Training NEWs

Training for 26.2 and a New Outlook on Training Runs

I have trained for 2 marathons in the last year and am on the last lap of my third. One more 20 miler and it's taper time. I am not even that excited about it. And this is why… In the past, I have enjoyed running alone and digging deep. I have thought highly of the self coaching and dealing with the mental Olympics in my head to get up some hellacious hills at the end. I have had to break up the run in segments to get thru it.

Not this time. I have tried something new or should I say someone? All but one of my long runs I have ran with a new running buddy. It has been a pleasant surprise to me as I thought I loved to run alone. But, 2-4 hours of running alone can be a safety risk. Thus, the initial reason I found someone. And then I found the other perks as well…

I have not had to struggle to get thru those long runs. I have noticed we run slower because we are talking the entire time about running and anything under the sun. HA! When I did run the one 20 miler alone, I found I was going faster. So at least I can say I am not totally slacking off. I am just hoping that I have discover a new way of building lung capacity by gabbing and running which could be equal to shutting it and running faster during a race. Will I ever beat Oprah's time? Really! 

If this is not the case and I have speed issues during the race, there is always the next marathon on my list to test the theory in June. Until then I will continue to enjoy the company. We are going to try to run this marathon together. This will be a totally different experience for me again.

And in June whether I like it or not, back to training it alone and digging deep, unless…