It has been so incredibly cold these last few weeks that I have not been able to run outside. I know that I have been a little whiny about this, but come on! Warm up already, it is March! The positives though is that clear and super cold brings some of the most beautiful scenery.
When I realized that I was past my start date for spring training – building a base prior to marathon training- I thought I need to adjust my plan and get moving! That means now! Today! My motivation waned a little when the weather forecast gave a high of only 17 degrees.
My first thought: I am not going to the gym and running on the treadmill. I’m just not! I just end up having to take a few days off from running after I pound into that thing for 45 minutes. So, not an option! Then I thought, 17 is doable, I will just dress really warm and hope the wind chill factor doesn’t have much of an impact.
By the time I actually got ready to run, it had warmed up to 26! Heat wave! Got to take advantage of that. Being that I am so tired of being cold, I overdressed for this run. This photo pretty much says how excited I was about this run.
I ended up doing an easy 3 miles. My achilles flared up during the Shamrock Shuffle 5k a few days ago, and it was bothering me a little on the run today. Not that painful but I was aware of it. Stretching and icing later for sure! Aging tendons and muscles do not like a combination of cold and fast starts! Not the brightest move.
To start building that base, I have decided to follow Hal Higdon’s spring training plan. The novice program is a little conservative and the intermediate is too advanced for where I am right now. I think I will use the spring training novice program as a guideline and adjust it as needed, being mindful of those important injury prevention tips….mainly:
-
Prevent doing too much too soon and too fast
-
Follow the 10% rule or less depending on how the training is going
-
Stop! when experiencing pain on the run
-
Being mindful of form and cadence (don’t over-stride)
My plan is to continue building a base until training for the Chicago Marathon starts which is on 6/4/2017 (for an 18 wk program). And then I will probably sign up for the NYRR Virtual Trainer. I used their program for the NYC Marathon and I really liked it. FYI, even though it is geared to running the NYC marathon, it can be used for any marathon. The problem with NYRR is they only have a 20, 16, or 12 week program. And it costs money (I think it is worth it though, read more about it here). The best thing about it is that it tells you exactly what to do every day, even what pace to run! It just makes training a little easier than having to figure it all out. I’m all about easy when it comes to training for a marathon.
So, I have a training plan and the running forecast for the next week isn’t looking too bad.
I will keep you posted on how my training is going and would like to hear your tips also.
Happy Running!
Leave a Reply