Health Magazine

Marathon Monday: 16 Weeks

By Alustforallseasons @bgstrzelczyk
Marathon Monday: 16 weeks  Marathon Monday: 16 weeks
Don't you just love it when a weekend goes EXACTLY as you envisioned it? I had the most relaxing yet productive two days. I didn't check my email, Twitter, OR Facebook for all of Saturday and it was complete bliss. Instead I went on a phenomenal hike/run with my gal Peggy Sue at Blue Hills Reservation (yes she's wearing a backpack), cleaned my closet (FINALLY), and finished the book, Bloom (a must-read -- as in drop-whatever-you're-doing-and-get-this-book must-read.)
And this relaxing weekend was exactly what I needed considering the next 16 weeks will be consumed with training for the Mohawk-Hudson River Valley Marathon on October 7.
I absolutely love the start of training -- anything seems possible. Nothing hurts. You feel strong. Fast. You truly believe this training cycle is going to be best one yet. You're going to be the fittest you've ever been. Hello, six pack abs! You even convince yourself you're going to qualify for Boston.
For those who aren't runners/obsessed with running/crazy, Boston is the mecca of marathons. You can't run Boston unless you a. raise thousands and thousands of dollars for charity, or b. run ridiculously fast for your age. Of those two options, running ridiculously fast scares me less than having $5K charged on my CC because I didn't raise enough money in time. 
So this means I need to run an average of an 8:12 min/mile pace for 26.2. I need to finish in 3 hours and 35 minutes or less EXACTLY -- not one second over. It means cutting an hour off of my marathon time.  
It's pretty insane ... but at the same time, I think it's doable for me if I train correctly. My half marathon pace is what it should be for that goal, and with one marathon under belt, I'm a bit more prepared to tackle the distance (though I know you're never REALLY prepared as anything can happen.)
Yes - it's a lofty goal -- and I'm willing to accept that it may not happen. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to work my ass off and try! And in the process, I'm going to do weekly marathon training recaps -- reflections on how things are going. Training for a marathon is hard and it can become extremely overwhelming at times -- I had several breakdowns last cycle. Hopefully by reflecting at the end of each week on everything I've accomplished, I'll be healthier mentally (and I won't unload all my feelings on my poor fiance).
So here we go! Week 1!
To go: 16 weeks | 435.2 miles Completed: 0 weeks | 0 miles

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