It’s hard to believe that my virtual marathon is just a little over one month away!! So far, training has been going well. Other than some moderate hip pain I’m feeling good. I’m also still continuing my running streak that started way back at Memorial Day!!

Monday- September 14

Well, the boys are both back in school physically so I had a choice to make…do I continue getting up at 4:30/5:00 in the morning to run or do I run after I drop them off at school?? I’m not going to lie the extra early mornings for the last two weeks were definitely taking a toll. So I opted to run after I dropped them off. By running after drop off I can run outside vs. on the treadmill. Not that I mind the treadmill but with fall temperatures coming why not take advantage of running outside?? With my key run already done for the week over the weekend this week is filled with a number of 3-6 mile runs. Monday started out as a five mile run and I finished up closer to six. It felt good to be outside and to not have the time pressure of getting done and racing into the shower and out the door for school.

In a weird change of events my left hip is now feeling sore vs. my right hip. I’ll do a better job of stretching this week with my new found time. I also broke out a new pair of shoes. I realized I needed another pair in rotation or I was going to need a new pair right before the marathon. While I haven’t had to break in my New Balance Fresh Foam 1080v10 I still wouldn’t want to take them out of the box and run 26.2. That said they were perfection for today’s run, so I probably could take them out of the box and run a marathon!

Tuesday- September 15

Back outside for another great run. I wasn’t sure how far I was going to go when I went out the door anywhere from 3-5 miles. Finished up with a nice five mile run. I love the fact that the air is a little bit cooler. It adds pep to my running step!! Finished off the morning with a solid 35 minutes of lifting. Strength training is so important, especially as the miles continue to increase. Still have that moderate hip pain. I’m keeping an eye on it and making sure to add some stretching.

Wednesday, September 16

Oh my my hamstrings and hips are super tight. Rather than run first, I started with 30 minutes of Yoga for Runners to loosen everything up before heading out the door. By modifying my schedule to run after I drop the boys off for school I’ve truly been able to take advantage of the beautiful weather. To keep things fresh I mixed up the route again today. I’m continually amazed at how many different distance combinations I can get by altering the route just a bit from my house. Another solid five mile run.

Thursday, September 17

Thursdays mean I should run and strength train. But truth be told I tweaked something in my back on Wednesday so I kept it to just a run. A nice and easy 3.1 outside. A whole week of beautiful weather has lead to lots of extra outside time!

Friday, September 18

Early, early run this morning. After learning late Thursday night that I was subbing at school on Friday I knew I wanted to get my run done before school. Schedule called for 5 miles but based upon timing I completed 4. No big deal- that’s the beauty of a flexible schedule. At this point in the week I have 23 miles done and 7 miles to go to meet my 30 miles for the week. So I’ll just add a mile to Saturday or Sunday and I’m set. Back on the treadmills for a 5:00 AM run. But that also meant I was back with Bosch Amazon!! Watching Bosch on my iPad has been a game changer for my time on the treadmill. It seems to fly by.

Saturday, September 19

Truth be told on Friday after school I was a whole new level of tired. I wasn’t even sure going to bed early was going to do the trick to allow me to get my five miles in on Saturday morning. But ah the beauty of a good night’s sleep. I woke up feeling refreshed and ready to go! It was COLD. As in temperatures in the 40s in the morning. This is my sweet spot for temperature when I run. While it’s a little cold to get started once you warm up it’s perfection. I was feeling extra motivated because I got to wear my new Alzheimer’s Association Team shirt for my run. With four weeks to go before my virtual marathon- channeling my inner why is KEY!

Sunday, September 20

Sunday runs are nearly always my short runs. It’s my “rest” day after all. So a quick two miler to keep my running streak going. 121 days and counting!!

Week in review

Early in the week my hips were tight and bothering me. This is likely because of a 36 mile week last week, including a 14 mile run. I was careful to continued strength training but also stretching to help loosen up my hamstrings and hips. By the end of the week I was fortunately feeling relief. It’s hard to believe that the marathon is now less than a month away. Must stay healthy and avoid injury!! Looking ahead the week of September 21 brings more speed work as the key effort and the week of the 28th a 20 mile run!!

Subscribe to follow along!

A reminder: I run for those who can’t! I run to #endalz.