Week 1: Training has begun
Back in January I wrote that I registered for my 6th running of Grandmas Marathon. To make running a marathon achievable I need to train for 18 weeks. Training started this past Monday.
I established my training schedule based upon an intermediate marathon training schedule that I found on the Grandmas Marathon website. I tweaked it a bit to fit my schedule and my comfort level. Each week I will have two days that I do not run. Those days I plan to bike or do some other fun activity that will give me exercise. The first week the scheduled miles is relatively low. The training concept is to build up the miles, take a step back for recovery and then build up a bit higher. So I will step back about every 4th week and then follow up the 3 weeks after with greater mileage than the 3 weeks prior to the step back week. By following the schedule it should make running the marathon a nice a stroll along the North Shore of Lake Superior.
This week I logged 25 miles. The schedule did call for 28 however I had a few things to do on Thursday that ran my day out too long. I hope to avoid things like that happening however there will most likely be one or two days that will probably happen again. Missing a short run is okay however I must hit the long runs.
The early stages of training for a marathon are the time to test new things. My experience of drinking an energy drink for the first time during my first marathon was not smart but fortunately was a recoverable event and I was able to continue on. This past week I purchased a new pair of shoes that are a different brand than I used in my prior marathons. Plan is to save some money. I have 15 days to return them if they don’t work out. The hitch is that I cannot wear them outside. I have to run on a treadmill which I refer to as a dreadmill (see prior post). One of my runs this week was on the dreadmill and one next week will also be on the dreadmill. After the first run I have some doubts about the new shoes but I did not put in the insole inserts that I use in my other shoes. This week I will. The run I am scheduling inside will be 8 miles which should provide me with an answer if the new shoes are going to work.
That’s it for week 1. I’ll keep you posted.