#BeMonumental {Weeks 10 & 11}

Fear.

It seems like fear and marathon training run hand in hand. There's the pressure of hitting race pace an tempo miles; the unknown when hitting personal distance records; and the pure magnitude of the work. I've felt some apprehension when training for shorter distances but there was always the intrinsic belief that I could do it. I haven't run enough marathons to know that.

A little bit of fear is good. It keeps you humble. It keeps you working. It gives you a push, in my case, to overachieve and break through.

Some fear, though, can be paralyzing. It can make you doubt yourself and tempt you to give up before trying. It's that kind that I'm working on. I'm really working on getting my head in the game, focusing on the days I feel good and channeling that sense of accomplishment when I tackle the next workout.

And there are good days.

My 18-miler in week 10 helped, during which I was able to keep the pace controlled and run my fastest split during the last mile.

My run with both race pace and tempo miles during week 11 showed me that race pace is feeling easier and a controlled, patient tempo effort can leave me feeling accomplished.

My midweek long runs where, barring ridiculous weather, are feeling the way 5-milers do during half marathon training.

And I'm telling myself that I don't have to be the best. I just have to do my best on that day and that best might look different than the week before.

highlight: Running in the Pacific Northwest – obviously. Otherwise, feeling great during my tempo run and surviving the swamp fest that was week 11.

lowlight: Falling during my interval run. I thought I'd be OK in the early morning without lights but I was wrong. During the recovery interval, my foot got caught in a pothole or divet or crack and I was on my hands and knees before I could even think about it. Thankfully, I was fine but I did adjust my effort for the remainder of the run.

week 10

monday, september 5
distance | 3 miles
time | 29:34
pace | 9:51

wednesday, september 7
distance | 6 miles
time | 55:11
pace | 9:09
notes | time intervals; fell during run

thursday, september 8
distance | 8 miles
time | 1:22:22
pace | 10:14
notes | hot as balls, early as fuck

saturday, september 10
distance | 18 miles
time | 3:02:24
pace | 10:07
notes | strong finish

sunday, september 12
distance | 3.3 miles
time | 32:06
pace | 9:40

week 11

monday, september 12
distance | 5.2 miles
time | 48:23
pace | 9:17
notes | early; tight legs

tuesday, september 13
distance | 7 miles
time | 1:02:32
pace | 8:56
notes | tempo on treadmill

thursday, september 15
distance | 2.8 miles
time | 28:57
pace | 10:17
notes | shakeout in Seattle; trails

friday, september 16
distance | 6.6 miles
time |  1:23:17
pace | 12:37
notes | ragnar trail

friday, september 16
distance | 2.6 miles
time |  30:15
pace | 11:25
notes | ragnar trail; night leg

saturday, september 17
distance | 6.7 miles
time | 1:30:39
pace | 13:29
notes | ragnar trail; early morning

#BeMonumental {Week 1}

When I registered for the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon on Jan. 1, running marathon was just an idea. A seemingly good one but, nonetheless, still just a thought. I could tell people that I was running a marathon in 2016 without the actual pressure of doing the work.

Well, my friends, that has changed.

On July 4, 18 weeks out from M-Day, the work began ... with an easy 3 miles with strides. Oh, how I love the first week of a training plan.

For this cycle, I am did something different – I paid for a training plan. I didn't hire a coach; rather, I signed up for the Train Like A Mother Club and its fall marathon challenge. I have been lucky enough to follow along with my BRF and the TLAM half plan and my BFF and the 5K plan. Both schedules have helped me get back my speed (and then some) after having Si, and I credit the TLAM plan for my PR at the Carmel half. Not only did I feel like I owed the mother runners some of my money but I felt confident that the workouts would be challenging yet manageable.

And I was right. There's one to two quality workouts a week, and I have the option to hit 20 miles twice (or just once if I am feeling not so into it). I will max out around 40 miles during weeks 14-15. The challenging aspect will be race pace miles during long runs and midweek long runs that buildup from easy pace to race pace to tempo and then climb down.

I'm not going to lie – when I put the plan into a larger spreadsheet, which I printed out and put on the fridge for Mark, I got scared. It's a lot. But, one day, one workout at a time.

Here's how my first week shook out:

monday
distance | 3 miles
time | 28:25
pace | 9:28
notes | hotel treadmill, humid and icky

wednesday
distance | 5.1 miles
time | 45:39
pace | 8:56
notes | tempo

thursday
distance | 4.1 miles
time | 37:00
pace | 9:00
notes | strides

sunday
distance | 10 miles
time | 1:35:15
pace | 9:30
notes | seriously consistent splits {for me} – 9:43, 9:29, 9:33, 9:25, 9:32, 9:25, 9:19, 9:31, 9:28, 9:39