Man oh man, it’s hard to believe I’m already on week 6! This was a pretty textbook good training week–I completed every workout as planned and felt strong and solid as I inch up towards 50 miles. Monday morning I was up bright and early for hill repeats, which were at 5k effort up and jogging down. I really like these workouts because they force you to measure pace by effort vs. by the numbers–although I feel like my favorite hill is a little too “easy” for these workouts? Hard to tell! Either way, I’m huffing and puffing by the top 🙂
Monday night we had our official kickoff for my charity team for Boston! ICYMI, I’m running Boston for the Bowdoin Street Health Center Healthy Champions program, which brings health and wellness programming to kids in the Bowdoin/Geneva neighborhood of Dorchester. (I would LOVE for you to learn more about this amazing program and consider supporting me here!) It was really fun to meet the other runners and to hear about the incredible work our fundraising will support. Plus, I snagged my official Boston jacket–can’t wait to rock this guy after the race!
Tuesday the weather had finally cleared up so I opted for an outdoor run–it was definitely slushy and there were lots of puddles, but it felt amazing to be comfortable outside. Wednesday I stuck to the the mill and did 3 easy miles–during which I checked the clock about every 30 seconds. UGH. I did get a nice little strength circuit in with some solid corework, so that was a plus. In the evening I got a much-needed massage–I carry a lot of tension in my upper body when I run, and it was painful but great to get it worked out. Thursday was a fun tempo (outdoors again, yay!) with MGP miles. I kept the pace in check on these and was really comfortable between a 7:40 and 7:45 pace–right on track for race day. Those mid-week 9 milers are tough but necessary! Friday was a rest day (and a cocktails with friends day–hurrah).
Saturday the weather was a little crazy–starting in the 60s and ending in the 30s during a 2 hour run! It was awesome to run with my pal Denise–she’s moving to Cali and I want to get in as many long runs as possible. Luckily she’ll be back for Boston–we ran Sugarloaf together and she’s the best marathon buddy. This morning I was moving slow after we went out to a fun concert, but J and I got out for some chilly but nice recovery miles together.
Onwards to another cold week–hopefully no more snow any time super soon!
Week 5: 45.9
- Monday: Hill workout! 10 x 60 second hill repeats for 6.5 miles total
- Tuesday: 7 easy miles
- Wednesday: 3 recovery dreadmill miles, mini band strength circuit
- Thursday: Tempo! 2 up, 6 MGP, 1 down for 9 total
- Friday: Rest day
- Saturday: 15 hilly easy-paced miles
- Sunday: 5 easy
Linking up with The Weekly Wrap (hosted by Hoho Runs and Taking the Long Way Home).
Greetings from the tundra! I am so, so glad the cold snap is ending this week–this was a tough one with temps in the single digits and a 14 inch dump of snow on Thursday. We definitely have stretches like this most winters in MA, but this one was early and it was HARSH. I was glad that I was able to stick to the plan this week and really pleased to see my first 40+ mile week since October.
Sidenote–I have a 2.5 mile run to and from work and would love to use that to my advantage more often. Does anyone have tips on run commuting? Tips on backpacks that don’t bug the heck out of you?
Boston folks, I highly recommend checking these guys out if you need an indoor option for your runs! I even ran into a couple of Oiselle teammates, which is always a nice surprise.
Well, well, well–here we are, back again for a new series of weekly training recaps as I gear up for Boston 2018! I 
This weekend was a busy one! I got in a nice, relaxed 10 miler in the snowbefore heading to my local yoga studio for my initial work-study training. I’m hoping to take on a weekly shift to get more connected with the community and to save myself some $$ on my yoga habit. Then I hit up two holiday parties, spending most of the evening with the Oiselle gals! It was a lot of fun, as always–and now I’m seriously considering running 
With Boston training kicking off around Christmas, I’ve been itching to set myself another big goal. Boston is a bit of a tricky animal to plan around–the course is really challenging and the weather is unreliable. Basically, as much as I would love it, it’s not the best course to re-qualify for the 2019 race. I’m also going to be away for three weeks of training when we are on our honeymoon in New Zealand (!!!). So, basically, my thoughts for Boston are as follows:
Sunday: The weather was supposed to climb into the mid 80s (WHAAAAT) on Sunday, so I got up at an ungodly hour to meet big bro for an 18 mile fast finish long run. We took the shadiest route we know of and sweated it out–it was a little bit of a sufferfest but I was grateful for the company and even more grateful to be training for a spring marathon–last August, we did this every.freaking.weekend. Post-run I was pretty depleted, but made it to a fun Easter brunch in NH with J’s family.
My brother’s scary experience at last year’s race
I kicked things off with my usual Charles River loop and caught an incredible sunset. I love that as the days get longer I get these amazing city views and sunsets on my after-work runs. And while I’m generally a morning runner, I love having the flexibility to run after work if it works better for my schedule that day.
Wednesday I nailed my goal from last week of committing to strength training with a tough 20 minute workout using resistance bands to add some intensity. These little suckers don’t look like much but the really up the ante in terms of basic strength moves like clamshells and leg raises! I also got a massage on Wednesday and definitely need to keep up with the at-home rolling to keep my back nice and loose.
Fun fact: I grew up so close to the Boston Marathon route that I could watch the race from my bedroom window. Other than the years I was away for college, I’ve spectated at pretty much every race. Even before running became a part of my life, I knew there was something really special about Marathon Monday. So when I had the opportunity to participate in this year’s race as a hydration station volunteer with my marathon training buddies (
Overall, volunteering was incredible. You get to be up close and personal with the race participants (I saw pretty much every runner friend I was looking for–definitely a first) and you’re providing a critical service. Everyone was so lovely and appreciative of our help!!
The nutty part is that the photo of him being carried across the finish line went viral 
Shorter and Faster 