Today I completed part 2 of
Peloton's Road to 26.2 with a 12 mile run. This week (week 12) was a dropdown week, which I really needed after not feeling great after my 16 mile run last week. I took all the weekday runs easy and didn't over do it, but did do some heavy lifting for the
Strength for Runners classes. It really paid off because the 12 mile run felt AMAZING. I didn't feel tired, my legs felt great on the run, and my last mile was my best pace (it helped that a slept great last night). Today's run gave me the confidence boost I needed going into
part 3, which will mean 16, 18, and 20 miles the next three weekends. I guess I should just trust the process at and realize that just because I felt exhausted and burnt out after my 16 mile run that it didn't mean that I would not be able to keep going. The dropdown, taper, and recovery is there for a reason!
At this point I have figured out my clothing, hydration, nutrition, and recovery plan for my training and marathon day. There were several weeks in a row that I kept getting chafing, something I had only gotten on one run in the 10 years I had been running previously. I have a friend (thanks Melissa) that does a lot of ultras and she recommended to try
Squirrel's Nut butter, so I ordered the anti-chafe stick. I now rub it all over the area where the bottom of my sports bra lands and I haven't had any issues since. My last several long runs I have worn the same sports bra and since it has been ok I will be wearing that for the marathon. I will wear a
Back on My Feet singlet I earned for hitting my fundraising goal. Bottoms wise, I have not totally settled on what I will wear. I prefer to wear short length bottoms with calf compression sleeves, but if it is really cold I will go with longer pants. I ordered both
Athleta and
Brooks bottoms that had pockets to try out and for shorts I prefer the Athleta ones because they are longer. I really am loving having the pockets so I don't have to wear a belt to carry my phone and gels. For compression sleeves to wear while running I got
Zensah because they aren't as tight as some of the other brands. After running I switch to
CEP full length compression socks and will likely wear them to sleep in after the marathon (and probably on the flight home too). I also ordered some
Oofos Ooriginal Recovery Sandal based on some runner websites I am on. They are like rubbery clouds that I can wear after my runs (and just in general) to help to absorb impact and aid in recovery.
All my hydration/nutrition during running is thanks to Melissa's recommendations. I have always just drank water with all my training and races until now, but Melissa suggested I try
Tailwind and gave me some to try. Now I have been using it for all of my runs and some of my recovery. I prefer the
Endurance Fuel Naked (unflavored). Since it is so hot out and I also don't want to have to run loops back home to refuel, I learned a trick when I was training for Chicago Marathon and broke my arm and had to use a Camelbak instead of carrying a water bottle. I ] fill the Camelbak about half full and lay it on its side with the lid open (obviously make sure it doesn't leak out) in our chest freezer. The next morning before I run I run it under hot water just enough to get the ice to release from the sides and bottom so the liquid can get to the tubing. I then make more water and Tailwind mix and fill it up. It ends up being plenty to last me up to 20 mile runs. Previously for nutrition I had used Huma gels but Melissa told me there was something even better out there now,
Spring Energy. I initially ordered a sample pack so I could try everything, but in the end I really like Speednut (both with and without caffeine to mix it up) because they have 250 calories! I also ordered
Wolfpack to have right before the marathon starts.
Finally is recovery! As always my go to as soon as I get home is to drink a glass of the yummy delicious
Horizon Chocolate Milk. After that it is straight to my Peloton bike to do a recovery ride to help me cool down followed by some stretching. Based on recommendations by
Next Level, it is really important for women of a certain age (cough cough pre- and post-menopause) to get some protein within 30 minutes of heavy lifting or long endurance cardio so my next priority is eating. I clean off the stink with a shower, get my compression socks on and throw on the Oofos sandals if I am walking around. One last bit of recovery is that after my longest run of the cycle, I go for a two hour massage that includes some cupping. I will also do some more stretching based yoga before I go to bed. And finally...sleep, sleep, and more sleep! It is my goal to get at least 9 hours of sleep every night, although this often doesn't happen.
I must at least mention, if you would like to support my journey to the NYC marathon and my charity Back on My Feet, please go to my charity page and donate to help a great organization. And to finish it off, Nova and I finally got a somewhat decent photo on our long run today!
