Half Marathon Training Starts!!

So, I'm going to try something a little different this training cycle while preparing for the Phoenix Half Marathon. I'm going to try and blog about it! This is only my third year running again, and still my first year racing. I've done two half marathons and a few 5k's, a 12k and a 10k. So I'm still learning about what works for me and what doesn't. For my first half marathon I used the Runkeeper app and a training plan it had. It was A LOT of miles and I wound up grounded for three weeks with horrible IT band pain the month before the race. I still made it to the starting line, but I was still injured.

I had been looking into using a different training plan, but didn't know which one. There are so many out there, each promising to get you right where you wanna be. Then one night my best running friend, Brecka, messaged me and said she was pretty sure she's going to use the Run Less Run Faster program to train, and asked what I was going to use.

Now this is a plan I had looked at, but haven't heard much about. I figured, if I use it, we could train together and maybe it would help keep me on track to have a friend to run with and an accountability partner for completing cross training workouts. So I bought the app for my phone, ordered the book from Amazon, set a finish time, and got excited at the prospect of not having to run as much using this program.

Current read. We affectionately call it the "Running Bible" or the "RB".

I haven't quite finished reading the book, I'm almost done, but I LOVE the way training is set up! 3 running days and 2 cross training days. The running days include a track workout, a tempo workout, and a long run, all paces are worked out for you based on your time from a finished race and desired finish time. The cross training for each week has already been planned as well, all you have to decide is which of the two workouts you want to do. There's a lot of information in the book. If you plan to use the program I suggest buying it. Here at Amazon it's cheaper than in the bookstore.

I'm choosing to not disclose my finish time, simply because everyone has some kind of opinion of how fast someone should be able to run. If you follow the same plan, you may be able to figure that out of course.

I have chosen to use the swim as one of my cross training workouts and will alternate between the bike and rowing for the other one. I will also be adding in some strength training to help build muscle and for overall strength and health, even though the plan doesn't necessarily recommend that.

I've just finished week one. I'm starting off injured, which of course isn't ideal, but I know if I listen closely to my body, I should be okay. Monday and Friday will be cross training days, Tuesday track, Thursday tempo and Saturday long run with Wednesday and Sunday as rest days.

Monday's swim workout was actually quite easy. It involved 20 lengths of the pool only kicking with 30sec rest in between. I was a swimmer in a past life, so it really wasn't difficult and made me want to do more, but I'm going to trust the process and follow the plan as closely as I can. In the book it talks about how swimming can loosen the ankles of a runner and help with lower leg power. I also wear short flippers (Finnis Zoomers) which I've read help force your feet to kick the right way. I always wind up with minor shin splints when I start swimming again, I'm hoping that it's just all of the muscles loosening up and the issue will be a short lived one. I also lifted a small circuit of lighter weights for legs that day. I have a hamstring injury (likely tight muscles) and am trying to help strengthen my legs overall. I really miss lifting and am happy to be back in the gym again.

Tuesday was my first track workout and the first workout I was able to do with Brecka! She'd never done speed work like this before so I was pretty excited for her and for our chance to run together!! The workout called for 12 times 400 lengths at 2:00 each and a 90 sec recovery interval. My legs were pretty sore from the previous day's weight lifting, but I managed to nail each one of them at 1:59. We are also doing the required warm up and cool down, which I've never done before, but we're both pretty serious about not getting more, or re, injured!

Wednesday was a rest day, and thank goodness for that! I'm already tired!!

Thursday had me a little worried. The first two miles were to be spent warming up and working your way to your tempo pace. I had not run at any of those paces in a really long time and was anxious at the prospect of having to do so now. What if I bombed it?!! After a quick pep text from Brecka I finally made my way out there to tackle it. Not even a mile in, my Garmin died. That can't be a good sign right? I walked myself home and charged it up just enough to finish the workout. To my surprise, I completely nailed every pace and held the tempos 100% steady! That is a good feeling!
 

Friday was meant to be a cross training day, and I was looking forward to it, but I was having some serious pain in my lower back. I had inadvertently bruised some muscles while trying to roll out my upper back where there's another injury (super tight lats and traps). I decided to rest so I would be ready for the long run on Saturday. It was a good choice. I'll get the second cross training workout this week.

Saturday's run was pretty much perfect! It was amazing weather, a little cold, but not so bad it was uncomfortable, sunny (eventually, we started in the dark) and gorgeous! Brecka and I nailed paces, though a little scattered, and came in under the recommended pace time by 5 sec. Not something we should necessarily do, but GPS is a little wonky on the canal, so we'll make do.

Overall this week's training was pretty much perfect! I loved every minute of it. The sore muscles (not the painful ones), the nerves, the success, the friend! It was great. Some things I still need to work on... adding in upper body lifting. I'm recovering from too tight muscles in my left traps and lats and have been given permission from the chiropractor to start lifting light weights, but to be careful. I will hopefully have another appt this weekend to help work out the knots. I also need to start eating way better. I am not currently eating to perform, and that is not okay. The demands of training means I've got to fuel right. I'm learning, and I'll get there.

If you're still here reading, congrats! That was a lot to go through, haha! Thanks for sticking around and following my journey thus far! I am excited for this training cycle and where I could be in the next 16 weeks! Maybe a PR!

  

Also, are you wondering about the wraps I'm wearing with the positive mantras on them?  Let me tell you about them quickly.  I'll do a separate post about them in further detail, later.  The company is called Momentum Jewelry and the wraps I'm wearing are Motivate Wraps.  I've recently become an ambassador for them, and I couldn't be more excited!!  Right now if you sign up at their website to receive their newsletter (don't worry, they won't spam you), you will receive a 20% coupon code to order from them!!  Sounds like a good deal to me!!  I LOVE my wraps and recently made a huge order.  I've already got in mind the next ones I want for my next order!!  Head over now and get signed up!!

Be Kind To Yourself

Well alright then. Do you wanna know what's humbling? Taking some "before" pictures before beginning a workout/eating program.

Over a year ago I started making small changes, that turned into big changes, and I was succeeding! I was eating better, working out in a balanced way and I was seeing results. Then Oct 2014, about a year into it, I went back to work. I get into really bad habits when I work. I don't eat well, I skip breakfast, I drink more soda. I had to make some changes to how and when I worked out, and then I stopped strength training too. With all of that, I lost sight of where I was headed.

I finally made a decision, with my husband, to try and turn it all back around. After hearing a lot of people talk about their success with the 21 day fix from Beachbody, I started looking at it a little more carefully. I thought it was just another one of those gimmicks...lose weight by cutting out foods and working out a ton! We randomly ended up watching an info-mercial about it one day a couple weeks ago and made the decision to go ahead and purchase the kit. It seemed pretty legit, but I still wasn't sure.....I figured there was still some major calorie cutting that was gonna happen and I was anxious, but I was assured I could still run while doing it, so it couldn't be too bad, right?

When everything came in the mail I opened it up and flipped through the book. To my surprise, it wasn't cutting out foods. At least not real foods. I'm still going to get to eat. A lot. It's essentially a kick starter back into eating clean! Well this I can handle. That's what I was doing before, but this is supposed to help with better portion control as well.

As with everything, I'm a bit of a skeptic. But the fact that this was working for me in the first place gives me high hopes that I'll get back to where I was before and help keep me on track better with the support of my husband and the accountability to a group and coach.

But that brings me back to those infamous before pictures. The first thing I did after I had my husband take them was think, ugh, gross. Look at my stomach, look how I stand, my arms....

I believe in the power of taking a before picture, it helps to monitor progress so well, but in that moment I (we) have to remember to love ourselves through the process. I am a mom. My body carried three beautiful, and gigantic, babies. I have a lot of responsibilities, I don't get very much or very good sleep. I haven't always taken great care of myself since having them, but I'm trying, in my imperfect way, to do so now. I'm stronger than I was about a year and half ago, and with proper nutrition, and balanced exercise, I can be stronger in 2015 than I was in 2014. It's not a race, it's a learning process, and I will relearn it as many times as I need to in order to stay healthy and strong. But through it all, I will do my best to remember to love myself.

Pictures found on Pinterest, two link here and here, but the other one goes to a private blog so I can't link it back.