Marathon Training Recap Week 6 and 12 Days of Fitmas-Day 9 and 10

I wrote my Runner’s World Running Streak Re-cap on Thursday’s blog link-up so I’ll spare you the redundancy; but, I will update you on Thursday night, Friday and today’s run.

Thursday I had 6 miles on my calendar. Typically, I do these on the treadmill late in the evening. I had had such an awful week up to that point that all I was waiting for was the drum of the garage door opening signaling my husband’s arrival. I wanted to just hand the kids over and go for a run.

Which was exactly what I did.

And, instead of going to the gym to run, I told him I was running our usual 6 mile neighborhood route in hopes that running in the fresh air would help lift my spirits. I don’t know if it was because of the week I had been having, fatigue from running every day, or just fatigue from everything! but the entire run was h-o-r-r-i-b-l-e. Right from the beginning I felt my legs like sandbags, my hips flared, my shins ached–my body was just not having it. It was also dark out at barely 5:45 p.m., it was cold (for Arizona), and it was windy. Everything was off. I trudged through that run wanting it to be over and was so frustrated at what I hoped would make my day better only ended up making it worse.

We have those days….

Friday is typically my rest day. I had my MRI results appointment in the afternoon and headed over with grim expectations. Luckily, there was actually a ray of light at what had been a bummer week up to that point. The doctor said my leg had a stress reaction which is the precursor to a stress fracture. Not something to take lightly, but not serious enough to put me on the bench. He recommended I decrease my mileage and stay off my feet as much as possible (ja!).Beside the not possible latter, I was so happy that I would still be able to continue my training! He also suggested I keep my decreased mileage up until my ½ marathon mid-January and then re-evaluate if I could return to normal training for my marathon in March. All in all, a good visit with good results. (I didn’t tell him I was streaking; I think he would have taken my running shoes from me.)

Friday night I had a holiday party the leader of my run club was hosting. Since it was a runner’s party, it was only appropriate a run was involved. We did an almost 4 mile run around the neighborhood to look at the decorated houses : )

jinglebellrun

This morning, Saturday, I had my long run with 10 miles on the calendar. I was little apprehensive as I had ran 6 and the almost 4 in consecutive days but told myself to take these 10 easy. And I did. Reeeeally easy. I ended up running them at an 11:20/min pace but wasn’t hard on myself at all; I mean, I totaled almost 20 miles in 3 days! (My doctor would’ve freaked!)

It was a super long and stressful week with a lot of running—every day except for Tuesday I ran at least 3 miles. I’m looking forward to the holidays and turning a running day into a cross-training day and seeing how that goes.

Total Week’s Mileage: 31 Miles

–How was your running week?

–Have you had not-so-good runs before?

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12 Days of Fitmas-Day 9 and 10

RUNNERS, WORK YOUR HIPS AND GLUTES

I learned this the hard way. My very first half marathon was 4 years ago. I was on the wedding diet and had no idea what I was doing as far as “training” for a race. In fact, I didn’t train. I basically ran here and there when I could but had no plan, no goal, no clue.

I was doing fine up to mile 6 when whoa! holy hip flexor pain! My hip flared up so bad I limped my way to the finish line practically in tears. I wanted no part of any post-race festivities or any post-race photos. I wanted drugs and my bed.

Fast forward to now and when I first told my trainer at my gym about my shin problems a few months ago, the first thing out of his mouth was, “Have you been working out your hips and glutes?” Uh, no. Since then, I’ve been doing a few videos, from Blogilates of course, that focus on hips and glutes to help strengthen them. It’s pretty crazy what a difference I feel it has made in my running. With the exception of my shitty run on Thursday, I haven’t had any hip flares. I was nervous with Saturday’s 10 mile run but nope, nada.

It’s another one of those things that people tend to overlook and something I’ve learned along the way. You really can’t just get up and run (well some people can but they’re few and far in between). A strong core, hips, and glutes are key to running pain free.

–Have you had your hip flare during a run?

12 Days of Fitmas-Day 8: Do A Little Research

On the 8th Day of Fitmas…

DO A LITTLE RESEARCH

I want to preface this post and really the 12 Days of Fitmas, by saying I am by no means a health/fitness professional. All of this is stuff I’ve learned and stuff that has worked or not worked for me.

That being said, when I became serious about running and getting fit, I did some research. A big misconception about running is that you just get up and go. But wait! There are few things I recommend you do a little research on before you get started:

  1. Get your feet looked at. I don’t mean by a doctor although you could do that too. I mean, head to your local running store and get fitted for the right type of shoe for your feet and running style. A lot of injuries stem from not wearing the right shoe and all of that can be prevented if you go and get the right ones. This is the first piece of advice I give to people who want to start running.
  2. As the weather gets cooler, research clothing appropriate for your area’s weather conditions. There’s a lot of gear involved in running that most people don’t realize lol!
  3. When looking for race to run, do a quick search for coupons and/or deals. A lot of times you get a percentage off and race prices can go up after certain deadlines.
  4. Before your race, familiarize yourself with the course, where water/food stations are located, the weather conditions for the day, and where your loved ones can meet you at the finish line.
  5. When you think you have an injury, limit your google researching. Dr. Google can give you a direction of what it might be, but it won’t officially diagnose you.
  6. Look up websites where you can map out your runs before you head out. I like mapmyrun.com but there are others. I personally like having a route before I head out.
  7. Before you invest in a GPS watch, do some research of different ones to make sure you get one that does what you want. I wanted something basic so anything that told me my heart rate I eliminated from my search.
  8. When trying food to eat while you run, make sure you try out different kinds before you commit to one for a race. Do a little research on the kinds of refueling you want.

    There’s quite a few things that could be added to the list, but I want to know from you:

What are some things you did research on before you made a purchase?

What are other things you’d recommend a new runner research?

Helly and Salt Are Still Streaking and 12 Days of Fitmas-Day 7

streak

Still streaking and still smiling!

It’s crazy that there’s only 13 days left of this!

Here’s what the last week looked like:

December 12: This was a treadmill tempo run and 6 pretty decent miles were produced. (I have another secret goal that involves a secret pace—more on this later)

December 13: I left this at a chill streak mile at my secret pace.

December 14: Day before my last race of the year. I typically do a long run on Saturdays but I left it to my husband, who ran 8 miles, and ran a streak mile.

December 15: RACE DAY! Hopefully, you read my re-cap because I was ecstatic with the way I ended my short racing year. 5K PR=WIN!!

December 16: It was this girl’s birthday so I treated myself to a streak mile in my new jogging stroller!

December 17: Hill day! I do my hill intervals on the treadmill and pulled out 4 miles. I noticed that hilly miles tend to go faster than regular treadmill miles lol!

December 18: Christmas at the track! 3 miles of speed work J

December 19: I have 6 treadmill miles on my schedule for tonight…

Total mileage—24 miles

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12 Days of Fitmas-Day 7

On the 7 th day of Fitmas….

GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE

I’ve mentioned before that one of the best decisions I’ve ever made was joining my gym’s run club. I’ve met so many awesome people and feel like I’m a part of something really amazing. It took me a long time to get the courage to do it, but I’m so glad I did. Sometimes I think of how my training would be different had I not made that decision. I’m not sure if I’d be as successful as I have been. That’s the truth.

I’ve gotten out of my comfort zone quite a bit these past few months. First, I started a blog. I was definitely a little apprehensive about it in the beginning but I knew I wanted an outlet for my training and the teacher in me wanted to help inspire others. So far, I have zero regrets.

If you look to the right, there’s quite a few things there. I started an Instagram and Facebook page for my blog. You bet I was nervous about that. Becoming so public with my life was not something I thought I’d ever do but, again, I want to share my journey and I’m becoming okay with it being to a bigger audience.

A funny way I’ve gotten out of my comfort zone is that during my two-week hiatus to rest my shins, I tried the stairclimber. I had absolutely no idea how that machine worked and it was exactly how I imagined my first time attempting it would be. Yep, that thing started going so fast I flew off of it. I flew off the machine!! Yes, people stared. Yes, people chuckled. But I got back on it and figured it out. For the longest time I had seen people use it and always wondered what it was like. Now, I think it’s an awesome, intense workout. I would’ve never known had I not at least given it a shot.

After my first pregnancy in 2012, I was looking to get back into shape and my friend invited me to hot yoga. I had never done hot yoga before and imagined a hot, smelly, stuffy room with sweaty people. I said yes and off I went. It was nothing like I thought. It was hot but it was not unbearable. It was most definitely not smelly. There were sweaty people but they looked awesome in the poses they were doing. I left that first session hooked. I felt so relaxed and like I had gotten more than just a workout. I had. I very highly recommend you try yoga if you haven’t.

It’s easy to stick with what’s comfortable. You’re used to doing things a certain way; you like routine. That’s okay, but, getting out of your comfort zone every once in a while let’s you have fun with your fitness. And if things do go awry, at least you have a funny story to share later on : )

Click here to link up with Helly & Salt!


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