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First Personal Distance Record of Marathon Training

I know that Monday's are typically the blogging recap day, but maybe I'm just not ready to reminisce about the weekend that went by way too quickly just yet. Since a lot of my weekend was spent training, I suppose I could just squeak by with a Training Tuesday post though right? I mean, if I'm going of a theme.


Saturday I set out for my longest run today date, 16 miles. With marathon training, I know it's a PDR that won't stand for too long. That kind of frightens me, I won't lie. I was a little nervous about the run. My previous PDR was 14.5 miles. I just wasn't certain how my body would hold up. And, while it was a bit cooler, upper 60s, the humidity was certainly making the air feel heavier and the sun was out. In other words, a lot warmer than I would have preferred.

I knew that huge portions of the River Trail would be blocked off for the Big Dam Bridge 100 Cycling Tour. What I hadn't counted on was another walk/run that was happening and blocking another stretch that I thought I'd be able to run. I was hoping for some sort of out and back, or close to it, to get the miles done. No such luck as I was left back tracking, crossing different bridges and meandering around running into blocked street after blocked street. I guess that kept things from being dull though.

I made it back to my house at with 11.3 miles under the belt. The plan was to meet up with Jason and finish out the rest of the miles. Plus the stop at the house allowed for me to refill my water bottle and take a GU. I still haven't figured out what my fueling preference will be. Then it was off again with Jason to help pace me down so I could finish out the rest of the miles upright.

He decided we should cross over one street, but he had forgotten that particular route means some pretty mean hills. As we trudged up and over, I realized this was actually a good training move for me, even if I was cursing with each step.

Jason ended up dropping off with a mile left for me to go, but I was feeling good and finished out strong. After the run I stretched, chugged NUUN, stretched some more and kept moving around as I made a protein shake. By the way, banana, peanut butter, chocolate protein powder, chia seeds, coffee and almond milk make for an amazing recovery shake (or 2).

I continued my recovery by stretching out on my yoga mat, then showering to feel human again. Jason was heading out for a bike ride so I decided to get in a nap. I am not a napper, not at all, never have been. But after these longer runs, I'm discovering that I need to learn to nap as they really help with recovery. I dozed in and out, not a full deep sleep, but it was enough to help re-energize me.

I did notice, however, when I stood up after the nap, the area around the back of my right heel was horribly tight, tender, painful. I tried to just keep moving my foot, very gently stretching it. We went out for pizza (perfect recovery food right?) and then headed to a friends' house to watch the Razorbacks play. As a caveat, I was never hungry the rest of the day after the shake. I had to force myself to eat. That's definitely not typical for me. By about 4 my feet were starting swell and my heel was really hurting. I iced it at our friends' then when I got home dunked my feet in an ice bath.

Sunday I was hobbling about as my heel was still quite tender and super stiff. The more I moved around, however, the better it started to feel. Surprisingly, nothing else was sore. I felt absolutely fine with the exception of the heel pain. Instead of the easy recovery run that I had planned, I played it smart (ok, there was no way I was going to be able to run) and rode my bike on the trainer as a way to just keep my legs loosened up. It was a super easy spin, low intensity and exactly what my legs needed.

The rest of the day I tried to make up for my laziness from Saturday by getting some food prep done as well as all the chores I had previously ditched. Of course, I did manage to sit outside and read for a good chunk of the day while things were simmering and baking. I mean, what else was I to do?

How was your weekend? Anyone else manage to be both productive and lazy? 

Comments

  1. Naps are the best recovery. I'm so serious about that. Congrats on your long run, so so awesome!

    ReplyDelete

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