Boston 2014 Training: Weeks 1 and 2

I planned to write more on my trip to Vermont, but once we got there I decided to cut down on internet and computer use for a few days. I'm actually in my third week of training for Boston right now, and so far it has been filled with a lot of snow and cold weather.

Week 1 Total Miles: 11 (for the half week of training)

The Hanson Marathon plan officially started on a Thursday and I should have run an additional 14 miles onto this week. However, our drive up to Vermont took all day Saturday and then it was impossible to get outside (safely) for a run that Sunday due to the ice storm.

Thursday 12/19: 6 mile tempo at 7:04 pace
Day one of training called for an easy 6 miles, but I had a strong suspicion that I would not be able to run my speed workouts while in VT. My easy run became a tempo run. I felt great loved the t-shirt and shorts running weather.

Friday 12/20: 4.8 miles at 7:42 pace
Tom and I ran after work, just before we started packing for VT. We thought it would be fun to head to the Zoo to catch Zoo Lights.

Saturday: Off - Drive to VT
Sunday: Off - Ice Storm

Week 2 Total Miles: 32

This was a more consistent week of training. It was also the first time that we had to purchase a gym membership since high school! We even went back to our high school gym, Excel, to get in our workouts. While I absolutely hate treadmill running, it was the only way to get the running in. I would have either 1)been a baby and found every excuse why not to run in the cold or 2)gone running and fell 6,579 times, possibly seriously hurting myself.

To my surprise, running on that darn treadmill became easier throughout the week. The key: Episodes of House Hunters on HGTV!

I once heard that it's better to do treadmill workouts on a slight grade, rather than a grade of 0. Most of my runs were at 0.5 or at 1. I didn't bother doing a hill workout on it, nor a speed workout, as the treadmill was enough of a mental workout itself!

Monday: 6 miles at 7:39 pace
Tuesday: 6 miles at 8:01 pace (The treadmill wasn't that bad on day 2)
Wednesday: Day off - Christmas and a scheduled day off according to the plan.
Thursday: 6 miles at 7:56 pace
Friday: 6 miles at 7:56 pace
Saturday: Day off. We celebrated Christmas with Tom's whole family!
Sunday: 8 miles at 8:33 pace. The gym was closed so we headed out to the slushy/icy streets for our longer run.

Christmas Afternoon 

As I write this, week 3 is coming to a close. While I have not been running as much as I was by this point during the summer, I believe that is OK. I have a small base and seem to be shape somewhat from the fall. I also have another 15 weeks ahead me for training, which is still a significant amount of time. Heck - most other running plans are just getting started!