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Life Is About Balance: Half Marathon Training Week 3

On Sunday, I had the great pleasure to do my long run along side Elisabeth, a good friend of ours who is training for her first half marathon, The National Half in DC this March. While I won’t be down in DC with her the weekend of her half due to my half in NYC that weekend, it has been a blast to get her excited for the race.

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It works out wonderfully that our half marathons happen to be the same weekend as it allows us to do our long runs together since our training plans are similar, at least in regards to weekend mileage.

During our run Liz asked me tons of questions that are normal for someone running their first half marathon. One of the best discussions we had during the run had to do with her upcoming tropical vacation to Hawaii. Like any person who is trying to follow their training plan, a vacation can cause lots of unnecessary stress. She was worried that she’d fall behind in the training plan and return not prepared for her race which at that point will be less than a month away.

My coaching to her was the same coaching and self pep-talk I’ve given to myself over the past few weeks as my training plan has been a difficult one to manage and navigate due to constant travel.

“Focus on activity while you’re traveling versus your normal training run and do your best to front load your training the week you’re leaving for vacation.”

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that every business trip or vacation means it’s time to abandon your training plan. Sometimes it’s even easier to stick to a training plan when away from home because you may have a more flexible schedule or easier access to a treadmill, gym, or scenic running path.

However, when traveling to somewhere like Hawaii where there are many hills, humidity, narrow roads, and so many other activities to enjoy such as hiking to the top of volcanoes, surfing, and paddle boarding those type of things make sense to take priority. It took me a while to learn this lesson but even when training for a half marathon or marathon the #1 priority is to make sure you’re enjoying life and enjoying the process. If a training plan ever causes more stress than good it’s rare that you’ll stick with the plan and succeed.

Life is about balance. 

Therefore, my training plan this week is also a bit altered in anticipation of my week long trip to Geneva, Switzerland beginning Thursday.

Sunday: 8 miles with Liz

Monday: Barry’s Bootcamp at 5am (arms and abs)

Tuesday: Barry’s Bootcamp at 5am (legs and shoulders)

Wednesday: 5 miles outside

Thursday: 8-9 mile early morning long run (anyone care to join me?)

Friday: rest day

Saturday: Skiing and attempting not to die in the Alps

Sunday: Skiing and attempting not to die part 2 in the Alps

So while my schedule is a bit front loaded, I was able to squeeze in 2 hard workouts at Barry’s before our National Sales Meeting began today and feel better about both my emotional and physical state this week.

Life is all about being flexible and balancing the things we need to do and want to do.

How about you? Do you take a similar approach when traveling?

 

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NYC Half Marathon Training Week 1

The good news is, I survived last week both from a physical and professional stand point. It was my first true week of half marathon training. I’m a little late to start but better late than never, right? In addition, the fact that I was able to log each of my workouts while still balancing the busiest week of work I’ve experienced gives me hope.

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Last week’s workouts were as follows:

Monday: 4 miles on the treadmill

Tuesday: Personal training session (read more about the break up decision here)

Wednesday: Barry’s Bootcamp 

Thursday & Friday: accidental rest days

Saturday: 6 miles on the treadmill at a 1.0 incline and half marathon pace

Sunday: 4 mile run to brunch with Theodora 

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Even though I had one more rest day than originally planned, I still logged quality workouts which left me feeling strong and back on track from a training stand point. After all, I have a half marathon on March 17th in which I’m trying to PR. While I know that I feel like I’m in the best shape ever, I am still wary of failure.

But, I think that my run coach, Gia’s plan and suggestions for the next few weeks will get me back to a place of confidence. The key to my running over the next seven weeks is to ensure that I get back outside and into the park for the majority of my runs. It’ll be tough considering the elements and my upcoming travel to Geneva and a tropical location for Theodora’s birthday, but I have to remember that every outdoor run will make March 17th easier. Luckily, I have people like Ashley B and Jess who inspire me to get back outside on a daily basis through their fun pictures! (picture via Jess)

New Year's Eve Run

This week’s schedule includes a 4 mile run in Central Park and 8 miles outside in the cold on Saturday! In addition, for your enjoyment, this week’s training schedule also comes with a theme song.

Scream & Shout (feat Brittney Spears) – will.i.am

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My Mantra: Believe

Over the past year or so, the Marathons+Moderation guest posts have ranged from stories of first marathons, getting faster, still finding time to drink and party while training, to stories of overcoming defeat. Maybe it’s because Leticia and I shared this year’s training season together or because I followed her journey this summer but this story reminds me why I love this series. Some people think it’s time to let the series die while others comment each week, loving the new stories. While I don’t know that stories will necessarily come each week it’s fresh perspectives such as Leticia’s that remind me why I love training for 26.2 miles every summer. The feeling of accomplishment at the end is like nothing else and all it requires is belief in yourself and dedication to the hard, sweat filled runs.
Believe:
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Three years ago if you would have told me that today I’d be writing a post talking about what I experienced in marathon training I would have told you, you were absolutely nuts. Almost three years ago to the date I ran my first mile on the treadmill. I think it was about a 13 minute mile but I did it! I remember the feeling of absolute excitement that I could actually do this! I had done it, I had run one mile without stopping. You see in October of 2009 I decided I was tired of being overweight, unhappy, and unmotivated. I got a hold of my life, lost 100lbs, and had a lot of fun in the process! You can read my story here.
After running a half marathon in the Fall of 2011, I went out and watched the NYC Marathon that November. I vividly remember how amazing it was to see thousands of runners on 1st Avenue. I was more encouraged that day than ever before. I knew that a year later I wanted to be in that marathon. I wanted to run those streets. I wanted to feel that level of excitement and run 26.2 miles. I started training for the 2012 NYC Marathon at the end of July, following a summer of painful injuries. I knew that I had come a very long way. Therefore my mantra for my marathon would simply be one word: believe. I took that saying and literally ran with it. I knew that if I didn’t believe I could do this I wouldn’t actually cross the finish line.
In the aftermath of Sandy, you know that the NYC Marathon was canceled. It was a huge disappointment after 16 weeks of training, but even in the chaos of what that news brought I knew that I would still run a marathon. Enter, the Richmond Marathon. Luckily, I had 10 other girls who gladly accepted the challenge to tackle Richmond and not waste the training we had done for the previous four months.
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I am a huge believer in that things don’t happen by coincidence. I know without a doubt that Richmond was supposed to be my first marathon. It was a fantastic race that I got to share with dear friends of mine that I’ve made through the amazing running community in NYC. I crossed the finish line in 4 hours 39 minutes and 15 seconds. I worked for every second of that marathon and I am proud to say that I am forever a finisher.
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If I could give you three things I learned to believe in through this process they are these:
1. Believe in yourself- Believe that you can do this. Believe that you are stronger than you think. Believe that your body is an amazing gift to have and it can be pushed to extreme limits. It’s going to get hard. It’s going to get tiring, but don’t stop believing!
2. Trust your training- I followed my training to a tee. I didn’t make excuses. I didn’t slack off. I put in the work. I believed that a good training cycle would lead me to my goal time and finish without an injury and it did!
3. Have others believe in you- Surround yourself with people who lift you up when the going gets tough (it will). I had a coach, roommates, and friends who believed in me every single day. I had friends who flooded my inbox with support, advice, tips, and love. This aspect is so important!
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Thanks for taking the time to read a little bit about my marathon experience! I still baffles me that I accomplished this after running one mile three years ago. I have come a very long way to say the least. Marathon day was one of the best days of my entire life. For a full recap of Richmond see here.
“It’s a marathon. If it were easy, everyone would do it.”
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