Twin Cities Marathon Training – Weeks 3 & 4

Whew, last week got busy, so I’ve got a 2-week recap for you!

Week 3

Monday – 3 miles (9:40/mile)

I was supposed to run with a friend, but it was raining most of the day, so I cancelled in the afternoon so we could each do our own thing. Of course the rain stopped when we were supposed to meet, so it would’ve been fine. 😦 I did 3 miles on the treadmill instead.

Tuesday – 5.02 miles (9:40/mile)

It was a hot one! I braved the heat for 5 miles.

Wednesday – 25 minute walk

I stepped out for a quick walk after work and then met up with a friend to see Wonder Woman. It was really good!

Thursday – rest day

I had a quick happy hour on a patio and then ran a couple of errands.

Friday – 3.11 miles (9:14/mile)

Saturday – 7.05 miles (9:31/mile)

It was a step-back week for the long run. The weather was still a little warm, but not nearly as hot as it had been the previous two weekends. I technically only needed to do 6 miles, but I was feeling good and decided to do a little extra. It felt good mentally and physically to finally have a good long run in this training cycle. I know it was only week 3, but still.

In the afternoon, I headed to a friend’s wedding. It was an outdoor ceremony on farm with the reception in a barn. The decor was cool, and we had a great time dancing the night away!

Sunday – 4.15 miles (9:40/mile), 25 minute walk

It was my cross training day, so I did an easy run followed it up with a walk to hit an hour.

Week 4

Monday – 3.1 miles (9:44/mile)

I had an overnight work trip on Monday and Tuesday. I thought I’d take Monday as a rest day and get up early on Tuesday to work out before day 2 of our training. The weather on Monday evening was lovely and I had a little extra energy, so I headed out to explore the area for a short run. There was a lake just off the grounds that I ran to and I found some trails close by to finish up.

Tuesday – rest day

We finished our training and then drove home, so it was a long day.

Wednesday – 6.04 miles (9:21/mile)

I headed home and got in my 6 mile run before book club.

Thursday – rest day

Friday – 3.02 miles (9:22/mile)

I got in a few morning miles before work since I had a haircut scheduled for the evening. It was actually nice to run along the river as the sun rose.

Saturday – 11.01 miles (9:27/mile)

After several weekends of hot, summer weather, I was so excited for the temps to be in the 50s on Saturday morning. It felt more like fall!

I headed to the chain of lakes to do my long run. I sailed through one lap around each lake to knock out this run. It felt really good! It was soooo nice to have another strong long run. And one where I felt like I could certainly keep going if I had to.

In the afternoon, I headed to a friend’s baby shower and then met up with my family for dinner. It was a fun day, but I was exhausted at the end of it.

Sunday – 3.67 miles (9:33/mile), 37 minute walk

I set my alarm to maybe get up and do my hour of cross training before I met up with my family for church and brunch, but I just did not want to get out of bed. I took the extra rest and headed out for a run/walk in the evening.

Thankful for the beautiful weather this weekend. Definitely did not feel like late June, but I’ll take it. Also, I can’t believe July is already around the corner. Summer is going by too fast!

Twin Cities Marathon Training – Week 2

Week 2 is done. It started well, but didn’t end as I had hoped. In short, I’m not used to the heat yet.

Monday – 3.01 miles (9:38/mile)

Some nice, easy miles after a busy weekend.

Tuesday – rest

Wednesday – 5.02 miles (9:16/mile)

I was feeling good and wanted to push the pace a little on this run. I was hoping to do around a 9:20 avg pace and managed just under that! Great way to celebrate Global Running Day!

Thursday – 3.01 miles (9:38/mile)

My left knee was a bit sore on this run. Nothing super bad, but definitely not usual. I was glad the run didn’t need to be longer and noted to keep an eye on it.

Friday – rest

My sister, a friend and I met for dinner and then saw RENT! It’s my favorite musical, and I was so excited to see it again! It did not disappoint. Such a great production and a great ladies night out.

Saturday – 8.55 miles (10:02/mile)

The temperatures were rising late in the week and I knew Saturday was going to be a scorcher. Even after a semi-late night at the show, I made sure to get up fairly early to get in my long run. I headed out the door by 8 a.m. It was already pretty warm, but nothing insane. I carried water with me just in case.

It took a couple of miles for my legs to warm up. Things were starting to heat up more, but the first 3+ miles of my route were mostly downhill. On my way back up the hills, the heat and tiredness started creeping up on me. At the top of one of the hills (around mile 5), I resolved that I just needed to walk for about 90 seconds after getting a cold drink of water from a fountain. I started running again after that and made it about 2 more miles before needing to walk again. At that point, I pretty much resolved that the rest of this run was going to suck and I’d need to do some walking. I tried to go as far as I could. I was supposed to do 9 miles, but called it at 8.5.

Super frustrating to have a second hot, crappy long run. I know the heat was a huge factor, so will have to be a bit more planful with my timing in order to miss the heat, at least until I’m more used to it.

Luckily, after that run I had plans to meet friends for Yoga and a Pint. The stretching felt great, and sitting on the patio chatting with a beer was the mental break I needed to get over that run.

Later that afternoon, I headed to a friend’s wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony and so nice to see friends so happy! We laughed, danced, and made s’mores at the s’mores bar!

Sunday – 35 minute elliptical and 25 minute walk

I slept in a little and then woke up to some bad storms rolling through. It was raining the rest of the morning, so a good excuse to do my cross training in the workout room on the elliptical and treadmill.

I spent the rest of the day relaxing and doing the usual Sunday chores.

Here’s hoping for another good week of training and a better long run!

Twin Cities Marathon Training – Week 1

I’m officially marathon training! One week down, 17 weeks to go to get ready for my second go at 26.2 miles. I’m excited for the journey. I’ve been getting faster and stronger over the last year and a half, and it has set me up well for this training cycle.

I’m using the Hal Higdon Novice 2 marathon training plan. It has 4 running days, 1 cross training day, and 2 rest days. I may do a little extra running/cross training on one of the rest days if my body is feeling good.

Here’s how the first week went.

Monday – 3.13 miles (9:35/mile) 

Used the morning of Memorial Day for my first official training run!

In the afternoon, I was able to hang with friends at a cookout and enjoy some time outside.

Tuesday – 3.8 miles (9:15/mile)

I met up with a friend and her running team to explore a new path in Fort Snelling State Park. Part was paved and part was more dirt/gravel. Not quit trail running, but a little more off-road. Nice change of scenery and interesting to be in the woods in the middle of the city.

Wednesday – rest

I went to the final planning meeting for the Take Steps walk for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation after work, so took the day off from running to plan for some walking.

Thursday – 4.76 miles (9:35/mile)

This was actually supposed to be a 5 mile run, but my Tuesday run was a bit long, so I cut it off at 45 minutes.

Friday – 1.67 mile walk

It was a nice day, so I headed out for a short walk after work.

Saturday – 8.18 miles (9:29/mile)

I got up early so I could get started before the heat set in. I headed out at 8:30 a.m., but it was already warm. I didn’t bring water with me this time since it was an 8 mile run and I had water fountains at good spots on my route. Might bring it on a similar hot day in the future, though.

I started out at a little slower pace as my legs got warmed up. After about 2-3 miles, my legs were feeling good. Around mile 6 the heat was starting to get to me and I was feeling tired. It was a struggle getting through those last couple of miles. If the breeze hadn’t been blowing in my face at the end, I probably would’ve quit early. But, I made it through. A little discouraging to have a tough first long run, but I know I just need some time to adjust to the heat.

On Saturday night, my sister and I checked out Hi-Lo Diner for some cocktails and diner food. We capped the night off with some ice cream.

Sunday – 2.93 mile walk + Take Steps walk

I met up with some friends for a morning walk around Lake Harriet. It was another sunny, warm day, but we had some shade on the walk and a nice breeze. So nice to catch up during our 3-mile loop around the lake!

In the afternoon, I headed to Harriet Island (different place from the lake) for the Take Steps walk benefiting the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. I got there about 2 p.m. to help with some set up. The walk started just after 5 p.m. It’s about a 1.5 mile route. When that was done, I helped with some tear-down tasks–one of which was collecting the signs along the course. That meant walking the route AGAIN. When all was said and done, I probably walked about 6 miles total for the day.

Luckily, they were all totally worth it! The walk raised over $140,000 for the foundation!

I spent the rest of Sunday night chilling with Netflix and definitely got a good night sleep.

See you next week! 🙂