Adding miles can be tricky…proceed with caution. Every day out there adds to the conditioning but it does not come easy. Food has become my frenemy. Obsession with my daily diet is exhausting, but increases my confidence and energy during workouts. Sit-ups, lunges and leg lifts chip away at the runner inside. Only small twinges of soreness remain of my foot injury, but so many other areas draw my attention. I still do the ice bottle after runs and ample time stretching before stepping out the door. Every ache reminds me to take it slow or take a rest…one mile at a time.
And I am not alone. It is marathon season. I have noticed so much information out there for anyone training: first timers, PR seekers and everyone in between. This month’s Runners World features their new Marathon Challenge. For $130, Bart Yasso will devise a marathon training plan for you based on your goal. I signed up for the NY Times Run Well Training Tool, part of the NY Times Run Well -Your Marathon series. Customize your training from a choice of training schedules and track your miles.
I picked up a copy of Running Times and found two really great running calculators (They are now posted on the resource page under training tools). Each give you your training/racing pace calculations at many different distances based on a marathon finish time. For “zen runners” like me, this is such a helpful tool for long runs and 800′s on the track. I am never quite sure about training pace.
The best part about being back on the road is seeing familiar long distance friends out there still putting in the miles -training for races of their own. As soon as I get my conditioning back, I look forward to hearing their latest stories and catching up!
