Gearing Up!

A few weeks ago I decided that I would start my training for the Pain on New Years. With so many other people out there making New Years resolutions I would kick off my training with them. That being said, there is a lot to go into prepping for something like this! My training not only involves my physical fitness, but also my nutrition, hydration, and various planning. With so much going on I can't just wait and start on January 1st to start running!

Over the past few weeks I have been working on my nutrition by meal prepping every Sunday. A plan for breakfast, lunch, and dinner are made for almost the entire week. I have not tracked the macros of these meals, but for a reason. I have known I needed to eat a bit more than I had been, especially if I am going to pick up the training. Almost everything I am eating though is made at home and is with REAL FOOD! This has been key.

I have also talked about it in my other blogs how I have been training more for time than for distance. This has been a massive shift for me! For the first time in my life I am not pushing myself to go as fast as I can for as long as I can! No more 8 min/mile half marathons and wanting to go faster, now I am trying to master the 10-12 minute mile for the first time since I have started running a few years ago. This has been the largest struggle I have encountered so far. This is primarily because running for a long period of time gets kind of boring, especially when on a treadmill. I have to primarily use the treadmill at this point for a number of reasons so my runs are a struggle. The nice thing however is I have been able to get use to this and it will prepare me for the extremely long days I will meet this summer!

This week I am trying to do a minimum of an hour a day on the treadmill as well as 4 days of strength training. This is a lot and will be similar to how my first week of actual training will be. I am preparing to take away the various excuses I can come up with. I am human and even though I have a fairly solid commitment to my physical health, upping my training by several hours each week will give me plenty of opportunity to make excuses.

This morning is a prime example. I was scheduled to go the gym and do a leg day lift. I hadn't gone to bed until midnight last night, so waking up at 5:30 was tough. I of course then hit snooze since I am not working and then woke up 30 minutes before my daughter came home. I now have to find a way to do some sort of leg training as well as an hour on the treadmill tonight after my daughter goes to bed. It is things like this that have derailed my goals as well as many others every year. I figure if I can work through these prior to the start of my training it will help me once things start up fresh in January aka days from now!

January 1st I will put up my full training plan week by week and write about how I succeed or struggle. I look forward to hearing your responses and motivation/suggestions. I will also discuss any recovery type workouts I do since stretching and recovery are typically my weak points. What are you doing to train this year or for running 30 miles a week for the Pain in the Canal Challenge? Leave a comment or email me at [email protected]! Have a great week and we will be back and active next week!!!