Marathon Training Week 5

Run Mileage: 41.15
Bike Mileage: 0
Yoga Classes: 2
Time Strength Training: 1:08:36
Swimming: 8 minutes!

This week presented with time challenges. I am blessed with a career that allows for flexible hours, particularly in the morning. As an art therapist/mental health counselor, working primarily with kids, the majority of my self-scheduled hours come in the afternoon, leaving everything before noon all to myself to get it on with my fitness. This week I had a couple of morning commitments. I missed a yoga class to make sure I got my miles in earlier and my strength training was not on point. The good news is I got my runs in as prescribed, tried a swim (most suckily -- swimming is hard) and went to see a sports nutritionist to talk about proper fueling during long runs and races (my Achilles heel of running) and check in on my vegetarian, considering-vegan fueling.

My current nutrition assignment is to just try eating anything I want on my long runs to see what I will actually ingest. I am lucky in that I don't ever feel sick to my stomach when running, but I don't want anything. I run marathons on water. WATER! So stupid. I would definitely improve if I could just knock that one little tendency. This week on my long run, I tried 2 fruit source bars from the produce department and didn't hate them. Progress!

Fruit source: Not gross while running

This didn't happen during a run, but I tried spiraled zucchini which was the meal success of the week.

My adventure workout this week was another trip to Chepachet, Rhode Island where I ran about 7 miles of trails and went for a very short and pitiful swim in Pulaski State Park. I enjoy trail running, but I wonder if it is helpful or harmful to my training. It's hilly and rocky and my pace is not as prescribed. However, my feet are moving all over adjusting to every root and crevice and muscles working hard in a different way up and down the hills. Most significantly, I'm having fun and enjoying running, which gets tougher the more focused I get on pace and distance and getting the training just right running the same places over and over. I'm going to have to research and maybe ask my coach about pace and trails. Good idea or bad? This likely won't be the last you'll hear about this.

Trail running in Pulaski State Park

I set fitness goals for myself that have more to do with having fun than reaching a certain goal. This summer I set a goal to use my surfboard and swim in open water. Pulaski State Park is awesome! It's free and has trails, bathrooms with running water and soap as well as a swimming area that isn't too crowded, at least so far. On Sunday after our trail run, I decided to accomplish one of these goals and go for a swim. I'm a big baby when it comes to cold water, so although infants and their grandmothers were gleefully bounding right in, it took me a good twenty-minutes of whining and tiptoeing. Finally, I made my Garmin, which has a swim function give me that extra push. I hit the start button and made myself waste no more time. Of course, it wasn't so cold once I got it.

I haven't swum in maybe three years. I always imagine myself a strong and amazing swimmer. I mean, growing up in California means I can do all sorts of sporty things right? I lived in the water. I can totally swim. I quickly realized swimming is not "like riding a bike," and running has nothing to do with swimming endurance. Granted I can still swim without drowning, but I cannot swim great distance or for extended periods of time. I swam a total of 8 minutes and was completely pooped. I felt muscles in my arms and legs that apparently atrophied since my last swim. I flopped from my stomach to my back, tried one stroke and then another. Exhausting! So, my revised summer swim in open water goal is now to swim from one end of the designated swim area to the other and back STRONG.

Post swim