chicago marathon training: week 1

I'm back with my coach and I couldn't be happier! After a hiatus from Coach Val over at Sweat Tracker online coaching after last year's Chicago Marathon (due to limited funds — not because I didn't think she was amazing! It was sad to not re-up the plan post-race. You can read my review of the process here.). I decided it was time to get back together to prepare for this year's race. Honestly, I'm still pretty new to this running life, and I could use all the help I can get. I really have no idea what I'm doing haha.

Week 1 of Chicago Marathon Training
Monday, May 16: Strength Training Week 4, workout 1
Tuesday, May 17: Medium run, 6 miles at Conversation Pace (CP); 1:20:26; 13:24 avg pace
Wednesday, May 18: Strength Training Week 4, workout 2
Thursday, May 19: Medium run, 6 miles at CP; 6.2 miles; 1:19:30; 12:49 avg pace
Friday, May 20: Short run, 3 miles at CP; 38:19; 12:45 avg pace
Saturday, May 21: Rest day
Sunday, May 22: Chicago Spring Half Marathon; 13.24 miles; 3:07:24; 14:09 avg pace

Week Total Mileage: 28.45 (I'm using my Garmin stats for mileage, etc)
Marathon Training Mileage: 28.45
YTD: 405.21 (I'm less than 200 away from my 2015 mileage)

Week 4 of strength training was NO JOKE. It's been getting tougher each week, and the fourth week began adding in higher reps, more exercises, and doing the alternate options for exercises (and by alternate, they mean more difficult). It was rough going. It even added in the stability ball, which was a real treat ;) The one exercise took me so long just to get myself balanced properly on the ball without falling off in order to do the necessary reps haha. 

I will say I can definitely notice that I'm getting stronger, as when I first started doing, say, 10 pushups was a difficult task, and now doing 20 is manageable—mind you it's still difficult, but much more manageable than when I first began. My abs and arms are usually pretty sore the next day, which means it's all working. I'm feeling stronger on my runs, and I know in the end this will have been a very goof thing to add into the mix. I'm happy I found this book and that it's working so well. The details, explanations, and photos are super helpful in making sure I get the right form.

My run on Tuesday didn't feel great. My legs were tired and I felt like I was dragging, and that showed in the pace. It's also starting to warm up and get into summer temps here, which if you've read my blog or follow me on twitter, know that I hate. I didn't complain once over winter that it was too cold. This was in part to the fact that I love winter/cold running, and also so that I could complain when it got hot out haha.

Wednesday's strength training went better than Monday's. It was more about balance, which I think I'm a bit better at than my core strength... which is why I'm doing this in the first place. Increasing your core and stability strength is important for runners, and I think balancing (ha) both of those out, rather than having a much stronger area, is good to do.

Thursday's run went well. Even though I felt like I was going slow, when I saw my pace I was happy. No knee pain, which I think I can partially attribute to the core strengthening. Not much to say about the 3 miles.

Sunday was the Chicago Spring Half Marathon. It was much warmer than I was expecting it to feel. Upper 60s and low 70s + all sun. I got so tired after mile 9, but I kept on trucking. Mom and I ran together and we did 30 seconds running and 1:30 walking. I'll have more details about the race when I write my recap (I'm a bit behind on these, but I'll get to it eventually). You can read my shorter BibRave Review here if you're interested in what I felt the Pros and Cons of the race were (not many cons, except that the beer choice was the usual disappointment haha).

I have a good feeling about the training cycle and I'm excited to have some direction (because honestly, I have no idea what I'm doing and need all the help I can get!).

What are you currently training for?