Training for Ragnar

 

 I want this medal holder thingy.....

I am belatedly getting around to tweaking my existing training schedule for Ragnar. And hoo boy....I feel like I am really behind! I didn't really think that my measly little 15.7 miles over 24 hours would be that big a deal. That I could just do a few back to backs beforehand and I'd probably survive.

But after taking a closer look at the way the legs shake out....I realized I need to do more. My reasoning for deciding to do my first full marathon nearly one year after completing my first half marathon was because I want to CONQUER the full, not merely survive it. The same holds true for this relay. So I'm glad I finally got off my arse and started planning!

I realized between the Memorial Day Run for the Fallen (which has me doing two long runs this weekend-Sat and Mon) and the Rock and Roll next month, the weekends between aren't that many. And the relay is only 3 WEEKS LATER! Oy vey. So I decided that doing 5 back to backs before then is what I need to get ready.

My legs work out to be an 8.2 mile the first day mid-morning. Second leg is 3.5 miles about 10pm that night. Third and final leg is 4.0 miles at 7:30am the next morning. Even though an 8 miler isn't really all that long, I am definitely at the point where I am still pretty sore the next day after long runs. I'd love to say I can run a half marathon and still be upright the rest of the day, but sadly, I'm usually hobbling around my house grimacing with every step.

The plan goes something like this: 3 of the back to backs with be 2 legs; 2 will be 3 legs....AKA...the "Triple". They will follow the same day; next morning format to replicate the relay leg timing for the most part. And these are spread over about 6 weeks to give me good recovery time. No injuries, yo! That's what it's all about.

First 'Double Run' is only halfway there, but it was hard to squeeze in so it's a start! 
      5 mi - easy; PM run
      5 mi - easy; AM run (next day)
Second 'Double Run' 
     6 mi - easy; AM run
     4 mi - easy; PM run (same day)
First Triple Back to Back
     5 mi - easy; AM run
     4 mi - easy; PM run (same day)
     4 mi - easy; AM (next day)
Third Double Run
     8 mi - easy; AM run
     3 mi - easy; PM run (same day)
Final Triple Back to Back (exact same mileage as my Ragnar legs)
     8.2 mi - easy; AM
     3.5 mi - easy; PM (same day)
     4.0 mi -easy; AM (next morning)

Doing this on NO sleep will probably not be replicated, but I figure it's close enough. I will hopefully be utilizing a combination of adrenaline and caffeine to power through that part! So there it is...the Ragnar Relay training plan. Immediately following that, I'll launch into 11 weeks of intensive full marathon training. Tweaking that plan now so I'll post when I'm done.I am excited to enter this new phase of training!

 Bumping up my game and the mileage.....Jersey Fist Pump-Go!

Training Cycle #2

Starts on Monday. I can't wait. I love training schedules. I'd never followed one before my last training cycle but I found a good one for beginners called Marathon Rookie. It was a pretty simple, 10 week, 4 day running schedule. And I figured something out. I dig structure. I like leaving the house knowing exactly how many miles I am running and what the route will be. I like to plan things out and prepare in advance.

That may be one of the reasons I am holding off on a full for now. I have decided that when I do it- I want to CONQUER it, now merely SURVIVE it. So I am going to put in a full year of running before I tackle it. Get at least 3-4 half's under my belt and several 10 and 5K's. Setting my sights on next fall, 2012. 

Since finishing the half last month, I took it easy for a couple weeks running 3-4 days a week. Last week, I ran the fastest I've ever run in the Jingle Bell 5K. After a bit of a chip timing fiasco, I got my official time and did it in 27:19--a full 8 minutes faster than the last time I did one, in Nov of 08. My pace was in the 8 minute mile range...which is crazy fast for me, considering when I started running again in July, I was doing 10-12 minute miles.

The training cycle I just completed gave me an excellent base to build on. And I just want to keep improving from there. So for this training cycle, I am upping my game. Going to incorporate cross training and yoga on my rest days. And do speedwork consistently. I'm down to between a 9-10 minute miles on my runs now...need to work on getting that down for shorter runs and keeping that pace up on longer runs.

Next up-Mercer Island Half 3/25/12. Plan to best my Seattle half time by at least 10 minutes...since I can easily minus about 6 mins from the time I did get for a bathroom/stretching stops. So easy peasy. I got it, no problem!