The Flying Pig Marathon
Deciding to Run the Marathon
Last year, I decided to run the half marathong in the Flying Pig race series. Unfortunately, just as I was rounding out my training cycle, an IT band injury took me out. I was SO frusterated, and swore that as soon as I was able to recover, I'd train again. This time though, I wanted to push myself further--I wanted to train for the full marathon. This was a big decision, but this time, I knew how to do it right. I promised myself that I would fuel better, and learn from my past mistakes from the half marathon. This learning curve included plenty more rolling out and stretching before runs, eating a lot more, warming up for longer, and planning my Saturdays around extremely long runs.
I put much more research into my running shoes, and actually got my feet analyzed at Fleet Feet! They told me that I needed a shoe with a lot of heel support, and with a high heel drop. Below is my analysis:
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Changes in my training
Changes in my training were needed; I added variation in my runs (fast versus easier), and a LOT of strength training. In fact, I took out an entire day of running just to focus on lifting and building strength to avoid my previous mistakes and avoid injury. I learned a lot about strength training from friends. Here is a snapshot of some of my favorite workouts over the last few weeks as training continues (can you tell I like one route in particular?)! I also focused more on my data that my Garmin watch provided me, like my VO2 max, to indicate what my actual fitness was.
All in all, I cannot wait to execute my race. The race itself is after I graduate, and I think it will be the most perfect conclusion to my collegiate amateur running, and a perfect transition into post-graduate running. I hope to continue this hobby and become more and more competitive. Since the marathon hasn't happened yet, enjoy some goofy training photos to suffice:) Thanks for following along my UHP journey--I hope you've loved it just as much as I have!
