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Marathons+Moderation: Guest Post #9

 

In case you’re new to my blog, each Wednesday I feature a different readers journey to find balance during marathon training. While marathons are sweaty, hard work, and a little bit crazy, they also can be a great amount of fun, bonding time with other running friends, and the most amazing feeling to finally accomplish. Today’s post, the 9th in the series, comes from my very first blog friend who also happened to be my first friend in New York City when I moved here 2 years ago: Melissa from FitnessNYC. In fact, this picture was taken weeks after I moved to New York!

melissaandashley (604x453)Hi, I’m Melissa from FitnessNYC! Today I am honored to be my good pal Ashley’s featured Marathon and Moderation guest poster.!

“Everything in moderation, nothing in excess,” Socrates old adage seems to be a good rule of thumb for running. More isn’t always more when it comes to mileage and stress on your body. Okay, there are some people who seem to be able to run dozens of miles a day without rest, but we can’t all be Dean Karnanzes or Skinny Runner. 🙂

I am now in the early stages of training for my third marathon, and my approach has in many ways come full circle. I have the same coach as when I trained for my first marathon with TNT and his message is still the same: BEHAVE. Behave is often at the beginning and end of every ACS practice and weekly email we receive. It can be interpreted in many ways, but most importantly it means, stick to the training plan, trust the training plan, don’t try to be a hero. Of course, it also implies don’t stay out until 3AM drinking Skinnygirl Margaritas the night before your long run, but I don’t imagine that’s not where most athletes get into troubles, I would guess it’s generally it’s too much too soon or too hard.

marathon nike (489x640)My First Marathon: an Obedient Pupil

When I started out as a beginning marathoner, 3 days of running a week were suggested. This plan is pretty foolproof for TNTers; they have 100% success rate for getting first time marathoners across the finish line. Unfortunately, they can’t guarantee quite so high a percentage for second time marathoners, who tend to get cocky and go above and beyond the recommended 3-4 days of running a week and pile on mileage too quickly. In other words, they don’t behave.

I am no exception to this story. For my first marathon, I stuck to the plan and I trusted the plan. On race day I had no doubt I would finish, although I knew it wouldn’t be easy. I had added roughly a mile to each of my long runs until I reached 20 miles and then it was (finally) time to taper. Finishing the Nike Women’s marathon changed my life, it allowed me to achieve what I was sure was impossible.

47685-378-019f (2)Second Time Around: Misbehaving

My second marathon training started a bit late as I spent most of July in South Africa. When I started training I was at a base of 4-5 miles. As I moved into long runs, I was shocked to see how easily my endurance was coming back. Within a few weeks of training I was up to around 10 miles and a couple weeks later, 15 miles. While I don’t necessarily believe the 10% rule is the holy grail of training principles, there was no need for me to pile on mileages so fast. But at the time, I was worried about being behind in training and I felt invincible during that first month of running. If it feels great, why not keep going?

Here’s Why Not

About five weeks before the marathon, I suddenly started getting an incredibly sharp pain in the top and bottom of my foot, it was so much I couldn’t even run (or limp) 4 miles on it. I panicked. I was certain my osteopenia had caught up with me and I had a stress fracture. I thought I would never run again. My marathon aspirations were shattered. Fortunately, I saw a great running injury doctor, who diagnosed me with tendonitis and plantar fascittis. He gave me some exercises to do, helped me create a training plan that would get through the marathon, and suggested generous doses of ibuprofen for added insurance. This is not a totally train wreck of a running story; I am not going to lie, the NYC Marathon 2009  turned out to be an amazing race. I enjoyed every moment pain free. However, the weeks of emotions stress, devastation, and icing probably wouldn’t have occurred at all if I had been wise enough to follow the plan I created and add weekly and long run mileage gradually.

47685-10338-015f Older and Wiser

Third time’s the charm and this time I am sticking to my coach’s plan. I am making sure to get in my runs during the week as well as my long runs—in the suggested distances. As an intermediate, I concentrate a bit more on speed work than I did my first time around, which will hopefully mean a marathon PR. Honestly, 3-4 days of running a week suits me perfectly; it allows me to continue to enjoy other forms of exercise, such as barre classes and spinning and prevents me from getting bored of running. While I did focus on nutrition a lot during my first marathon, I was often nervous about consuming too many calories before, during and after running and while I made it through the training seemingly well fueled; nowadays I always make sure to pack some extra fuel on long runs days just in case I need it. Running is one of the things that makes me realize that feeling strong when you cross a finish line is a much greater accomplishment than reaching a number on a scale.

So moral of the story: Find a plan, follow your plan, trust your plan and you are 90% of the way to the finish line. 🙂

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Marathons+Moderation: Guest Post #8

 

Hey there, I’m Lauren and I blog over at Sassy Molassy about running, eating and food making and other shenanigans. I offered to write a Marathon + Moderation post for Ashley because I enjoy reading her blog and because I love marathoning and I feel like I’ve learned a few things along the way from experience. Some people say marathoning and moderation don’t go together. At one point, I would have agreed. My marathon journey started back in 2006 when I ran my first half (because I was sure I could never run 26.2 miles). Six months later, I was at the start line of the Portland Marathon.

The first through marathons were trained with tired legs and an exhausted body. I was sure I needed to run six days a week no matter what my body was telling me or what work/life commitments I had. After running a few marathons with injuries (IT bands so tight they wrenched on my knee, hamstring strain and runner’s knee), I realized my strategy wasn’t working so well. I needed to find some balance and moderation in my training schedule and life. Here are a few things I’ve learned over the past five years that have helped along my marathon journey.

1. Cross training is key. Yes, get in your focused runs (tempo, speed, hills, long run, recovery, etc), but also take 1-3 days off per week to do other activities. This will allow your muscle strength to become more balanced and prevent injury.

I like to incorporate cycling, yoga and strength training into my fitness routine throughout marathon training.

2. Lower mileage doesn’t mean your training is suffering. Sometimes, your body needs those step back weeks to recover and build up. Be sure to listen to your body.

3. Ice bath, stretching and foam roll (especially after a LR). While it may be the LAST thing I feel like doing after a 15 mile run, it makes a huge difference in my recovery the next day or two.

4. Sleep is important. I’m all about hanging out with friends the night before a long run, but I try to get to bed by 11 pm and keep the cocktails to a minimum.

5. Discover what motivates you. For me, new running tights, a Garmin or pink compression socks keep me excited about my training because I want to use my new stuff. Good fuel, my favorite trail and meeting up with friends are other major motivators. It may seem silly, but these things keep me that much more excited to hit the road for another long run or speed session.

6. Hydrate and fuel often. For me, eating a Shot Blok or chunk of Larabar every 30-45 minutes works well. I also hydrate with a Gatorade/water mix. By the time you feel your tank is empty, often it’s already too late. Don’t be afraid of fueling your body with what it needs to perform, before, during and after a run.

7. Determine your A, B and C goals for your marathon. That way, no matter what happens on race day, you should be happy with the outcome. Be realistic and know that no matter how hard you’ve trained, sometimes race day is just NOT your day.

8. You’ve finished your race – take a freaking load off! Take a few weeks to recover and ease back into your fitness routine. And for your body’s sake, please get a massage and pedicure. Does anyone have a great tip you’ve learned from experience, a book or running magazine? Any marathon horror stories out there? Thanks, Ashley for letting me guest post!

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Marathons+Moderation Guest Post #7: Less Is More

 

Hey Healthy Happier Bear readers! I’m Leslie from And Her Little Dog Too – my little corner of the blog world is about healthy living, eating, running and everything in between, with lots of appearances by my dog, Jackson! I also just got married a month ago so lots of the wedding planning as well as my honeymoon recaps have appeared on the blog too!

Last Fall, I lost my marathon virginity and ran 26.2 miles in the Chicago Marathon on 10-10-10. It was a beautiful day for a race and I was so proud of myself for crossing the line from a runner and becoming a marathoner! I learned so much from my first marathon, and as soon as I crossed the finish line and got that medal around my neck I was hooked!

A very short 3 weeks after completing my first marathon in Chicago, I found myself in a New York State of Mind on the start line for possibly the most popular marathon in the world – the New York Marathon! It was very much A Race Like No Other and I am so grateful that I was able to run two marathons that are on my marathon bucket list in the same season! I have long term goals to join the 50 State Marathon Club as well as run all the World Marathon Majors – Chicago, NYC, London, Berlin & Boston!

Running Back to Back marathons is no easy feat! Moderation during my marathon training was KEY for me because I did not want to burn myself out from over training or injure myself as I am prone to shin splints! My main mantra during training was: Less is More.

I spent the few months before both marathons focusing on quality, not quantity runs. I made sure I hit my long run every weekend, but during the week I put more energy into cross-training – through yoga, biking and swimming. The summer before I ran my first marathon I spent a good amount of time training for my first triathlon so the swimming and bike training were a good distraction from the build up in mileage.

I also made sure to sign up for lots of races during marathon training – I did the majority of my training and long runs on my own, all by myself, so whenever I was able run a race to go along with a longer run, I did! I ran the ING Rock & Roll Half in Philly as part of my attempt at 22 miles – I ran down to the start of the race and home! It was a tad painful and mentally very difficult, but running 13 miles in a race with tons of other people made the extra miles on the way home much easier – plus it’s always fun to get another medal for my wall! (I may or may not have signed up for races in the past JUST to get a medal – I heart them!)

So there you have it – just a few tips from my marathon training experience! This year I am repeating my running plan from last Fall as I am signed up to run the Marine Corps Marathon in October, followed by the Philadelphia Marathon 3 short weeks later. What can I say? I have a running addiction! Come stop by my little corner of the blog world to check out how I run back to back marathons in 2011!

Happy Running!

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