Training

That is how winning is done:  finishing what it is you've chosen for yourself to do.  - Jason Jaksetic, Ultra Distance Athlete

Training has reached a new level of intensity!  I train all year long so I’m always at a relatively strong level of fitness and cardio but in 88 days the Lincoln half and full marathon will take place just 50 miles down the road and so for the next 12 weeks I (and many of my Mud Mafia runners) will prepare with earnest.  In the past, my training has always consisted of putting in the miles to make sure that I could handle the race itself but this season, it’s about results not just finishing. Today, my endurance is already pretty solid – I’m running over 95 minutes on long run days so my goals for the half aren’t just to finish it, but to destroy it with a wicked time.  Additionally, three weeks after the half marathon I will do my first triathlon in Omaha as a preparation for a 1/2 Ironman I’ll be racing in August so I’ll be focusing on more than just the running keeping me hopping (well, biking and swimming).  So, to be fair, now I’m exhausted just READING all of that…

So where am I at now?  I train all year six days a week, sometimes up to four hours at a time (long run days).  I like to make each moment as focused as possible so that I am very efficient about how much time I put into the workouts.  Training is important to not only prepare your body but to prepare your mind for race day.  Last Sunday I ran a 10K in 46:10 on tired legs and with shin splints so when I run a 10K race at the halfway training point to the half marathon,  I really want a solid time falling under 44 minutes.  Training helps you to set and push your performance goals so you can effectively do that.

The rest of this year,my workouts will be focused and deliberate.  As I have been doing I’ll run Monday – Saturday focusing on pace runs, intervals, and steady state runs leading up to a weekend long run to build speed and enhance my endurance.  Mondays and Wednesdays I’ll swim in addition to my running, and Tuesdays and Thursdays I will get on the bike as well.  Some strength training is in there too… have to keep my core and my back nice and strong they are my foundation.  Sunday will my REST day.  I will stretch Sundays and maybe do some light yoga but otherwise will be downtime for my muscles to be restored. 
the bottom line is that training is FUN for me.  I love the sweat, the miles, the afterglow (and the jacuzzi baths!).  I train so that when I am racing and I need more from my body it’s there and I know it will be… I put it there.