15 weeks of training in...

Trepidation, anticipation and a touch of anxiety!

Week 15 down! As mentioned last week, I'm now off work for the Easter break.  It has therefore been a week, as planned, of catching up with others, decorating and enjoying my daughters.  It has also been a week of thinking about the marathon, thinking about whether or not I'm actually going to get a reasonable time (Why can I not just be satisfied with completing it?), thinking about the logistics of taking my children and a couple of friends with me and managing to get ahead with work over the next few days as I won't be working next weekend.  I swear that my brain has invested more time in running-related thoughts than it has on everything else combined, let alone the physical running itself!

As for my body... WELL, I'm a naturally slim person anyway but as with most women, I would always be happier for the scales to suggest a lower number!  That said, my weight plummeted throughout December/January but as the training increased, so did the need for my food intake so the weight has increased a little again and stabilised quite nicely.  I'm not unhappy with the current weight (that's good for me - I'm ALWAYS unhappy with my weight despite being only a couple of pounds heavier than I was nearly 20 years ago) but my body has changed beyond belief.  I now have thin but rather bloke-like arms suddenly.  Where did these muscles come from?  I haven't lifted a single weight in the gym for years and yet...  Also, I've always been quite proud of my legs but suddenly have extra sinews that have seemingly appeared from nowhere!  I've now worked out that I can only wear my new skinny jeans on the day that I HAVEN'T had a hard run.  My calf muscles are always just a touch too swollen to be able to pull the jeans over them if I've had a tough training session.  So, bloke-ish arms, skinny jeans restricted to rest or very easy days, disappearing hips and a washboard stomach which given the fact that I've not had time to even think about my abs is a REAL bonus although I do think that my body is bordering on the teenage-boy rather than the svelte-woman look (this is not a good thing).... and don't even get me started on the toe-nail debate!  I think the excessive chocolate and lower mileage pre-marathon will help to rectify the curves a little, so all is not lost just yet.

I've managed my running quite nicely this week and am looking forward to a REALLY easy wind down week in preparation for next Sunday (OMG!).  So, my week that was:
Monday saw me completing the longer run that I hadn't managed the previous Sunday.  15.25 miles at exactly 8.45 min/mile.  This felt quite comfortable and although my legs were tired from running several 8 fast-ish miles the previous week, they climatised after about 6 miles (it took 6 painful miles for this to happen, mind) and were pretty much ok until about mile 13.  The last couple of miles were uncomfortable to say the least.  That said, I think I'd quite like to maintain this pace for the Milano City Marathon, so long as my legs feel rested beforehand.  I didn't end up running on Tuesday or Wednesday but managed a reasonable 10 miles on the treadmill on Thursday (1 hr 20 mins) which was a comfortable speed but lacked any terrain/hill challenge but an ok run regardless. I ran TWO whole miles early on Friday morning before collecting the children from their dad's - I didn't enjoy this.  Not sure which of the late night out on Thursday, the early morning on Friday or the 10 mile run on Thursday morning contributed to my Friday am tiredness... perhaps a combination of all three!  Rest day on Saturday and a quick 5 mile loop from Moreton Hall to Great Barton Church and across the Cattishall crossing on Sunday.  I really enjoyed this!  5 miles in 37.25.  Actually, I really enjoyed the first half, detested the hill at 3 miles up to the church and survived the final 1.5 miles.  I just wanted to run my longest distance for the next 7 days as fast as I could.  I know that so many of you run an awful lot faster than that but I don't.  I haven't clocked that time since 2005 shortly after turning 30, so to be in that position 7 years later feels really good.  I knew I had it in me!  :o)

So, the final week of training is ahead of me - and a busy week of living/working it is too!
Monday - rest day
Tuesday - 4 miles
Wednesday - 4 super slow miles
Thursday - 3 miles (flying out to Milan on Thursday evening)
Friday - rest day
Saturday - 2 slooooow miles
Sunday - oh my, 26.2 miles, I hope!
As is typical with me, my children and my lifestyle, this may change slightly but there will be no exertion until Sunday so all will be slow, all will be easy and all will be short.  (I'm really looking forward to this considerable lack of training!)

15 weeks of training in, 35 weeks to go!  So, given the fact that in 7 days from now, I will have hoped to have crossed my first milestone of the year, I am anxious, excited, full of trepidation and anticipation on this and other impending adventures.   Wish me luck!