Marathon Training Chronicles- Installment #2

I was hesitant about signing up for a marathon on May 1st because that meant that I would have to train during the coldest months of the year. Originally I wanted to run my first marathon in September or October– perfect running weather and the ability to do my hardcore, long runs as the summer was winding down and fall was creeping in. But once I thought about it more, I realized that I have the itch to run this thing now and if I put it off I might chicken out and come up with excuses why I couldn’t or shouldn’t do it. So, in spite of not wanting to run in anything under 50 degrees, I decided to put on my big girl pants and just do it. (And of course my first week of training coincided with some of the coldest temperatures we’ve had so far this winter. )

I am recapping week 1 of my training. To my surprise, everything went as planned. I did all the workouts in my plan– I ran Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.

Thursday was a 5k speed interval run. I use the term “speed run” loosely, as I haven’t done speed intervals in a while and I’m also not speedy. I warmed up for 1 mile and then did 1 minute intervals of a pace faster than my 5k speed followed by 1 minute recovery which was slower than my 5k pace. I did that 5 times and then I switched it to a 30 seconds and 30 seconds for the 2nd mile. It was cold and windy that day but it was over in 26 minutes.

Saturday was my long run day. I started with 7 miles and plan to work my way up 1-2 miles each week on my long runs. Saturday was a cold day- it was 20 degrees and icy outside (it snowed the day before) and when the wind whipped I felt it in my bones. It was a decent run considering the conditions and I’m pretty sure it was the first time I ran in weather that cold before. It prompted me to purchase gloves that are more conducive for outdoor activities than the $3 pair of gloves I have from Target.

Sunday was the first of 4 5ks in the Winter Run Series that my boyfriend and I signed up for. The first one was at Heckscher Park. My time was OK but I came in 1st in my age group and I was the 14th female out of 318 to finish the race. I was happy with that finish. I am not a fast runner. I’m more of an endurance runner. My best races are the longer ones. My time differential from a 5k to a half marathon is not a lot. My best 5k time is 7:55/mile pace whereas my best half marathon pace is 8:30/mile pace. That’s a 10-mile difference and only 35 second difference in mile pace. I would like to work on my shorter distance race times but that’s for after the marathon. Right now I just want to focus my training on endurance and getting the miles in. Once the marathon is over I can consider training to improve my 5k time.

Next week I’ll recap week 2 and report on how the second race of the Winter Run Series went. It’s supposed to be a cold one on Sunday so wish us luck!