spring running |

In hindsight making this the week to start giving up your biggest vice may not have been smart. Diet Mountain Dew and I have a long history. If asked my favorite food I would say Diet Mountain Dew. Favorite way to start my day-Diet Mountain Dew. Favorite pick me up-Diet Mountain Dew. My favorite treat, you guessed it, Diet Mountain Dew!

Except what we have turned into much more than a treat. The obsession turned into a strong dependency to the point I packed it with me everywhere I went. This week after feeling it suddenly tasted off, I decided to end the dependency I have on Diet Dew.

I try to eat healthy most of the time and I buy products with reduced chemicals or more natural options, yet I ingest chemicals horrible for my body 12 ounces at a time, three times a day. It was time to make a change. Plus I don’t want to have to pack cases of pop to take on our vacation out West this summer or be confused with a momma grizzly if I’m short on Dew.

Tuesday I had a can and a half of the vice. Wednesday and Thursday I had no diet soda. Friday I had one fountain diet soda with my late night dinner that I did not finish. I drank tons of water over these days and felt ok. The first few days were easier than I’d anticipated they would be.

Then this weekend came. I’ve felt like a zombie! All I want to do is sleep. Today I had no coffee in the morning either which left me with the worst pounding headache I’ve experienced. I’m hoping this is the worst of it. I don’t plan to give up coffee or start drinking more of it. My only intentions were to give up the sauce (dt. Dew)! I’m curious to see how I feel in a week. Will my training see improvement or not with less soda and more water? Will I feel better or recover faster? We will see! Anyone have any suggestions?

With one more week before the Wisconsin Marathon here’s how our past week of training looked.

Monday-5.25 miles and 50 minutes of yoga (Sarah)

Monday was Boston Marathon Monday. I dream of running this race one day and hoped everything would go positively for those running today. To show my pride and support for those in Boston I dressed in my Boston Strong colors and Boston Strong Bic Band.

Tuesday-10 mile tempo run (Sarah)

I didn’t intend to make this a tempo run, but the legs wanted to go and the weather was perfect. I averaged 8:15 pace over my ten mile run. It felt great!

Wednesday-5 miles

Sunday-8 miles

Tip of the Week-if you’ve managed to make it through your training without losing a few toenails or gaining black ones-congrats! I struggled with black and painful toenails until my third or fourth marathon. Now my toe box of my current shoes fits better so there is less sliding for my toes to hit the ends of my shoes. I’ve also learned to never go for a long run without clipped toenails. Forgetting to trim your nails can lead to painful blisters and toes later on. Ryan has had no issues with this by taking my advice about clipping his toenails and purchasing shoes that fit his feet.

By this point you’ve also earned some calluses and rough parts to your feet. Once you’ve earned those I’d recommend keeping them. I’ve had only one pedicure since my wedding in 2007. Now that my feet are often sensitive I don’t want anyone coming at them. Plus I worked hard for those calluses and I don’t want to have to work to earn them back. Foot massages on the other hand-amazing! Paint your toes pretty ladies (and gents if you wish) and carry those funky feet proud. You earned them!

Total Weekly Miles-13 miles (Ryan) and 28 miles (Sarah)

Happy Training!

After this past week’s training we have a month to go-four more weeks. It seems so close and the second guessing and doubt is starting to creep in. By now I know this is totally normal, but for first timers it is such a mix of emotions.

This week the foot is feeling awesome, but I’ve come down with a mother of a chest cold. Despite not feeling awesomesauce, I pushed through and ran some good mileage. Ryan, too. Weather temperatures were all over the place. There was rain, snow, sleet, freezing rain, and sunshine. There was wind and there was calm. We ran it all this week.

Yup…we’re at this spot!

Monday-5 miles

Today should have been a rest day for me since I ran 15 miles the day before (first run in 11 days) and I was sore! I am helping coach middle school track on Monday’s though and it was just too nice of a day. I ran a couple miles with the kids and ran a few more when I got home.

Thursday-5 mile

We were making our angry and sad faces at the cold and sleet and snow. I had to take a break half way through because I couldn’t stop coughing. This only caused more coughing, but I do believe it helps break up some chest congestion.

Saturday-6.7 miles (trail run with walk breaks)

The weather was great (50 degrees and sun) and I was anxious to hit the trails for the first time since the snow has started to melt. We headed to a nearby state forest to run some trails. I might have jumped the gun a bit as there was a fair amount of snow in places. The open spots were wet, muddy, and awesome. Smelling leaves and spring was so rejuvenating. There were plenty of walk breaks though because this chest cold gets me coughing and very out of breath.

Sunday-18 miles (Sarah) and 12 miles (Ryan)

Since easing back into my long runs after my foot injury Ryan and I are on different pages with our long runs and that is ok. Today’s run was ok. My chest is filled with junk so I cough regardless of whether I’m running or laying on the couch so I chose running. Plus it was too nice to sit inside (60!)

My legs felt strong and the foot good. I ate a GU at mile 5, a sweet juicy pear at mile 11, and another GU at mile 15 because I was hungry and felt I needed it. It feels great to be back! I have to say though the past few months have been rough between the hurt foot and the chest cold. Even though it feels great to be back, I’m not saying the runs themselves have been really great. Every run has felt challenging or frustrating since I hurt my foot in mid-February. Once this cold is gone, I’m expecting to fall hard for running again-in love that is!

Tip of the Week: If you are sick know when to sit out a few days and when to run. If you are running a fever I usually recommend taking the day off from running. No fever, means you can run! If you truly feel terrible, then a day off will help you bounce back faster. I felt like I had a bit of a low-grade fever mid-week and felt zapped for energy. Later in the week, I was starting to feel better but still had the lingering and annoying hack going. Since I knew I didn’t have a fever, I didn’t let a cough become an excuse to sit out again. Get lots of rest, drink lots of water, and eat good foods to help your recover or ward off sickness in the first place.

Total Weekly Miles: 28.7 miles (Ryan) and 34.7 miles (Sarah)

Happy Training!

Tag Archives: spring running

{Wisconsin Marathon Training-Week 17}

{Wisconsin Marathon Training-Week 14}