I am now over a month into my Boston Marathon training (just about 5 weeks in). I’ve got 19 runs, 10 strength sessions, and a handful of rest days under my belt. 

My weekly schedule is as follows: 

Monday: tempo Run + yoga

Tuesday: strength + light cross training (an uphill walk on the treadmill, or 20-minute light elliptical/bike)

Wednesday: hills or intervals (alternating each week) + yoga

Thursday: same as Tuesday 

Friday: short easy run + yoga

Saturday: long Run 

Sunday: rest – sometimes a walk, sometimes yoga, sometimes nothing at all 

*REMINDER that this is what I came up with after researching and getting guidance/advice. It is not everyone’s cup ‘o tea. 

I wanted to give a little update on how things have been going mentally & physically to this point! I’m feeling like I’ve found my rhythm, and my body & mind are responding well to my training plan.

My mind: 

I find myself looking forward to most workouts and have not yet had the pre-long run anxiety that I was feeling weekly while training for my first marathon. But my longest run to date was last weekend’s 14 miles, so the longest runs and higher mileage weeks are yet to come (stay tuned for a later update!). 

I did have to check myself after my second week of training when I reviewed the stats on my Garmin watch… 

I used to run so much faster than this for less effort. 

I used to run my easy runs at the pace I now use for tempo workouts.

These thoughts flooded my mind, until I reminded myself that I also used to be training for 5ks, running at the division I Ievel, and I had very different goals. 

My goals now, as noted previously, are to put in the training, enjoy the process, and successfully run from Hopkinton to Boylston Street. I do believe that my workouts are setting up to do all of those things. I’m feeling excited, and optimistic! 

My body: 

Physically, I’m feeling great. Some days are better than others, but that has always been the case. On certain runs I feel strong and as if I could run all day. Other days, my legs feels heavy and my whole body feels fatigued. And that’s just normal. The first run after a hill workout is going to be rougher than the one after a rest day or easy run. 

On those days when I feel more fatigued, I takes extra care in how I respond to my body’s signals. I’ll choose a more restorative yoga practice, I’ll drain my legs, and I’ll be more intentional with how I spend my rest days. 

I was discouraged after a tough, hilly 8-mile run a couple weeks ago. I finished feeling like there is NO WAY I could have run 18 more miles. But I’m not supposed to be able to run 26 miles right now… I’m right where I’m supposed to be, and if I continue on this steady path eventually I’ll get to where I’m going.

I also need to note that I believe fuel is having the biggest impact on how I am physically feeling this time compared to how I felt while training for my previous marathon. I know that I feel better on long runs when I eat something beforehand, and I have seen how I recover faster when I eat something calorically dense shortly after I get back. I also know that trusting my body is KEY. Eating when I’m hungry, even if it’s more than I typically would eat. Not stopping until I’m actually satisfied, even if that means seconds and thirds at dinner time. All of this seems super obvious, but it’s newer to me after being in a place where I was fighting my body’s hunger cues for so long. 

Overall I’m feeling excited, motivated, and energized. I know there are challenges ahead, but I plan to take them as they come.