Although my Disney Dopey race is about 6 months away, I need to race a half or full marathon before October 3rd in order to make sure I am not put in the last corral, which would mean well over an hour or two delay for race start, which is no fun at all. So, I took the plunge and am signed up for the Rock 'n Roll Philly Half Marathon.
Training
My training plan starts today. I am coming off a full week of consistent exercise and mostly consistent healthier eating. To top things off, I feel GREAT! I was concerned that putting this much stress on my body would cause some issues, but none of them have surfaced. Therefore, I am fairly confident in my 13.1 training plan.
The Plan
I will typically be running 5 days per week. I know in the past I have expressed that you can get away with 3 days a week and have great results. However, I really need to start improving my speed if I ever want to make Boston before I am 40.
I'll typically be doing 2 easy days, 1 speed day, 1 tempo / pace day, and 1 long day. This type of plan is similar to what I used to drop my pace many years ago by over 2 minutes per mile over a 16 week training plan. I don't expect those kind of results here, but I am hoping for at least a 30 second per mile pace improvement in the end.
In addition to the running, I will still be working on 2-3 strength sessions per week, as well as fitting in some swimming and cycling. I don't really expect any gains or intense swimming sessions; although I will be using my swims to help speed up recovery.
Cycling is a different animal. I still need to be riding, but running for now will have to take priority. So the plan is that when I have time AND feel good, I'll go on for rides. However I won't be doing a ride before a run on that same day.
Final Thoughts
Overall I feel really confident with my training plan and I can't wait to continue this momentum of consistency. Good luck to everyone on whatever training or races you have planned.
