This training cycle has been interesting. In terms of weekly mileage, it doesn’t follow the traditional bell curve. It felt more like a roller coaster with short dips, in part my doing with various reasons – hip pain, snow, work obligations and in part, it was the nature of the training plan. This past week was the first week where my weekly mileage surpassed 40 miles. When I was training for Chicago and NYC, I hit over 40 miles 6 different times, with a peak at 51 miles and that doesn’t include the week I ran the Chicago Marathon. This training cycle, my weekly mileage has hovered between high 20s to 30s the entire time. What does that mean for me? I’m not sure and I guess I will never be sure but race day will be some indication. On the bright side, I do feel faster and stronger during runs, so we’ll see.

I haven’t been consistent about sharing my weekly running recap, so with one more week of training before taper, I figured now was a good time to start?! In addition to the runs, every morning last week, I started with 15-minutes of yoga.

Monday – easy run on the treadmill. I was coming off a weekend of no running because of the hip pain so this run was a good test to see how I felt but I also tested my new Brooks PureFlow 4s that I am planning on wearing for the marathon. Total miles: 6.05

Tuesday – Central Park intervals with Julio. Warm-up + 200/400/600/800 X 2 + 200/400 (for good measure!) with recovery + cool down. Total miles: 6.65

Wednesday – easy run on the treadmill + 60-minute Strala yoga class (off-site, not in NYC studio). I left work late so I was only able to fit in 35 minutes of easy running before yoga but it definitely helped warm me up for class. It was my first time taking this class and I really enjoyed how laid back it was. Total miles: 3.38

Thursday – Central Park progressive tempo run with Julio. 1-mile warm-up + 5-miles progressive tempo (9:11, 8:48, 8:33, 8:06, 7:44) + 1-mile cool down. By the end of this run, I was exhausted. Progressive tempo runs really zap the energy out of you. Total miles: 7.02

Friday – Open barre class. With all the yoga and ease back into running this week, this was the first and only barre class I took all week. I really wish there was time to fit in more barre classes. One day…

Saturday – Rest day. This wasn’t supposed to be a rest day. I was planning on doing an easy run but after I got home from work, I started feeling a cold coming on and all I wanted to do was sleep. Instead of running or meeting friends for dinner, I opted for a 90-minute nap. I was proud of myself for listening to my body but I guess it was pretty easy to do so when you could barely keep your eyes open.

Sunday – Hudson River Waterfront long run with Julio. Thank you for Julio making the trek into NJ for the run, which gave me the chance to sleep in a little more. We ran a very scenic and flat long run (similar route as the 20-mile photo tour), but for me, I had a hard time breathing because of the cold. Since I missed last weekend’s 20, I switched up the plan a little and went for 18 this weekend and next weekend will be the last 20 before taper. Total miles: 18.27

Total miles for the week: 41.4

This winter and my schedule has been less than ideal for marathon training but I need to keep reminding myself I am doing the best I can and putting in as much effort as possible. And as Paula Radcliffe said, “I’ve always been good at putting things behind me – I fall apart, do my crying bit, and then put it away and move on.”

What helps you stay focused and motivated during marathon training?