Happy Monday Guys! Hope everyone had a great 4th of July weekend, and got some nice running in too! I just wanted to express how incredibly special this marathon training is to me, because this will be my first marathon ever, and it’s even more special because I get to share my experience with all of you!! I am filled daily with gratitude; completing each and every run, and learning from each and every run. I read yesterday that, “You can’t force fitness. Developing it is a patient process. Know where you want to go, but accept where you’re at. Applies to all athletes.” – Mario Fraioli And I couldn’t agree more! I was mostly a 10k runner in my years after college, so going slower is a challenge for me, however this week I rocked some LSD! We are all different and adaption to training varies; longer running is definitely something I’m hoping adapts way before the marathon! :-)
Monday 6/30/14 – Mini Rest Day/Recovery Day
- 30 min YogaGlo workout
- 60 min massage
- Took a warm bath instead of a shower in hopes of relieving my tight calves from yesterday’s run.
- Then foamed rolled those puppies! :-)
Tuesday 7/1/14 – Track Intervals & Strength Session (A.M.)
Workout – 1 mile warm up & drills
- 200m (200m recovery)
- 400m (200m recovery)
- 600m (200m recovery)
- 800m (400m recovery)
- 600m (200m recovery)
- 400m (200m recovery)
- 200m (200m recovery)
- 400m (200m recovery)
- 600m (200m recovery)
- 400m (200m recovery)
- 200m (200m recovery)
All at 10K pace, 1 mile cool down
What I ended up doing:
- 1 mi run & drills warm up, 200,400,600,400,200,400,600 (200 RI) (42, 1:31, 2:23, 1:37, 47, forgot to time, 2:15), .5 mi & 1 lap walk cool down
- Drills:
- High Knees (2 x 40 yards)
- Butt Kicks (2 x 40 yards)
- Walking Lunges (2 x 20 yards)
- Strides (4 x 50 yards)
What happened?!
- Coach Johnny made a game time decision to cut the workout back a bit due to heat, and I couldn’t agree more!!
- All about EFFORT on these days NOT PACE!
Wednesday 7/2/14 – Wanted to Cross Train, but waited too long and the rain made it impossible for me to ride my bike. (Yes I am that girl – I run in the torrential rain, not bike!) SO REST DAY!
Thursday 7/3/14 – Workout: Tempo Run (1 mile warm up w/ a few strides, 2 mile tempo @ 7:02 pace, 1 mile cool down
How I felt:
- I went running with a friend in Central Park and we did the lower reservoir loop. I felt incredibly off, the heat definitely got to me.
- I wanted to do 3 mile tempo, however mentally and physically I was kaput at 2 miles.
- LESSON HERE: When it is hot out or you are trying to up the mileage on your tempo, DECREASE your speed some, so that you can hold out for the entire tempo! Pick a pace you feel on that day (especially with summer training) you could hold for 45 – 60 min in a race.
- LESSON LEARNED! I should have went out around 7:10-7:12 and tried to keep that pace instead of what my 2 mile tempo was last week.
How should a tempo feel?
- Tempo’s are considered to be a comfortable hard effort. You shouldn’t be sprinting or at race pace.
- For example: You are training for a marathon, like I am, your Tempo’s could range from 10k pace all the way up to your goal marathon race pace. The distances than vary accordingly to your pace.
- Shorter Tempo’s – generally you go quicker; Longer Tempo’s – generally go a bit slower. (You could even consider these Steady State Runs/Marathon Paced Runs)
- In all your Speed Workouts, the idea is NOT to RACE! You want to WORK HARD, but these are not the days you show yourself what you got!
Friday 7/4/14 – Recovery Run – such a gorgeous night in PA! Ran about 4.65 miles according to MapMyRun. Didn’t wear a watch and enjoyed being outside watching the sunset!
Saturday 7/5/14 – Long Cycle Ride – 21 miles along the Tow Path (Yea I’m thinking that was a little too long for me before a long run) Beautiful nonetheless!
Reason Why I Did It:
- Hid water/gatorade bottles (not open) along the path for the long run! (Yes my boyfriend and I are a bit crazy and you could say our life revolves around training a bit – but we love it!)
- We lined the path every 2 miles from Stockton and looped around Washington’s Crossing back to New Hope. (NJ & PA)
- NEVER AGAIN! Next time, we will do loops instead, because Monday is clean up day and I’m not looking forward to another long ride. (Yes, I complain sometimes lol)
- I am not a fan of holding anything, so I think I may try the camel or a fuel belt. I will let you know how that goes! :-)
Sunday 7/6/14 – Long Run – 18 miles!!
How I fueled my run?
- I set up water/gatorade points along the 18 mile route every 2 miles.
- Tested out a different fuel source – Boiled White Potatoes W/Salt
- Noshed on taters at 30 min & 60 min in. After that, the thought of eating a potato made me want to gag, so safe to say I will not be using them as a fuel source!
- I also had a banana & energy bits before my run – I should of had some other carb source to top off the tank, but I was a bad Natty! (I’ll keep you guys posted on the energy bits – I feel they are helping me with energy and recovery, but I want to be sure of it! I’ve been taking them for a little over a week.)
The Good Points
- I ran 18 miles! :-)
- I kept a slow even pace. Average Pace 8:57
The “OH this is what Marathon Training Feels like” Points
- My legs were definitely a little fatigued from the bike ride (I’m not use to going that long, and it was a constant ride on a flat loop)
- My head was ALL over the place during the run :-( I would for a few minutes get into the zone and feel steady and comfortable, and then something would knock me out of my zen like state.
- Around 12.7 miles I has some left lower abdomen pain, I thought it might be another breathing stitch; however, when I drank some water at mile 14, it went away. (Could have been related to dehydration)
- Mile 15 – Oh what fun! The canal was swollen and was running off into the river covering the trail. It was probably about 3 inches deep! My shoes/socks were soaked! My legs now felt 50lbs heavier lol I ended up stopping and wringing out my socks. Next time —-> Take off your shoes, walk across water, then no soggy feet!
- Throughout the run I drank water roughly every 2 – 4 miles, and doused myself in it too. I sipped Gatorade mostly every 2 miles. I don’t think my tummy is a fan of Gatorade, next week I will try something else.
Post Run Recovery
First Hour After Running
- I needed juice really badly again, so I had some fresh OJ & water immediately after the run.
- Watermelon (Some research says it could help with post exercise muscle soreness)
- Protein Source – Chocolate Milk (We breakdown muscle during endurance training, protein is really important to maintain muscle mass, and help with recovery.)
- Took a shower/bath. Probably not the best idea to go into a hot bath, because you could further dehydrate yourself. I was in it for probably 10 min tops. I felt the need to just relax in warm water, and for me it worked.
2 Hours After Running
- Recovery Bits
- Mung Bean Pasta (25g of protein!) & I made a yummy grass-fed meat/bison tomato sauce. (I had a pretty big bowl :-) )
- BEST BF IN THE WORLD – Rubbed my calves, shin, & feet!!
6 Hours After Running
- I had sushi for dinner (So yummy & so what I needed) We eat mostly sashimi, had some edamame, & avocado/cucumber/salmon roll.
- Totally had an ice cream cone when I got home too!! Mmmm…Moose Tracks! (Anyone is the PA area, go to None Such Farms and pick that yumminess up! So good!)
***You lose a bunch of calories during these runs, and since I definitely don’t want to lose weight, and I want to repair my body. I continue to eat throughout the whole day. I also increased my protein intake to facilitate recovery.***
Total Mileage: 31.15 miles
Also check out my 3 Part Series on Nutrition: One , Two , Three
Happy Training Guys!
***************Natalie Johnston is USATF & RRCA certified runner coach serving areas PA, NYC, & NJ.*****************
