Friday 18 July 2014

Training update - San Francisco Marathon

I had to admit that I have been pretty lazy lately with my blogging. I seemed to have had more time when I was on maternity leave. But now, with work and taking care of the kids full time when I'm at home leaves me very little time to blog.

I have been plugging away at training for marathon #2 San Francisco Marathon for the past few months. It has been a tough go with training this time around as I will be running with marathon on my own. It was supposed to be a family vacation but plans were changed and I will now be heading down to San Francisco on my own just to run the race.

Checking out the SF Course 

I pulled out the training plan I had used for my first marathon and have been trying my best to follow along. I have tried to keep up with running while away on my layovers. I usually loose a day or two with all the flying, but thank goodness for hotel gyms and the nice summer weather. I have been able to get out in some fantastic cities and pound the pavement.

Running along the Hudson River, NYC
I have had a hard time with the mental aspect of training this time around. I am finding it very difficult to get out there of my long runs and I am always doubting myself with every step I take. I am very fortunate to have friends understand me and have helped me along the way. 

My last 2 long runs were over 30km's. I had one girlfriend ride her bike with me on one of the runs and another friend ran 20 km. I am certain that I would have not been able to do it without them. I was hoping that I would be faster this year as I am not nursing my baby and carrying a little less weight, but my legs just seem to not work when I want them to. My pace has been quite a bit slower than last year as I have been  comparing most of my long runs, but I have been getting all new personal bests with each race that I have ran this year. 

I truly understand what people mean now when they say that it's all in your head......


I think part of the reason is that I know that I will not have a personal best on this course as it is hilly. I am quite terrified of hills and would do tempo and speed workouts until I throw up than run hills. I'm not sure what I was thinking when I signed up, but I guess it's too late now. I just want to finish to cross the finish line with a smile on my face and upright.

I began to taper after my last LONG run this past Monday and will have one last longish run this Sunday. I am happy that the training plan only calls for 15km. I am looking forward to tapering and getting ready for race weekend.

Have a GREAT weekend..


Are you training for any races right now?

How do you deal with the mental part of running when your brain tells you that you can't do it?




No comments:

Post a Comment

Antelope Canyon 50 Miler Recap Part 2

We were lucky that the race start was only a 15 minute drive from our hotel, so we were able to sleep until the very last minute.  Race star...