Training has mostly been going really well. I've been loving the plan I created for myself based on mix of past experience and trusted experts. I've been generally much more relaxed and calm during this year's process. I was even able to bump up my mileage on some group runs, however, my pace has been much slower than expected. Some of that I attribute to the heat and some to my commute and the repeat early mornings that are killing me. Per usual - it's a delicate balancing act of competing priorities.
I HAD (keyword) been pain free for nearly a whole year now (insert shocked face here). But that dream has come to an end. Don't worry, I knew it was coming. It was never a matter of IF but rather WHEN. On August 16th (my 36th birthday!), I ran a NYRR organized 12-mile training run in Central Park (week 7). While the event itself went well, by the next evening, those CP hills got to me. My IT band has been hurting ever since. The first few days felt really bad. I laid off all running and was icing and rolling out daily. A week later I suffered through my next long (stupid, but the leg held).
Part of me thinks my shoes failed me. I've been dealing with shoe drama since the beginning of this year. In short - they stopped making the model of Saucony I depend for stability (to "prevent" my IT band issues). I have two pairs left which I treat like gold bricks. In fear and desperation, I got fitted for a new model of shoes earlier this year I got put into a pair of New Balance. No bueno. At first I tossed them aside ($140 later), but over the spring, I forced myself to get more miles on them to basically "re-train" my body to accept them. It seemed to have worked...up until this point. I don't think they handled the CP hills well.
For that next long run (week 8: 14 miles), I begrudgingly opened one of the Saucony boxes up (and cried a little inside). But man was it night and day in terms of support and ground feedback. Pure luxury.
On a positive note, two highlights from that CP run included running with my Milltown buddy Meg (helped keep each other in check!)❤️And my friend Will surprising me in Central Park at mile 10 with a birthday beer 🍺 Sadly, I'm weak (and not German) - couldn't chug the whole thing! But it made my day to see him! I also believe my nutrition and fueling was spot on as I didn't crash post run or the days following. A good mix of gels, Gatorade stops, Coconut water (new!) and pure water.
STATUS UPDATE 🗓️🏃🏻♀️😵💫
Week 1: 8 miles ✔️
Week 2: 10 miles ✔️
Week 3: 8 miles ✔️
Week 4: 10 miles ✔️
Week 5: 8 miles ✔️ (actually did 12!)
Week 6: 8 miles ✔️(actually did 9!)
Week 7: 12 miles ✔️ (Central Park training run)
Week 8: 14 miles ✔️ (actually did 15!)
Week 9: 8 miles
Week 10: 16 miles
Week 11: 8 miles (adjusting to 12 to take advantage of an overnight in NYC)
Week 12: 20 miles
Week 13: 8 miles
Week 14: 18 miles
Week 15: 13 miles (Staten Island Half)
Week 16: 20 miles
Week 17: 8 miles → Taper
Week 18: Marathon 🎉
Besides healing, dealing with my shoes, and all this running...🫠 my next steps are planning my marathon clothing. Luckily I have a style of tank and shorts picked out already (phew - big stress in years past). So this is more about color and theme. Hey - I need to have some fun with it all! 💅🏼
