Greater St. Louis Marathon / April 27, 2024

 I'm back to my blogging! Hopefully I'll actually stick to it this time. The last marathon I ran was a virtual/solo marathon for Indy Monumental here in Warrick County back in 2020, I really enjoyed the solo miles and watching the sun rise and running in silence. BUT after a couple of years of focusing in the gym on weight lifting and getting stronger, and just basically enjoying a little time off from the time demands that go along with marathon training, I am ready to jump back in.
I've set my sights on the Greater St. Louis Marathon next April, but my goal is not to just finish it - I'm setting my goal to a sub 4 hour finish time. That would mean I would need a steady pace of 9:09 min/mile, but I intend to train focused on running a 8:46 min/mile.
Even more shocking.... this is my first time to actually use a real training plan, I've been running and lifting for nearly 14 years, but I know that in order to accomplish this feat, I will need to actually use a training plan that is for a sub 4 hour finish. 
My twenty week training plan doesn't officially begin until December 11, so I've got 5 weeks to build my long run back up to 10 miles and my mileage back up to 4 days a week with the long run on the 5th day. My training plan also includes 3 runs at the 8:46 min/mile pace, intervals on the treadmill, along with the easy runs and the long run to be ran at a slow pace... still not sure about that one but I'll probably end up running my long runs at my easy pace...maybe slightly slower than easy.
I've also been decreasing my time spent in the gym lifting, over the last few months I've been going 5 days a week and normally spend 2 hours lifting. So I've been cutting back as closely to 1.5 hours as possible while also cutting the sets back from 5 to 4 sets each. And leg day won't be as intense, but focused on maintenance while I build my mileage.

My diet has been awful though, I'm not pleased with that but I'll admit it. Not sure if I'll really talk about my eating though, maybe I should but I'll start next week. My blogs will be weekly. Doing them each day would take too much time and be too tedious. 

Monday was my first treadmill run focused on marathon pace, or at least building to it. I figure I'll focus on an 8:57 min/mile pace during the first two weeks, holding it steady for 4-5 miles before bumping it down to 8:46 min/mile which will be the marathon goal pace. 
1 mile warm up at 9:10 min/mile
4 miles at 8:57 min/mile pace 
Then I lifted for an hour and 50 minutes, I know that the days I focus on legs and back will be quite a bit longer than delts & chest or even just back.

Tuesday I worked out first, focusing on delts and chest with some abs. One hour and 45 minutes total.

Then I went out for a very easy effort pace, the top I had on was not proper for 25 degrees.... more like 35-45 degrees... so I was freezing, even with two pairs of gloves. I ran 3.5 miles with an average pace of 10:16 min/mile so it was a successful slow and easy run.

Wednesday was another run on the treadmill focused on marathon pace. I do like the treadmill when I need to focus on pace and keeping a strong, steady pace.
1 mile warm up at 9:14 min/mile
4 miles at 8:55 min/mile
Legs and Back focus in the gym, though I'm now maintaining current intensity and effort for legs, while also cutting down the sets.

Thursday I didn't run but took it as a rest day from that, focusing on delts & chest and some abs in the gym. One hour and 45 minutes

Friday

Happy Birthday to me! November 3 and I am now 36 years old. I went to the gym and lifted first, since it was only back day and some arms, it only lasted one hour and 35 minutes.

I decided to run some easy effort birthday miles on the treadmill, since I turned 36 years old, I ran 3.6 miles in 34:32 minutes with an average pace of 9:36 min/mile.

Saturday.... Dorian woke us at 2:09 am going downstairs to the bathroom, by the time I got down there I could hear him puking. After cleaning up and cleaning him up, we went back upstairs and he got in his bed with his phone. I got back into our bed and tried to get some sleep, around 4:00 am Dorian came into our room ready to go back to sleep so he got in bed with us and I stayed there with him for a bit before it was obvious he was back to sleep. 
I told myself to just be happy with 6-8 miles, I honestly didn't feel like getting out and running. It was an out and back route so when I reached mile 4:6, I decided to just keep going to mile 5. Ended up with 10.02 miles with an average pace of 9:45 min/mile so I succeeded at keeping it steady and slow.

In total, I ran 27.2 miles for this first week. And I worked out for 8 hours and 45 minutes. Not bad at all. 

My Next Goals for 2023 - 10K PR & 13.1M PR

     After crushing my 5k goal, I've still got my 10k goal which I'll have the opportunity to attempt a sub 50 minute PR in May at the Memorial Day 10k. I had a goal sub 1:50:00 PR for my half marathon since 2018, but every time I'd try to  hit it, I'd blow it and actually crash and burn. It really hurt my ego, and so I refocused my efforts.
    With my 5k PR goal crushed, and looking at crushing my 10k goal in May, it seems even more possible to crush my half marathon goal. Using a pace calculator, in order to run a 1:49:58 for 13.1 miles, I would need to average a pace of 8:24 min/mile.... WHICH seems quite doable at this moment. My half marathon isn't until September 30th and I don't really see another one before that, at least not within 45 minutes from me. I can't even find one that is less than an hour and a half, so unless Cameron and I agree to a quick out of town stay at a hotel... September 30th it is.
During the middle of the week I signed up for the virtual Flying Pig Half Marathon that's in May....

My other major goals for 2023 is to attempt and complete my 7th marathon, even if that means a solo/virtual one here in Warrick County. A very big goal, which might turn out impossible for 2023... is to complete my first ever 50k (31-32 miles) and do it solo out here in Warrick County.

A Low Mileage Week and a Race

First off, I'm excited to say that this morning I achieved multiple goals. This morning's Run of Luck 5k was brutal, it was 31° with a feels like 21° and NW winds of 16.3 mph.... 

Goals Crushed:

• Sub 22 minute 5k

• Sub 7 min/mile 5k

• Place in either top 3 overall female or top 3 in my AG

I'm very pleased with the results, even though the wind was miserable. Can't say much more about this race, it's just too short to really add to.

As for this week, I kept my mileage low in order to feel refreshed and ready for the race.

Typically my minimal week mileage goal is 30, and my weekly time goal for strength training is 6 hours and I reached 9 hours and 35 minutes.

I try to stick to an intermittent fasting ratio of 14:10 though I don't always achieve it, I am going to get back on track as far as snacking goes.

My daily Nutrition goals are:

Calories vary between 1,600-1,900 and don't matter nearly as much as macros (Carbs, Protein and Fat)

My macros: Carbs-45% Protein -30% Fat-25%

Monday:

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday I was getting back on track as far as nutrition goes and went heavy in the gym, I was very pleased with the "pump" my Back and Arms got.

Sunday morning I headed out for an easy long run, I wanted more than 5 miles but wanted to take it easy. The first half of the run wasn't bad at all, but around mile 5 it started to snow and I was running into the wind which made the 24 degrees feel like 15 degrees, even with two pairs of gloves on my fingers were frozen and actually hurting.
I ended up running 7.1 miles though, 1:03:28 with an easy effort pace of 8:57 min/mile.

So that gives me 22 miles for the week, I feel pretty good about that cutback week after the last few weeks in the mid 30's.

I'll be getting back to my weekly mileage goal this coming week, and I'll be throwing in more 7:30 min/mile pace miles on the treadmill, and maybe out on the roads. 

Getting Back to Blogging

    Yep, I hate to admit it but I am very lazy when it comes to blogging. It is the middle of March and I've got quite a few goals this year, including my blog. 
1: a 5k PR (sub 22 minutes) 
2: a 10k PR (sub 50 minutes) 
3: my 7th marathon, even if it's virtual/solo. 
4: an ultra marathon - a 50k, even if it is virtual/solo.
And yes, my blog is going to be a goal I'm focusing on... if I only blog once a week and combine all of my running, workouts and nutrition for that week, that'll be good enough for me. I will be including my nutrition logs from the myfitnesspal app, even occasionally taking pics of my food and discussing my fitness goals.
I'll post a snapshot of my Inbody Scan I took 2 or 3 weeks ago, I don't quite believe what it said about fat percentage (around 12%), as I'm pretty sure I'm more around 18-20%, but everything else looked correct.

    As of right now, my fitness goal is to either maintain 135 lbs or drop down just slightly lower, to around 132 lbs. About four weeks ago, I did the Inbody Scan at my gym and most of the results synced with my Dara Smart Scale at home, except the Inbody showed my BFP around 12% which is impossible, while my Dara Smart Scale showed me around 22%, which seems a little more realistic. I'll post pics of the results:

I hope that shows all the details, everything looks correct but I just don't see how it's possible that my BFP is that low, because if it was, I'd be seriously lean and cut which I am not.

This was taken about ten days after I did the scan, and I'm pretty certain that my stomach would be shredded if I was around 12% BFP. So I'll be doing it again, probably by the end of this month or in April to see where it puts me.

As far as running goes, this month I've focused on staying between 35-40 mpw and am averaging around 36-37 miles. Last Saturday I ran 15.4 miles, first time in over two yeas since I've ran more than 13 miles.  This Saturday I only ran 12.3 miles, mostly because after a rough morning, I didn't expect to get my long run in and so I didn't wear my LR shoes or my hydration pack. The shoes I wore were killing my toes by mile 10 and I wasn't about to attempt another 5 miles, so ended with 12.3.
By April I want to be averaging 40 miles per week, throwing in a few 16 and 18 mile long runs. Basically the plan is to be ready for a marathon by Autumn and either run one out here in Warrick County by myself (or with some friends) as a virtual or find one in a city that my family and I'd be able to go to. As far as a virtual/solo 50k which would be my first ever ultra, I'm certain that one will be a virtual I'll complete out here in Warrick and not at the actual race.
This other goal I am currently keeping to myself, but I'm hoping that next March I'll be able to attempt the 50 mile ultra at Land Between the Lakes (Fingers Crossed).

2022 Honest Abe Trail Marathon Training - Week One

     So I took a break from marathons and long distance running last year and most of this year, I was going to wait until Dorian started 4th grade this August to start training for my 7th marathon. That was until I realized that the Honest Abe Trail marathon had it's date set for 2022 and although registration doesn't open until August, I decided it would give me the motivation to get back to higher mileage and my long runs in the double digits.
    Training week 1 is complete, this morning's 3.18 miles completed it... though honestly I'd consider Sunday the start of each week but my training apps and stuff do not. Typically I include my gym strengthening sessions and my runs in my blogs, though I might start including my food diary as I am trying to lose 10-15 lbs.
Monday I went to the gym for Legs and Delts -

After the gym I changed clothes and went out for my run, ended up running 5.15 miles out around Friedman Park.

Tuesday morning, I hit the gym for Back, Chest and Arms. I was still feeling a bit
sore from Monday's leg workouts so I decided not to run. Instead, later that morning I took Dorian to Audubon for a hike, still sore so we only hiked 3.36 miles.

Honestly, I am already tired of all the green... and we still have 5 months to go before Autumn hits this area.

Wednesday was another day focused on Legs and Delts, I try to hit each muscle group at least twice a week with some extra workouts at home.

Then I headed to the Newburgh riverfront to get my run in, I think this one was supposed to be a progression run but it really wasn't.

The temp wasn't too bad, but summer is only just getting started so I know that the real misery is coming in July or August. I ran 6.37 miles that morning.

Thursday morning, I hit the gym again for Back, Chest and Arms; I try to focus mostly on back and chest and not a whole lot on my arms. Cameron doesn't really like my arms being too big, and I do tend to agree with him.

After the gym I headed straight at the door and went for my run, I was a bit indecisive about the route, but I figured it out and managed to time it just right to reach a port-a-potty just in time. I ended up running 5.07 miles and got some pretty pics of the sunrise.

Friday was a rest day from it all, because I knew I would need to get up early on Saturday to run 11-12 miles so I decided to sleep in Friday morning.

    So here came Saturday, we stayed up late Friday evening, so I switched my alarm from 4 to 5 am.  I figured an hour extra would help me, which maybe it did as far as sleep goes, but not when it comes to the sun. From here on out, I will be getting up at 4 in the morning so I can at least have some of my mileage ran before the sun really gets above the horizon. 
It was a pretty uneventful run, at least I didn't have any dogs to deal with so that was nice. I carry my pepper spray when running out in the country because of the loose dogs, I've had way too many unfriendly standoffs to know better. It was slow going for the first 5 miles, and my watch never stays correct on gps which I always have to correct after my run. 

I do love the little wetlands in the area, even if it attracts horseflies and other nasty insects. It makes for beautiful photographs.

I made a new friend along the way, a tiny little mini horse, he looked pretty old and had some facial deformities and was very thin for a horse so I hope it is due to age and not neglect.
I ended up running 12.37 miles and still had the energy to fix breakfast and pretty much stayed relatively energetic all day until evening.


 

Sunday morning, before church, I got up and ran what was supposed to be an easy 3 miles or so. It would appear that some nasty, humid weather has come into our area and will be here for the rest of June.
So, I managed to run 32.1 miles for the first week of this training cycle, but it looks like things are going to get a lot tougher due to this humidity that has swept in.

February Thoughts and Focus

I've come to find that I don't have to run a lot of miles to stay lean, in fact I've learned out more in the past month by increasing my time at the gym focusing on weight lifting and watching my diet.

I'm going to try and get back to blogging, obviously I'm a slacker. I'm maintaining a weight between 132-135 lbs while maintaining a body fat percentage of between 21-22% and muscle percentage of 45%.

Changing Focus - Prioritizing Muscle Building

 So the ultra marathon training fell through due to family and my husband's company and just having some issues with my knees that really screwed up the first 3-4 weeks of the 16 week training. Mentally I knew I could force myself through the 50 miles, but at what physical cost? Was I willing to cause damage or serious injury to my body, nope. So I decided that I'd use this winter to focus on increasing my muscle mass, trying to get my muscle percentage back up to 50% and then come Spring I would increase my mileage and focus on leaning out while staying between 45-50% muscle all while keeping my body fat percentage under 25% during the "bulking" phase and then knock it down to 20-22% body fat while holding on to as much muscle as I possibly can.
Currently, as of yesterday I am 133.6 lbs with my BFP (Body Fat Percentage) at 21.2% and Muscle Rate is currently at 45.3%

This morning's workout:

Now I did do some calf raises along with the first circuit, I just didn't add them in there but I'll do that from here on out.

Calf Raises between the Double K-Bell Front Squat and Glute Thrust:
90x12 / 90x12 / 90x12 / 140x12 / 140x12