My Inner Shakti

finding strength in everyday things

Half Marathon Training – Week 12 + 13

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When planning my week 12 workouts, I had every intention of following the original script. I even penciled everything into my planner.

Well, as we all know, sometimes it’s not about our plans…

Before I explain, here’s what week 12 looked like:

Monday – Arm Burner + 20 minute power walk on the dreadmill
Tuesday – Rest
Wednesday – 3.25 mile run + 1.25 mile walk
Thursday – Rest
Friday – T25 (Speed 1.0)
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – 6.5 mile run

So what happened was…

After a much needed rest day on Tuesday, I felt fresh and ready to knock out 4.5 miles on Wednesday. However, about 3.25 miles in, I started to feel pain in what I now know is my Achilles tendon. Almost like a shooting pain that started right above my heel and shot up my left leg. So I stopped and walked the rest of the way home.

When I told Vishnu and my sister about this pain, they told me I needed to rest and not irritate it anymore. So that’s why the next three days were dedicated to not doing much. Speed 1.0 incorporates stretching into the workout so I thought it would be good for my muscles. Plus, I needed to move my body in a different kind of way. Thankfully, I didn’t feel any pain.

That brings me to Sunday. I started my run at 6 pm and felt strong for the first few miles. I even smiled to myself at one point because I wasn’t feeling any pain. Then right around mile 6 I started to feel a dull ache in my left heel, and slowly but surely the pain started making its way up my leg. I wanted to persevere and keep running, but after staying with it for an additional half mile, I knew I had to stop, especially with the half coming up so soon.

And because I want to write my race recap next week, I’m also sharing what this week’s workouts have looked like/will look like:

Monday: Gaiam TV yoga with Vishnu!
Tuesday: Lots of low impact walking
Wednesday: Lots of low impact walking
Thursday: Lots of low impact walking
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: HALF MARATHON!!!

All of my short runs have been replaced with walking. I don’t want to risk injury this close to race day.

In fact, when I talked to Roshni, who’s a podiatrist, she told me to rest as much as I can, apply a warm compress as needed, and take anti-inflammatory drugs to help with the pain and any potential swelling. She also said I should wear sneakers to work. I responded to that last suggestion with a “maaaaaybeeeee!”

Fingers and toes are now crossed for a pain-free/injury-free run on Sunday. My goal is still to run the whole thing, BUT if I start to feel the slightest bit of pain, I’m going to resort to running + walking.

AHHH…wish me luck!!!

And in case you’re interested, here are links to my weekly recaps:

Week 1 Half Marathon Training
Week 2 Half Marathon Training
Week 3 Half Marathon Training
Week 4 Half Marathon Training
Week 5 Half Marathon Training
Week 6 Half Marathon Training
Week 7 Half Marathon Training
Week 8 Half Marathon Training
Week 9 & 10 Half Marathon Training
Week 11 Half Marathon Training

Half Marathon Training – Weeks 9 and 10

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I didn’t get around to posting a half marathon update last week. I blame Aekta. Just kidding! I had it on the to do list but figured no one was thinking about my training on New Year’s Eve.

Before I share my workouts from weeks 9 and 10, I have to admit something. Even after double and triple checking my ability to count backwards, I messed up. According to my current training schedule, my half marathon is on January 18th. But it’s not. It’s on January 25th. I missed a week! Oops.

In a way, it actually worked out for the best. As you will read in a few seconds, training has only be so-so over the last couple of weeks. That extra week will be very useful.

With that, here are my workouts from week 9:

Monday: Gaiam TV yoga + 2 mile walk
Tuesday: 5 mile run
Wednesday: Rest
Thursday: 2 mile walk
Friday: 4.5 mile run
Saturday: Full-body tabata workout + 25 minute interval workout on the elliptical
Sunday: 5.5 mile run

As you can see, I didn’t run the 9.3 miles (15-K) I was supposed to on Sunday. In my defense, my sister and Adarsh flew in the night before. We went to bed late. We woke up late. My sister and I started our run WAY too late. It was hot. Blah! I know…excuses, excuses!

Anyways, here are my workouts from week 10:

Monday: Rest
Tuesday: Core/Cardio/Strength circuit + 25 minute power walk on the dreadmill
Wednesday: 4.5 mile run
Thursday: Rest
Friday: 5 mile run
Saturday: Gaiam TV yoga (with Vishnu!!) + 7 mile bike ride
Sunday: Rest

I bailed on my long run this week as well. Again, in my defense, I got pretty sick on Saturday night/Sunday. I was super congested and felt absolutely icky. There was no way I was going to make it through a one mile run…never mind 11.

Luckily, I still have two weekends to redeem myself. My slightly altered plan now involves an 11 mile run this coming weekend and a 12 mile one the weekend before the half.

While I’m looking forward to the half itself, I’m at the point where I just want the training part to be over…

Oh man. Wish me luck on my 11 miler. Haha.

And in case you’re interested, here are links to my weekly recaps:

Week 1 Half Marathon Training
Week 2 Half Marathon Training
Week 3 Half Marathon Training
Week 4 Half Marathon Training
Week 5 Half Marathon Training
Week 6 Half Marathon Training
Week 7 Half Marathon Training
Week 8 Half Marathon Training

Half Marathon Training – Week 1

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Half marathon training is officially underway! 

megmondtam

And with that, here’s what week one looked like…

Sunday – Rest
Monday – Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30 Level 2
Tuesday – 3.25 mile run
Wednesday – Rest
Thursday – 3.25 mile run
Friday – 5 mile run
Saturday – Rest

It definitely wasn’t the most intense week, but it was good (enough).  To be honest, my workouts as of late have been feeling a little blah.  And I think it’s due to the fact that Vishnu’s schedule was so random last month.  Because of this, I haven’t been able to stick with any one sleep schedule.  And I’m most definitely one of those people who needs their sleep.  If I get anything less than 7 hours of good quality sleep, everything is off.  With that being said, I’m looking forward to his more normal (8-5ish) schedule this month.

Two other things that are top of mind right now are how I’m going to fuel and prevent injury for this half.

I know that running makes me hungry.  Really hungry.  So for now, the plan is to buy/make healthy snacks that are protein rich, meal plan every week so that good food is always on hand, and drink lots and lots of water.  I also need to be a little more mindful of how much I’m eating.  While I’ve kept an eye on my portion sizes, there’s still room for improvement, especially when it comes to more indulgent foods (cheese and chocolate).  I’ll share more as I figure out what works for me.

Preventing injury is actually my number one focus for this half.  Why?  Because if I’m inured, I can’t run!  My plan is to include at least two days of strength training, (when possible) even if it’s just 10 minutes of body weight exercises, and lots of stretching.  Something else I’m mindful of is listening to what my body is telling me.  For example, my calves were killing me this past Saturday and Sunday.  Instead of trying to fit in exercise, I rested on Saturday and went for a walk with my sister on Sunday.  In my opinion, rest days are a must for so many reasons.

So that’s week one in a nutshell!  I think most people are idealistic when it comes to the first few weeks of training, and I’m no exception.  While I would love all 12 weeks to go according to plan, I going to have to be flexible and adaptable, especially when travelling. 

Anyone else training for a race?  How’s it going?

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