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Berlin Marathon Training – Week 8

With 7 weeks of training between now and the Berlin Marathon I could not be more excited. This training recap is my first one dedicated to Berlin! The triathlon is over so now all my focus is on preparing my body to meet or exceed my pace goals on September 28th.  After a lapse in training during vacation I came back to Geneva last week ready to put in the effort. My body thanked me for the break and responded with strong splits during every run. Last week was, dare I say it, perfect week of training. I slept at least 7 hours each night, I practiced yoga once, I got back in the habit of doing weights and core work, I logged each of my runs, and I ate well. Here’s a run down of what workouts made last week so successful!

Monday: Sweet, beautiful rest day including 10 hours of sleep!

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Tuesday:

Morning: This week’s speed intervals were longer than normal but I felt strong during the entire workout! 1 mile warm-up, 2×1600 (7:43, 7:48), 2×800 (7:48, 7:41), followed by a 1 mile cool down.

 Evening: 2 hours of intense power yoga including 8 crow poses!

Wednesday:  I knew I wanted to do some weights at home but couldn’t settle on one workout. After skimming my Pinterest workout board I ended up doing 1 round of Julie’s 30 minute living room workout and two rounds of my favorite 5 minute strength workout!

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Thursday: In between hospital visits and a few work conference calls, Anne helped take my mind off Bo’s surgery through ALL the workouts! We started the day with an early morning 6 mile tempo run including 4 sub 9 miles. We had so much fun chatting and catching up that the run flew by and before I knew it we were at our turn around point! The weather was so nice, that we biked 14 miles through Geneva to enjoy some sightseeing and mountain views! By the end of the day, between walking to the hospital and around town we logged 3 miles of walking too!

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Friday: I woke up feeling like I’d been hit by a truck after all our activity the previous day. This called for an active rest day including 3 miles of walking, foam rolling and some evening stretching.

Saturday: A near perfect, strong 15 mile long run. 

Sunday: I spent most of the day cleaning the house, taking care of Bo and catching up on work. Around 5 I was super antsy since I hadn’t left the house so I did 30 minutes of random weights and core exercises including lots of pushups, planks, dips, and arm exercises.

I feel really confident about the next few weeks of training as we don’t have any travel planned due to Bo’s surgery. While work is going to be pretty busy I have no excuses for missing workouts.

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5 Tips for A Stronger Long Run

Happy Sunday! I hope you all have enjoyed a good weekend so far. What did you do yesterday?

I spent yesterday morning running 15 miles around Geneva. I changed up my route a bit as my regular route has started to get a bit boring. While it’s absolutely gorgeous along the lake, running there for each of my 3 weekly runs means that it isn’t as exciting as it once was. I spent my first few miles weaving through Geneva’s neighborhoods before heading to the lake yesterday which was a nice change of pace.

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The run went really well other than one necessary bathroom stop. I wore the same outfit again this week, which means that I think I’ve found my perfect marathon race day outfit! The weather was humid and overcast for the first half and then the sun came out for the second half.  For those who are interested, here are my splits: 9:42, 9:53, 9:55, 9:51, 9:51, 9:47, 9:51, 9:56, 9:43, 10:09 (hills and dodging tourists), 9:49, 9:39, 9:29, 9:21 and 8:54.  IMG_1434[1]

Since my past few long runs have gone better than normal, I thought I’d share 5 tips that have helped make these runs stronger and more successful.

5 Tips for a Strong Long Run

1. Get a good night’s sleep! Sleep is the time when your body repairs and heals it sleep. Not only will 7 or more hours of sleep leave you feeling more rested but it will also leave your muscles and body more ready to run. Sleep is so important that many coaches, according to a Runner’s World article, say that increasing sleep is the #1 thing athletes can do during taper to improve their race day performance! I like to sleep in my PRO Compression Marathon Socks and enjoy some Sleepy Time herbal tea before bed to relax.

2. Practice the optimal pre-run fueling. I’ve found that a little bit of coffee, a little bit of water, a banana, peanut butter and toast works perfectly. I take about 30 minutes to after eating to sip coffee, check out route options on MapMyRun, foam roll, and stretch while my food settles. When I was in the US I bought a few packs of Vega Sport Sugar-Free Workout Energizer, Lemon Lime and I’ve really liked it so far. The flavor isn’t great but the past two runs have been stronger than normal after mixing some in my pre-workout water.

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3. Make sure you carry enough water and fuel! Always overestimate your water needs, rather than underestimate as being dehydrated during a long run is the WORST! You never know whether your frequently used water fountains will be working so make sure to carry some water with you or leave some along your path.  Another option that I’ve used in the past is creating a route which has me pass by the house so I can hide a water bottle in the mailbox or bushes. The Amphipod Hydraform Handheld Thermal-Lite is large enough for long runs and has a convenient zipper pocket for storing fuel, money and keys along with a thermal sleeve to keep water cool. I’ve tried a lot of fuel over the years and my favorite two are Salted Caramel Gu or Margarita Shotblocks.

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4. Find motivation in a playlist, audiobook or podcast to keep you company along the run. Yesterday I listened to music for the first 4 miles, A Life Without Limits for the middle 8 miles, then music for the last 3 miles. It was a perfect balance and Chrissie Wellington’s story really helped motivate me through the middle miles which can sometime be the hardest mentally. If you haven’t read or listened to this book I can’t recommend it enough!

Here are a few songs that I especially loved during yesterday’s run:

  • ABC – Jackson 5
  • Sur Ma Route – Black M
  • I Want You Back – Jackson 5
  • Let The Groove Get In – Justin Timberlake
  • All The Small Things – Blink 182
  • How Will I Know – Whitney Houston
  • Bombs Over Baghdad – Outkast
  • Give Me A Beat – Girl Talk

5. Plan a fun activity or reward after your run. Sometimes it helps to have something that you are running towards or a reward you know you get to enjoy afterwards. When the going gets tough you know you have to finish in order to reach your boyfriend, friends, iced coffee date, frozen yogurt or even your ice filled bathtub! Yesterday I made a brunch date with girlfriends for 11 which meant that I had to finish my run in a 10 minute pace or faster. IMG_1457[1]IMG_1460[1]

Now it’s your turn! Share your own tip in the comments or share your favorite post workout reward or workout song.

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Focusing on The Run

Over the past few weeks, I’ve realized that my legs are stronger than ever. I’m maintaining paces that were once never even imaginable to me. In fact, the two times I ran the NYRR Fifth Avenue Mile, in 2009 and 2011, I never broke an 8:15 pace.

Yesterday, when I shared this picture on Instagram, I was still in shock that I was able to maintain a 7:43 and 7:48 pace for a mile each.

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But, after checking my Garmin a few times and feeling the multiple dry heaves and near puke moments, I spent a few moments enjoying this new-found speed.

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This speed makes me want to push harder than years before. It makes me believe that some time, down the road, with proper training I may be able to run a sub 4-hour marathon. But most of all, it has made the act of running more fun than ever before. Historically running for me was not only a way of losing weight and staying in shape, but also a very social activity. When living in New York City, I typically ran with friends at least twice a week. Don’t get me wrong, running with friends was certainly fun but I wasn’t always enjoying the run. I was enjoying the company of others, catching up with friends and the fact that their company took my mind off the act of running.

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Since moving to Geneva, it’s a rare gift to run with my friend Emily. Running alone quickly grew boring and challenging, even when I took the time to put together a new playlist or was surrounded by beautiful sites.  Since starting the Runner’s World Run Less, Run Faster plan, I am focused on each runs goal and the actual activity of running versus trying to take my mind off the run. I’ve found that having focused runs, each of which have a goal, is making running more enjoyable and delivering more results. In fact, at least once a week I leave the house without music. I have found comfort in the challenge that makes me want to focus on my muscles, my pounding heart and my breathing.

So whether you’re working up to running your first 5k or training for an ultra marathon, try changing things up once in a while. You never know what a new training plan or a solo run will do for you.

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