When I started this blog and called it Mom vs. Marathon, I never looked at a marathon training plan. I knew Iโd have to run, but I didnโt give any thought to how much or how often or any of that.
Sure, Iโll run a marathon. No problem.
Thatโs easy to say when I thought Iโd be running my first half-marathon in the summer of 2010. Obviously, I knew training to run 26.2 miles would take some work, which is why I started this blog. I knew it would be an adventure and that I would want to write about it, and I knew it would be hard.
But really, what does โhardโ mean? To me, it was all about the physical toughness I would have to endure. I knew nothing of the mental aspect of marathon training. I never read a running blog before I started this one. I didnโt even know they existed.
But that was, like, nine months ago. Iโm so much smarter now.
Not.
I am just realizing the mental part of training. I feel so pathetic for whining about it, too, because when I think about it rationally, I donโt really have it that hard. There are many other runners who have much bigger obstacles to overcome than me with my part-time work schedule/mom and wife duties.
Which is why Iโm still on for 26.2.
Iโm not giving up that easily. Not because of a few tears and some hormones. No way.
Itโs interesting how both me and Mr. T are trying to pursue dreams right now…now that we have a child. I wonder if this is typical. Why didnโt we do all this before we had T Junior? It seems like it would’ve been so much easier. What is it about becoming a parent that makes you want to push yourself?
Mr. T was hugging me Sunday night after talking me down from the โquit marathon trainingโ ledge and we were laughing about how stupid we are trying to live out these dreams of ours โ for me, a marathon, and for him, playing the bagpipes.
โAt least mine will be over after one day,โ I said. โYours is ongoing.โ
So, thereโs a bright side. An end date. Like Glenn (The Running Fat Guy) said in his comment, โthe actual race itself is more like a victory lap.โ I like that. Iโm going to focus on that.
Thank goodness for this blog and your blogs, and for all my Virtual Running Buddies and commenters. I learn so much from all of you. And you pick me up when Iโm down mentally. Your comments gave me a lot to think about. Itโs so good to know Iโm not alone.
I have 15 miles on the schedule for Saturday. Jill (Running to Sanity) and I are trying to work it out so we can run together. And we might try a new running routine, so that will help mix things up for me. I need change. I need to keep things interesting. It should be fun!
DAY 260
I made a decision on Monday. A decision not to run my scheduled 3-miler. It felt so good. And I got so much done.
First, I took T Junior to Story Time at the library. He loves it, although you would never be able to tell by looking at him because he doesnโt participate in any of the songs or group stuff. He just stands there, arms at his side, mouth slightly open, taking everything in. But afterward, itโs all he can talk about. โStowytime, stowytime. Libwawy.โ
Then, we met friends for lunch at McDonaldโs, which meant playtime on the jungle gym for the kids. Next on our got-to-go-to list were the post office and the grocery store.
With those errands completed, T Junior went down for a 2-hour nap while I got some writing done and I cleaned the master bedroom. I even put away the folding table (and all the crap that was on top of it) that I set up in there for wrapping Christmas presents. Christmas presents! Once all the clutter was gone, I set Roomba free and he did his thing while I washed clothes.
It felt so good to not stress about when I was going to fit in a run. And then it hit me.
Running four days a week is too much for me. Everyone has their limits and, I guess, thatโs mine. I am sure Iโve even written about this same thing before, now that I think about it.
So I am scaling back my training schedule to 3 times per week: a mid-week long run (that will have to be at night), a recovery run (on my lunch hour the next day) and a weekend long run.
I think I can manage that. I hope itโs enough to get me through the marathon.
But I shouldnโt be worrying about that right now. What I should be worrying about is this playlist thatโs on my Zune.
Last week, I made a comment about LBโs (Muddy Runner) blog post discussing his playlist. He listens to Metallica when running? What? How?
This gave him an idea (HERE), and he e-mailed me a few days ago about swapping running playlists. I told him I was totally game and we worked out the logistics. But now I am a little worried.
Iโm going to be running to rock music? For an hour? How is that going to work?
Itโll all be worth it, though, when he gets my playlist in the mail this weekโฆmwahahahaha!
15 comments
You know your limits, it's okay!! I think it's fun that you're trading playlists…I'm always looking for new songs for a marathon – anything to help push through the long hours. Glad you didn't give up and the 26.2 is still on!!
I'm so happy you worked this out. I love the victory lap reference. I'm gonna borrow that.Ha ha ha re the playlist you sent to L.B. Please tell me you have Rick Astley on there.
OMG, Lisa! That's genius! I should've Rick-rolled him!
Your right…4x is alot. For the 1/2, I have planned to run 3 a week, and sometimes only get in one short run and one long run, but I work in at least 2 nights at the gym doing weights or a cardio class…I think variety keeps things interesting, and to be honest, even the weeks that I have only ran 2 times but did the other things, my long runs have been just fine. I feel as long as you keep doing something that will help keep your stamina up, and your cardio going, I think you will be OK. Mix it up and just have fun!
I'm glad you're feeling better about things. Different things work for different people/ive/schedules. You do what you can. It will get you to the finish line.Oh, and about that “end date”? The finish line is just the beginning. You'll see. ๐
love the evil laugh! you are so funny and real and I love that! Good job of knowing what you can give and what you need. story time days come and go way to fast….making time for stuff like Mc play land will not always be there. I'm proud of you and inspired. Thanks for sharing!
Hey girl~Glad that you decided to stick with it! It is totally normal I think in any athletics, to get down on yourself at some point…do not worry! ๐ There are a ton of plans out there for 3x's per week training. Most call them 3 quality runs (a speed run, a tempo run and a long run)Check it out!http://www.marathon-training-program.com/three-day-program-finish.html
I am nodding my head at the first part of your post. I feel ya on that…blogging has been a huge part of me being able tro stay motivated and to be accountable to my training. I think 3 days a week should be fine for your training. and I bet that if you ever get a wild hair you could add a 4th day ever so often. you will have an amazing base by the time your marathon rolls around.so now i am curious about this play list swap, I think we should start a thing, you know like an offical swap. like a chain mail thing, sign up and mail the list to the person below you…i may work on this for a post this week. sounds fun!
First of all I love the quote “the actual race itself is more like a victory lap” I'm sooo going to use that!Second of all 3x/week is still a very respectable amount of running!Third, swapping running playlists is an AWESOME idea!
Looks like someone did some serious reframing ๐ Good for you for making this work for YOU!! I agree…I love the “victory lap” quote. Keep up the good work Kerrie ๐
That's a great idea about trading play lists. I just added a few more to mine. I love DJ Earworm's mashup. Anyway, 3 runs a week is going to be fine for you and give you more time to get other stuff done and not stress. You can do it Kerrie!
Keep up the great work! Cool idea on trading playlists!
Aw gee Kerrie. Thanks!
Hey Kerrie!Wow, girl. Just read Days 258-260 and had to choke back the tears. I feel ya' – even though I haven't tackled marathon training (and don't intend to…I know my limits), I can tell you I had similar feelings of 'down and out' w/ the half-marathon schedule, mostly b/c it takes me so much longer to make the gains that you guys make. That being said, here are my “Turtle Words of Wisdom” – THIS is YOUR journey, friend. You will find your way, as evidenced by your decision to to cut back to three days/week. I remember CAUTION: Redhead telling me several months ago that training for the Chicago Marathon last year (when I met her) was THE SINGLE TOUGHEST THING she's done in her life. *And*she's*neither*a*mom*nor*a*wife – yet! Feel every bit of this part of your journey and you will look back and say, “Wow. I can't believe I thought about quitting.” Because you won't. And you will run a helluva race when it's time. Enjoy the playlist (hee hee)… I'm curious to see how THAT plays out! Love Metallica, personally! ๐ And yes, even for running!HUGS and MORE HUGS from Orlando, friend!robin/turtle runnerbtw: did you get to vote yet? i'm trying to get to NYC and needs LOTS of votes and link love to earn a spot in the finals round!
ummmm. mom's have it tougher to me!!! i can hardly balance running + taking care of myself, let alone a little person who depends on me! don't knock your responsibilities – you have a lot to juggle even if it doesn't seem like much to you. i think you are amazing for running AND managing to be a great mom ๐