I am slowly feeling like things are getting back to normal after traveling. Does anyone else feel completely out of whack even after only being gone for a long weekend?
This weekend really inspired me. Of course, I was motivated pre-Boston but the race gave me a push that I think I needed. There has been a lot of self doubt still playing in the back of my mind.
The truth is I never really thought I could get healthy. I felt like I was going to be that injury plagued runner for the rest of my life. A little dramatic, yes but it was holding me back.
I CAN be injury free I just have to make the commitment to do the things that will get me there. No more excuses, no more half ass attempts at it, it has to be a no nonsense approach.
So where do I go from here?
I’ve decided to run a marathon in October 2014. There are no exacts decided yet simply because I am waiting to see what happens once we move. We won’t be able to travel quite as much so it will probably something more local.
There will be smaller races before that in preparation, but the first marathon I will run will be in October – November.
Right now I am going to go for the goal of Boston Qualifying. Yes, I know it’s a BIG goal. In some ways I am OK if I don’t make it the first time but after talking with several others I realized as long as I am taking all the proper precautions to stay healthy then I should go big.
I honestly don’t know if I will succeed, but I know I need to try.
What is my plan?
First thing I have to focus on strengthening 3 main areas:
- My hips
- My core
- Back
I have to get some correction to my increased lumbar lordosis. I’ve been working on it over the past several weeks but still have some work to do on it.
I am working on creating a plan of something to do every single day to make sure I am strengthening these areas. Healthy running starts with a healthy body. If I don’t address these issues then running healthy will be next to impossible.
In terms of the running itself the next 12 weeks will take a new focus. I am going to be using a 10k training plan. The main reason I will be doing this is to focus on getting faster.
Using a 10k training plan will allow me to keep my mileage under control while working on speed and focusing on increasing my leg turnover.
After the 12 weeks are over I would be right around 18 weeks out from the marathon. At that point I will begin a marathon training plan. The speed will hopefully be there at that point, and then I would work on spreading that speed out for longer distances.
On top of the strength work and new running plan my final focus is diet. I’m not doing some crazy change or anything but the focus will be whole, health and plant based foods. As much as I can.
The key is making sure I am getting enough to fuel my workouts, keep me healthy and get the vitamins and minerals I need each and every day.
My plan isn’t anything drastic or out of this world, but it is a re-focus. I’m happy to set a goal race time and work on getting there. I have others who believe me and that really makes a big difference!
I plan on sharing my exact running plan (for the 10k and marathon) as soon as I figure it out, but there are still a few kinks to work out.
Don’t forget this is the last day enter my Crazy Compression giveaway! I will draw a winner tomorrow and announce it in Saturday morning’s post.
What is the next race you have planned?.
That’s awesome that you are going for a BQ! That’s great that you have a well-thought out plan, know the areas you need to focus on, and then follow through to reach your goals. I wish you the best of luck, and look forward to following your progress to the October marathon 🙂
My next race that I am planning is a cycling road race. I’ve never raced before, and I know it will be HARD. I’m really intimidated, but excited to try!
Thanks JoJo! I am sure hoping! we will see how it goes – the key for me is to being able to adapt if I need to and I am ready and able for that!
That is so awesome! I have never really cycled seriously – look forward to seeing how it goes for you!
Sounds like a great plan 🙂 Remember even if you have to tweak your plan a few times (or abandon it several like I do), you can still reach your goals. Life always winds up getting in the way somehow but if you have a goal you will find a way to make it happen! Someone was holding up a sign early in the marathon that wound up being my BQ “If you WANT it, you can DO it” and for some reason it sunk in that day and I still think about it now 🙂
So true Michele! I am planning as I go in to tweak my plan if need be. I may be able to BQ in October or it may take another year, all I know is I am going to begin working towards it. It will happen – either next year or sometime after! I can’t wait to see what the future holds!
You should do the Greensboro Marathon. It is October 18! It will be the second year that they will put on the race and they retooled the route so that it goes through Greensboro more (last year it was from Elon to Greenboro).
And since I am also doing that marathon and love reading your blog, it would be awesome!
I’ve actually thought of that one Mandy! My parents live there and I will only be about 30-40 minutes away so that is a serious contender! 🙂
I hope this doesn’t come out the wrong way, but do you think going for the BQ so soon after a fairly serious injury is a good idea? I’d just hate to see you get caught up in training too aggressively again and wind up injured again. I don’t know, it just seems to me a better choice would be to focus on the half marathon distance for the fall – you can still work on building up lots of speed, but without the beating your body takes with marathon training. you could race two or three half marathons in the fall, and if your times are in line with marathon BQ times you’d be in a great position for winter marathon training and a BQ attempt in the spring. You’ve got so much time ahead of you to BQ, there’s no need to rush it and risk hurting yourself.
Thanks Emma! Yes, it is a big goal. The reason I am focusing on the 10k first is to keep my mileage down while I work on speed. I won’t be tempted to fall back into the higher mileage and speed trap I did before. If at the end of the 12 weeks of 10k training I don’t feel ready to go on to marathon I’ll hold off.
I agree that If I am not there I won’t push myself towards the BQ in October. I will probably still try to run a marathon in October and just take time off my PR. We will just see how my body does. I honestly don’t know with where I am. All I know right now is that I am 6 months since my injury and I am finally feeling strong again. I have areas to work on and I need to focus on my strength and core first and foremost.
I promise I won’t rush it if I feel it is too much. I know I have a lot of time, but I set the goal as my “reach goal” it will all depend on how my body responds and what I am feeling like. I have to listen to my body first and NO goal is worth an injury so staying healthy is my first goal. If the proper things are not in place for that I can’t pursue it any further.
We will see what happens! I’d love to focus on the half during it as well. I am hoping to fit at least one of those in in between. It’s all a bit up in the air because I don’t know my full schedule yet once we move. All I know is it will change dramatically!
I love this idea of first train to get more speed, then train for a marathon. I would like to run another marathon in the fall as well, but I find it hard to balance all my workouts (speed/long runs/recovery, etc) all while trying to become a faster runner. I’m interested to see what you share for your training plan!
Yes, that is the idea. I can’t do both if I want to stay healthy. Start with the 10k and then move to the marathon. Look forward to sharing!
Good to hear that you are feeling strong. I imagine it would be a lot of fun to run Boston with your husband. Happy training!
I’m signed up for a triathlon in May and will probably do a few more throughout the Summer and early Fall. There is a race I want to do this Sunday, but it is a lot of $$ (and I ‘raced’ last weekend), so I will probably just go to cheer on my tri team.
Yes it would be fun to both run the race. I wish we could really “run together” but I know that will never happen 🙂
Good luck in your triathlon! That is something I want to do one of these days! Races are expensive I also have to be choosy about which ones I can sign up for!
Love this! I am right there with you. Injuries are a pain! But I also need to work on STRENGTH! I actually do a ton of it and still my hips are weak! Excited for you and your race (:
Thank you Hayley! Yes strength is SO important and that is a big focus of mine!
Sounds like an awesome goal! I definitely want to train for a marathon again, but I’m thinking it won’t be until 2015. It’s always nice to have a goal that’s months away to work towards 🙂 Can’t wait to see your training plans!
Thanks Em! Yes, you have a little one on the way and that is even MORE exciting! The next race you do you will have a new cheerleader at the end! 🙂
Yay. Great goal. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to train that you forget to take care of being injury-proof! It can happen easily.
I don’t have any races planned as I’m still coming back from injury. I’m nearly there in terms of increasing running intervals and decreasing walking intervals and overall distance. I’m not pushing it because it’s worked well for me so far, but I have definitely been thinking about races. I’d love to be able to do a 10k soon, so once I’m running 100% (in a few weeks?) and I’m able to increase my mileage (no more than 10% a week!), then I’ll start training!
Agree Stephanie. That is one reason I am dropping down to a 10k plan. It will decrease my mileage some so I don’t have that pressure while working on speed. When I got injured last I was doing high miles for marathon training AND speed which is a horrible combination. I also wasn’t doing the important things – strength, proper nutrition, stretching etc. All that is being corrected!
Good luck on your come back from injury! Sounds like you have a really great plan. It’s hard to believe it was over 6 months ago that I got injured. I am just now feeling back to my old self!
That is a great goal and it will push and energize you during the remainder of your Erie time and with the move! I am “tentatively” planning to do a 10 miler in late September and I will do a 5k in Mid-June.
That is awesome! Yes it will help motivate me. I finally found my training plan so I look forward to starting the ramp up.
Good luck! My next race is a half marathon at the end of June.
Thank you! Good luck to you as well Whitney!
Wow! What a big and exciting goal! I know you’ll be careful, so I’m excited to see how it goes for you!
Thanks Megan! Yes, I am doing this right this time around 😉
I was at the Boston Marathon this year and was so inspired that I now also want to work towards a BQ…I just feel like it is way far off! I also have some lordosis/anterior pelvic tilt..what exercises are you doing/how often? Just found your blog so can’t wait to keep reading about your training! 🙂
Hi Patty! I try to focus on doing SOMETHING for it every single day. The first and foremost small thing I do is that I am always trying to keep my abs contracted. When I am running or just walking around I try and make sure I am keeping my abs tight. This helps to take away some of the lordosis. Aside from that I have been working with a resistance band. I put it around my feet and move side to side. I also have been doing another exercise where I lay on my back one knee bent and the other straight out – I lift my pelvis off the floor keeping my abs contracted as high up as I can and then back down. I do this on both legs 10 reps each.
The other thing I try to focus on is loosening up my hips. I have been doing lots of hip flexor stretching and opening up my hips. You want to make sure your hip flexors are loose!
Hope this helps! Sorry it’s a bit hard to explain some of the exercises typing – haha! Feel free to email me saralovingontherun{at}gmail{dot}com if you have any other questions!
Good luck on your training!! You’ve got this!!!