Thursday, August 21, 2014

Runners Tell All: My Training Plan


I missed out on July, but I am happy to be back for the Runners Tell All link up with Amanda and Beka this month! 

Training has never really been my thing.  I didn't like practicing piano when I was younger.  And I absolutely despised basketball practice.  Not sure why, but I always just preferred to turn it up on game day.  No practice needed here!

And then I started running.  Training is a pretty important part of the whole running scene.  I still don't like it...and even found out recently that I ran faster when I simply cross trained instead of going on practice runs prior to one of my races in early June.  Regardless, I know that training is an important part of running.  So, I struggle through it when I have long races on the horizon.

My plan usually consists of figuring out how many weeks I am able to devote to training and then finding an online guide that best fits that time frame.  I typically tweek the online guide to fit my schedule and then do my best to stick with it.  This worked particularly well for the NYC Half back in March.  I had limited time to train, but put together a plan that involved three short runs and one long run each week along with a boot camp day for cross training purposes.  I set a PR at the race so it must have worked for me!

I've learned that the most important part of training is listening to your body.  When I began training for the NYC Marathon last year, I was determined to hit all the runs on my training schedule and wore myself down pretty quickly in the process.  About halfway into training, I realized that sometimes running two miles less or taking a rest day altogether is exactly what is needed.  I've found it works best for me to stick fairly close to a schedule, but to also allow myself some flexibility. 
 
What works best for you in regarding to training for races??

Andrea :)

7 comments:

  1. I agree, sometimes you just need a break no matter what the schedule says! I definitely like to run with a training plan if I have a race in mind; maybe because I don't trust myself enough to get out there without the accountability? Even if it's just to a sheet of paper? But seeing it in black and white helps me.

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  2. Rest/recovery days are oh so important! It's easy to forget that, for sure. Are you currently training for something specific? Congrats on your recent races!

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  3. I agree with cutting back some of the miles in training so your body can recover! Sometimes too much training is hurtful. Also, I agree with you that cross training is just as important as the running. I hadn't been running but I was attending crossfit. When I started running again I was shocked at how fast I was!

    Thanks for linking up with us today!

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  4. I do the same thing when it comes to my race plan - figure out how many weeks I have to train and then google training guides until I can find something close to the same timeline and tweak it to fit me. It works out pretty well and I still feel like I'm following a 'real' schedule and not something I just pulled out of the cobwebs in my brain!

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  5. I've always enjoyed the training process as much as the race itself. I loved those Saturday morning long runs with my friends. These days I'm no longer running marathons, but still love my Saturday morning 10-12 milers. I think what's key for me is that I train with friends. Those Tuesday 5:30 AM hill repeats and Thursday 6 AM tempo runs go by much faster with friends at my side.

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  6. I play the violin, and I hated practicing! I don't think anyone likes it, really :) I actually do a similar thing to you... I usually just find a plan that fits the race I'm going to do. I need to get better about speedwork and cross-training, though, if I want to get faster. Thanks for linking up with us!

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  7. I look for online training guides too! Google has an answer for everything :) That's so cool you got the run in the NYC marathon, Congrats!

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