Updated Training Schedule

Hey. So since I have decided to run the half marathon in Salt Lake in April and the full marathon in Rexburg in June, I have changed my training schedule. Since I haven't really run since the end of December, I just felt like I needed more time to get myself back into running shape before I really started training hard. So here is my new schedule.

So pretty much for February I will be getting back into running shape, then in March, April, and May I will be able to build myself up to marathon  fitness level (with the half marathon in the middle of April) and then I will run the full marathon in June in Rexburg. Anyway, that's my new schedule. I can't wait to get running again.

Keep Calm and MarathOn

Change

Oh hey...you probably thought I forgot about you, didn't you? Well, I haven't. I am infact still around and still training. I have been biking for the last few weeks and I have been feeling pretty good, but biking is just not the same as running. I haven't run (ran?) in over 4 weeks (31 days to be exact). Well, I ran yesterday and it was rough.

I was supposed to run today, but yesterday I was working on some photography stuff for school and I wanted to photograph myself running. So I got my stuff on and went out. I ran about a mile back and forth on this old dirt road and it felt great. After a short warm up my knee felt fine and it was really, really great to run again. Then I decided that I wanted to get some pictures of me running stairs (bad idea). So I went to the football stadium on campus and ran up and down the stairs 3 times. 

Yeah...I did this three times. On the third round my legs were getting pretty tired and I was breathing pretty hard, but all in all I felt good. Then I woke up this morning... not good. I was supposed to run 5 miles this morning, that did not happen. So as I sat on the couch this morning with my achy legs, I was thinking about this marathon that is going to take place in 12 weeks, the one that I have been training for. After a lot of thought, I decided that I am going to run the half marathon in Salt Lake City in April and run the full marathon in Rexburg in June. I just don't think that I will be up to full marathon fitness level in 12 weeks, especially after taking a month off in the middle of training. So, in 12 weeks I should be able to run the half marathon, and then another 7 or 8 weeks after that be ready to run the full 26.2 here in Rexburg. Anyway...so I will share my new training plan and stuff in the coming days, but that is the change in my new running plan.

Keep Calm and MarathOn

Back in the Gym

I went to the gym today and rode the bike. It felt awesome to go the gym! I woke up and went this morning at 7 and I really wanted to go run. It was -5 (Celsius) outside and there was no wind and it was beautiful. But...I got in my car and drove to the gym and got on a bike for 30 minutes. My knee felt pretty good the whole time and I wanted to go longer, but I thought that I should take it easy on the first day back. I am planning on going back on Saturday and then Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday next week. Then I hope to start running the week after that but to keep biking on my in between days.

Anyway, it felt really good to workout again and to sweat. I never thought I would be so happy to sweat. I am SO excited to get back to running. Also, just a side note, I put a new running background picture on the desktop of my computer. I was starting to feel down about not running, so I thought I needed something to motivate and excite me about running again. Here is the picture.

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Bad to Worse

Well...it seems like I cannot catch a break these days. I woke up on Friday morning (which was my birthday by the way) and I had a sore throat, but nothing that I hadn't had before. So I went about my day as normal. At about 9 I started to get a headache, then at around 11 I started to get the chills and to feel achy, at 1 I couldn't take it anymore and I came home and laid in bed. I felt really crappy. My whole body was achy, my head was killing me, my throat hurt like none other, and I couldn't handle it (happy birthday to me). So on Saturday morning I went to the doctor and it turns out I have strep throat. Hooray! Anyway...so the doc gave me some antibiotics and some pain medication for my throat (when he looked at my throat he said, "woah, it looks like there was an explosion in your throat. That must hurt really bad."), so I should be feeling better in a few days and then be all better by next week. So I am hoping to start biking by the end of next week and then get my training back underway by the end of the month. Needless to say, things seem to keep popping up to try and get in my way from doing this marathon, but they will not stop me. I am determined and I will do it.

Keep Calm and MarathOn

Sitting Around

So, then semester has started...and my running hasn't. It has been pretty tough for me for the last week and a half to not run. It has actually been a pretty good thing for me and my family (my wife and I have a 4 1/2 month old son who has been staying up REALLY late (like...up past midnight) and I have had to stay up with him...so I have been sleeping in because of the lack of sleep), but I cannot wait to start running again. I have been telling some of my new classmates and professors that I am training for a marathon and I kind of feel like I am lying to them because I haven't run in 12 days.

But...my knee is feeling pretty good. I am going to go to the gym on Saturday and ride the bike for the first time. I hope it goes well. I am excited to ride and get back in shape. I can tell that I have lost some of my fitness and flexibility, so working out again will be really good. Anyway, I am still alive and still going to run the marathon.

Keep Calm and MarathOn

New Training Plan

Hey everyone...so for Christmas my wife got me the book, "Marathon", by Hal Higdon. I had read a few chapters before the injury, but when I hurt myself I didn't think I would want to read it for a while. Well...I was wrong. I picked it up last night and read a few chapters and now I am even more excited to get back to running. My knee is feeling better each day, so I cannot wait until I can run on it again.

With that said, I have made a few changes to my training schedule. Before the injury my training plan had me running 4 days a week for 15 weeks. Now, I will only be running 3 days a week for 12 weeks, with 2 days a week of biking. I know I am sacrificing precious running days, but I think that riding the bike will be good for my knee and will help me out more in the long run. I also had a goal before my knee to finish the marathon in under 4 hours and 30 minutes. While I would still love to do it in under that time, I will err on the side of caution and have my goal be to finish the race, no matter how long it takes me. I don't know, but I just feel like this new training schedule is a lot more relaxed, less focused on the time goal, but still will challenge and prepare me to finish the marathon.

Here is what my new training schedule looks like.

Keep Calm and MarathOn

2014

Happy New Year everyone! With a new year comes new goals and new challenges.

Like I said in my first post, I am not very good at setting and keeping goals. I have never really seen the value of goals, but I have decided that goal setting is something that I want to do (I have a goal to set goals...kind of funny). So, the reason that I am making this blog is to help keep me motivated as I train for my first marathon. But...with me hurting my knee last week (see previous post), I was unsure how my marathon training would be affected. After seeing a doctor and spending the last few days thinking about it, I am going to plan on and continue training for the marathon in April. The doctor told me to start biking in 2 weeks (so on January 11th) and then after 4-6 weeks I can start running again depending on how it's feeling. 6 weeks would be February 8th...which is 10 weeks away from the marathon. I am hoping to start running after 4 weeks (January 25th) which will give me 12 weeks to train. Also I am hoping that with biking for 2 or 3 weeks I will be able to keep my fitness level up which will help me prepare for the marathon. I really want to run the full 26.2 on April 19th. If things don't feel right with my knee when I start running again, I am going to try to do the half marathon in April and then run a full marathon in June...but like I said I really want to do the full in April. But I guess we'll see how I feel when I get back to running and training. So far my knee is feeling better each day. I hope if I can stay off of it for a few days and keep icing it, it will continue to get better.

So I think it is pretty obvious that I have a "new year's resolution" to run a marathon this year, but I really want to run 2 marathons this year. I want to do the one in Salt Lake City in April (or if not that one then there is one in Rexburg in June that I will do) and then there is one in Kelowna, BC in October that I want to do. So...hopefully things go well so I can run in April, then I want to do the half marathon in Rexburg in June, then the full in Kelowna in October. That is my goal.

Anyway...Happy New Year

Keep Calm and MarathOn