26.2 miles... or bust!

 26.2 miles... or bust!

Awhile back, I'm not exactly sure when it happened, a thought popped in my head that I wanted to complete a marathon when I turned 40.  It was always one of those bucket list items for me but doing it as I turned 40 seemed like a huge middle finger to aging after struggling through the latter half of my 30s. It was a lofty goal that was far away... until it wasn't!

I'm a little under 2 years out from this milestone and suddenly aware of how much training I need to do!

For a variety of reasons, running is harder now than it used to be but I'm no longer lamenting about this, but being inspired by it.  It was really hard once before, and then got easier, with time and repetition. It will again. 

This year I completed the RunSedona 10k (downgraded from original half distance) and the Yosemite Half Marathon. Both were hard, hilly, and at elevation - something running regularly at sea level doesn't exactly prepare me for.  When I finished the race in Yosemite - I felt depleted, emotional, frustrated - proud I completed it but only with strong encouragement from others as I was struggling through the last 3 miles of that race. Ordinarily, I get a wave of energy as I near the finish line -- it's almost over! I can hear the crowd! -- But I couldn't muster the energy. I couldn't see the finish line until 0.1mi to the end. I straight up stopped at 13.0 because I was so tired... and then I picked up my feet and ran.

While it wasn't a PR, this was still not my slowest time! I completed it in 2:30:08.

When I finished, it was clear what I needed to do for the next one.

• Increase my supplemental training/accessory work between runs
• Add back in my power workout exercises -- burpees, squat jumps, lunge kicks, mountain climbers, etc -- I FEEL THIS on my hills as my legs cannot keep up with my mindset to conquer that hill (despite running on them all the time in the PNW)
• Reestablish a pre-run warm-up routine and post-run recovery routine -- I've been doing this intuitively and admittedly often just wake up and run
• Better fuel pre-run, and consistently -- this is sometimes I don't regularly focus on until I increase my mileage - I'm better at running < 3mi without fuel but 4+ I feel it (especially 6mi +)
• Reestablish my foundational runs

Which brings me to the next goal. Last time I ran 13.1mi I was able to do so without walking. All three races at this distance were completed in this way, but they were also on flat terrain. Time to rebuild my foundational runs before I can really add more mileage to it:

• Solid 1mi track run (I don't even know what this pace is anymore)
• Solid 5k run on Wednesday mornings
• Solid 10k run on Sunday mornings

If I would like to complete 26.2mi in Feb/March of 2024, that means I need to complete 2 half marathons per year and build up my weekly mileage to 20-25mi prior to increasing.

• Currently I get about 5-6mi/week on average
• The new foundational plan will get me to 10mi/week -- from here I feel like I can add more distance safely and without injury

Tentative race plan:

• 10k in August
• Half marathon in October
• Half marathon Spring 2023
• Half marathon Fall 2023
• Triathalon sprint fall 2023??
• Marathon spring 2024!

Let's do this.