Preppy Runner – Theodora Blanchfield

I can’t believe I’m almost 1/4 of the way through marathon training already!

According to DailyMile, my training was awesome last week.

Are the adjectives based on an algorithm or are they completely arbitrary? I always try to guess what my Monday email’s going to say, but I haven’t been able to discern a pattern. Sometimes my low-mileage weeks get the same adjectives as my high-mileage, ass-kicking, pace-busting runs.

So, let’s recap this week, shall we?

Tuesday: Meh. I’ve had much worse runs, but I’ve had much better runs. I ran three miles before work through quicksand up the West Side HIghway and just never got into it.

Wednesday: That was a scary 5-miler I had to cut short to 3 because I felt so awful.

Thursday: Thursdays are rest days on my plan, which is great because I also have a standing early meeting at work, so a morning workout would be a little harder.

Friday: I wish I could say I was trying to play it safe after Wednesday’s run, but in reality, it just didn’t happen after quite a few glasses of wine Thursday.

Saturday: Back in the game something fierce. I had an amazing eleven-miler Saturday. If I can run that pace for another 15.2 miles…I will still be one minute and one second short of my goal. I have my work cut out for me, for sure.

Sunday: After falling two days in a row, I finally took this one at the easy pace I was supposed to.

Overall: I feel good about the miles I did get in (even the tough ones) and am frustrated with myself for the ones I didn’t. Training isn’t about being perfect, but it is preparing with everything you’ve got. Given that last year I was unemployed and had so much more time to run and the year before that, I had a less-demanding job and Junior League role, I’m happy so far with how I’ve fit my runs into my schedule. Although the runs are only going to get longer from here, I’m hoping that the more I get used to this Tuesday/Wednesday/Friday/Saturday/Sunday schedule, the more it will just feel like routine.

Another note: that Wednesday run did really freak me out, and I went for a physical today because it’d been a while, and I wanted to make sure all systems were a go. I won’t get the results of my bloodwork for a few days, but the doctor did hear a slight heart murmur, which I have to have checked out by a cardiologist Thursday. She wasn’t terribly worried, so I’m not either. I had one when I was a baby, and it went away. I hadn’t had a physical in at least two years, because I told myself I was healthy and didn’t need one, so just a reminder to go get a check-up, if you can, if you haven’t had one in a while either. Maybe your heart will murmur sweet nothings to you too?

Oh, and this happened today, too. Anyone else doing this race? I did the Newport Half two years ago, and really enjoyed it.

Time to get to sleep. I have some marathon training to get after.

How’s your training going? When was the last time you had a physical?