Relax and run

Today's plan called for a 7 mile run. Since I'm still feeling pain in my inner thigh area my aim was to take it as easy as I could. Sometimes I feel like every run is a race and I have to go my fastest. In cases like these I need to remember for now it's just about getting the miles in and keeping the body healthy. I kept my strides short and my feet quick hoping that would aggravate the injury a bit less than big pushes. 

Overall I was pleasantly surprised by my pace of 10:38. My first mile was my slowest at 10:54 and my third mile was my fastest at 10:18. Besides the tenderness in my inner thigh the run felt good. The last 2 miles were a bit more sluggish than the previous 5, but nothing too bad.

I know I have the tendency to get caught up in the numbers. "How's my pace?", "How far have I gone?", "How many more miles do I have to go?". I realized that on these longer runs, where I know I'm going to be out on the road for hours, it's just best to relax and run. Keep a steady pace, enjoy the surroundings and time with myself. This makes for a more enjoyable run and also gives the run a meditative feel. 

I still have quite decided on my goal pace for the marathon. I'm thinking between an 11 minute mile and a 14 minute mile. I know that's a big window,  but until I get to the much longer runs I won't know how my body will respond. I'm feeling things out as I go. At those paces I would finish the marathon between 4 hours and 48 minutes to 6 hours and 7 minutes. That's a long time on the road! I'm up for the challenge! One step at a time!

8 sessions down 81 more to go!

Rise and shine

Today was my first early morning run. I didn't get the sleep I hoped to get and was late to meet Andrea. She and I are going to run on Thursday mornings. The plan was to meet at 6 and I ended up getting to her place around 6:20.  

We walked down to the river to warm up and then started our run. Since I was feeling the pain of my injury my focus was to make this a recovery run. We did 3 miles in 35 minutes, so basically the pace came out to 11:48 per mile. Overall the run felt good and you can't beat the scenery along the river.

After our run we walked back to the house for a nice stretching session. Views like these are worth getting up for. With more sleep and more of a routine of getting up early I'm hoping things will get easier. Accountability partners definitely help too!

I felt so productive fitting in so much before 8am. This is a big journey I set out on and I'm here to live each day and moment as they come!

7 sessions down and 82 more to go!

Stubbornness and sleep

So last night I was up later than I wanted to be and I felt the lack of sleep this morning. I wanted to get up early so I could run after work and before teaching Bodypump. That planned seemed like it was going to be sidelined, however, I know I can be determined and stubborn sometimes. 

After work I rushed to the gym and figured I *might* just be able to squeeze in the run. I ran inside and clocked in. Threw my bag in a locker and jumped on the closest treadmill. 

My training today was speed / interval work on the treadmill and I felt confident I could finish just in time to start class. Instead of "warming up" first I just went right into my base pace. Today I started with 6.7 or 8:57 instead of the 6.5 I used last week and then at the 3 minute mark I bumped it up to 7.7 or 7:47 pace. After my first push going back to my base pace felt much smoother than last week. I did 8 pushes instead of 6 and finished my 3 mile run in 25 minutes and 53 seconds! Awesome! I was so happy about how much easier it felt compared to last week.

So that was the GOOD news...the BAD news was that not too long after starting my run I really noticed pain in my inner thigh area. I had worked my lower body hard in the gym and was using the abductor and adductor machines which I don't normally do. I felt the soreness for the next few days. Of course that pain usually goes away, but I think the lack of warmup and already fatigued muscles created the opportunity for injury 😔

Because I was in pain coming off the treadmill I decided not to use any weight for the lower body exercises in pump class. Even the cooldown stretches were painful 😔

So lesson learned,  don't be in a rush, don't be stubborn. Take your time to prepare for you workouts and runs. 

6 sessions down and 83 to go!

Pace Queen!🏃🏻‍♀️👑

What a day! Full day at work and then starting week 2 of training with a 3 mile run. What a difference a week makes! Last week my run was 28 minutes with a full minute difference between my slowest and fastest mile.

Today my run was 27:30 and only a 2 second difference between my slowest and fastest mile! I love that consistency! My legs felt stronger,  my breathing was better and it was an all around more solid run. 

I'm going to need to remember these runs and these feelings, especially when the more difficult runs hit. Gotta celebrate the victories when they happen.

Each run, each day I'm getting one step closer to the goal and that's what it's all about!

After my run I had the pleasure of meeting up with Nicole to go over ideas for expanding my business and ways I can add value to the lives of others. I'm so passionate about all things wellness and so happy and thankful to have supportive friends and colleagues to cheer me on with all of my goals in business and more importantly in life.

Look for more meditation sessions coming to you soon (you won't even need to leave you house *hint hint*).

One step at a time...progress, not perfection.

5 sessions down 84 more to go!

Cross training 

An important part of my marathon training plan is cross training. My plan is to focus on building more strength and power in my legs to help me on my run. I rarely lift heavy so this will be changing things up for me in a much needed way.

Today my warmup consisted of 20 minutes on the stairmaster to warm up my legs and my body. I followed that up with Hip abduction,  hip adduction, seated leg press, leg extensions, leg curls, single leg deadlifts and single leg bench stepups. 3 sets of 10 for each. 

The best part about my workout is that I had a partner! My friend Andrea is going to be joining in on my cross training sessions and even some of my shorter runs. Working out with a partner is a great idea for accountability and fun. There are so many fun partner exercises out there to mix things up!

Afterward we got in a nice long stretching session which will make me feel so much better tomorrow morning!

Tomorrow is another rest day, though I'll be teaching combat and on my last week of the 60 strong challenge. 

Week 1 of marathon training is in the bag! Let's go week 2!

Long Runs on the River

I very much enjoyed my rest day yesterday. My body is adjusting the the runs and muscle soreness is setting in. Definitely need to start more stretching and foam rolling. Hopefully I'll get a few massages too!

My first long run of the training plan was 6 miles. I slept in a bit and woke up refreshed. I don't like to eat too much before I run so today I had a 90 calorie squeeze pack of fruits and veggies, a kid size perfect bar and a banana. I was running on the road about an hour later around 9am.

My goal was to finish the 6 miles in an hour with a pace around a 10 minute mile. So happy that I accomplished my goal🏃‍♀️💪🏼 My splits varied from a 9:27 on mile 2 to a 10:28 on mile 5. I had a good start to the run and it generally felt good. After mile 3 my body was like "Hey, why aren't we stopping now?" Previous runs so far were all 3 miles. I pushed through and was running well. By mile 5 I could notice my pace was a bit slower, but the end was in sight!

Knowing my pace for this run was 9:57 and knowing I ran my half marathon with a pace of 9:28 shows me what I'm capable of and how much I'm going to grow and condition myself with these runs.

I love running along the river, it's so peaceful! I enjoy observing nature and my surroundings. The road isn't too busy with vehicle traffic, but is frequently used by cyclists, runners and walkers. I believe this brings a sense of community to all those seeking fitness in any form. People are friendly and say good morning to one another and those small interactions are so nice and supportive. Everyone encouraging each other to do their best.

In the past I would run with music, but these days I enjoy running without it. Listening to the sounds around me, the birds, the water, etc. Also it's quite meditative and you can get quite a bit of creative thinking done. Sort things in your life out...all kinda of good stuff. In this run alone I thought of at least 5 blog post titles or themes to talk about.

Very happy with today's run and ready to close out week 1 of training tomorrow with some cross training 💪🏼

4 sessions 85 more to go!

Rain rain go away...

Day 3 - the training plan called for a 3 mile run today. I was planning on attending the Bodyflow preview class at the Oviedo YMCA and figured it would be a good warm up for my run (which it was). I was also looking forward to another outdoor running session, but the weather had other plans. Luckily I was already at the gym with multiple treadmill options available!

I chose the Technogym treadmill and it felt pretty good. No incline today...I learned my lesson from yesterday lol. I ran 3 straight miles with an average pace of 8:56. I started with a 6.7 on the treadmill and was feeling good so I decided to kick it up a notch to 6.8. Big deal, right? Small wins like these feel good, especially to a data nerd like myself. 

I get focused on all the numbers...distance, pace, time left, etc. I not only count down the miles, but also tenths of miles and hundredths of miles! Every step counts!

That's a phrase I repeat to myself oftentimes while running. "Every step counts" and "One step at a time" 

Mindset is huge with running and I can only imagine what I'll be saying on my longer runs. Each completed run is a victory and today's was sweet!

3 sessions down 86 more to go!

P.S. For the first day ever I achieved my 1 gallon water goal! Drinking a gallon of water for me is harder than running 3 miles!