February was a month of redemption for your RD on the Run. I got back to running at least 3-4 days per week and even started to incorporate some cross training. I ran two races, neither were PRs but both were enjoyable in their own way. I finally managed a couple of double digit runs. I felt redeemed in other areas of my life, too – REDEMPTION is definitely my word for 2018.
And then… things came crashing down. Quite literally. On Thursday 3/1, at the end of an awesome 5 mile run with my friend Christine, I tripped over some sidewalk and literally fell on my face. The funny part of the story is that I paused my Garmin when it happened. The not so funny part is that I got to spend a couple of hours at Med Express getting my face stitched back up. As sucky as it was to have fallen and busted open my face, at least I did not break any teeth or bones, and I will be able to return to running ASAP. I’m taking the weekend off to enjoy some R & R with my parents and hubby, but hopefully will be back to the grind on Monday!
Let’s talk about February, though, shall we?
- Total Miles: 74.53
Here’s where I stand with my mileage from last year vs. this year:
- January 2017: 73.83 miles / January 2018: 66.50 miles
- February 2017: 33.39 miles / February 2018: 74.53 miles
- March 2017: 51.51 miles /
- April 2017: 68.68 miles /
- May 2017: 61.50 miles /
- June 2017: 51.62 miles /
- July 2017: 70.38 miles /
- August 2017: 104.54 miles /
- September 2017: 136.86 miles /
- October 2017: 72.28 miles /
- November 2017: 52.86 miles /
- December 2017: 57.54 miles /
- TOTAL 2017: 835 miles / TOTAL 2018: 141.03 miles / GOAL: 1000 miles, 14.1%
What was I training for? As I mentioned in my last post about the BARC Mardi Gras 5k, I changed my plans from running the Martian Marathon on April 14th to the Glass City Marathon on April 22nd. It gives me an extra week of training and the course is flatter. It’s also a bigger race, so there will be more crowd support. My own concern is the 6 hour time limit, but it is not a huge concern. My friend Christine wants to beat her marathon PR of 5:54:09.6, and in training we have been aiming for about a 13:00/mile pace.
What races did I run? Winterlaufe 8k and BARC Mardi Gras 5k
Best performances: I don’t feel like I truly “raced” this month, so I have to say my best performance was my 13.5 mile solo long run. It wasn’t my fastest by any means but it definitely helped me with my confidence in preparing for the marathon.
Opportunities for improvement: Umm, try not to be such a klutz?! But really, keep up the training. Eating better, staying hydrated, and mixing it up with some cross training is always on my list for improvement and this month is no different.
What’s ahead: One of my favorite races of the year is just two weeks away – the Bay City St. Patrick’s Day Races, sponsored by Catholic Federal Credit Union. This will be my third time running this race, second time running the Irish Double (8k at 9:30am followed by 5k at 11:30am) and it is my hubby’s first Irish Double! I have been honored to be a Race Ambassador for this year’s race and as the countdown continues, the excitement builds. If you want to sign up, there’s still plenty of time – the Irish Double is full, but you can sign up for any of the individual events until the day of! For more information, check out the website – the FAQ page is a lot of help.
After that, my focus will be getting ready for the marathon, as that will be my next race. 7 weeks and counting until I run my third marathon…
RD on the Run 