760.22 miles. 36, 821' up. Eugene Marathon Training Recap

I am off to Eugene TODAY!!! I cannot believe it. I started training for this race 22 weeks ago. I logged 760.22 miles (as of yesterday when I wrote this) and gained 36, 821’.

When I put my training plan together, I decided that I wanted to blend this plan with Hanson’s Marathon Method. I knew it would be challenging to try to train for both a marathon PR AND my first 50-miler within 5 weeks of each other. I normally would not recommend it, but I knew that the marathon PR that I had in mind could be done through just maintenance speed rather than gaining more speed (because I’ve ran at that pace - not considered ‘pushing it’ - during the last 3 half marathons I’ve done AND trained specifically for that marathon time goal last Spring as well).

So, I combined the two programs. I hit more weekly mileage to be in-line with my 50-miler training, kept in my marathon-paced medium distance runs (Hanson’s) to maintain speed for my marathon training, kept up with 3 solid strength training sessions a week, yoga one time a week to stretch it all out, and kept my easy runs real easy (I don’t think any were faster than 10:00 pace and many were in the 11:00 pace). When I had long, long runs I left pace leave my mind and focused on nutrition and running form. When I had speed, I focused on turnover, running form, and pushing through it. I power hiked and added in a whole lotta HILLS.

I ran through so many snowstorms, I’d like to forget them all. I also ran on ice and indoors so many times. I didn’t always hit my goal speed paces, but still worked through them mentally to achieve my ‘something is better than nothing’ goal. I gave myself grace when things weren’t working out AND I didn’t get sick. ONCE.

I took a rest day early or switched around my schedule if I wasn’t feeling a workout or run that day and stretched/foam rolled A LOT. It’s also a nice thing when your garmin watch tells you that your goals aren’t really that crazy.

I read a lot of running-related and mental-toughness books and implemented those into my runs. I PR’d the half marathon by 4 minutes during a workout run (I ran 7 miles easy before the half and had the goal of just maintaining marathon effort - which turned out to be about :20 faster per mile thanks to the lower elevation & downhill nature of the course).

Overall, it was NOT a PERFECT training cycle. I took real big down weeks to help my body adjust to the higher mileage of ultra training. BUT I persevered through some really tough runs when I wasn’t in it mentally. When things get tough during the race I will remind myself of everything I’ve gone through to get to this POINT. I’ve been envisioning the race and myself conquering those tough times the last few months and I’m really excited to challenge myself. Especially mentally. I love how Meb puts it in his book, 26 marathons.

I always set a bunch of goals for races and ultimately, the biggest one that I always want to accomplish is to have FUN. I love to run, challenge myself during training, and see where my potential lies come race day. SO, here are a few of my goals for the race on Sunday:

-A. Sub 3:40 marathon

-B. Negative-split

-C. PR

-D. Have a TON of FUN.

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-Favorite mantras come race day?

-Do you have a favorite race outfit? If so, what is it?

MY MARATHON PLAYLIST!

I take marathon playlists very seriously. I start thinking about them basically when I start training for my race. I try not to listen to those songs too much, but I’m also someone who loves to listen to a song on repeat until I get sick of it (and I then proceed to hate it for a few years). There are always a few songs that always make my race day playlist and then some new / new-to-me old ones.

Definitely didn’t need any music when the landscape is this beautiful!

I generally try to not listen to music during the first half of a race and will then put my pump-up jams in the second half (or I’ll listen to a podcast for the first half to keep my pace easy). I don’t listen to music too much during my training runs, except when I want to ‘pick it up’ and then find that music really helps!

TBT to my last 26.2! I didn’t even pop music in until mile 22!

SO, here’s a sneak-peak at my marathon day playlist.

I saw this recently. 100% taper mode right now. Ha.

My birthday was also SO great. Thank you for all the birthday wishes. One of the best parts was having dinner cooked for me by Alex. Steak & Sweet Potato & Broccoli. YUM.

Also THIS as my birthday cake. Incredible. Peanut Butter fluffyness and chocolate top layer.

Zero regrets with dessert —> training vs non-training nutrition doesn’t look all that different for me. I do focus more heavily on nutrient-rich foods to have immediately after a hard workout, but otherwise I don’t cut things out or ‘restrict’ things. I’m not some kinda elite or something here ; )

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-Favorite race day songs?

-Do you use the same playlist each time you race or make a new one? —> I ALWAYS make a new one and get really excited to listen to it!

Eugene/50 Miler Training RUNdown Week 17: 4/15-4/21

Monday, 4/15: 6.04 miles easy 10:51 894’ up, 1.92 miles easy to & from the gym, & strength

Tuesday, 4/16: 7. 5 miles with 1.17 warm-up/ 4 x 1 mile (400 R) @ 8:41, 8:17, 8:15, 8:09 / 1.25 cool down. Originally had 6 x 1 mile repeats, but I took more time to foam roll & stretch in the morning rather than run. Focusing more on warming my body up before putting it through a hard workout.

Wednesday, 4/17: 6.1 miles easy at 9:55 123’ & strength. I brought my ultimate direction backpack, picked up a book from the library, ran to the gym & did some strength, picked up probably 5 Ibs worth of mail, and ran back to work. It was beautiful out there, but my backpack sure was heavy on the way back —> extra cross-training for my 50 miler ; )

Thursday, 4/18: 1.5 mile warmup, 3.03 miles @ goal marathon effort (8:30) - taught skating for 30 minutes - finished up my run with 7 miles @ goal marathon effort (8:30) with some strong headwind in sections (I swear it changed directions on me even when I hit the turnaround point) , 1.57 miles cool down. Felt strong, relaxed, and focused on my form (mainly engaging my core & knee drive UP to the sky) during the run. I didn’t really want to stop running at the end!

Friday, 4/19: 8.15 total miles. Started on one trail and pretty quickly hit super slush. Switched to another trail and got in a bit longer run before I hit slush, so finished it up on the roads. It was so nice to get out on the trails though! 682’ up 10:44 pace

Saturday, 4/20: 8.01 miles easy 10:37 574’ & yoga. I kept wondering what I would do if a Mountain Lion popped out in front of me. I still have no idea what I would do. Also ate a meatball sub & ice cream before this run. It wasn’t nearly as terrible as I anticipated it to be, but will probably not make it a habit of eating that before running. Ha. Some recovery yoga post-run rather than strength because that is what my body was telling me it wanted.

Sunday, 4/21: REST DAY

Total Mileage: 50.72 miles

Total Elevation: 2, 464’ up

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29

Last year in my 20’s?!? The past 9 years have seemed to both fly by and go ridiculously slow. I remember being 22, fresh out of college, and wishing so terribly to be in my ‘late 20s’. I thought that I would finally be considered an ‘adult’ to others and respected more-so than I was in my early/mid 20’s. Well, spoiler alert: I honestly don’t think much has changed in terms of what others perceive of my ‘you’re so young age’, BUT my perception of what they think has. I don’t really care anymore. I embrace who I am, my capabilities, my strengths, weaknesses, and honestly- a ‘I don’t give a F*** what you think because I know ME’. Maybe that’s conceded, maybe it’s confidence, maybe it’s seen as a ‘bitch’ to some - I’m no longer fretting over what others think. So, there’s that. I am me and I will embrace myself and continue to grow/learn/challenge myself/ and love myself.

So, in honor of turning 29. Here are 29 things that I’ve learned/ done in the past year : )

1. It’s ok if not everyone likes you. What’s most important is that you like yourself.

2.Find your passion and don’t let anyone dull your fire. It will be hard at times and really f*ing tough and you’ll question yourself a lot, but don’t give up.

3.Love yourself. At the end of the day, it’s you so it’s imperative that you love yourself before you look to anyone else.

4.Give yourself a priority list. What are your priorities for the day, month, year, your life? I’m still learning what mine are, but knowing whether or not something is ‘hard priority’ or not has helped me let things go and move on. Focus your intention fully on what is important to you.

5.If something doesn’t bring you joy or isn’t a necessity, then why are you doing it? Somethings you have to do that aren’t necessarily ‘enjoyable’ like cleaning the bathroom or laundry, but other things like wearing clothes that don’t make you feel great or uncomfortable shoes. I’m just over that.

6.I love to cook and create in the kitchen. Cooking something from scratch is super satisfying to me and like running, it almost always brings me joy.

7.I love to sign-up and conquer really scary-to-me things. Maybe I’m considered a ‘thrill-seaker’. I like to think of it as pushing my boundaries. There is no better feeling that conquering something that you once imagined impossible. Last year, that was my MS Run The US 175 mile segment. This year, my 50 miler.

8.I’m learning to not sweat the small stuff. If I don’t feel like running, I no longer feel compelled to run. If I don’t feel like cooking dinner, well then I’m not going to cook dinner. Cold pizza sounds great. I used to hold myself to super high standards, but I’m learning to let those things go (and also- wow does it feel empowering to do so!)

9. Upcycling clothes is my jam. I used to LOVE to buy all the clothes, but upcycling is so much better for the environment and cheaper. I will definitely never purchase used gym/work-out clothes, running shoes, or everyday shoes —> the necessities ; )

——————————————————-Now for things I DID this past year!

10.I think my biggest thing that I did this year was go to therapy. It was really REALLY REALLY hard to make that step, but wow did it help me to finally break out of my anxiety/depression/ PTSD shell that I’ve been in for many years. I blogged about this more here if you’re interested.

11.Got engaged to my main squeeze! I blogged about this more here if you’re interested in that sort of thing : )

12.Ran my first ultra on a very queezy stomach and wanting to DNF halfway through. More of that here.

13.Fundraised over $10,000 for MS Run The US.

14.Ran 175 miles over 7 days for MS Run The US and crossed that finish line with my two favorite people. One of the best days of my life.

15.Put together and hosted my first 5k! Wow was that hard. Ha.

16.Started to do strength consistently three times a week AND switch up my strength training routines every 6-8 weeks. <— One of the biggest reasons why I think I’ve gotten stronger at running AND stayed injury-free.

17. Started to do things that I want to do, regardless if anyone else wants to join me. I would constantly feel the need to stay at home if that’s what Alex wanted to do, but I’ve learned that ‘doing me’ is also important. So, I did more solo hiking, cross country skiing, and longer runs and feeling less-guilty about it (although sometimes I do feel guilty).

18.PR’d the half marathon and broke 1:45. I never would have thought it was possible and I ended doing so without even setting my sights specifically on it!

19.PR’d the marathon. I was actually pretty injured (knee), so I scaled back my goals of breaking 3:45 and just decided to mainly enjoy the race. I ended up walking away with a 3-minute PR.

20.Started journaling and meditating. These two things have been HUGE for me to see growth and get me out of my depression-hole I’ve been in for years. I’ve loved finding the simple things in life really enjoyable and going on more runs without headphones. I’m more present and able to enjoy something simple as noticing the leaves falling, sipping coffee in the mornings, or the quietness of reading a book.

21.Weekly yoga. Even if it is just ten minutes, I LOVE this time. It’s helped me regain some of my flexibility that I lost and improved my strength overall.

22.Received my first Age Group placement at a half marathon!

23.Visited a new National Park, Capitol Reef!

24. Went backpacking in Rocky Mountain National Park

25. Paced Kristen (past MS Run The US alum) through the night miles 52-71 during the Run Rabbit Run 100 miler. She ended up finishing!

26. Played hooky at work and went to some pretty iconic Denver city spots, like Union Station.

27. Saw Celine Dion and cried because she was so beautiful.

28. Took part in the Honey Stinger photo shoot. Still one of my favorite memories, even if I could barely run since it was only 5 days out from MS Run The US relay. Ha.

29.Joined the Bib Rave community and found incredible, supportive people there. Finally a running community to be a part of!

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These are honestly my favorites posts, so if you’re interested here is a look back at 28.

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-Favorite way to celebrate YOUR birthday?

-I LOVE birthdays. Always have super high expectations and have normally been disappointed because I’ve relied on OTHERS to provide the excitement. This year, I’m doing ME. If their plans don’t fit ‘into my day’, then it doesn’t matter. I will celebrate MY way.

-Favorite cake/ ice cream / cupcake/ or candy to eat? Either black raspberry ice cream or cookies n cream. Love either TIramisu or coconut cream pie (not really a huge cake person otherwise). LOVE cupcakes. Preferably something with strawberry frosting. Sour Patch Strawberries, Swedish Fish, or Sour Green Apple Belts.

7 THINGS

Last day as a 28 year old!!

THE BEST IS YET TO COME! Saw this article on Runner’s World by Kiera Carter and got SO excited. I’ll continue to plug away at the slow-twitch muscle fibers and believe that the sky is the limit, because that’s basically the point of this article ; )

SOURCE

Even though I don’t leave until Friday for Eugene, my mind is already focusing on all that vacation time. My mom is meeting me in Portland and then we’re driving down to Eugene Saturday morning. We have a tiny house all picked out for Sat & Sun night and then are heading up the coast of Oregon, so hoping for a few nice beach days! Can’t forget to pack my swimsuit!!

Easy Friday night dinner- appetizer platter!  

Just doing my usual taper things- cleaning out the fridge 🤣 

60 degrees out on Saturday called for some ice cream! First one this year 😋 

Sunday morning breakfast & a running rest day.  

Marathon taper + Rest day = extra time to read and sip some coffee ☕️  

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Favorite type of ice cream cone?  

Best way to spend a rest day?  

3 things you did this weekend?