There was so many things wrong with the approach I took to training for the full. I really focused on getting in my high km runs on the weekends. That was my goal, go further than I did the week before. I got up to 26 km and it felt pretty awesome to see that number on my Garmin. An undesirable time, but the mileage made me smile.
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| (I couldn't find the 26km pic) |
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| 2 few bloody toes + 1 huge blister = many small band-aids |
The thing is, after my long weekend runs I would be so sore usually right up until Thursday. The arch of my foot, my butt, my calves, my bruised toes, etc. It was definitely always a painful few days after my long run. A typical Monday morning would include me limping into school and it always hurt to sit down. Another bathroom break? Darn it! (don't you find 2 days after a good workout is when you really feel it?) I would miss critical runs during the week because my body hurt so much from Saturday. Maybe that sounds like a lame excuse, but I was all about avoiding a serious injury and I wasn't going to go on a 15km run when I could hardly walk.
One thing I really tried to do was to include HIIT workouts into my workouts and I usually always had a couple a week, which felt awesome. A quick 20 minute, fast-paced treadmill workout and you end up sweating more from that than a 26 km run! Short and sweet. I thought doing these would help me achieve my 1:40 half marathon in May, but I really think my strong focus on the long, slow runs hindered me from seeing 1:40. My body was so used to going for so long at such a slow speed that the day of the half my legs would just not go faster. It was a wierd feeling, no matter how hard I tried I couldn't go faster.
My PT is helping me to get a better running form and is going to help me get on track for running a full marathon. She wants me to run for 5km, walk for 1. I really don't want to walk, like really don't want to have to walk. Thoughts? I am going to be going to Claire and Julia for some help because they kill marathons! ;)
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| this happens when I get tired, I almost sit as I run. |
SO. I still want to do a full marathon, I just need to take a better approach to my longer runs and making sure I get my tempo runs and mid-distance runs complete during the week. I just can't imagine how great it feels to cross that finish line, all 42 km!
I have a couple of races coming up; the ocean floor one which is just for fun and I seriously cannot wait for it!! as well as another race in August! There are 2 fulls in the fall which I am toying with...
Sorry if this was a debbie downer post, I was just laying it all out and it kind of helped me to just type it out. On the bright side, I ate the most delicious omelete this morning:
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| fried onions and a laughing cow cheese inside with a little bit of jam on top. Mmm, you gotta try it! |
Questions:
Advice!? I seriously need your help if you've ran a marathon.
Do you keep running if you're in pain from a long run?
Not a debbie downer post. At all! I'm glad you're working on getting into perfect form for an upcoming full. I can't WAIT to hear about it when you cross the finish line :)
ReplyDeleteSo I feel like I wrote this post! I have the same issue with delayed soreness and pain after my long runs, even though I've been running for years and have worked on my gait and strengthening key muscles. I'm just not a natural born runner. I love it and will keep doing it but it doesn't come naturally for me. Three things that have really helped:
ReplyDelete1. I really don't do that much speed work. I kind of subscribe to the belief that it is possible to train slow and run fast in races. This is especially important for injury prone ppl like me! That doesn't mean I NEVER do speedwork. I incorporate tempo runs regularly, but rarely do traditional HIIT or other serious speedwork. I find that my body never really does recover and I feel the effects after my long run. So I end up running most of my runs at the same pace (and I try to progressively make that faster by tiny increments) except for one time a week I do a shorter tempo run.
2. Tart Cherry Juice. Seriously. Try it! I was so skeptical at first but recently found that when I drink it before and right after a long run my muscles aren't nearly as sore!!!!! It works really well right before you go to bed too because it has melatonin so might make you sleepy. That stuff seriously works. It has a good amount of sugar in it but it's worth it!
3. The dreaded ice bath. If taken right after the long run it prevents much of the soreness and pain. I even take it the night before a long run sometimes.
Ok, I know this is a novel, but I seriously can relate!!!!!!! I am what I call a "high maintenance" runner because I need to do all of those things, but they've helped for me!
I did my first marathon in November and my time was not impressive but I don't remember being sore 2 days after my long runs. The one thing I always kept in mind, though, was train to race, don't race to train. Walk breaks are OK (I trained in the summer heat. Walks were necessary) I also really didn't do much cross-training except walking. I also followed a training plan that laid out EVERYTHING from mileage to pacing, taper weeks, etc. All I had to do was run. Also, the soreness may be from not stretching completely or dehydration (I read that somewhere).
ReplyDeleteDon't run through pain girl!! I did and I haven't been able to run for 2 years. Seriously! My PT and doctor still can't get my knee back to normal. I have serious IT band issues! Take it slow, and you will get there!
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