Summer Wrap Up

It is the Labour Day weekend, which traditionally marks the end of the summer holiday season and back to school for many kids. It is bittersweet for me as I am thrilled to have my daughter back in school, but will also miss her being at home with me. With her back in school, I'll be able to head out for some stroller runs instead of running late at night after hubs gets home.

It has been a crazy summer. It has been 15 weeks since I started marathon training. Looking back over my training log, I realised that I started my marathon training the week of my birthday. I started training with my coach Rick from Zone3Sports 7 weeks ago after being chosen by iRun and I think it has helped me with all aspects of my running.

I come back to this often

I have spent most of my summer enjoying the remainder of maternity leave and doing a lot of running. I didn't think that I would be logging this many miles/kilometres when I decided to run a marathon. I don't think I put much thought into it at all except that I wanted to run a marathon.  I have learned that I am not a morning running as  I have spent many nights pounding the pavement.

For the month of August, I logged 196.26 km/121.95 miles. I think this is totally crazy!!! I have learned to stick to a training plan and do my best not to deviate. Training for a marathon is almost like a part time job. I am very fortunate to have been able to train while on maternity leave.  I have learned to juggle and balance my duties as mom, wife, daughter and friend. I can't say that it's been easy, but I have gotten used to very little sleep. I will see how training goes as I return to work in a month. I think having a coach has helped me tremendously. Being the Type A person that I am, I needed to follow a strict plan and this is what coach Rick has done for me. He has designed a plan just for me.

This summer I was able to complete two obstacle type events,  The O Course and Tough Mudder. I ran two races in August and PR'd in one of them and raced a distance that I had never run before for the other. I am very pleased with both the results and I think this is due to my training. I have incorporated tempo runs and strength work into my training as well as taking rest seriously. Running a half marathon distance for the long runs has become a norm for me now, but I still have to psyche myself up for it the day before. I have learned to respect the distance, whether it be 5 kilometres or 42, I will never take any distance for granted.

One of my sunset Long runs

I was fortunate to be able to spend the entire summer with my kids. My daughter has been an amazing help with a newborn at home with me.  She has been a blessing in every way. I am truly lucky to be her mommy.

I look forward to the next 7 weeks of training. My distances are getting longer for my long runs and the days are getting shorter. I am sad to see summer coming to and end, but ready for some gorgeous fall weather.

How was your summer?

Are you a day or night runner?

Have you learned anything about yourself from running?