Welcome to my weekly training recap for the Oakland Marathon. Read prior week Oakland Marathon training recaps.
The full intro to my training recaps can be found in my week one post. The short version is that I am training for April’s Oakland Marathon. I am also a coach and pacer for my local running club’s weekly training group runs.
My Goals for Oakland Marathon Training
- Hit my assigned pace every week in the group training runs
- Do strength and general fitness workouts 3 times a week
- Do my morning stretching routine every morning
The Plan v. Reality: Week 14
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plan | 5 miles | 8 miles | 5 miles | 16 miles @ 11:00 minute/mile pace | |||
| Actual | 5 miles | 8 miles | 5 miles | 16 @ 10:59 minute/mile pace | 16 minute NTC workout |
Focus: hydration
Monday
I did an extra long stretch routine this morning, but no other intentional workouts.
I’m still amazed at how good I felt after the 20-mile long run last week. I briefly considered doing a strength workout, but I know not to push it and to respect proper recovery.
Just read a bit of advice I love and have taken to heart: Rest days are part of training, not avoiding training.
Tuesday
A beautiful 5-mile run this morning. Crisp morning air, clear blue sky. The sidewalks seemed less crowded than usual.
It was the kind of morning that makes me remember why I enjoy running. I can forget that sometimes.
Wednesday
My week of shorter runs on Wednesday is over and I’m back to fitting in 8 miles on a Wednesday.
My run again went really well, and I have officially accepted this is the new normal and I need to kick up my training a notch. While I do think that runners shouldn’t constantly push themselves to their limit, it shouldn’t be too easy.
I just signed up to run the Skyline to the Sea Trail Marathon again in October. I think I’ll have to review and revamp my goals and training for that. It could be a fun little experiment.
Thursday
I’m starting to see signs and banners all around Oakland for the upcoming marathon. Only a month to go!
I got a later start on my run this morning, I was not totally feeling the idea of the run, so I procrastinated a bit more than usual. But my sense of duty and responsibility won out in the end. After doing some chores around the house, I headed out.
At least I was productive in that extra hour and finally did the dishes.
I ran into a number of kids from the running club while running the lake, so I guess I wasn’t the only one who got a late start.
Friday
I woke up super stiff this morning. I’m sure it wasn’t running related. I think instead it was that I slept extra hard for whatever reason. I fell asleep and didn’t move for the next 7+ hours.
Some extra stretching was on tap this morning to get the muscles moving a bit. Odd that I can be more sore after a heavy sleep than I am after running 20 miles.
I’m sure that says something about me, but I’m not sure what.
Saturday
A ‘shorter’ long run in between 20 mile long runs. Of course ‘short’ is relative when marathon training. The sky was threatening and we were drizzled on, but the worst of the rain stayed away. Good thing too, while I had a light layer on, I hadn’t brought my rain jacket along.
Felt great on this run and I am proud of my pace. While I say my goal is to hit my assigned pace every week, for me, being within 10 seconds of my assigned pace is close enough.
But 1 second off? I’ll confess I’m pretty damn proud of myself for that.
Sunday
Did a brief, 16-minute Nike Training Club App workout today ‘Runners Strength and Balance.’ It was basically stretching plus mountain climbers.
I could have done without the mountain climbers. I know they are great for me, but I do hate them so.
Week Summary
Another week of just doing what I’m doing. Again, I know that makes for not terribly exciting reading, but I’ll take it on the running front.
I only did 1 strength workout this week, not the 3 that I’d set out in my goals and I am OK with that. I’d overdosed on strength workouts a bit so I consciously decided to take a few weeks stepping back from them since it coincided nicely with my peak running weeks.
I’ll get back to them soon enough now that I see how much of a benefit they provide.
My focus on hydration was moderately successful. I made an effort to pay attention to how much water I drank, and I am always carrying my water bottle. I did kill off my latest plant in the Plant Nanny app (RIP Benjamin), but that was due to my forgetting to track my water intake, not forgetting the intake itself.
Next Week: Week 15
Plan
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plan | 5 miles | 5 miles | 5 miles | 20 miles @ 11:00 minute/mile pace | |||
| Actual | 5 miles | 5 miles | 5 miles | 20 miles @ 11:02 minutes/mile pace |
Area of Focus
Next week is the second 20-mile long run. I’m gonna stick with a focus of hydration. Try as I may to drink enough water, I feel like I’m continually under hydrated.
