Marathon Training Week 13

Marathon Training Week 13  was a very interesting one.  It was challenging and surprising!  I loved it!!

Sunday 9-27-15

Today was my 4th time running in the Henry Vilas Zoo Run Run 5k.  As I have mentioned before, this was my very first official race ever!!  I love love love this run!!  It is full of so many wonderful memories.  My first 5K, my first race ever, running through my old college neighborhood, seeing my entire family cheering for me at the finish line!  It is just the most amazing race that I ever run in!  

I knew coming into this race that I had a long training run the day before, but that I was going to run it and try my best to finish with a respectable time.  My PR for a 5k is 28 something.  I really had no intention or thought of breaking that today.  Hubby said that because I run so much and such long distances, I should be able to run it in 27:30.  I thought he was absolutely crazy!!  

Little did he know that he gave me a super boost of motivation to push myself to see if I could even come close to that number.  I mean seriously, it’s only 3 miles.  It’s not like I had to maintain that pace for 13 miles or anything! So, I told myself to just run and try my best to go as hard as I can.  

The start was very strange this year.  There was no announcer this year telling us when to start.  Every other year, there has been an announcer.  Someone counted down for us and we were off.  I was trying to get my music to play, but for whatever reason, it didn’t work today.  It sucked, but I wasn’t going to waste time trying to figure it out when it was time to race!!  

So I ran the race without music.  Really, I figured it was only 3 miles so I should be able to handle running without music.  Plus there were so many other people on the course that I could listen to.  Really what I listened to was my breathing and my feet.  I wanted to make sure that my breathing wasn’t heavy and that my feet were light.  I actually did amazingly well with those 2 things.  I was shocked since I was pushing 9 minute miles.

The finish was a little different this year as well.  We actually finished inside the zoo right by the new polar bear exhibit. It was really neat, but the course was shorter than previous years as based off my Garmin.  When I crossed the finish line my Garmin read 2.9 miles and a time of 27:30!!!!  Exactly what my hubby said I could do!  I was shocked!!  Very pleasantly shocked!!  I’m going to take it as a PR!!  My official results were 27:26!!!  I am so amazed by that! I have never run a race that fast!!  It just proves to myself that I can do it!!  I do have speed!  I am so proud of myself!!!

Maddie and EJ ran in the Roo Run after the 5K and 10K finished.  They ran in the half mile race.  Maddie did amazing!  She wants to run in races with me so badly!  EJ did not enjoy it as much.  He is not my runner buddy.  He kept saying he couldn’t do it and that he wasn’t going to make it.   He did but I felt like I was pulling him across the finish line.  Maddie flew on through ahead of us and I was so proud of her!  

Maddie and I also did our nails this weekend.  I actually did mine Saturday night so they would look nice for the race.  I did Maddie’s nails on Sunday after her bath.  She loves having Jams and I love putting them on her!  I love having a daughter!!  Don’t get me wrong!  I love my EJ and I love doing active boy things with him, but having a daughter is special.  We can relate more on so many levels!  It’s just awesome! I wouldn’t trade either one of my kids for the world!!

Monday 9-28-15

Monday as we know is Arm Day!!  I was thankful after running yesterday and my long run on Saturday to only have to work my upper body today.  Although, my legs are surprisingly not too sore! Anyway, I smashed out P90X Back and Biceps with my big heavy weights!  I love lifting heavy.  It makes me feel like superwoman!!  I added in some bench presses and a bit of core work since I had some extra time.  It was perfect and just what I needed.  Now to see if I can control my appetite for the rest of the day.  I always do so well in the morning and then pig out in the afternoon.  I’m going to try not to snack when I get home from school and then not eat anything else after dinner.  No more food after 7:00! I’m going to stick to it!!!

Tuesday 9-29-15

Arms again because of the rain!! Seriously this rain was really not what I wanted today.  I really wanted to run today!  Well that was not in the books I guess.  When I woke up it wasn’t raining but I checked the radar and it was coming.  I putzed around for a bit and low and behold, it started to downpour!  If it was a light rain I totally would have still ran, but it was pouring and windy, so I decided to switch today’s workout with Friday's arm workout.  I did P90X Shoulders and Arms, again with lifting heavy.  Boy was that difficult today after doing arms yesterday!  I was grunting and groaning; I thought I would wake everyone up!  I didn’t push it too much though because I wanted to maintain my good form.  Lifting weights means nothing if you don’t have good form!  I am excited to feel the muscles in my arms getting harder and stronger!!  I love the feeling of being strong!!  I am still struggling with my midsection, but I know that I have had 2 kids and that it might never be tight.  It can however, be a little tighter than it is right now.  I know I have to watch more closely what I put in my mouth.  

But today I signed Maddie and myself up for the Santa Hustle 5k in Milwaukee in December.  She has been asking about it for quite some time now.  So I decided that we’re going to do it.  It’s a fun race and we don’t really have to run the whole thing, so it will be perfect for her first race!  So as soon as I told her about it she freaked out and then wanted to go for a run.  So  Maddie and I ran/walked 1.5 miles to begin her training.  She is really excited to run after school with Mommy!!!  I am so proud of her!!  I am loving that I have at least one of my children that wants to run with me.  She did amazing tonight too!  We ran and took walking breaks.  We talked about pacing, breathing, hydrating.  It was awesome to share some of my knowledge with her!  This is going to help me stay motivated to be healthy and be the best mom and run coach for her!!

Wednesday 9-30-15

Today we RUN!!!!   I was so excited to actually be able to run today!  It felt amazing and freezing  to get outside!!  Boy after that rain the weather sure did cool down.  I love the cooler temps though.  It made running 7.1 miles feel like a breeze!  My legs didn’t feel heavy, I didn’t feel weighed down at all.  I honestly felt like I could run forever!  I was disappointed that I had to stop and go home! These are the type of runs that make my decision to become a runner so worth it!  This is what I do!  This is who I am!!

Tonight Maddie and EJ wanted to run with me.  That was only because we were doing a short run up to Kwik Trip for bacon for dinner that night.  Kwik Trip is about a half mile from our house so 1 mile round trip.  EJ did ok.  He is definitely not my runner child, but he tried.  I give him credit for that.  Maddie was a trooper like always.  She really is my mini-me!!

This mile run brought my monthly total to 168!  I haven’t had that high of a total in awhile.  Love this marathon training!!!

Thursday 10-1-15

Today was another 7 miles!  It is definitely cold in the morning now!  I don’t have many long sleeve tech shirts to run in so I had to pull out my Santa Hustle tee from last year’s race.  It’s dark out when I run so no one probably even saw it.  I don’t really care anyway since it’s COLD!!

Anyway, this was another fabulous run.  I felt strong and powerful again.  This weather is perfect for running.  My body and soul definitely love it!

After school Maddie and I ran 1.5 miles to practice for the Santa Hustle this year.  She is so cute! She’s so excited to run this race!  She was so funny tonight!  She was having a hard time being patient waiting for me to get ready.  She really wanted to get out there and run!  I loved it!  Did I mention that I am a super proud momma right now?  I am so excited that she wants to be like me and run!

Friday 10-2-15

I woke up feeling a little tired and sore so I only put in 6.5 miles.  I had to do a half mile to even out my numbers cause I’m a freak like that.  But I also knew that I was running long tomorrow so I didn’t want to overdo it too much.  It was a good run.  It was a little slower than the past 2 days, but it still felt good.  My legs were a little heavy and sore, but overall, it was a good run.  Still feeling strong and powerful.

Saturday 10-3-15

Boy this marathon training is like a part time job!  Most of my morning was spent running!  But I got my 19 miles done.  It only took my 3 hours and 46 minutes, which is really good for me.  My pace was an average of about 11:45 which is a lot faster than what I had normally been running my long runs.  I don’t know if it was the chill in the air or the killer wind that helped me to go faster.  I knew I had a time crunch also this morning.  My truck had to go into the shop by noon and I was supposed to start running at 6, but I didn’t actually get out until 6:45 because I slept in and my internet wasn’t working so I had to hand write my route for my hubby just in case.  I usually plan my routes on Map My Run and leave it open so my hubby knows where I am in case I am not back when I say I am going to be back.  Well today was a handwritten note.  At least he knew where I would be in case something happened.  Luckily, nothing happened today.  

Anyway, I was extra diligent in using my GU today.  I didn’t eat much before I ran so I wanted to make sure that I was keeping my energy up.  I GU’d at 5 miles, 10 miles, 14.5 miles and 17 miles.  It really helped to keep me going.  These were my slowest miles and most of my walking breaks.  I took more towards the end of my run since I was getting so tired, but I ran for the majority of this run and felt pretty darn good.  It was really nice.  Even though I came home really sore, it makes me feel like I should be able to run the majority of the 26.2 miles that I will be running in a month.

Plus I got some really awesome new shoes today to help power me through my marathon.  I switched to New Balance for these shoes.  I normally wear Asics and love them. But these ones caught my eye on the shelf at Kohls so I thought I would try them.  They have so much cushion in them that I couldn’t help but buy them.  I am going to take them out for a few short runs this week to break them in!  I can’t wait to see how they do!

Until next time, Run on, my friends!!

And always remember:

Laura