Training Conundrums

Preliminary warning: Cute photos have nothing to do with the subject matter of this post!

First, I want to thank anyone who has given training advice to me here. Any and all suggestions are always welcome (honesty and disagreement is OK)! Feel free to leave as many as you like in that little box labeled "comments" below.

Obviously, by the title of this post, I still am undecided about how to best train for Boston. In a way, I think that's good. It shows that I don't want to blindly go into a marathon. However, it's also bad because I really would like not to be still weighing my options at this point.

Boston is 17 weeks away. That may seem like a long time to some people, but the more you look at training plans for Marathons, the more you see a pattern of 16, 18 or 22 weeks. Some are even 6 months or a year.
Why so long? The "experts" in the field create phases within training that include endurance building, peaking, sharpening and tapering (and maybe I missed some others!). Sure, you can run a marathon without all these phases, but my goal isn't just to finish. It will be almost a year since my last (and first) marathon and it might be another year until the next. (But I hope NOT). Putting it simply, I will put as much of myself into this race as I can. It is a PR goal race.

As of Sunday, I started Pfitz's (Pfitzinger & Scott) 18 week plan that tops at 70 MPW, (aka 18/70). The total mileage for this first week is 54, which is actually a cutback from what I ran (not on a plan) the week before. I have toyed with the idea of just adding 5 miles to each week, starting next week. Not sure this is a great idea, but would maybe be just the right boost. 

I have another issue with Pfitz, something I consider more important than the mileage. His plan schedules races as part of the training. It's never seemed wise (to me) to truly race while training for another key race. (Kara Goucher can do it, though, and it looks like she will with the PF Chang RnR half and Boston). My body needs time to recover from racing and I usually take a few days off even after a hard 10K.

I don't want to feel pressured to run a long run the day following a race. Pfitz schedules it. *This is where I should insert that I am still reading his book.* It appears he might advise you to run the races as Lactate Threshold runs instead of "true races". If so, that's better; but, I still wouldn't spend money to go do an organized Lactate Threshold run. I'd do it for free on my home turf.

Another option I have considered is following one of Jack Daniels plans. Unfortunately I couldn't tell you which one, because I have only recently bought the book, and am confused as to which level of plan I should use. Ha! :/  His plans are based more on experience, and not so much on mileage. I have about 2 1/2 years of running experience (not counting goofing around on and off before that). Where does that put me? I don't know.  I like that there appears to be some flexibility in his plan. There are scheduled workouts for each week, but the rest of the mileage is flexible. I can't even tell you how many speedwork days there are each week! One problem is that the plan(s) start 22 weeks from the race. Oops. I missed that window!

Then there's  RunnersWorld's SmartCoach, which is considered to be lame by some. But when you start playing with 55 mile weeks starting, and throw in some race times and goal paces that get harder, it doesn't look so easy. The max with that plan is actually a bit higher than Pfitz. The increases of mileage are steeper. I have considered using the mileage plan and changing the speedwork from one to to two days with progressive long runs & MP runs on alternating weeks...Or something like that. And maybe a few 22 milers instead of 20. This plan is for 16 weeks.

Then there's the plan that someone emailed me this week, which is also interesting!

As you can see...I am still not settled in what I am doing. I sure hope by next week to have a better plan- or at least get comfortable with Pfitz!

This might be the most boring post I have ever made. Ha! If you are still with me at this point you deserve some dessert:

BEHOLD.

Now. Isn't that precious?!  Notice the chocolate between the eyes, boogers in the nose, and chicken hanging out of the mouth?

The kid just likes to suck his food lately. Gets a piece of something good and presses it to the roof of his little mouth. Hours later, it's still there. He's not eating much with his canines coming in, but he's savoring the flavor! I pulled the car over for this shot. Moments later I tried to take the chicken out, but he clamped down on my finger and I had to release it. He spit out the fragments when we got home. =D

I believe I found the PERFECT Christmas tree! I can't wait to see the look on Jon's face. What do you think?

Don't call the fashion police on me! It's a good day if I manage to wear anything besides old running shoes when I leave the house. Besides, in Elkton no one gives a skunk's tail what you wear. But this was Cottage Grove. I had to dress up.

Training:
Well, it seems I will have some more company in Boston! Looks like Ryan Hall made it past the computer snafu and registered for the race. (Read about it here) Woo-hoo! Looking forward to running with meeting him (in a long line at the expo).

Still trying to decide which route to take as far as training goes. Should I use a trusted plan many have done before (Pete Pfitzinger 18/70)? Or, should I use a slightly more personal approach that gives specific workouts (SmartCoach) . (I do like that I can completely revise it mid-training if needed.) Or...will I be brave and make my own plan - one that will work well for my lifestyle and specific talents/obstacles? I have a little more time to sit on the fence with this.

I did play with SmartCoach tonight, (just a little) to see what types of numbers it would spew out to me for work out paces. Interesting.....very interesting, indeed. I like it better than the McMillan calculator, and McMillan and I are good friends. :)

Sorry! Beezus didn't show. And... exciting plans!!

On Thanksgiving I tried to upload a video of Beezus, a beloved neighborhood pet. It was funny, but the darn thing just wouldn't load. Could it be that my computer is antique outdated? Perhaps. Or it could be a possible user malfunction? Anyhow...sorry if you were disappointed to miss the big appearance. I'll save that for another time.

It's been a while since I posted. Mostly because I haven't had much to write about I have been too busy getting ready for Thanksgiving and recovering from it. The plan was to go up to my parent's house for the big day and enjoy dinner cooked by my mom. Prime Rib. (WTHeck?) We had to postpone it due to illness.  We stayed home and Jon worked. My oldest was bummed.

I more than made up for it on Sunday. My parents came down and I cooked a turkey with all the extras. When the bird was about 20 degrees away from done, the handle of my oven fell off! Oh yes! This will make a great memory. The year we scrambled to put the oven door back on while the turkey kept a-cooking. It actually took an hour longer than I had planned, but was fantastic and juicy. Worth the wait. Blessed again!!



My middle son (Matthew) was VERY proud of his loaf of bread. (I didn't give him a lot of dough to work with =D .  He loves to bake, though)

About running...

November is almost done and I am patiently trying to rebuild my mileage after an extreme taper (totally worth it!) and half marathon on the 20th. I'll just say that it's hard to be patient sometimes. My quads are still rebuilding and I definitely won't be doing any speed work still for another week (at least!) and then hope to get back to two days- one tempo and one interval/fartlek.

Does anyone else have trouble in the post-race recovery time frame? How do you get back into your regular training?  Last half I did (in June, before this one) I was too anxious and I think it cost me- calf strain or tear.

I have a lot of exciting things ahead in the next few weeks! There are approximately two more weeks to weigh out my options for Boston training. By then, I hope to have a solid plan and be able to get started with 16-18 weeks of training for the race. Possibilities include: 

• Pete Pfitzinger 18/70 (I plan to buy his book this week, regardless) 
• Revisiting SmartCoach (I used it for Eugene in may- but tweaked it) 
• Making my own plan (Scary! It would have to be ON PAPER)
• Something I haven't thought of yet...?

What about you? If you are training for Boston (or any other spring marathon), what are your plans? I'd really like to know!...