  


I also got my core workout in today.  I wanted to make sure that I did something else physical and I skipped this workout Friday and Saturday.  I did my 100 ball sit ups, supermans, glute bridges, and metronomes with the ball.  It was a challenge but a very good one that I needed.  I can’t wait to bring it tomorrow after such a nice rest day!


Monday 10-19-15
Well totally bringing it didn’t happen this morning.  Our Bosco got into a fight with our Marley last night and the hubby spent most of the evening and into the night with him at the emergency vet.  Needless to say the kids and I were nervous wrecks and didn’t get as much sleep as we should have.  I let myself sleep in after all that stress.  Bosco is doing fine now.  He needed some stitches but he’s eating and taking his meds like a champ!  We are so glad he’s ok.  Marley on the other hand is being punished and had some strict training coming his way.


I managed to get up with enough time to complete P90X Back and Biceps.   I didn’t lift as heavy as I would have liked but my body was exhausted from lack of sleep and I think still recovering from my 21 miles.  It was still a good workout and I was dripping with sweat when I was finished.


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I made sure to complete my Core workout tonight as well.  I did my ball sit ups, glute bridges and metronomes with the ball.  I am trying to hold them longer and keep them steady the whole time.  I know my core will thank me.


Tuesday 10-20-15
Today’s 5 mile run was much needed.  After all the stress from the past two days, I needed to get out and run.  I was so worried about Bosco all day yesterday and stresses at work.  I constantly feel like there are not enough hours in the day to get everything done that I would like to get done or need to get done.  I just needed to run it all off today.  My legs felt super heavy and stiff to start out but after about 2.5 to 3 miles they warmed up and I felt like I could run forever.  Too bad it is tamper time and I need to start lowering my miles.  5 miles is a decent amount though.  I think I will keep it to 5 for the most part until the week before my race.  


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Because I felt like such a slacker yesterday and because the hubby was working late I did some Bicep work and Deads using the Stronglifts 5X5 method.  I used the 40 pound weights for dead and single deads.  I tried to use the 40s for hammer curls but I couldn’t lift them very far so I knew that wasn’t happening.  I used the 30s for bicep curls and hammer curls.  I used the gym time app on my Garmin for the first time.  It lets you set the rep time and the rest time.  So I did 30 seconds for the reps and 10 seconds for the rest.  I actually did anywhere from 5-8 reps depending on the move I was working on.  It was nice since it would vibrate when you had 5 seconds of each left.  I just wish I could have saved it.  I didn’t upgrade to the Pro version so I couldn’t save it.  I might play with it some more and see if that’s something that I really want to do or not.  


I also did my Core workout tonight again.  Another round of ball sit ups, supermans, glute bridges, and metronomes with the ball.  Not as long tonight as the kids were bonkers and I was running out of time.  It still felt good to get it done.   


Wednesday 10-21-15
Today’s 5 mile run was very nice.  I got stuck by a train and had to turn around to run the opposite direction on my loop that I usually do.  It wasn’t that bad.  It was actually a nice change.  I think the change effected my pacing though.  There were more small hills this way than what my legs are used to.  I guess I should run this way more often!  I did only have one walking break besides my cool down walk to the house.  I usually take more than that, so that is saying something.  I may have been a little slower, but my endurance was good.  I only had time for my 5 miles this morning as I had a meeting to attend before school.  I like my 5 mile loop, but once I get rolling then I feel like I can and should keep going and I always run out of time.  This is what I love about running on the weekends.  I really don’t have a set time frame that I need to be done in.  Yeah, it would be nice to be done by a certain time, but I don’t absolutely have to be. I think that’s why I feel the need to workout more after work also.  


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I came home from work and did some Deadlifts again. It was raining a little so I knew Maddie wouldn’t want to go out for a run. We really need to get back into it though.  Hopefully tomorrow!  Anyway, I deadlifted and single deadlifted with 40s for 10X5.  It felt really good.  I was going to do some arms but I think I’m getting sick so I didn’t want to push it too much.  


I also did my core workout. I did my ball sit ups for reps of 30 four times.  I skipped supermans today, but held my glute bridges and metronomes with the ball for 40 counts on each side.  I could really feel that, that’s for sure.  


I over-indulged a bit on pita chips and M&Ms when I got home from work also.  I think that’s one of the reasons I wanted to workout some more.  I wanted to anyway, but after that I felt like I really needed to.  It sucks when I have been doing so well lately and then I mess up today.  I know I’m a little PMSy, but that really shouldn’t make a difference.  Oh well.  I will learn from this and move on.  I need to have better control in the afternoons.  I can and I will!!!


Thursday 10-22-15
Today was not my best day.  But a few Jesus moments helped me push through!  I woke up feeling the cold that I finally caught from either my own kids or my school kids and just didn’t want to do it.  However, as we all know, I will turn into Super Witch if I don’t workout.  So I got my butt ready and out the door.  Well since my head is all congested I initially had a hard time getting my breathing right.  Then my legs felt super tight, especially my right calf, and I even wore my sleeves to bed last night knowing how they can get.  All of this was contributing to me talking myself out of running 6 miles today.  I wanted 6 because of overeating yesterday, but my body was not liking that idea.  I told myself I’ll just run to the turning point for 5 or 6 miles and see how I feel.  Well then I got stuck by a train.  I totally thought I wasn’t going to be able to make it 6 miles, because by that time I was feeling pretty good and was going to try to make it the 6 miles like I had wanted.  Luckily I changed up my route a bit and the train was not as long as I thought, so I kept trucking away.  By this time, my legs were finally warmed up.  I made it back to my house with 5.4 miles under my belt and kept going to make it to 6 miles.  I was so proud of myself.  I don’t know if it was Jesus testing me this morning to see if I was going to stick to my plan or not, but it helps knowing that there was someone out there pushing me to try harder and push myself.  I know I am capable of so much more than I give myself credit for.  I know that I am capable of these things because I have a strong relationship with my Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the one who keeps me safe every morning when I’m out running.  He is the one who keeps me grounded and focused on what is right for me and my family and our goals.  He is there for me when I need Him.  I can trust Him.  And I LOVE our talks on the mornings I run.  He gets me!
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Because of my kiddos conferences tonight, I didn’t get my full Core workout in.  I did, however, manage to do 200 ball sit ups with reps of 40.  I know this is probably not the most effective ab exercise (I know planks are so much better for your whole core), but for the time and energy that I had left last night, this is what worked for me.  I could feel the burn for the most part.  I know I need to change things up when I am no longer feeling the burn.  It didn’t come until far into my reps.  So I will have to change things up in the future.  That’s OK with me.  I like change!

Friday 10-23-15
I am still not feeling the greatest.  This head cold is really dragging me down.  I am not my usual chipper self in the mornings.  I am not raring to go with my workouts.  It sucks!  I hate being sick.  However, I have goals to achieve and self-confidence to boost so I got my booty out of bed and headed downstairs for P90X: Shoulder and Arms.  I really, really wanted to lift super heavy today, but I knew that wasn’t a good idea since I wasn’t feeling the greatest.  I know my body is tired and is trying to heal itself, so I wanted to take it a little easy today.  Plus, like I said before, I was just not feeling this workout today.  So I used lighter weights and added more reps when necessary. I know I got a good workout in though, as my arms are sore typing this and I was completely drenched in sweat when I was finished.  It felt good to push through the workout, because I feel so much better overall.  My attitude is better.  I feel better about myself. I am just a happier person when I workout.  I know it’s going to be a good day when I have completed this most important task on my list!  I ended my workout with some core moves since I had some extra time.  I was going to do some deadlifts, but the congestion in my head was not going to allow that.  My head would pound every time I leaned down to pick up the weights.  So I laid on the floor and did some glute bridges and metronomes, holding them for 40 seconds each.  I could feel it in my core for sure.  It was a nice, relaxing way to end my tough arm workout.  


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No Run with Mads due to the rain.  I’m hoping I don’t have to run in the rain or use the treadmill tomorrow for my long run!!! No core workout either.  Loved spending the night with my family.


Saturday 10-24-15
So my plan called for 12 miles today.  I wanted 13-14 to get to an even 30 miles this week, but that  wasn’t in the cards today.  This cold I have is really taking a toll on me.  I am exhausted and can hardly breathe when I wake up in the morning.  It gets easier when I get up and get going but that is the hardest part.  I just don’t want to.  So I settled for 10 miles today.  I slept in and got this done still early enough to be able to get home by 9:30 and get ready to have a fun day with the family.  The run itself was good once I was out there. I took it easy knowing that I didn’t exactly feel the greatest and I‘m glad I did.  I was actually a little sore after this run.  It’s so weird not having to run a super long distance.  I miss it actually.  10 is a very nice number and very manageable for me now. I don’t know.  I may have caught the long distance runner bug.  I may have drank the Kool-Aid!  I am already thinking about running longer distances after this taper is over!  I’m already thinking about training for another 26.2 and I haven’t even run the first one yet!  I may have an addiction!  I really like it though!!!


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Until next time, Run on, my friends!!
And always remember:
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Laura

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