I always like to post just before Monday morning (Eastern time) so (most of) you can start your week with some new “content” to read while trying to get into your groove. But tonight I have nothing big or meaningful to share. I mean, there were a couple of majorly meaningful and amazing moments that happened this weekend but not shareable moments. They’re part of my non-blog life and I hold those dear to my heart. 🙂
I am still struggling with my shoulder. I thought it was doing better but then i had a setback. So tomorrow I’ll be finally seeking some medical attention. How ironic that a non-running injury is forcing me to a doctor. Why didn’t I go when my knee started bothering me? #stubborn
I’m feeling a bit lost at the moment with my health and fitness…I should be running and sharing my marathon training journey with you. I should be at 12-14 miles for my long run. I should have been running with the NJ Marathon training group today. They had their first on-course training run. But alas, I’m still working on getting this knee to be able to handle running long distances again. Thankfully my sanity is in check!
So I thought I’d take this opportunity to let you ask me something. Anything. Shoot! And maybe I’ll reply in a vlog….
Go ahead! Ask me anything
Hi, I’ve been following you for a little whole now and really enjoy your blog. I’m currently training for my first marathon in April. I’ve completed a few half marathons and decided I needed to step it up and challenge myself. I actually started training last year but completely tore the ACL in my right knee so after knee reconstruction surgery, lots of rehab at physio I’m finally back training again.
I live in Australia and am very keen to do a marathon in USA. So my question to you is which do you think I should choose. I’m leaning towards NYC or Chicago. I know both would be a lottery entry so no guarentee but I could also book with a tour group to get an entry.
You are very inspirational and like you running hasn’t always been a part of my life but is now. It has been one of the best things that I’ve found in life and I love it. I’m not fast by any measure but it has done so much for me as a person.
Hi Nicole!
So happy to hear you’ve recovered from your knee reconstruction and are training for a full. Hopefully you’ll have a great experience but I can tell you that after my first marathon I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to run one again. Well, we know how that went. I ended up running another….and another…and another…etc. etc. So for your fall marathon options I can tell you that there is no other marathon like NYC. I have run it twice and spectated once. It’s HUGE! Over 50,000 runners, lots of logistics to get to the start and then of course you have to run 26.2 miles. But You won’t see another marathon with the amount of crowd support. Of course Chicago is on my bucket list. I actually want to plan a vacation to see Chicago so I thought I’d try for the lottery in 2016 or 2017. (I’ve only been to chicago as a layover when flying to the west coast and have never seen anything but the airport!) NYC is not an easy course….Chicago is fast and flat….so if you want to focus on setting a personal record for time I’d say go for Chicago. But I’m a native “New Yawker” so I’d have to say NYC. They’re only a few weeks apart so your training period would be the same…Thanks for reading. I love how runners fall in love with running. I never had such a mind/body connection to exercise as I do with running. Let me know what you end up running.
Hi Sally and Duncan!
I love reading your blog and think you and Duncan are the best! My question is what training plan do you follow when training for a full marathon. I know this can differ for each individual but for me a lot of the mileage increases on a lot of the plans found on the internet are usually too steep for me to follow and I need a more gradual increase in mileage over more time. About how many miles increase a week do you train for and what is your max training miles?
I am sorry about your shoulder injury. I hope you will feel better soon.
Abby
Hi Abby!
I started out using the Hal Higdon Novice plan when training for my first marathon and have tweaked it a little each time i’ve trained for a marathon since. I have a hard time running 4-5 days. I prefer 3 focused runs. So Tuesdays would be a shorter distance with a focus on speed or hills. I’d move his wednesday run to Thursday and try to keep it a tempo run. (I basically wouldn’t do his thursdays run or i’d cross train) And Saturdays I’d do the long run. Sundays would be cross-training or a short recovery EASY run of 3 miles. So my weekly mileage would be 15-35 miles. The schedule is 18 weeks long but as I built a base and was always training for something I would jump in about 2-4 weeks into it. If you take a look at Hal’s Novice plan it is definitely a slow gradual increase. I’m no Hungry Runner Girl with 52 mile weeks that’s for sure! =) But I also run an average pace of 10:30 to 11:30 min miles. (marathon times range from 4:38 to 5:28).
when did you start running? 🙂
I started running toward the end of 2005. I ran my first race in 2006. It was a 4 miler. I ran my first 1/2 marathon in 2007 and my first marathon in 2011.
Have you lived anywhere besides the east coast? What’s your favorite place to visit?
I’ve actually lived my entire life in New York City. I even went to college here too. But I love to travel. I absolutely love San Francisco. In 2013 I had the chance to run through Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming and Nebraska and got to see some really beautiful landscapes. I’m also a huge fan of Arizona and Nevada. Sedona and Red Rock Canyon. New Orleans was a fun place to visit. And Charleston South Carolina was kinda cool too. I’ll be headed to Jamaica later this year to attend a wedding. Tropical destinations are not my usual preference so we’ll see how I like it.