Week #1 of Marathon 7

Running was one of the things that got me through last winter.  I was dealing with mild depression last November and much of December mostly due to everything shutting down around me...and I had a lot of emotional stress from my job.  I didn't realize how much the emotional stress was feeding into other areas of my life until this fall...when I was in a more positive work environment.  I don't have the same kind of work stress anymore at all.  Although COVID is still very much present and the Omnicron variant sounds like a doomsday is about to hit--we are in a better place.  We have been able to resume mostly normal lives with some regulations or restrictions.  I reached a point where I don't care anymore and I am ready to move on with life.  

I feel more motivated to run again.  I did exercise throughout the summer but didn't really train for anything.  I did a 5K with the kids in September.  My exercise was not as consistent.  I would take a week or two off and then try to hit it hard again.  I had a pretty nasty cold in November.  Rob traveled a lot and that always makes scheduling more difficult.

I want to train for another marathon.  I was very spoiled last winter with being able to do long runs during the day.  I don't want to go back to the remote working at all...I didn't like not having a job description and dealing with certain coworkers.  But I did the like the time freedom.  This time around I will need to do early morning workouts.  Honestly I have not done early morning workouts consistently since 2019...maybe early 2020 but I can't remember.  It is going to be hard to restart that habit.  But I have to try.

My first week was a good start though.

Monday = Ran 5 miles with a pace of 10:06 in pouring rain!!  No break from the rain.

Tuesday = Hiked 5 miles with Matt in the Columbia River Gorge by Multnomah Falls.  Such a great hike!

Wednesday = Ran 4.03 miles with Emily from Riverfront to Minto with a pace of 9:50.  Again a lot of rain.

Thursday = 20 minutes of weights at the gym, stationary bike for 35 minutes at the gym

Friday (Christmas Eve) = Intervals...3 miles at Pringle School 6 laps with recovery in between

Saturday (Christmas Day) = Ran 10 miles at 10:18 pace!  Trying to outrun the snow storm.  Glad I got the run in before all the snow hit.

Sunday = Rest but enjoying the snow!

Pre Week

 I think I am going to train for the Tacoma Marathon.  And if it gets to be too much I will switch to the half.  It is relatively easy to switch distances without much hassle.

Training would officially start next week.  I'm a little worried about my knee and the extra mileage upsetting my ankle...and the general burn out.  I have to eat a lot better than I have been too.  I need to do a food diary and try to stay off sugar, soda, and other stuff I love...and should not eat.

Here's what I did this week:

Monday - Ran 4.50 miles with a pace of 9:58 in the morning

Tuesday - It was very very icy and the sidewalks and streets were slick.  I had to go slow.  I did five miles with an average pace of 11:05

Wednesday = Rest

Thursday = Ran 3.27 miles with an average pace of 10:24

Friday = Weights for 20 minutes and stationary bike for 35 minutes at the gym

Saturday = Long run.  Ran 8 miles (5 miles with a friend) with a pace of 10:32 in the morning.

Sunday = Intervals at Pringle School...about three miles.  Average pace about 9:59.  Pouring, pouring rain.  Not a break from the rain at all.

I am back

 I have had a good fall in terms of exercise.  I've just not been consistent.  I took a week off when I had cold.  Then I took another week off when I got overwhelmed.  I am really just trying to be consistent again.  I will make a decision soon whether I want to train for a spring race and what distance I want to train for.

Monday 11/22 = Ran in the late afternoon at 4:45.  I ran 4 miles with a pace of 10:18.  Ran mostly in the dark.

Tuesday 11/23 = Rest.  Bad night of sleep and was hard to get up.

Wednesday 11/24 = 3 mile hike at Silver Falls State Park.  Was very refreshing

Thursday 11/25 = Ran 3.1 miles in the morning with a pace of 9:28

Friday = Swam 900 yards.  The swim went good but I had another shoulder spasm that night.

Saturday = Intervals at Wendy Kroger Park

Sunday = 4 mile run with a pace of 10:19 in the morning before church

9/12 to 9/20 Bad Week to Good Week

 Last week was a wash.  I ran Tuesday & Wednesday which was actually quite good.  By Thursday I was very exhausted as well as Friday.  I decided to not exercise the rest of the week.  Don't get me wrong.  I like having a lot on my plate.  I would take this over spring 2020. I like seeing the kids involved in things and I like having more to do.  I don't really miss the long days working at home figuring out what I am supposed to be doing with so little direction.  But my motivation is not where I want it right now.  Sometimes I still feel like it's fighting tooth and nail to exercise.

So here's a new week.

Monday = Ran 3.61 miles with an average pace of 10:33 (slower because of traffic lights).  I really didn't want to run.  I didn't sleep well & I was pretty stressed out.  But I am so glad I got myself out of bed and ran.  I did feel better once I got home.  I listened to old school CCM music and I think that made a difference.

Tuesday = Swam with my tri friends.  About 1400 yards.

Wednesday = Ran 5.07 miles with an average pace of 10:17 (probably slower again because of traffic lights)

Thursday = Rest

Friday = Weights plus 1000 yards of swimming that included speed drills

Saturday = Biked 16.05 miles.  Nice to ride outside on a fall day!

Sunday = Intervals at Wendy Kroger.  4 x outside loop 2 x smaller loop

9/6 to 9/12 We're back into the fall routine

 We actually had a very smooth first week of school/work--more so than I expected.  It feels amazing to be in a fall routine.

9/6 (Labor Day) = Ran 4.07 miles with a pace of 10:52

9/7 (First Day of School) = Swam approximately 1300 yards alone.  My friends weren't there.  :(

9/8 = Did 1/2 hour of weights and 1/2 hour on the stationary bike in the afternoon after work

9/9 = R30 after work

9/10 = Intervals at the park.  2 x 1 lap and 1 x 2 laps with recovery and stretching

9/11 = Sublimity Harvest 5k.  Derek beat me and did amazing.  We did around 26 minutes.

9/12 = Rest but I did go for a slow 1.88 mile slow walk

8/30 to 9/5 We don't like letting go of summer

 I need to start documenting my workouts again.  I don't really have any major goals right now.  Just simply to continue to exercise and maybe look at races in the spring.  

Monday (8/30) = Ran 4 miles with an average pace of 10:14/mi.  

Tuesday (8/31) = Swam approximately 1300 yards with triathlon friends.  I have not swam with them especially in the early morning hours in SO long.

Wednesday (9/1) = Ran 3.07 miles with an average pace of 10:01/mi

Thursday (9/2) = About 20 minutes of weights and 25 minutes of stationary bike.  Why doesn't the gym offer early morning power anymore!?

Friday (9/3) = About a 1 mile hike from Horsetail Falls to Ponytail Falls and back

Saturday (9/4) = Rest

Sunday (9/5) = Intervals at Wendy Kroger Park.  4 x 1 lap with recovery in between.  I am tight and slow right now!

No one is ready for school to start.  I do see the anxiety subsiding and more of a readiness of what lies ahead.

Week #16 - #18 of 24

 I've not been keeping up with recording my workouts.  I have been pretty good about keeping my workouts.  I still have not missed a single workout.  My twenty mile run was really challenging.  It was a very busy weekend with the youth group fundraiser.  My plan was to run early Sunday morning.  I even was up at 4:40 AM.  Due to some female issues I only made one mile and had to turn around come home.  I was so mad.  But I was able to run later that afternoon...and I literally ran all afternoon.  From 2:30 to just before 6.  It was tough around Mile #15.  I need to keep hydrating and taking in nutrition...I can tell when I'm starting to bonk.

My knee and ankle are doing fine.  I did register for the marathon so I am committed!!  

Week #14 and #15 of 24

 Monday (15):  Ran 9 miles in the late afternoon.  Beautiful day!

Tuesday (16):  Stationary bike for 50 minutes & stretching at the gym in the late afternoon while Kara was at theatre practice

Wednesday (17):  Rest.  Kind of a busy day getting ready for ETM at night and transporting kids.

Thursday (18):  18 miles!!  The first few miles were miserable.  Cold. wet, rain.  I was absolutely drenched.  The rain let up about halfway through.  There were so many traffic lights too and I had issues with my phone and headset at one point.  It made the run much longer than anticipated.  I had very little knee or ankle pain.  It help up pretty well.

Friday (19):  Rest

Saturday (20):  Walked the beach with friends in the late morning as I stayed on the coast Friday night.  Was a good cross training workout.

Sunday (21):  I did a five mile pacing run and it was frustrating because I felt tired the whole run.  Like it took much effort to keep going and I had to walk three times.  I felt thirsty and depleted.  I spent most of the evening on the couch and went to bed really early.  It honestly felt like the after affects of COVID even though it's been two months.  I heard it can linger.

Monday (22):  6.14 miles.  Much better run.  I could maintain about a 9 1/2 minute mile pace.  I felt much stronger.  Amazing what another day brings.

Tuesday (23): Stationary bike 50 minutes & weights

Wednesday (24): 6 mile run with Emily at Minto Brown.  We had a great run.

Thursday (25): 13.1 mile run in the morning before Kara and I left for Virginia.  It was a really good run...not much pain.  Did not struggle that much.

Friday (26): 1.5 mile walk along the beach with my mom and Kara.

Saturday (27): Rest

Sunday (28) Rest

Week #13 of 24

 Monday (8):  My birthday!  I did an 8 mile run in the morning while listening to music from the 1970's!

Tuesday (9):  Stationary bike for 45 minutes and weights for about 15 minutes.  I was in a crummy mood due to some issues at work.  I needed to process through it.  It got better as the day went on.  I had a good talk with my teacher coach.

Wednesday (10): 17 miles!  I was so excited I completed this!  My knee held up as well.  It was probably on a pain level of about 3.  It did not get progressively worse during the run but kind of stayed the same.

Thursday (11): Rest

Friday (12):  About 40 minutes of weights/stretches and fifteen minutes of the rowing machine at the gym.

Saturday (13):  Completed the Dirty Leprechaun 5K with Derek!  We had such a great race.

Week #12 and Repeating Week #12

 Monday (22):  I did some stretching, weights, and riding the stationary bike at the gym.  Trying to strengthen my glutes to see if it will help with this lateral knee pain.

Tuesday (23):  Ran 6 miles to Bryan Johnson Park and back.  Some pain but not nearly as bad as I expected.  First time running with the wireless head phones.

Wednesday (24):  Pretty busy day getting ready to leave for Michigan so I did not make it to the gym.

Thursday (25) - Sunday (28):  I was in Michigan/Chicago.  While we were pretty active walking, I decided to not exercise and see if that would help my knee heal.  

The marathon I wanted to do on the Oregon Coast went virtual and I really don't want to do a virtual marathon.  The other one I was looking at that same weekend is on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington which would be absolutely beautiful.  It is like a five hour drive and I don't think I could get that Monday off work.  The one I want to do is in North Bend, Washington.  It has not been cancelled yet and they will make a decision on March 24th.  I am hoping it does happen.  If it doesn't I don't have a lot of options.  I am ahead of schedule training wise so I decided to repeat Week #12.  I figured it can't do any harm--it might actually do some good.

Monday (1):  Lots of walking in Chicago

Tuesday (2):  Rest.  Very exhausted from travel.

Wednesday (3):  Ran 6 miles.  Some knee pain again.  It's like with the rest nothing really changes and in some ways it gets worse because the muscles are being worked.  The dynamic stretching before I run and the stretching afterwards helps.  It makes a pretty big difference.  On a pain scale with 1 being I don't feel any pain to 10 I can hardly run, I would rank it at a 5.

Thursday (4):  Ran 6 miles.  It was  good run and there is knee pain again.  It's not any worse but not better.  It is not throughout the whole run.  Running downhill triggers it.  I would still rank it at a 5.  I am slower and and struggling on the uphill but I think that is due to taking time off.  I also had not drank enough.  I was so thirsty after running I could hardly get enough water.  I felt thirsty the rest of the day.  I have done awesome staying away from soda but I have not been drinking enough water.  I am wondering if I stay on top of it with the PT exercises everyday like when I trained for Arizona, I can keep the knee pain manageable.  I think the next few weeks will determine that.

Friday (5):  Biked 45 minutes and weights at the gym

Saturday (6):  Ran 6 miles and 4 1/2 of that was with a friend.  My knee pain was a 2 today.  I think all the stretching yesterday helped significantly.  I am also seriously thinking of doing the Willamette Valley Marathon here in Salem on May 23.  It would put me right on schedule.  I would not need to miss work or mess with travel.  I could sleep in my own bed.  Rob could watch me start and maybe watch me finish if church let out in time.  If my knee gets worse, I can easily switch to the half or even 10K.

Sunday (7):  Rest

Week #10 and #11 of #24

 Now I remember why marathon training gets intense and starts to feel like a second part time job.  Once you get over the 13 mile mark for long runs, it takes more effort to block out time and plan nutrition for that long of a run.  I am running so well right now.  My ankle doe not hurt all the time and my IT band has been fine.  I am wondering if my pace is too slow, but it might be good in the long run to train at this pace.

Monday (8):  Ran 15 miles!  I ran in the afternoon and around the neighborhood.

Tuesday (9):   Did weights and the rowing machine after I dropped Hailey off from school.

Wednesday (10):  Ran 7 miles with Emily downtown.  It was pretty tough going up some of the hills.

Thursday (11):  Tempo run.  Ran 4 miles in the neighborhood.

Friday (12) through Sunday (14):  Our area was hit with a massive ice storm and we did not have power from Friday night until Sunday afternoon.  Some were without power even longer.  We were pretty lucky.  It was really hard to exercise because we were in survival mode.

Monday (15):  Rest.  I really needed a day to reset and get back into routine.

Tuesday (16):  Ran 8 miles and saw all the damage in our neighborhood.

Wednesday (17):  Weights and rode the stationary bike for 45 minutes

Thursday (18):  4.50 mile tempo run in the neighborhood

Friday (19)  Swam 1500 yards

Saturday (20):  16 miles!  Around 14 miles I am getting with lateral knee pain again on my right knee.  It is probably IT band pain but it feels different from last time.  After I ran last week Monday I didn't really feel it much after I ran.  After this run, I did.  It hurt all day and into the next day.  Not extremely painful but enough that it has me a little concerned.  I am wondering if I am not doing glute exercises as much.  I am rolling now and using heat.  I will have to keep an eye on it.  One step at a time.  Marathon training is not going to be worth it for 12 more weeks if I am in constant pain all the time.  It could be it goes in and out and doesn't get much worse than this.  Time will tell.

Sunday (21):  Rest and some stretching at home.

Week #7, #8 and #9 of 24

 I have been way more motivated to run lately versus go to the gym and do other workouts.  But I guess that is good.  

Monday (18):  Everyone was off school and work due to MLK day.  So I ran in the morning after I woke up and did four miles with a pace of 9:59.  I ran through the neighborhood.

Tuesday (19): Group Ride & weights

Wednesday (20):  Long run.  I went at 10:33 so I could watch the inaugaration.  I ran 12:09 miles with a pace of 10:02 miles.  I especially liked running around Lee Middle School on the track.

Thursday (21): Swim 1,000 yards and weights

Friday (22):  Ran intervals at Wendy Kroger Park in the afternoon.

Saturday (23):  Emily and I ran from Riverfront Park to Bush Park and back.  We did 6.23 miles with a pace of 9:56 miles.

Sunday (24):  Rest  

Monday (25): Ran 4 miles in the late afternoon with a pace of 9:57 

Tuesday (26): Group Ride and weights

Wednesday (27): Ran in the snow!  7.01 miles with a pace of 10:05

Thursday (28):  Long run.  13 miles with a pace of 10:20.  I ran starting in Monmouth and ran to Independence and back.  Then I unfortunately discovered I locked the wrong key in the car.  Rob had to drive all the way to Monmouth and let me back in.  I was able to complete my run in time to get my COVID vaccine.

Friday (29):  Weights and swam 1,000 yard.  I felt really sluggish due to the vaccine.

Saturday (30):  Ran a tempo run with Emily at Bush Park.  I still felt sluggish but better.  We did three miles.

Sunday (31):  Rest

Monday (1):  It's a kick back week.  I ran 5 miles over lunch with a pace of 10:12.

Tuesday (2):  Tried to run a 5K at race pace.  I thought running with the kids while they biked to school would help motivate me.  I could not keep at all.  I had to stop twice and caught my breath.  I felt slow.  My time was 27:02 which is about two minutes slower than what I normally do.

Wednesday (3):  Ran 5 miles at lunch again and felt better.  My pace was 9:42.

Thursday (4):  Group ride in the morning and weights in the afternoon

Friday (5):  So not motivated to swim.  I did weights and then about 15 minutes on the rowing machine.

Saturday (6):  Ran almost 5 miles with Tracy.  Have greatly missed running with her.  Then Derek and I ran 1 mile and practiced obstacles in Independence in the afternoon.

Week #5 and #6 of 24

 I am grateful I can run even though we are dealing with COVID.  I don't know what I would do if I could not get outside.  I do miss the gym, but I can get by without it for a little bit.  Running has helped with the fatigue as well.

Monday = Rest Day

Tuesday = Easy 3.21 mile run in the neighborhood with a pace of 10:53

Wednesday = Morning walk of 1.47 miles and strength training at home

Thursday = Easy 5 mile run with a pace of 10:20

Friday = Hike (about 1 1/2 miles) with Rob on the Skyline Trail in South Salem.  Nice little hike with some rolling hills.

Saturday = Long easy run of 10.02 miles with a pace of 10:44.  It honestly is not hard to do these runs at a slower pace.  I honestly don't think I could do it right now if I had to run faster.

Sunday = Bike ride.  I decided last minute to take a ride through the neighborhood.  I went 7.66 miles

Monday = Ran 4.01 miles.  I went slow because I was feeling pretty fatigued.  I went at a pace of 10:29 miles.

Tuesday = Rest day.  The weather was SO bad.  Constant rain all day.

Wednesday = Long run.  8 miles with a pace of 9:30.  I ran downtown and took the bus back.  First time I ever done this.  It was great.  I would totally do this again.

Thursday = Bike ride in Monmouth.  I did the Highway 99 trail and did 11.17 miles.  The weather was perfect.

Friday = Weights at the gym and intervals at Pringle Elementary.  First time back at the gym. I did 2.28 miles of intervals at a slower pace.

Saturday = Ran 4.14 miles in Keizer with Emily.  Back to my normal pace.  We went 9:10 miles.

Sunday = Went for a walk and went 1.87 miles and did stretching and strength training at home afterwards.

Week #3 and #4 of 24

 I did not post last week so I am combining it with this week.  Honestly I feel like I am still in this fog.  Depression is too strong of a word.  I probably have depression.  A doctor might diagnose me and in fact one did in the 90's.  I am more of a functional depressed person.  When I feel it coming, I take action and do the things I need to do before it gets way out of hand.  At the same time I may have been suffocating or stifling my feelings and I worry they will explode at some point.  Yikes.  Running really helps.  It really really does.  I don't know what I would do if I could not run and so I won't take it for granted.

Monday = Long Run 5.14 miles at a pace of 9.50 minute miles.

The weather was not great...actually it was kind of miserable.  I needed to run and I waited until the afternoon to do so.

Tuesday = 5K Attempt: 25:13 with a pace of 8.07 minute miles.  This is my fastest in a couple of years but not my PR.  I don't know if I can ever break 24.  It is so hard and I feel so winded after the second mile.  I can't make myself go faster.  But I am faster than I have been in awhile and for that I am pretty proud of myself.

Wednesday = Weights and swim 1,000 yards at the gym.  Still not motivated to swim and not enjoying it as much.  I miss swimming with my friends.

Thursday = Weights and stationary bike 30 minutes on Christmas Eve.

Friday = Slower 3 mile run.  I went slower on purpose.  It was a leisurely Christmas Day run.

Saturday = Rest.  We traveled to Tacoma.

Sunday = We walked around five miles with the Roths family. It didn't feel as intense but my knee and ankle both felt sore so it was a workout.

Monday = Rest.  Travel Day back home.

Tuesday = Rest.  I needed another day to rest.

Wednesday = 5K Attempt #4 with a pace of 8:25 and a time of 26:10.  Did not PR because I started out way too fast.  My first mile was 7:44 and my second mile was a whole minute slower.  I did have to stop at least once.  Not bad considering Hailey has COVID-19 and I might have it too.

Thursday = 2 mile hike at Jory Hill Park with Rob.  Even though we are dealing with COVID I feel like my depression has lifted.  I don't feel the depressed feelings anymore.  I am not sure what changed, but it helps a lot.

Friday = Ran 5 miles with a pace of 10:58/mile.  I ran slower than normal since I might have COVID

Saturday = Stretching and strength training at home

Sunday = Long run.  9.04 miles.  I went intentionally slow again just because I have been congested and not sure if I have COVID.  It really was not all that difficult of a run.