It’s officially September. A couple of our trees are already starting to change color, I believe that means that the weather needs to go ahead and realize its fall. I really cannot wait for cooler weather. It was 98 degrees on Tuesday, not exactly my idea of fall.

I’m also excited that College football is back! We are even going to a game next weekend, I cannot wait! Another sign fall should be here very soon…

 

I guess we should talk about running and marathon training, right?

Let’s dive right into this slightly off but still great week of running.

 

Monday – 6 miles

Sunday’s long run really took it out of me. I knew the best idea was to cut back a bit on the miles and slow down. Really slow down.

It was slow and painful but I got it done.

 

Tuesday – 10 miles

I knew that my legs were in no way ready for a tempo run on Tuesday, so instead my husband helped me come up with a workout that wasn’t too taxing but still got me moving.

I did a 3 mile warm up followed by 2 miles at marathon pace, 4 x 400, 1 mile at marathon pace, 4 x 400 and then just under 2 mile cool down back to the house.

It wasn’t an extremely tough workout, but it was tough enough on still semi-tired legs.

No, I’m not pushing a car! Ha! I was using it to help stretch out my calves post run.

 

Wednesday – Off

As you know, Wednesday was my off day. I didn’t get up to run and instead chose to sleep in.  I contemplated running after work but I also knew I had a tempo planned on Thursday so knew it wasn’t smart.

Sometimes you just have to take what’s given and move on.  I needed sleep, and I don’t do it all that often so I went with it.

 

Thursday – 11 miles

Thursday was tempo day! Even though I really stress these a lot of times, I know how important they are especially in these last few weeks.

I opted for the treadmill again, because at this point I just am doing what it takes to get it done. To be honest – when my husband doesn’t run at the same time I do I get very timid to run alone so early. We’ve had a lot of robberies and such in the area lately and it’s got me pretty skittish. I hope to get over it soon, but for now I just need to grind to the finish.

The treadmill it was!

Due to a lack of time, I did a quick progressive 1 mile warm up to try and get my legs ready. I stopped around an 8:00 min pace so it wasn’t such a shock when I got to marathon pace.

I played with the pace a little, because when it comes to marathon tempos on the treadmill it’s all about perceived effort. I started at GMP 7:35 and worked it up one notch every 5 minutes until I got to 7:19. It ended up going 7:35, 7:30, 7:24, and 7:19. After the 20 minutes, I started back over at 7:35 and did it again.

The last mile I ended up running at a 7:13. I felt good; I was tired at the end but not completely dead! No doubt thinks to the extra rest but was happy overall with the effort. In total 1 mile warm up, 9 miles at tempo, and a 1 mile cool down.

 

Friday – Off

I still kept my rest day as is. I figured it would be helpful in the overall scheme of things.

 

Saturday – 14 miles

Wes and I headed to a trail not far from my parents house to try something new. It was supposed to be relatively flat, and we always think it’s nice to have a change of scenery!

Wes had a pretty tough workout and I had a simple long run planned.

This run went about as good as I look in that picture. The truth about training is it isn’t always pretty! I ran 14 in total averaging an 8:25. The trail was pretty much rolling hills the entire time and my legs ached something awful at the end. I haven’t had that happen since my last marathon!

 

Sunday – 8 miles

The goal is an easy 8-10 miles.

 

Next week is going to be peak week; it will be one of my highest mileage weeks so far. I’m nervous, but glad I took some time to rest up a bit this week in preparation!

The end is in sight and I’m for sure digging deep these last few weeks!

 

How did your training go this week?

How far out from your race are you?