MCM Week 11: August Slipped Away

Labor Day Weekend is the unofficial end of summer at the shore, and I wondered where it went. I didn’t get to surf or swim in the ocean (and I live here), I only waterskied twice the entire summer, we didn’t hike anywhere this year, and some of our trip ideas were foiled thanks to global warming setting some of our National Parks on fire. We hosted friends for beach days and went to a few concerts and ball games, but with all the training this summer, I haven’t had a real vacation. I was looking forward to our short trip to D.C. for this marathon, but we were still weeks away, so I chugged along in my training.

Here's the plan breakout for Week 11:

·       Sunday – 12 miles Tempo: 2 mile WU, 8 miles @ MP, 2 mile CD

·       Monday – 6 miles Easy

·       Tuesday – 10.5 miles Strength: 1.5 miles WU, 6 x 1 mile @ MP-10 seconds, w/ 400m jog, 1.5 miles CD

·       Wednesday – Cross-train

·       Thursday – 11 miles Tempo: 1.5 miles WU, 2 miles MP, 3 miles MP, 2 miles MP w/ 0.5 mile jog, 1.5 miles CD

·       Friday – 4 miles Easy

·       Saturday – 10 miles Easy

What actually happened:

·       Sunday – 14 miles Long

·       Monday – 6 miles Easy

·       Tuesday – 6 miles Easy

·       Wednesday – Heavy Lifting

·       Thursday – 11 miles Tempo: 1.5 miles WU, 2 miles MP, 3 miles MP, 2 miles MP w/ 0.5 mile jog, 1.5 miles CD

·       Friday – 10 miles Easy

·       Saturday – Beach Yoga

I was supposed to do 12 miles tempo, but I was able to run 14 (albeit slow) on the hilly Hartshorne Battery Loop a few times. Each loop around on the hills got easier, and I felt like I could keep going, but Mark was waiting for me to return before he went out for a ride on the motorcycle. It was nice and cool out for that morning for LDW, so I think that helped me on this challenging route. The change in temps were making my ears pop as if the hills had a greater sea level change than reality. I took a nice nap, read my book, and we enjoyed another cover band at the Sandbox in the evening. We had the best sunset yet at our little local beach club that evening.

My Monday Labor Day run was really slow; I went the same average pace as my long run, but for this recovery 6-miler, I stayed on completely flat land. It was supposed to be slow and we had nowhere to be, so I took my time with my sore legs. I also felt a bit anxious before and after the run, so moving my body and focusing on my technique was a nice distraction. With no definitive plans, we wandered around Asbury Park and tried out a taco place. It was a bit chilly for a beach day, but we people-watched the “Bennys” get in the last bits of sun before the end of their summer.

Sunset at the Sandbox

It was back to the grind on Tuesday. Thanks to traffic, I started my run later than I planned at the office and had to cut it short due to our monthly team meeting. I get stressed out when I have to rush things, so I went too hard on the run. I had to take a few walk breaks throughout the day to keep me both recovered and focused for the busy workday. Long weekends are always a catch-22; you get a day off, but then all the work you need to get done is added to your plate before and after the day off.

I stuck with lighter weights for Wednesday’s strength workout so that I wouldn’t overdo it. My neck had also been bothering me for a few days, so I needed to strengthen the weaker areas to fix my posture and pain. I didn’t have much of an appetite for a few days (despite lots of energy-consuming runs), so I was delighted to feel famished enough to eat a normal amount of food for all the calories I’m burning. Sometimes I’m just hungrier on strength training days.

Thursday was a GREAT training day! I ran the prescribed 11 mile tempo run to Sandy Hook and back, I was on pace, it was perfect temperature, and I was appropriately hungry afterward. I felt like my old self for this run, and I hoped I could continue this momentum for the next few weeks and the race. I went to the running store to pick up more of my favorite socks and a new hydration waist belt that I planned to use during the marathon. I was so excited that I treated myself to another Sprints hat (my signature look).

I swapped Friday and Saturday’s runs due to the weather and knowing I wouldn’t have enough time to do a longer run on Saturday. I tested out the Nathan hydration belt with two 9 ounce flasks for an easy 10-miler, and I liked it much better than the one I used for the Runapalooza Half back in early April. It bounced around less, and I was able to use one flask for electrolytes and the other for plain water for this workout. I still planned on using the vest for my weekend long runs, but because races have aid stations, I won’t need to carry as much water with me.

I was too stressed out, tired, sad, and had a migraine so I did not run on Saturday. I made a point to go to Beach Yoga, which our instructor called “Windy Yoga” that morning for the upcoming storm. I was appropriately anxious for the day because I attended a wake for my hometown friends’ mother. Though the last time I had seen these friends was at my brother’s funeral in 2019, I missed them terribly and made the trip north to see them for a short time. I couldn’t stay after; my weather migraine from the pouring rain was killing me. If my head wasn’t in pain, I would use my grief to run more. I just had to rest and hope the rain stops before the next day’s long run.

I was 6.5 miles short of the planned weekly mileage, but I overachieved on Sunday’s long run, and my back-to-back double-digits runs on Thursday and Friday moved the needle. I was glad my appetite was recalibrating even though I still had those anxious days.