Marathon Training, part 1

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Monday, I will be finishing up week 8 of marathon training, marking the halfway point.

I have been following this schedule pretty closely.  I made the schedule in Numbers based off of the Hal Higdon Novice 1 Marathon Plan. You may have to zoom in to get a clear look.

THE PLAN


THE REASON
Since I completed a half on October 19, I knew I could start with higher mileage. I chose the Novice 1 plan because I wasn't happy with how my runs had been going leading up to my half. I'm very happy with the decision to drop down to a 5 mile long and build from there.

HOW IT'S GOING
So far, my training runs have been great. Most have been faster than planned, and felt great.

Sure, I have missed a few runs, and strength workouts over the course of the last 8 weeks. I have also needed to move days around as our schedule required. Over all, I've put in the work. I'm looking forward to the 8 weeks ahead as my mileage continues to build and I run new distances in training and finally the marathon.

FUELING
Starting with my first 9 mile run, I tried out Generation UCAN. I am a believer. I have since ditched all other forms of fueling and use UCAN exclusively for runs over 6 miles. For those long runs, my routine includes a LaraBar and a banana an hour before I run, and then drink UCAN 30 minutes before I run. I have used UCAN as fueling at all times of the day, from early morning to later in the afternoon and have had the same results each time. (I was not paid to say this, I love UCAN, and I'm not embarrassed to tell you).

POST RUN
At the suggestion of Mandy over at Paleo Running Mom, I found a really great protein powder at Costco. If I'm not going to eat a meal pretty quickly after I run, I blend up chocolate milk, protein powder and a banana to help aid recovery. With UCAN, replenishing protein in enormous amounts isn't as necessary since it burns fat and not protein. Even with that knowledge, I still either eat or drink a protein shake pretty quickly after a run to help replenish energy burned.

CHANGES
As the midweek runs are starting to increase, I'm having a hard time getting my body up early enough to fuel and run. For the remaining 8 weeks of training, I am going to even out the 3 weekday runs, keeping each run between 4 and 6 miles, keeping the mid week runs.  This will help me run the miles early in the morning on just a LaraBar and a banana.

I'll be sharing the second half of my training plan in the next few weeks once I work out the kinks.

Photo Challenge & Update

What a busy busy fall! I'll get more into that later, but first, the reason I'm joining you again after months of silence.

I'm so excited to announce that I will be taking part in a photo challenge hosted by my friend Hannah over at The Ever Eclectic. You can check out a into to the project here. And the post of her first exercise here.

Each week, I'll post a photo as it relates to the exercises found in the book Shooting with Soul.

Stay tuned for the first exercise: "Glimpses of You" later this week. I hope you guys link up too!

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Now, I'm going to give a little catch up of the last few months. You can stop reading, if you want, I won't be offended. Or just scroll through the pictures. I do this more for me, than for you - I like going back and remembering too.

I started (and finished last week!) some classes online from a local community college. I'm working on the requirements needed to sit for the IBCLC exam.

Of course, the kids started back to school. 5th and 1st grade. How does that happen?

 

Lydia turned 2:

I ran my second half marathon. It was quite possibly the most difficult thing I've ever done, except child birth x3...That's a sore subject, so we'll leave it at that.

I registered and started training for the Myrtle Beach Marathon on February 14. Just under 9 weeks to go. Training is going great. Maybe someday soon I'll share my training schedule.

We had our first snow day!

We had a student of the month:

We had our first ever (of many!) band concert. Fifth grade band is about as good as it gets, haha!

The last few weeks have been busy with the big kids basketball schedules. Juggling 2 schedules is hard sometimes. Thankfully, we have very few games that overlap. So while I will be doing a lot of driving between now and March 1, I will get to see the majority of the games.

Five Friday Faves :)

 

 

I've taken some time- maybe too much? But I woke up this morning with a new resolve and eager to get into spring!

I'm excited to reflect on this weeks favorites with you!

1. Favorite Workout

Today! And before you ask, it was not my only workout. . .

3.14 miles for pi day :) can't be any more fun than that, right? It was a hard run. Wind+BOB=brutal. For real.

But look at this sweet face swinging after our run:

Oh, and have I mentioned she's nosy?

 

2. Favorite Article

I read this article on Finding Joy. I just need it this week. Read it. Maybe you do too.

 

3. Favorite Picture




Yeah, just hanging out eating blueberries in the middle of the kitchen floor. Love her.

 

4. Favorite Meal

I should have taken a picture. But imagine if you can: frozen waffle, scoop of plain Chobani, sliced apples, sprinkled cinnamon. Yum!

 

5. Favorite Moment

Lately, we have been trying to be diligent about having a family bible study 1-2 nights a week. Nothing makes me prouder than hearing those sweet voices recite 1 Peter 3:8. But beyond that, Noah's apology now includes, I wasn't loving as brothers. I love his tender heart.

Oh and that moment that taxes are done? Yeah love that moment too! Haha!!

 

Catching Up

Our winter has been busy. And cold. Bitter cold.

We filled our Saturday's with basketball games. And some Friday nights and Sunday afternoons. We have one last hurrah tomorrow night at the bowling alley with Noah's team. I sure will miss it, but am also looking forward to a free Saturday :)

I've certainly loved the nice weather the last few days. Lydia and I have been able to get out yesterday for a run and then today we took a walk and played on the playground. She giggled the entire time.

Chad had a meeting tonight, so after homework, we went to the basketball hoops to get some more sunshine:

(and then after dinner, we went for ice cream, shhhh... don't tell Chad :)

*****
Chad did a little DIY last week.
We started with this:

And ended up with this:

























Isn't it great?
Yes. Now I can delete my "House: Foyer" Pinterest board!

And our new "jumbo" coffee mugs:

oh wait? Swanky coffee shop? Nope! :)

And then these 3 :)














****

What have you guys been up to?

Friday Faves: Valentine's Day Edition <3

 

Happy Valentine's Day, friends! I hope you all were spoiled by your loves :)

1. Favorite Workout

I'm going to have to say yesterday's run. Not because it was a great run by any means, but because it was outside. I needed the sunshine. A glorious 2 miles with my littlest girl.

I also want to try this full body workout by Be Mom Strong:

2. Favorite Article

As a new Costco member, I found this article about real deals on real food. I mean, I did some price checking on some of the items we buy often and on our very favorite pasta sauce (that we use for pasta, lasagna, pizza, anything with a red sauce) and based on the rate we use a jar, we would make our money back for the year from the savings on the sauce alone. I was excited to find more things that we use that will be cheaper!

3. Favorite Picture

Chad came home from work (after sitting in snow traffic for over an hour) and surprised me with this delish treat (which I'm sure he waited at least 30 minutes during his lunch). He even made me latté. He spoils me.

4. Favorite Meal

I didn't actually drink this as a meal, but with a salad. But, I love my Bullet (fantastic Costco find, their set even had the extra large cup with the flip top lid). Happy V-Day to me (from hubby of course ;)

 

5. Favorite Moment

This week has been pretty low key, and well boring. The kids had today off school, so Noah was off at a friends for a sleep over- so we had a girls day (morning). I'm pretty sure Madison had the best day ever, how do I know? Oh, she only said it like 40 thousand times. And we didn't do anything earth shattering- a trip to Michael's to spend a gift card she had, wondering around Target and Marshall's until we went to pick up. Noah. But I think she was happy to see him back with us, but she would never admit it.

*****

What are you favorites from this week?

What do you have planned for the weekend? More basketball for us!

 

10 miles on a treadmill makes you want to sleep

A lot. I have gone to bed early (for me) the last 3 nights. Like, oh, the kids are in bed, let's go to bed! So, I haven't had a chance to recap Monday's 10 miles on the treadmill.

CONFESSION: it wasn't horrible.

Truth: it went NOTHING like I expected, no matter how prepared I was. Check out Sunday's post to see how I got ready.

I got up at the normal time (7am), got the kids up and ready for school. After they left, I woke up a little while eating my breakfast: oatmeal (with a little butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon), banana, and a Chad-made latté (he spoils me).

Around 9, I got my running clothes on- skirt and tank. I gathered up my iPad, iPhone, headphones, running shoes, 3 Gatorade chews, and water bottle.

The gym was CROWDED. I wanted a treadmill in the back, but I didn't want to run beside someone else, so I went with this guy on the 3rd row.

 

Remember this?

Haha! Yeah, it completely went out the window within the first .25 miles.

The warm up of 5.8mph in the heat and humidity was pushing it for me. After that first quarter mile, I turned it down to 5.0mph.

From the best I remember, this is how it really went:

I refilled my water bottle more than I ever imagined, I'm going to bring another one next time. I was so thirsty. And sweating sooooo much. Gross.

 

I didn't expect to eat the 3rd chew, but I'm so glad I thought to bring an extra.

I did wear my heartrate monitor. Super cool random fact: the awesome hrm my awesome husband gifted me for my 30th linked to the treadmill at the gym. I was totally surprised. My heart rate stayed higher than what I intended, mid-160s to low-170s (83-86% of my personal max), but I went with it- after I threw the plan out the window and slowed down, I wasn't out of breath.

I ended up only watching TV. I watched 4 episodes of My First House on HGTV. I tried to read, but I think my glasses bouncing made the words bouncy.

The run, even though slower than I wanted, was good. I walked away feeling good about finishing. And I felt like I was going to explode from all the water I drank! Pretty sure 2 more minutes and I would have!

*****

Until today, I had some pain in my knee (rushing against the pause timer and turned the corner too quick when refilling my water bottle), so I stayed off the road/treadmill until today. I only had time for 2 miles, but was glad to get those mile in outside with Lydia riding along in the BOB. It wasn't a great run- but the sunshine alone was a mood booster. I am so looking forward to getting back to running outside again all the time.

*****

How were your workouts this week?

Anyone running long this weekend? 10 more miles on Monday, venue yet to be determined.

 

Tomorrow's big endeavor!

Tomorrow, I'm planning 10 miles on the treadmill.

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I'm not especially excited about almost 2 hours of going nowhere. But, I think it's the best and safest way to knock out my planned training run. The bike trail is snow and ice covered from all the snow that fell this week, and dangerous without proper footwear. The road has huge piles of snow on both sides, so there would be no place for me to go if I have a car behind me and an oncoming car. Not to mention the probable ice close to the edge.

I plan to go after I eat my hearty breakfast of oatmeal and coffee. So I can be back for lunch. I have a date :)

I am not going to push it at all. Keep it slow and easy. I think I'll wear my heart rate monitor too, so I can make sure I'm keeping my heartrate down for the majority of the run.

I don't usually take water on my runs, but with the extra heat and humidity in the gym, I am going to take a water bottle and refill it as needed- there is a water fountain right in the treadmill area with a neato water bottle filler upper thing. I'll probably need to refill at least at the half way mark, if not more, especially during the last 5 miles

I will also take along my Gatorade chews along for after miles 4 and 8, and an extra incase I need to eat the others sooner. I'm not used to the conditions- when I trained for the my last half none of my long runs (6+ miles) were in heat. And really, last summer was extremely mild, so I can only count a handful of runs that were super comfortable hot.

Now, how am I going to keep from going crazy for 10 miles? I have a few things in mind: I'm going to take a few minutes and find a good channel on the TV (Food Network, HGTV, DIY network or something), tonight I'm going to find a book to download onto my iPad (suggestions welcome), and music on my phone.

I also am going to use the plan below to mix up my speeds and inclines to keep it interesting but also to be sure to keep it easy.

Of course, I reserve the right to deviate from said plan :) But it should keep it slow and easy except mile 8, and hopefully that isn't too much of a stretch either.

Should be fun! I'll try to check in tomorrow evening to let you know how it goes.

*****

What's your longest treadmill run?

Anyone want to meet me at the gym to run beside me? Please?

 

Friday Favorites: week 6

 

I've been feeling pretty blah about the week. The weather has gotten the best of me, I've been slacking on my workouts, and it's just been a crazy busy week in general. I really needed this post this week :)

1. Favorite Workout

I have to say Monday's 9 miles. Even though I dodged snow and ice for a lot of the way, it was a good strong run. I'm very happy with it! And I am looking forward to my 10 mile run on Monday.

2. Favorite Article

Did you see the article about the Pittsburgh Steeler who just completed his first marathon? Since retiring in 2011, Alan Faneca dropped over 100 pounds and ran his first marathon and under 4 hours! Such a neat story! Plus, it's about a Steeler, which we know is always a plus at our house :)

 

3. Favorite Picture

A neat little heart in my fantastical hubby made latte.

 

4. Favorite Meal

A cookie counts right? I think every night this week we ate quick on the run, poor Chad probably ate more fast food than anyone should. Hopefully we can get back on our schedule next week. Or at least eat dinner all together as a family.

5. Favorite Moment

That moment when I called Chad defeated. The last straw was the crock pot wasn't cooking the chicken. And without taking even taking a breath, he said, "I'll pick up Chipotle, don't worry honey". Despite everything, I smiled. Love that man <3

 

Running for Beginners

 

Nothing makes me happier than people asking me about running. It doesn't happen much, but I enjoy talking about it when I get the chance :) what runner doesn't?!

If you're just starting to run, or wanting to start, here are a few tips that I have that might help you out.

1- it's going to hurt! I mean, let's be honest, no matter how slow you start. No matter how many walk breaks you take, your legs are going to be slightly sore. You are using muscles that haven't been used before. At first, I would suggest to not run more often than every other day, this will help you learn the difference in sore muscles and when you should take some extra time off to prevent an injury. Listen to your body! Anything that's worth it is going to hurt.

 

2- get fitted for shoes. Really. Do it. I didn't know how important this was until I already had shoes and realized that mine were going to be fine for the short term. But for my second pair, my beloved Brooks Pure Cadence 2s, I was fitted and fell in love instantly.

3- dress as if it is 20 degrees warmer than it actually is. During the summer, this isn't a big deal for me, but I have trouble with the 30s and low 40s. I mean, its cold when I get started, but a few miles in, I'm roasting. I usually wear layers knowing I can shed them if need be.

4- find something to keep your mind occupied. A lot of people like to listen to music. Some people like the quiet. Some people like to listen to books. I personally like music, but it has to be upbeat or I'm bored. Just find what works for you.

5- take your phone. Even if you don't use it to track your miles and pace or to listen to your music. Bring it along incase you have an emergency.

6- rest days are important. Rest days are when you get stronger. They help reduce your risk of injury. They also help you to mentally reset: sleep in if you're a morning runner, relax with a cup of coffee if you're a night runner, enjoy lunch with a friend if you're a noon runner. You can also treat your rest days as active rest days and do cross training and/or strength training.

7- don't eat back all the calories you just burned. This is especially true if you are trying to lose weight. Your 3-5 mile runs shouldn't make you any more hungry than you would be otherwise. Stay hydrated- many people mistake thirst for hunger, so try that first. I didn't really tell a difference until I hit about 10 or more miles, but anything over 7 or 8 miles, I try to stay fueled throughout my run.

8- just get out there. Don't worry about what others think. Don't worry about being fast. Run for you and your health.

 

 

*****

What tips do you have for beginning runners?

 

9 miles in snow and ice

It seems like we have been going nonstop since after school Friday. But I'll spare you the boring details of my life.


*****

Yesterday, I ran a 9 mile training run. In this:

 

Ok, probably only 40% of my run was dodging snow and ice. I thought it was crazy, actually, the trail was either completely clear- as if it hadn't snowed in this decade, or like the picture- like it snowed yesterday and not 60 degrees over the weekend.

It was a great run, a little slower than I wanted to go, but I also didn't want to come home with a broken leg. I was pleasantly surprised that my last mile was actually my fastest mile.

According to Runkeeper, the last time I ran 9 miles was August 26th. It took me 1:37:49, average of 10:52 minutes per mile. I carved almost 5 minutes off of 9 miles. In snow and ice, I'm happy with the progress!

I was sore later in the evening and still pretty sore today. I suppose the lack of miles over the last few weeks is catching up with me. Hopefully this crazy weather will break soon so I can get some more runs in throughout the week, just strength and core aren't cutting it.

Winter is almost over, right?! (Insert a probable snow day for tomorrow)...

*****

How was your training run this week?

 

Post Workout Smoothie

I have put together the most delicious post workout smoothie. I could drink it all day long. And I'm going to share it with you.

This:

 

Turns into this:

 

The recipe:

 

You can sub any frozen berries for the blueberries. I tried it with mixed berries tonight and it was so yummy!

You could cut your banana in half if you prefer, or if you have a toddler that loves bananas. I liked it with the whole banana better, sweeter and creamier than just half.

You could use a frozen banana and skip the ice cubes.

I used a carton Chobani Plain Greek yogurt. I know different brands have different flavors. I just prefer Chobani. You could also use a flavored yogurt to make it even sweeter. The pomegranate juice can give it a tart flavor if your berries aren't sweet enough. I would stick to a berry flavored or honey flavored yogurt if you're going that route. I haven't tried it with anything except plain at this point so I can't comment any further :)

Even this sweet girl liked it:

 

*****

Now, what makes it perfect for after a workout?

The Greek yogurt and banana will help to quickly replenish your energy. Your pomegranate juice, berries and spinach will help with muscle soreness, and help speed up recovery.

*****

What's your favorite post workout snack?

 

 

Sick? Workout or Don't Workout? That is the Question

I woke up this morning with the start of a head cold. I have been all stuffed up and nose drippy and miserable all day long. I couldn't even smell the tomatoes and garlic roasting in the oven tonight. Not even fair.

Since I'm still pretty new at this running and working out community and I'm rarely sick, I still get a little uneasy about working out or running when I am sick. Kind of the cross between I don't really feel like working out, and knowing that when I don't want to, that's when I really should.

I found this really great article on Runner's World that really spelled out about running or working out when you're sick. I think it's really important to listen to your body.

If it wasn't like freezing cold and crazy windy, I probably wouldn't have run today anyway because of my dripping nose. It would have driven me crazy. But that is just personal preference. Just stuffed up, maybe.

So what did I do?

After my brief hiatus (oh, the beach plus some days) from my Squat, Crunch, and Plank Challenge, I picked up where I left off: week 2, Friday. The squats were pretty easy to complete, the crunches are definitely going to hurt tomorrow, and the 1:40 plank was brutal.

In case you've forgotten:

 

After that, I wanted to do something else, and found this pyramid arm workout by Be Mom Strong.

My arms are going to be a little sore in the morning, maybe even a lot sore, but I can not wait to get some heavier dumbbells for a really great burn.

My first workout in a week was short, but great.

Hopefully, I'll be feeling better tomorrow and I can get the kids (since they are off school because of the extreme cold) to join in a little cardio and yoga.

****

What's your rule of thumb when it comes to running or working out when your sick?

How's the weather where you are? Freezing cold is putting it lightly.

 

Friday Favorites: week 4

 

I'm feeling pretty bad that I haven't checked in too much this week. But the week kinda escaped from me. And I was tired.

1. Favorite Workout

The 3 miles I ran on the beach for megsmiles. I ran hard, the sun overhead, windy ocean inches away, sand underfoot.

Truth time: this run, and then the 7 miles I ran Monday is all I have exercised this week. Yeah, workout fail for this mama.

Returning to our regularly scheduled challenge Sunday. I can't ruin the streak now can I?!

2. Favorite Article

This article about digital photo storage and organization was a great one this week. My favorite word: DELETE! The designated print folder in each months folder is great too. I've bookmarked this and need to get my photos organized. ASAP. And I think Sara's ideas are brilliant.

3. Favorite Picture

I had a lot of pictures I could have chosen from our weekend adventure. But this one just warms my heart.

 

4. Favorite Meal

Again, I could have picked our free lunch at the hotel restaurant. I mean what's better than free lunch?

Or vaca date night. And it was good (and great alone time with hubby), the salmon was good, but mine is just as good.

I think for this week, Wednesday nights dinner of classic spaghetti and garlic bread. The homemade garlic bread was a hit.

 

5. Favorite Moment

I hate to sound like a broken record, but again (I know AGAIN), I could have picked a whole slew of moments from the beach.

But last night, after getting home from Noah's basketball practice and getting Lydia and Noah in tub and then in bed, I had 30 minutes of pure quiet before Chad and Madison got back from her practice. What did I do with these moments? NOTHING! Shhhhh, don't tell my hubby :)

*****

What are your favorites for the week?

 

Winter Beach Vaca

We had a great extended weekend. At the beach. I have never been happier to see sandy beaches and clear sunny skies! Especially since it was like 11 degrees when we left Ohio.

And this beautiful sunset:

 

I was lucky enough to be able to get a few minutes away to run a couple times. On the beach. Without a coat. Or gloves. Or a hat.

Saturday afternoon, I ran 3 miles for Meg.

 

It warmed my heart in the final half mile to see someone else had written #megsmiles in the sand.

Monday morning, I ran 7.3 miles for my half marathon training run. Probably the hardest run in a long time.

*****

Let me tell you a few secrets about running on the beach:

1. Time matters: Saturday, I started out about 2:15pm, the tide was way, way down. I had a ton of packed sand to run on the entire way. Monday, I started about 7:15. The tide was up, but there was still plenty of packed sand to run on. It was softer than Saturday's sand, so a little more work, but that's okay right? Just makes you stronger :) what I didn't consider was it would continue to creep up on me my entire run and I would run entirely out of packed sand before my planned miles were completed. I'll definitely pay more attention to the tide charts next time.

2. It is windy. Like, so windy, you ask yourself, am I even going forward?

3. It. Is. Awesome! I'm so grateful that I was able to run on the beach, and would do it again in a heartbeat. Tomorrow? Yes, please! In fact I thought running on the beach was so awesome, I'm considering the MB marathon next year. Say wha?!

*****

 

Friday Favorites: week 3

 

It's been a seemingly busy week, yet when I look back I can't think of what we actually did. I do know there was a lot of coffee consumed.

1. Favorite Workout

I have to say it was my first training run for my next half marathon. 10k in 59:10. I originally planned 6, but decided to go the extra .2 to see if I could run it in under an hour. I've been chasing a sub-60 10k since my first 10k back in August, and check it- I ran it in a training run like it was no big thang.

2. Favorite Article

Why Runner's Need to Strength Train. I think the items listed are things we all know, but need to be reminded of from time to time.

3. Favorite Picture

I'm digging the closet this week. It makes me happy every time!

4. Favorite Meal

Wednesday night's dinner. I threw together "healthy" grilled cheese (no butter, olive oil spray in the skillet). I loaded mine up- avocado mashed up and slathered on like mayo, a slice of turkey, red pepper, spinach, and bacon. Does "healthy" go entirely out the window at them mention if bacon? It was so yummy!

5. Favorite Moment

Thursday morning. Waking up to the realization that I'm going to beach tomorrow helped me get through yesterday and today with smiles :)

Now I get all that last minute stuff ready so we can get out the door on time! And keep the kiddos quiet so Chad can get some sleep.

*****

What are your 5 favorites for the week?

 

#MegsMiles

Let's take a moment to talk about the death of Meg Menzies. Oh, you didn't know her? Me either. She was a wife, mother of 3, avid runner.

I have struggled the last two days with what to say, not wanting to gloss over it, or (worse yet) pretend that this tragedy didn't happen. Nothing I can say will ease the pain her family feels.

Facebook

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You can read about her tragic death here.

From the moment I heard the news (here), it cut straight to my heart. Of course, my heart was broken for her 3 young children and her loving husband. But also, selfishly, I began thinking of my own 3 young children and how their lives would change without me to guide them. I hugged them all a little closer and a little tighter that day. I pray for Meg's family to find comfort in The Lord.

If you are planning on running or if you have the chance to run or walk on Saturday, I would urge you to consider taking part in #MegsMiles (Facebook event here). Take a mile or two to run in silence to remember the importance of running safety. Think of Meg and her grieving family. Hug your little ones close after your run. Be sure to snap a pic and post it to Facebook or Twitter using the hashtag #megsmiles.

The last time I checked, over 58,000 runners have joined in the virtual run. Way to go running community!