Where Do I Go From Here? Sneak Peak at Marathon Training Schedule

Today, Bella and I had a wonderful Sunday morning run along the canal! We ran 2.5 miles, and it was great. If you look at my mileage on RunningAHEAD, you'll see that it reflects more than 2.5 miles. Remember, that's from my warm-up and cool-down walking too. I'm still not sure if I should be using the Garmin to record the warm-up and cool-down. I mentioned before that I was turning and leaving it on for these parts because I wanted an accurate count on the total distance I've moved my body, but I don't like that this time is figured into my average pace.

Today, I took the time to look up on the official PF Chang's Rock and Roll Marathon website, what the time limit for the marathon is. 7 hours and 15 minutes. That's 435 minutes in which to run 26.2 miles. That averages out to 16.6 minutes/mile in order to finish the marathon before they take down the finish line and my finish is no longer "official."

As I've discussed previously, my pace has been falling somewhere between 15-22 min/mile depending on whether I'm JUST starting my run for the day and how energetic and motivated I feel. It seems like, so far, when I'm feeling pretty good, my average pace is about 17.5 min/mile (but that's including the warm-up and cool-down walking that I discussed above).

I CAN tell that my running pace is naturally increasing slightly. I just really hope that it naturally increases enough over the next 5 months so that I don't have to focus too much on speed and pace and that I can just run my own natural pace during the marathon without having to worry that I'm not going to "officially" finish.

These next four weeks are kind of "in limbo" weeks. I think that I will just continue to increase my distance slowly so that by September 28th (the first day of the "official" marathon training schedule), I feel as confident and ready as possible for what's to come.

Here's the "official" marathon training program I'll be using out of Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer (sorry it's a little crooked):

I know that for the final "in limbo" week, I want to do a trial run of the first week of official training. As you can see, that week will include 4 days of running at distances of 3 miles, 4 miles, 3 miles and 5 miles. The reason I want to do that is because coincidentally, the first week of official training, I will be out of town. I'll still be able to run while I am away, but I don't want to be trying out my first week of official mileage someplace unfamiliar. That's probably silly but really I've got nothing to lose by doing it that way since I've got some weeks to play with.

So, I figure in the next three weeks I want to work up to a longest run of 4 miles and just keep my daily mileage at 2-2.5 miles. I want to make the transition from thinking about the "time" that I run every morning to the "mileage" I run every morning. Honestly, I think that in and of itself will help me pick up my pace because I'll know that the sooner I pound out the mileage, the sooner I can get home and relax for a bit longer before work. We shall see . . .

Week 10 and 11 Wrap-up: Look at me. . . I'm a runner!

For the last two weeks, the preliminary training schedule has had me running 4 days a week for 30 minutes each day without stopping. These two weeks are considered the last "official" weeks of the "preliminary" training.

Things have been going well. Physically, I feel great . . . no aches and pains. I don't really feel faster, and I don't really feel stronger, but I've come to realize that this huge physical transformation that I was hoping to witness in my body, probably is not going to occur. That's okay. I still want to run.

I found this quote the other day and really liked it:

"There's nothing more to becoming a runner than running. It isn't how fast or how far you run. It isn't even how long you've been running. It's only that you run that makes you a runner."

I still often think about whether I am cheating myself out of part of this experience by not dedicating myself to resistance training to enhance my running or to losing weight to make myself more efficient. I AM worried that as my mileage increases, the physical demands will become too great, and I won't be able to continue. Maybe, I'm kidding myself. I've had several people tell me, "7 months is no where near enough time to go from being a couch-potato to a marathon runner." I believe those people. I guess I just keep hoping that since my program is so basic with the goal literally being just to finish the marathon, that somehow I'll be okay.

I'm just keeping my eye on each week and trying not to get too worried about the 18 miles I have to run in December. Twice. Honestly, I felt the same type of fear in Weeks 1-4 of my preliminary training when I thought about trying to run for 5 straight minutes in Week 5. Remember this post? Even to me it sounds silly now, but at THAT time, it was the same degree of "real" to me as thinking about the 18 miles in December feels right now. So, I will just take it week by week.



Dark Wednesday

These last two "preliminary" weeks have gone really really well . . . with one exception. On Wednesday August 19th, I missed my first run. This really saddens me to write about, but I guess it would be even more sad if it had derailed my program. It hasn't. I got right back out there on Friday and didn't miss a day the following week. However, I feel I must "come clean" about what I will refer to as "Dark Wednesday."

I don't even have a good reason or a particularly good story to tell about Dark Wednesday. I set the alarm and got up and got dressed to go running like any other scheduled work-0ut day. I was feeling particularly tired (not physically, just sleep-deprived tired). I got up and started readying my equipment, and all of a sudden said, "No, I'm too tired." I laid down on the couch, in my running clothes, and rested. I didn't even sleep. I couldn't fall back asleep . . . probably mostly due to the guilt. How lame is that? I mean . . . if I'm going to skip a run, I should sleep in and really get something out of the time that I am not running. I think I reasoned with myself that I could just do it on Thursday, and everything would be fine. Everything WAS NOT fine. For reasons I've discussed earlier, I didn't do it Thursday either.

But Friday morning, I was back out there (even running with a belly full of Mexican food from a late-nite dinner with the fam the night before) and things were back on track.

What I learned from that morning is that skipping the run feels worse than the additional rest or sleep feels good. It also reinforced my theory that if I don't do it in the morning, I'm not going to do it in the evening to make up for it (I could have ran both Wednesday and Thursday nights to make up for it), and I'm not going to do it on Thursday morning either.

I'm hoping not to have to test this again. Of course the likelihood of me NOT missing another run from now until January 17th is pretty slim (whether it be from sickness, tiredness or travel), so at least I know that all I have to do is pick up where I left off and not turn it into a training derailing event.

Let Me Tell You a Story About Bella . . .

Bella, sitting here wishing I'd throw her ball instead of blog.

Disclaimer: This post DOES relate to running (toward the end) so still qualifies for my blog, but, nevertheless, may annoy you if you've never loved a dog.

Let me tell you a little story about Bella (affectionately known to me as Bellabelle). When Rick and I arrived home from our wedding in Hawaii to start our new "married life," we began the slow process of talking about possibly getting a dog. Big decisions take us a long time. Heck, it took us 7 years to decide to get married.

As time passed, we flip-flopped our positions on adopting a dog. For a while, I was ready and Rick wasn't. Rick finally came around and decided it was time for a dog and then low-and-behold, I was feeling overwhelmed by life and couldn't imagine taking on another responsibility. I was worried I would be left with constant guilt if we got a dog and then had to leave it home alone all day while we worked, rushing home to let it out all the time.

So, we had pretty much moved on from the idea of getting a dog and probably more than a month had passed since we'd even talked about the issue. Then one Sunday morning I went to Paradise Bakery as I do most Sunday mornings to enjoy a low-fat rasberry muffin and . . . yes . . . a Diet Coke. As I was leaving, I saw an SUV that had an advertisement on the window for "Golden Retriever Rescue of Arizona."

I came home from Paradise Bakery that morning and got on the computer to . . . just out of curiosity . . . look up Golden Retriever Rescue of Arizona. Rick was still lazing away in bed watching some quality Sunday morning television. I walked into the bedroom . . . sobbing . . . sat on the edge of the bed and said,

"I'm fairly certain I want to get a dog now."

Admittedly, a little dramatic and when I walked in, I think Rick thought I'd just killed my best friend or something, but that's when it all began!

We went through the process of being "approved" to rescue a Golden. It was quite a process. Applications, interviews, home inspections, whew! Unfortunately, believe it or not, the organization didn't have any Goldens looking for homes when we were approved. We knew we couldn't adopt a super young puppy so had requested a dog 2 years or older. We figured, we'd just wait it out until one became available.

In the mean time, our loving family began sending us MANY listings from the Humane Society and Craig's List for other dogs that needed to be adopted. I had asked Rick to be in charge of the process because seeing the ads for the dogs was just too tough on me. Each time, it left me in tears just as the Golden Rescue website had. He understandingly agreed.

One Friday while I was at work, Rick called me and said, "I have an opportunity to go look at a dog. She's 11 months old. She is part or all Golden Retriever. The owners are being evicted from their house and are moving into a hotel." 11 months was younger than we had planned, but we pursed it anyway.

Rick met Bella before I did. I couldn't stand the thought of meeting a dog who wasn't right for us and then having to have this mental image of "the dog we didn't adopt" in my head forever. When Rick met Bella, she didn't have a name. She had spent her first HOT Arizona summer living outside in a dirt-filled backyard. She had received no vaccinations in her first year of life and had not been spayed. She was covered in ticks and afraid of most everything. She was afraid to come in the house. She was afraid of anyone who approached her when they were standing.

The three pictures below were taken the day we adopted Bella, after she'd had her first bath. If you don't know her very well, you may have a hard time telling much of a difference but compare the picture at the top of this post to the three pictures below. She was so mangy and skinny and her hair had no fluff at all.




Almost exactly a year ago today, Rick and I adopted Bella.

All I can say is that . . . for me . . . there is NOTHING in this world that embodies pure, unadulterated happiness and joy as much as Bella does. She is sweetness and love and fun and relaxation all in one big fluffy orange package. She is the perfect combination of calm and puppy-floppy-energy. She loves to snuggle and she also loves to get really riled up and whine with excitement about her tennis ball. She is curious and gentle and really just never wants to leave our side ever. EVER. She sees the world so simply, and some days that really helps give me perspective. She continues to amaze us with her amazingness and I couldn't have ever imagined a more perfect dog for us. I still cannot belive how exceptionally lucky we got when we found Bella, and pretty much every day I turn to Rick and say, "I REALLY love our dog."

So, how does this post relate to running?

Today was Rick's day off and he took Bella to the vet! She was due for her yearly vaccinations, and we had a few questions regarding her marathon training

Despite my previous posts about the research I had done regarding dogs running and how to do it safely, I still had some lingering concern that I was somehow subjecting her to something that wasn't good for her or would do some long-term harm. I had read that sometimes larger dogs are more prone to hip problems and that repeated running and exercise in a dog that is already predisposed to hip problems, would accelerate the damage.

This is the actual x-ray the vet took of Bella's hips today:




He said her hips are BEAUTIFUL! There is no concern about inherited hip displasia what so ever!

He also said that since Bella is building slowly with me in the training, that there is no reason she can't run long distances, even a marathon distance!Squeeeeeeeeeeee! Bella's all clear to run however much she wants with me. The vet said some dogs run 40-50 miles a week.

He did suggest that we increase her protein intake and maybe give her a glucosamine supplement just for insurance against any possible undernutrition and future wear-and-tear on her hips.

Bella, my sweet princess, there's nothing stopping us now!

San Francisco

I know I haven't written about what or how I've been running for a while. I've had a couple of long work weeks (I usually blog on my day off) and was out of town last weekend. I promise I'll get to that. For now, I wanted to take a minute and tell you about something I did this past weekend that I think was really cool.

I ran across the Golden Gate Bridge for my Sunday morning run!

I took the picture, above, as our bus approached the bridge.

My mom and I escaped to San Francisco for the weekend for a little mom/daughter urban adventure. We spent 2 days doing A TON of walking and trying to see as much as we could.

Sunday morning, my sweet and supportive mom braved a freezing cold San Francisco morning and took a 45 minute bus ride to the Golden Gate Bridge entrance with me. She snapped the two pictures below as I took off on my run.

I took this picture (below) as I ran. This is pretty much what I saw the whole time.

There was way less visibility than I had hoped, but there was a slight mist in the air and the cold air was refreshing. My legs were incredibly tight (both from the cold and also from the previous day's excessive walking). The bridge was 1.14 miles across, but I only ran part way across and then, of course, back (see the RunningAHEAD data--I even posted the map). I totally could have run the whole thing, but I set 30 minutes as my limit because I felt so terrible that my poor Mom was standing in the cold, waiting for me to be done.

It was an incredibly great way to start the morning. I felt healthy and ambitious and was surprised to see that I ran my fastest pace yet. I felt really good during the run and really enjoyed myself as the minutes flew by.

Honestly, the run wasn't quite as glamorous as it might sound. Like I said, I really couldn't see very far because of the fog and the pedestrian path across the bridge is right next to all the traffic (as you can see in the picture) which meant it was loud and very smelly and polluted. However, I choose NOT to remember that part of the morning.

Last Sunday, I ran across the Golden Gate Bridge, and I'm pretty happy to add that to the list of things I've done in my life!

2 miles!!

Okay, not every day . . . but, I did today!! This morning, Bella and I headed to the canal. I was feeling particularly motivated. I took the Ipod today, just for a change in routine.

Because I am reaching the transition point with the training (the preliminary training ending and the official marathon training beginning) I've been feeling anxious about the fact that, for most people, 30 minutes translates into a lot more miles of running than it does for me. What if the transition from the preliminary (with the goal having been to run for 30 minutes consecutively) to the official marathon training (in the first week I run 3 miles, 4 miles, 3 miles, 5 miles on each of 4 training days respectively) is too big of a jump for me (the slow runner)?

So today, I decided to test how far I was actually running.

I always begin every workout with 5 minutes of walking. For most people this would probably be done with the stated purpose being to warm up the body. For me, it is mostly about warming up my mind . . . to the idea of running. Sometimes, those 5 minutes of walking are the only thing that get me out the door in the morning. If I knew I had to step outside and start running immediately, I think I'd have a harder time getting myself out there. Also, most mornings, the 5 minutes is just enough to get us out of the neighborhood and onto our main path.

I'd never really paid attention to how much distance that 5 minutes accounted for in my overall mileage. Today: .25 miles.

In all of my RunningAHEAD data, I've never known for sure, the distance that was solely running because I've always had some walking intervals. Even this last week, I turned the Garmin on for the 5 minute warm-up and left it on for the 5 minute walking interval at the end. I've done this because I really want an accurate total of the total distance I've moved my body, even if it is for warm-up or cool-down purposes. (On this note though, I am going to play with the Garmin because I think there is a way I could treat those warm-up times as "laps" and give me the pace/distance I need.)

Remember, my "official" goal for today was 25 minutes of running/5 minutes walking.

Today, I ran more than 25 minutes . . . I ran 2 miles . . . which, for me, took about 34 minutes. I know that I've gone on and on about needing to stay on program, but I just NEEDED TO KNOW. I needed to know about how far I'd been running. It was fine. It was actually great!! As I was rounding the last quarter mile, I got the chills thinking about how much energy I still had and that I was about to finish the 2 miles!

I've also decided to experiment because after the next two weeks, I need to figure out what to do with the 4 (extra) weeks before the official marathon training schedule begins (Sept 28-Oct 4). I want to make sure that I don't increase too much and get injured, but I want to make sure that come that first week of Marathon Training, I am confident and prepared.

Here's a link to a forum discussion I found on what to do with your training once you reach the 30 minute mark. It's not necessarily written in consideration of a marathon, but, nonetheless, interesting.

I'm thinking about maybe:

• Sundays being a long run day (as they will be in the official training) and maybe shooting for longer time on those days with no consideration of mileage.
• Tuesday and Friday being 2 mile run days
• Wednesday being a 30 minute run day but with some speed intervals mixed in.

Just some thoughts. I've still got two more weeks to figure it out for sure.

Bella seemed extra proud when we finished this morning too! I think she was more worried about how many cows and horses she could see rather than how many miles she ran, but either way, she ran two miles.

Dirt vs Asphalt vs Concrete

Several weeks ago, I was stressed because, for the most part, all of my running has been on the concrete (sidewalk). Most of my workouts are in our neighborhood and because Bella runs right next to me on my left side, we are too "wide" to run in the street (on the asphalt) and be out of the way of traffic and safe. This is obviously not the case when we go to the canals, and there, I have my choice, for the most part, of gravel, concrete and asphalt.

Most basic information I've run across seems to indicate that (besides snow as pictured above which thank goodness I should never ever have to deal with), concrete is the "worst" surface to run on. "Worst" meaning most likely to cause injury or hardest on your joints. Hence, my recent stressing about the issue of where to run.

Here's is a Runner's World article comparing the pro/cons of running surfaces as well as ranking them in relation to injury prevention.

In my consideration of whether or not I needed to find a track or trail to run on instead of the convienent sidewalk, I mentioned my dilemma to Ashley (remember she's run two half marathons). When she was training, she participated in a local club called the First Marathon Running Program. On one of her runs, the running "instructors" told her not to run on the dirt because when the marathon rolled around, she wouldn't be well-trained to run on the asphalt of the race course. It would seem harder because her joints were use to running on the softer gravel.

I've also read that running next to the curb (on asphalt) on most roads is not recommended because most roads are sloped toward the curb and when you run next tot he curb facing traffic, your right leg is always running on a higher surface than your left leg. If this becomes a habit, it can cause enough biomechanical alteration in your normal running gait that injury is more likely to occur. The research stated that, in general, if you can't run on a trail, most runners are better off on concrete because they are normally pretty level.

I feel like, at this point, since I haven't been struggling with many "aches and pains" that would indicate that my body is not doing well with the concrete running, hopefully running on concrete will mean that I am OVER prepared for the asphalt of the PF Chang's course and that I can keep running with Bella!

The Yellow Corvette

This morning was the second morning that the Garmin died on me 4 minutes into my run. I ALWAYS charge it after a run but I guess that I can't just charge it and then leave it off of the charger for a day and then use it because it seems to have . . . well . . . a sucky battery. The first time it happened, I was really annoyed. Today, I tried to not worry about it too much and I just ran the exact same path I ran on Wednesday so that I knew that I was going the right amount of time. (FYI-I just estimated my stats in RunningAHEAD based on Wed.)

It rained on Wednesday night, so it was still quite sticky out today. Other than that, I really enjoyed myself this morning. I cannot believe how much I am looking forward to next week. I know I've run this idea into the ground already but oh well, it's my blog-it feels BIG to me to know that next week I'm all RUN. That probably seems like such a silly thing to some people but, honestly, I have always felt so terrible at running but at the same time it is something that I've always really admired people for doing. So, this morning, in my last bit of running, I picked up the pace and chanted with my step, "I'm a runner. I'm a runner." It was fun and dorky.

Oh . . . yes . . . you are probably wondering why this post is titled "The Yellow Corvette." Toward the beginning of my workout this morning, just as I left my neighborhood, a yellow Corvette drove by me (as it has done many other mornings). It was loud . . . and obnoxious. I spent the next 10 minutes thinking about what type of person drives a yellow Corvette or really a yellow vehicle at all for that matter? I was perterbed that the car was such an obvious statement of "hey, hey there, look at me in my brightly colored obnoxious car." I really hope that even if one of you drives a yellow corvette or car that I have forgotten to consider before writing this post that you'll know that I love you but just not your car.

Also, there are many morning where I spend an equal amount of time admiring something really pretty and cool like a Peruvian apple cactus in full bloom or the sunrise. I just didn't want you to think that I was looking for something negative. Honestly, I wasn't, but it was yellow and kinda hard to miss.

Happy Friday!

Week 9: Last Official Week With Walking!!

Training Days: 4 days

Total Time of Each Session: 30 minutes

Objective: Jog for 25 minutes. and walk at a fast pace for 5 minutes

I've been writing all along about how much I trust this training schedule. This week has me perplexed and considering if I should alter it a bit. Last week, I was running for a total of 40 minutes. Granted it was separated by 5 minutes of walking in the middle but still, a total of 40 minutes. This week I will be upping the interval by 5 minutes to 25 minutes but . . . that's it . . . only one interval.

I am considering maybe trying to use this week's workouts to up my pace a bit this week. Either that or I should just do two 25 minute intervals, but I've been careful to be REALLY literal about all of the training so far, so I hate to start changing it too much. I think I've been so literal about it so far for mostly mental reasons. If I start changing it . . . even a little bit . . . I'm worried it will lead to "fudging" time and mileage and stuff. I told you I was "black and white" about life.

However, I also don't want to push the pace too much and get injured or something. I guess I could also just use the extra time to stretch since that has not been as consistent as I would have liked. I dunno. I'll let you know what I decide.

Either way . . . the thing I'm most excited about for this week is that it is my LAST week with "official" walking built it. Yep, you know what that means---next week, "I'm a RUNNER!!"

Notice Anything Different?

My blog has a fancy new feature! If you look over to the right side, below my profile, you'll notice two new headings. 1)My Recent Workouts and 2)My Distance Totals.

Several months ago when I first got the Garmin, my super cool cousin Brian emailed me and suggested that instead of using the software that came with the Garmin (called Garmin Connect), that there was a great website called RunningAHEAD that he uses. He said it is more user-friendly. I FINALLY got around to converting to using it this week. I LOVE IT for so many reasons:

1. I can link it to my blog, hence the fancy new headings described above. It automatically updates each time I log a new workout listing my 3 most recent workouts and also my mileage totals.
2. I can change the settings so it doesn't display my run route. This has been why I haven't been posting all my Garmin data. Because it showed a map of my route, I (okay Kevin :) but I totally agree) didn't feel it was safe to have a map that started at my house each day. That's why I was only posting the link for my canal runs.
3. It has awesome fields for data entry about weather conditions and comments about your run for the day.

So go ahead, try it out. You can click on each of my last 3 workouts (the green "Run x.xx mi"), and it takes you to the RunningAHEAD website for more detailed information about my stats and cool graphs of my pace and heart rate. Enjoy!

What I've Been Up to in Week 8

Seeing as how I completed Week 8 today, I guess I should let you know what I've been up to.

Training Days: 4 days
Total Time of Each Session: 50 minutes

Objective: Jog for 20 minutes then walk at a fast pace for 5 minutes. Repeat once.

The running is going really awesome, and I feel so good!

My legs generally feel very slightly tired and maybe very slightly sore at all times during the day. It doesn't carry over into feeling heavy or tired when I start my next workout, so I'm feeling really good about the training program because I don't have any aches and pains to speak of currently. Fingers crossed.

I am really optimistic that we've turned the corner on the heat. There were a couple of "warm" days this week (okay still really hot) but today, when Bella and I got to the canal, the thermometer in my car read 74 degrees. I think it gave me a little burst of adrenaline as I started today to think that maybe . . . just maybe . . . I've survived the worst! Fingers crossed applies here too.

The change in temperature today is even more amazing because I didn't get to the canal until just after 6am this morning. I set the alarm for 5:15am and lounged around until 5:45am or so, reasoning that I was hopeful it would be cooler today, so the extra half hour of sleep wouldn't hurt anything (not a good trend). The interesting thing that I've noticed (and I can't believe I'm saying this is good) is that even when I don't get RIGHT up to leave for the workout or when I'm not "feelin' it" in the morning, my body WILL NOT let me go back to sleep when it is "workout day." It will let me lay there as much as I want, but I don't actually snooze. So, then . . . slowly . . . because I'm awake . . . my mind starts to come out of the fog, and by that time I remember how much I really do want to get up and run/walk.

Equipment Update

I think I've settled into a nice groove. I really don't think much about my "stuff" when I'm out anymore, and I think that is a good sign. Here are some random thoughts about my equipment:

• I need to get a few more pairs of the Thorlos that I mentioned because I love them and they are the only socks I grab and this gets . . . well . . . interesting and smelly . . . when I need them 4 times a week.
• I've been researching hats or visors because I know that when I start the longer runs, the sun will be up pretty far for part of the run, and I don't want to be squinting the whole time. Here is a site that has some that are supposedly very absorbent. Probably any old visor will work though.
• Still not running with music, but I think I will at some point.
• I got a new book. It's called The Runner's Body. It's all about the physiologic adaptations the body makes for running. Haven't dived into in depth yet, but I will keep you posted. I am hoping it will be a less detailed (boring) version of another book I purchased a while back called Lore of Running. I had hoped that, due to it's immense detail, it would get my biomedical engineering juices flowing again, but all it really did is lose my interest.

Bellabelle update

Bella seemed to be getting more tired by the end of our second 20 minute interval this week. Not TOO tired . . . just . . . really trotting-obediently-by-my-side-to-not-expend-extra-energy tired.

Lucikly, she also drank water from my water bottle a couple of times this week when we were out which I think is a really good sign. She obviously will drink if she is thirsty, even if we are out in the big-bad world. I think the problem previously may have been that every time she saw me gesture to her with the water bottle as if to say, "Bella, would you like a drink?" she thought I was going to drench her head with the water as I have done previously to keep her cool, and therefore she would turn her head away to avoid the water on her face. Today, when we were out, I opened the nozzle on the bottle to take a drink myself, and she heard it and looked up at me, so I stopped to give her some water. It was great!

I still don't think the training is too much for her because she comes home and drinks water and rests for a couple of hours and is her usual bouncy self before too long. On Friday while I was running, I thought about how much I LOVE the fact that I was giving our dog 3 miles of exercise before I went to work for the day.

I really hope she's enjoying the training. Sometimes at night, when I go to sleep, I look at her and get REALLY excited to think about getting up and running with her in the morning! I think that's a good sign!

Here she is, in all her cuteness. I didn't snap a picture during her swim today, but if you look closely enough, you will see that she's still a little wet "around the edges." This is her as she lays at my side while I blog:

Physiology 101: Is 4 Days a Week Really Enough?

If you notice in my preliminary training schedule, some weeks have 3 sessions and some have 4. I mentioned in a previous post that this lack of consistency has led to the temptation for me to sometimes sleep through a Wednesday or Friday workout during those weeks with only 3 sessions because I reason that I can do the last one on Sunday (what I consider the last day of my training week).

Today I was reading Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer while eating breakfast, and I realized that from this point forward, all of the preliminary weeks are 4 days long. This means that from now until January 17, 2010, I can't sleep in on Wednesday or Friday mornings. I think that this will prove to be a good thing because I'll no longer second guess whether or not I REALLY have to get up.

Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

I've structured my running days based on the following principles:

• My long run day has to be on a weekend because some of the runs will eventually be 18 miles long. I just don't have the time on a weekday to devote to that long of a run. Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer recommends taking the day before and after your long run off to rest.
• Sunday will work out better than Saturday for the long run because Friday night is Poolapalooza (standing pool party at our house), and this sometimes includes the consumption of too much wine and gourmet food. Saturday mornings are better left open, with no expectation of running, just in case Kevin and Ashley decide to open that last bottle of wine.
  
• I have an unnatural dread for Mondays, and if my Monday dread now had to include running as well (not that I dread running, but it's just one more thing stacked on Monday), I don't think I'd be as successful. So, Monday's a rest day.
  
• Thursdays are my day off from work. You'd think that this would mean that Thursday would be the perfect day for running, but I know from experience that ANYTHING I put on my agenda for Thursdays, I end up coming up with every excuse under the sun to avoid when Thursdays role around, no matter what degree of excitement I had when I scheduled the activity. Thursdays are MY day, and I try to not fill them with anything.

Some of you may be wonderimg if I will actually be properly conditioned to complete the marathon if I'm only running 4 days a week. So many other training programs I've researched out there called for 5-6 days of running a week. I'll pass on what the book suggests and hope that the trust I'm placing in it leads to success.

The instructors who wrote Non-Runner's Marthon Trainer have experimented with training programs of four to six days per week and have found that four-days-per-week programs are just as successful as program involving more than four days per week. They conducted an experimental study (which is actually published in the back of the book) and found no difference in the four-day-per-week program and a six-day-per-week program. The runners in the study liked having three days of recovery each week as opposed to just one day.

Sneak Peak at Official Training

The official training program which I'll begin the week that spans the end of September/beginning of October, includes two "short" days, one "medium" day and one "long" day each week. The program is built on the principle that the most crucial element of training for your first marathon is to get in one "long" run each week.

The official program is also based on the idea that the training mileage should not increase more than 10% per week. The authors contend that increasing too quickly will increase the chance for injury. Each time mileage is increased, the body needs a week to adapt to the increase. If the increase is too great, the body does not completely adapt and after several weeks the tissues begin to break down and become injured.

I'm going to keep this in mind when I'm feeling bad about being 8 weeks in and still doing some walking.

I Found the 70s!

Our canal run this morning was uneventful but lovely. We got to the trail a little after 5:30am, and the most exciting thing was that when we arrived at the canal, the thermometer in my car said 79 degrees! I haven't seen anything less than 82 degrees on any other morning I've looked. Woohoo! There's hope!

Bella was poorly behaved on the leash this morning which was a bit of a distraction. I'm not sure if she just couldn't figure out where I wanted her to walk in relation to the canal, dirt and asphalt or what, but it was very annoying. She was probably just having an off day. I bet she will do better on Tuesday.

The running was AWESOME this morning. I found myself wanting to pick up my pace a bit (not that much-don't get too excited) and actually had a small glimpse into why running is enjoyable even though it is tiring. It just felt GOOD. By the end of my second 15 minute interval, I without a doubt, could have kept going, so I know next week will be a piece of cake!

Bella's off to take a nap, and I'm off to shoot big guns with Rick and Kevin. Happy Sunday everyone!