"Slow" Runners

I hear and see it all the time, and I'm guilty of saying it myself on way too many occasions - I'm a slow runner. There's lots of variations and here are just a few: I'm slower than a turtle running in peanut butter; I'm not the fastest runner; I'm slower than most; I'm not running much faster than people walking. The list could go on and on...

Source

And you know what? I think we all need to just quit it already. Just stop with the whole thing of qualifying the speed in which we run or walk or whatever. Just staaaaahhhhhppp.

Because it's actually pretty ridiculous and offensive. Yes, I've laughed at the sayings. I've even sent one to my sister because it was pretty funny. As a matter of fact - it was this one right here:

But you know what my problem is? When I see someone saying that, but then they post their finish times and they are what I would consider fairly speedy. I'm not a super fast runner but at the same time I also recognize that my fast is someone else's slow, and my slow is someone else's fast.

And that's it right there - we all run at different paces and our pace is just that...OURS. What I can run doesn't change what you can run and vice versa, right? I don't run "slow"...I run MY PACE. And honestly, it's still not slower than this:

So let's just stop doing that, okay? No need to make qualifications and dismissals. Just run your own pace, run your own race and enjoy doing it while you're at it.

How to NOT Prepare for a Race...

So I have a race coming up this weekend on Sunday - the Riverside Mission Inn 10k in Riverside, CA. This is a race that I have participated in previously; in fact it was my very FIRST half marathon and then I did the 10k last year as well. It's also the second in a 3-part race series.

Half Marathon at Riverside Mission Inn in 2010

Now, I've mentioned multiple times that my plan is to PR in every race distance this year. So since I've only run one other 10k this year and ended up coming in far below a PR because I was battling a stomach bug, this is basically my last chance to meet that goal. No pressure, right?

Not feeling too great, but ready to run the Idyllwild 10k in June 2014

And let me tell you exactly how I'm ensuring I am going to be successful in meeting that goal! Because it's pretty awesome...

1. Sleeping in a LOT - yep, the alarm goes off and I hit snooze for close to an hour until the time for working out has passed and I am now rushing to get ready for work instead.

2. Getting sick - yep, my last 10k I ended up battling a stomach bug; this time I'm battling a nasty cold. I swear I've had it for a week and a half and it still isn't showing signs of letting up. I tried running last Thursday and the congestion in my chest was such that it just didn't feel good at all so I walked it instead.

3. Skipping workouts - I haven't worked out since last Thursday when I somewhat attempted to run, but ended up doing a brisk stroll instead. I skipped working out on Friday; I skipped long run on Saturday; I skipped Monday; and then I skipped today. So that means I have 3 days to get some quality workouts in before the race.

4. Eating ALL the candy - Usually I can skip the candy jar for the most part but the last two weeks I have been acting like I live off of the stuff. It's terrible.

So Dangerous!!!

5. Forgetting repeatedly that I even have a race this weekend - I should be thinking strategy and figuring out my game plan, and instead I was actually surprised when my co-worker mentioned the race this weekend because it was the FURTHEST thing from my mind.

So there you have it - five surefire ways to ensure your race is a not very pleasant experience! Sounds like a great plan, huh?

Seriously though, I'm going to go out and do my best. I recognize that I have a fairly decent training base under my belt so a week of missed workouts isn't going to kill me and that by the end of this week I should be back to feeling 100% from this cold. And I also know that if I don't meet my goal, it isn't the end of the world. The economy won't crumble and millions of fans won't be disappointed. At least I hope not...ha. ;) Kidding...

I still think it is entirely within reason to walk away with a PR for this race. My previous best is 1:16 and some change so really all I need to do is maintain a 12 minute/mile pace for 6 miles. I think that is totally within reason and attainable. I'm not looking to crush my PR, I just need to beat it.

I'll let you know how it all goes! Send me good vibes!

Hometown Heroes Honor Run 5k - Race Recap

This past weekend I had the pleasure of participating in the 2nd Annual Hometown Heroes Honor Run (#HHHR). I also did this race last year and absolutely loved it so I've been looking forward to going back all year!

There are several things I absolutely love about this race:

1. It is for a really great cause! It benefits the Riverside Police Officer's Association Assistance Fund. Last year the funds went to Officer Andrew Tachias who is on the long road to recovery from injuries he suffered during the Christopher Dorner incident in early 2013. And guess what - Officer Tachias actually ran the race this year! How cool is that?!? Here's an article about him that was in the local newspaper.
2. It is the perfect time of year in SoCal. Seriously - the weather was amazing both this and last year. Chilly enough in the morning to need a light jacket, but warm enough during the run to not be cold at all while not being overly warm either.
3. The course is fabulous. It is a rectangle and is fairly flat for the most part so it makes it pretty easy. You start on a short straight, make a left and stay straight for a good stretch, another left for a short straight, then a final left to the homestretch. Once you turn that final corner you know that you are headed for that finish line and it just makes it so much easier to push through. It's also a really pretty course for the most part running along the orange groves and passing under large shade trees. The road is a little beat up on the first long stretch and there's been water runoff that you have to either run through or dodge both years, but those things are so minor in comparison to the rest of the benefits. 
4. Great post-race party with a free (FREE!!) pancake breakfast put on by the Boy Scouts. Now, the Boy Scouts do ask for tips/donations, but if you didn't bring anything with you, it doesn't exclude you from getting a couple free pancakes and a glass of juice. They also had a band this year providing entertainment and invited folks to hang around and enjoy the day (we didn't, but if I planned to it would have been really cool!)
5. The location is the best it could possibly be. I mentioned last year that it is at a Sports Park near the historic citrus district (see the recap link in the opening paragraph above for a lot more background on that). Real bathrooms! A park to keep kids entertained! Plenty of space to mill around without feeling cramped! Tons of parking! Easy to get in and out of! Seriously, race locations don't get better than this in my opinion. If the race grew to attract a much larger crowd it might not work, but right now - PERFECTION.

Check out that rectangle and the temp at race time - PERFECTION!

Elevation Profile - it doesn't get much better than this...58 ft. of elevation gain overall

 There are definitely a few things that I think can be improved though.

Tech Shirts Sizing: This year we registered early enough to get the tech shirts that went to the first 250 registrants which is awesome! However, these shirts were pretty much baby-sized. We ordered me a Medium and I swear it would have barely fit my size 0-1 twenty year-old daughters. Not only was it small around, it was really short on the torso. My sister ordered an XXL, but was only given an XL so it's my guess that they couldn't get sizes larger than XL and just changed them out in those cases for the next available size. The XL will fit me pretty good, but it wasn't going to fit my sis. She traded it with me with the intent to cut it up eventually for her t-shirt quilt, but ended up trading it back for a cotton tee that she can actually wear.

Water Stops/Post Race: I am happy to say that they added a water stop this year which was great, but the placement was way too close together. The first stop was just before turning onto Adams Street (see map above). The second stop was just after turning off of Adams Street. So you can see that they were probably not even a full mile apart from each other. I carried my own water this year since I've learned that lesson the hard way too many times, but I definitely felt for folks that were relying on the stops for their hydration. It left a long way to go with no water on that homestretch. And they still don't have water at the end of the race which is a problem to me (but they do have the free post-race pancake breakfast, so that kinda balances it out...kinda).

Bottleneck to Start: I mentioned last year that one of the things that is really cool is that instead of just gathering at the start line, shooting the gun off and sending you on your way they have a real live bagpiper leading you to the start! It's pretty awesome and is something I really love about this race. However, they lead you from the Sports Park, through a narrow gate, and then to the start. So you get stuck at the narrow gate...it's a huge bottleneck and it takes forever to get out. I don't really care that much about this, but if someone had done a warm-up prior to starting because they are planning on killing it, then this bottleneck would allow them to completely cool down. Not a huge problem, but something that I think could be fixed if they walked out the drive-in gate instead of through a pedestrian gate. 

But seriously - those are the only things I think need improving and in my opinion they are pretty minor issues. None of those things would keep me from running this race again in the future even if they were exactly the same as they are now. And I think that says a LOT about how great of a race this is!!

Alright - let's talk about MY race, shall we?

I was running this race as a Team SunRype USA Ambassador through the Active Network so I was proud to represent in my team shirt, visor and jacket (finally it was cool enough to be needed!!!). I also brought along samples of the SunRype FruitSource bars that I handed out prior to the race starting. 

I absolutely LOVE these things!! Seen out in the "wild" in our little mountain community of Idyllwild

It felt really good to pass out a product that I don't just enjoy myself, but that I can stand behind because it is a great product made with quality ingredients. I got really good feedback from people and I hope they enjoyed them! If you haven't already, you should definitely check out SunRype's Facebook and Instagram as they have a lot of really great contests to win awesome products!! One of them is running now for Halloween - #Good4LittleMonsters. Check it out and keep your fingers crossed for luck!

SunRype on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SunRypeUsa

SunRype on Instagram: http://instagram.com/sunrypeusa

SunRype on the Web: http://www.sunrypeusa.com/

Did you know you can buy SunRype products on Amazon too??

Okay, so shameless promo out of the way, I do need to say that I have been provided with free samples of SunRype products but my opinions about their deliciousness are all my own. And I can say that free or not - I would absolutely BUY THIS PRODUCT and will continue to do so long after I am no longer an Ambassador. If you want to give them a try before purchasing, let me know as I am happy to send you a little care package. :-)

So after feeling awesome from sharing the SunRype love with the other racers it was time to line up and get to the start line...I almost forgot that I was there with a PR goal in mind! I set as a goal way back at the beginning of 2014 to PR in every main race distance between 5k and marathon. Since the marathon was my first it was a given, but this was my first time out in a 5k distance for the year where I was planning on pushing for that personal best, so I really wanted to mark it off the goal list! (I ran a little 5k earlier this year, but it was in the middle of a flood so it doesn't really count, right? haha)

Last year I PR'ed at this race without even trying, but I knew this year that it was going to take trying to actually accomplish it. So once I got to the start line my plan was to start at a fairly easy pace to warm-up and then just keep pushing to the end. I'll spare all the gory details because, really, they aren't gory at all but are just straight-up boring instead! What ya'll want to know is if I did it, right???

I DID!!!!

My previous best time was 34:14 from the 2013 Hometown Heroes Honor Run. Here is this year's:

So very pleased with this!!

For where I am at right now and for everything I've been through with the knee and the long, slow marathon training cycle I am completely and totally pleased with how I did. I know that I could have done better because I ended up taking two very short walk breaks on the final hill, but all things considering I know that I gave it everything I had that day. And I walked away with a personal best time by 2 minutes and 14 seconds and a pretty cool medal!

Source

I have to say...this running thing...it's kinda crazy to me even still! I never thought it would be something that I could do, much less something that I would love so darn much! It just amazes me to realize that I'm capable of getting up and out on a regular basis. To run through doubts, soreness, sickness, weather and everything else in between. Being a runner...well, it's a pretty cool thing!!

I'll leave you with a few final pics:

Sweaty Selfie with the Bling!

L-R: My Sister, Heather; My Mom, Barby; and ME!

Next up on the race schedule is the Mission Inn 10k on November 9! Need to nail a PR at that event too to mark off that distance; time to beat is 1:16:20.

But if you're in the SoCal area in October - definitely check out the Hometown Heroes Honor Run in Riverside! It is one of the best events I have participated in and I will be back again in 2015!

Keep moving, friends!

It's Been a Great Week!

Friday just always hold such a different place in our hearts, doesn't it? Even though I still have to work a 1/2 day, Fridays just hold an excitement that not even Saturday or Sunday holds...an anticipation of what kind adventures may lie ahead! Kind of silly, really, but I'm going to roll with it because I just LOVE Fridays! And this also happens to be the first Friday in October. I'm just going to ignore the fact that it still feels like summer here in SoCal...don't rip away my fall fantasy, mmmmkay?

And I especially love that this Friday wraps up a really good week! It's not that it was less busy or that I had more things go right; it just all kind of came together like it's supposed to. I was super productive at work, my workouts were totally on target, my eating was better than average (for the most part) and life just kind of...I don't know...worked this week. I don't know how else to describe it. haha

Okay, so I love that little meme right there and it capture perfectly how Friday feels - like anything is possible! But please tell me I'm not the only person that is deeply bothered by that cord hanging so dangerously close to the sink. That poor puppy could be ELECTROCUTED!!

My workouts this week consisted of a "fun" workout on Monday - so I did a little dance party bootcamp and it just made me realize how hopelessly uncoordinated I am, so I don't know how much "fun" it was, but it was different so that's good I suppose. Tuesday I hit the treadmill for 3 miles while listening to an audiobook. I gave this a whirl over the weekend and I have to say that I am 1) enjoying the diversion that a book creates even though I've caught my mind wandering more than once and have had to rewind; and 2) the book I'm listening to using Audible.com on my phone.

I've never read this author, but have had her on my wish list for years and so far I'm enjoying listening to the book. I'll let you know what I think of the book once I'm done. You can always check me out on Goodreads too! Wednesday I did a full body strength training session - and quickly realized that I don't do nearly enough strength work and that strength work is so very important! I'm going to really work on getting this in on the regular more often. Thursday I did a run outside with my Mom & Sister and let me take a moment to tell you all about it...because I'm sure you're dying to know, right? hahaha

I haven't done a whole lot of speed training for a really long time because first I was dealing with the whole knee disaster and the slow process of recovering in a smart fashion, and then I was in marathon training and I just couldn't find the mojo to do speedwork during marathon training. So I got really used to the slow slog of running miles upon miles. So I was a little nervous about how I would feel on Thursday during the intervals. Would they feel impossible? Would I want to die during them? Would I need to stop early and recover longer? All my fears were laid to rest because I absolutely KILLED IT!

My first 1/2 mile interval was in a normal pace range for me - 11:30/mile. The second one was in the goal range of 10:00 something/mile. The third and fourth intervals - 9:30/mile! Just know, that's FAST for me! And I handled it just fine. What's even better is that they were negative splits the entire way through, meaning I got faster for each one. So, needless to say, I rode that runner's high all day long. And that right there captures so much of why I love running. It's a challenge and when I meet it I feel invincible!

And then Friday, well, I did nothing today. hahahaha We all need rest, right? I took it today.

Okay, another awesome thing about this week? I got a fabulous shipment of fun stuff yesterday...check it out:

On the left is the Dell Venue 32GB tablet from Amazon. You see, one of the things I haven't shared yet, but one of the reasons I've been buried, is that I'm officially back in school. I'm working towards my Bachelor's Degree as I never bothered to get it previously because I really didn't need it. I got my Associate's Degree in 2006 and was already working in my dream job in my chosen career field. I didn't really have any plans to change that, but since I work in education it is really encouraged that we...have our education? hahaha Makes sense right? So, I'm finally getting it done and that tablet is going to help me be able to be more productive on the go. Namely, so I can do homework during my lunch hour because I refuse to give up my working out time in the mornings and it has to get done somehow. Then next to that is the new The Oatmeal book about, yeah, running (big shock there, right?). I'm a huge Oatmeal fan so I can't wait to pore over the beautiful pages and pages of fun! And then finally is new Nespresso capsules for the cappuccino machine!! Here's my baby (shhh - don't tell my hubby that it's "my baby" because he thinks it was for him):

It's a beautiful piece of machinery, isn't it?!? Java lovers UNITE! hahaha

So it's been a great week and I'm hoping to carry it forward into the weekend! I will be kicking it off with a hill run at The Beast tomorrow morning, and you know what's totally sick and demented? I. Can't. Wait!!!

What's on your weekend plans?

Which Way is Up?

I'm completely torn about what direction this little ol' blog is going to go in the future. I mean, it's not like I have really put a lot of time or effort into it period and I've been debating for weeks now on whether I just want to completely kill it off or not. I know I've confessed in the past that I'm not a "blogger"...but I do really enjoy having an outlet. I just get really guilty when I don't have time to put in what I think it, and any readers I possibly might have that haven't completely given up on me, deserve.

And I absolutely hate, hate, hate that when I am gone from this space for a few weeks that I feel like I need to come back and do an update dump because that's just boring for me and for you. Right??

But oh man - have I had a lot going on! hahahaha

For one thing, I ran a marathon!!!!! It's hard to believe, even still, and I feel like it's taken on that somewhat hazy dream-like quality. It was HARD, yo. I mean, running a marathon is no joke at all. But I have to say that I am SO GLAD I did it. Do I feel like it changed my life? Yeah, maybe a little bit. Not to get all philosophical or anything, but surviving the long months of training and then the actual race left me realizing that I truly am stronger than I give myself credit for most of the time. It was a battle, and I won. It wasn't the prettiest victory ever, but it doesn't even matter. I. Did. It. I don't care how long it took me or how ugly it was in the process; what matters is that not even once during the race did I think "forget it, just call the wagon because I'm done". Even when my entire body was screaming in pain during the last couple of miles I knew that quitting wasn't even close to an option. I knew without a doubt that I was going to cross that finish line. And I did!!! And I bawled when I did...I am actually tearing up now just thinking about it. It was AH-MAZING!!!

Flat Kristen, ready to run with Team SunRype and Active Advantage!

At the halfway point...I stopped to pose because I wanted at least ONE picture of me not looking absolutely horrific. LOL

I did it!!!!! Moments after crossing the finish line and getting the medal!

My favorite medal by far!!! So proud, but still so surprised!!

But I'm glad it is in the rear view mirror now! I'm really working on focusing on losing this weight. Can you believe that the scale maybe budged a pound during all that training? I know right - so RUDE! But I can't complain because I know I lost inches. I haven't measured but my clothes fit very differently and my legs show definition that they've probably never shown. But the challenge now is to not eat like I'm still training for a marathon. HA! Easier said than done...But I am determined to lose the rest of this weight. I'm at about 175 right now and would, ideally, like to be at 140. So do the math and that means 35 pounds which is not insignificant and will not be easy. But I think I'm finally ready to make this my primary health focus now that the injury/illness and the marathon are out of the way.

I'm also excited to start working on speed again. I definitely know that I let myself get very (way too very) comfortable with those oh-so-slow marathon paces. Especially following the knee disaster and not feeling like I could push it lest I cause damage to the progress I had already made. So between injury recovery and marathon I'm running at paces that are close to my beginning stats. I ran a virtual 10k this past weekend and it kicked my butt. And I know it is primarily because I'm just not used to running (my) fast anymore. I'm used to slooooooowwwww...time to get me un-used to that feeling!!

Which brings me to what is coming up on the race schedule! Last year I ran the Run Riverside Challenge and will be doing it again this year with the first race up in just two weeks - The Hometown Heroes Honor Run. I absolutely loved this race last year and even walked away with a PR (it was only a few seconds, but whatev!) without even trying. One of my goals from way back in the beginning of this year was to PR in every race distance so this one needs to be a PR if I want to make that happen since I'm not sure if I'll have another one in 2014. Then after that will be a 10k at the Riverside Mission Inn run and finally it will all culminate in the Citrus Heritage Run in January 2015 (I'm counting it as a PR for "this year" if I get one since I haven't done another half during 2014 and this one is less than 2 weeks into the new year.)

My plan to master these is the Train Like a Mother Own It Half-Marathon training plan. Yes, I wasn't able to live up to the expectations of the TLAM Finish It Marathon plan as it ended up being rather aggressive for this newbie at that distance, but the half is a distance I'm a little more comfortable with and since I'm working on some fast, it should give me that. Keeping my fingers crossed I can pull off some PR's over the next several months!

There's a lot of other stuff happening, but I will perhaps save that for another day. I don't know where I'm going with this blog right now, so I'm going to just see how it all shakes out over the next couple of months and if the posts are few and far between or the quality is crap, then I'll re-evaluate.

Until then, live happy, my friends!

When the Extraordinary Becomes Ordinary...

I've been thinking about this concept a lot lately, and I'm sure it has to do with marathon training just a little bit, but as it is when you are in training for a big event, your life tends to ALWAYS revolve around it in some small way.

I think back to when I first started running and that first 20 minute solid run of the C25K program was EXTRAORDINARY!! I was amazed...I was so proud of that accomplishment...I cried a few happy tears. And then it became ordinary.

I think back to my first 5k and how proud I was to finish it in under an hour...that was just EXTRAORDINARY. And then it became ordinary.

I ran a 10k in the hills of Idyllwild and even though it took me 1 hour and 22 minutes and I was beat by at least one speedwalking grandma, it was EXTRAORDINARY. And then it became ordinary.

I ran a half marathon and even though it was SO. FREAKING. HARD, I finished it and the fact that I ran 13.1 miles was EXTRAORDINARY. So I ran a few more. And then it became ordinary.

I lost a whole lotta pounds by going from 240 down to the 170's and that was EXTRAORDINARY. But now that I've been at the same place for several years it has become ordinary.

I'm training for a marathon and I read all these blogs about people running marathons like they are nothing but a 5k and what once felt like EXTRAORDINARY became something that seemed so ordinary. If these folks can go bang out 26.2 miles in 3 hours on a regular basis then it must not be that big of a deal, right? When you read about people running marathons all the time it seems like "everybody is doing it, Ma, why can't I?!?" After all, it's so ordinary. There's nothing extraordinary about it...

But you know what? All, let me repeat that - ALL - of those things are no less EXTRAORDINARY today. Just because I have already done them, or others have done them, or others have done them better or faster or more frequently, or more easily, or I have done them better, faster or more easily than the first time, it doesn't make them ordinary. They were extraordinary then, and they are still extraordinary now. What makes them even more extraordinary is that they were a BEGINNING; a first step; a starting place.

That I had the balls courage to do them that first time, and continue doing them even through sickness, pain, injury, fatigue, you name it...is truly EXTRAORDINARY. And I can't forget that...ever.

Running a marathon in (goes to check Countdown Timer)...Good Lord, 46 days (how the hell did that happen???) is extraordinary. I don't care if it is ordinary in some people's books - it's not in mine and never will be!

Running 16 miles on a Saturday morning even though I was suffering from the absolute worst visit from that bi*ch Aunt Flo in a very long time is EXTRAORDINARY.

We do a lot every single day that is extraordinary, yet we let it become something that is merely ordinary. We need to stop doing that. We need to celebrate all the little extraordinaries (yeah, I made up a word, sue me...) we come across on a daily basis. Because let's be honest for a moment, sometimes the simple act of not slapping someone is EXTRAORDINARY. ;-)

So, today, my challenge to you is to go and be EXTRAORDINARY!!! Take note of everything you do that is not your usual and is not your remarkable! And never forget this:

Jumping Ship?

Hello, World, hope you're listenin' (bonus points if you know what song that is...answer at the bottom of post)! Hey, did you know that apparently there is a movie called "Jumping Ship" that starred Blossom's little brother? Oh wait...I guess he probably has a name - Joey Lawrence! I'm probably dating myself just a bit there, eh? Isn't it funny how Blossom is now on Big Bang Theory and is actually smart IN REAL LIFE?!? I know she's a neurosomethingorother, but I swear I will never be able to think of her as anything other than Blossom.

Okay, so totally not what I'm writing about today, but got a little sidetracked there. Let's get back to what exactly I'm thinking about jumping ship on.

So when I started marathon training I picked out the Train Like a Mother Finish It plan. I really liked that the plan took into consideration the fact that as a mother runner a person might still have other responsibilities in life that could make it difficult to dedicate every single waking moment to a training plan. Heck, you don't even have to be a Mother Runner to have other responsibilities. Now that I'm 12 weeks into training and past the halfway point I seriously wonder exactly HOW people go about training for a marathon. I have been able to hit very few of the actual mileage goals laid out in the plan and that just...sucks. Annnnnnndddddd...that brings about my thinking of jumping ship.

Now, now, now - I'm not thinking of bailing on the marathon yet. But I'm thinking about changing up the training plan. I've found that the way my body seems to work best is if it is a week on and a week off a little less on. Let me explain...

I was able to do the 16 miles on plan on Saturday, June 29. Then Saturday, July 5 rolls around and I could only manage half of what I did the week before. And most of that was in total misery. Same thing when I did the 14 mile run; the next week I dropped down to 9 even though I should have done 15.

Second example, this morning should have been EIGHT MILES with 4 of those at negative split. I was able to carve out time to do 4, period. I woke up at 3:30 AM to do those and it's just not freaking possible for me to get up any earlier than that. I'm sorry...I guess I'm not at that super freak level where I don't need sleep yet. Granted, I had a little gastrointestinal issue that ate up some time, but still. I never would have gotten anywhere close to 8. And I'm okay with that!!! I really am!! If you've been following along you already know that I've confessed that I'm struggling.

I recognize that because I haven't been able to hit my training as hard as I would have liked to that it is going to be reflected in my performance on race day. And I'm coming to terms with that. Would I love to be able to totally kill this thing? Hell yeah!! But the reality is that I'm going to be one of those marathon FINISHERS...I probably will want to die several times, and I think I would be crazy if I didn't. I accept that this is where I'm at right now.

So, when I was researching training plans I had checked out several different options. And one of the ones I had saved and quickly dismissed (at the time I probably thought it was too "simplistic") was Coach Jenny Hadfield's Beginner Marathon Training Plan. So I saved it away in a computer folder and didn't really think about it again. Until today when I pulled up my TLAM plan to look at something and saw this one saved in the same folder. So I opened it...and lo and behold!!! It appeared to be something similar to what I was kind of thinking of Frankenplanning the other one into. HA!

Here, take a look at the Week 12 through whatever is in this small snip of it:

So I'm on week 12 and that means that this weekend would be only 8 glorious miles instead of the 18 on my TLAM plan!!!! And then check out next week - 16 miles. And the week after that, back down to 8! In other words, it does what my body seems to need which is hard week, less-hard week, hard week.

Also, I know I cut it all off but if you look at the preview of the plan on Coach Jenny's website you'll see that the week starts on Monday with an easy run FOR TIME instead of distance. Then on Tuesday, that 30-45 minutes you see on most weeks is actually cross-training/strength. Then on Wednesday it is another run at a moderate effort with some Tempos thrown in there towards the later weeks on the plan. Thursday is another cross/strength day. Friday is an easy effort run for time and then the long run on Saturday is all about actual miles instead of time.

So there you have it...I'm thinking about jumping ship and changing training plans midstream.

What do you think? Brilliant or should I stick with what I was already doing?

(one of my absolutely most favorite songs ever...)