My Marathon

It was a great weekend in Philadelphia. Sue and I, along with our friends Julie and Joseph and their baby Jack, made the trip to the city so I could run the Philadelphia Marathon. It was so great having that support.

The run was much tougher than I expected, but I hit my goals, and even though I am hurting today, I am proud of myself for having done it. You can read all the details on my other blog.

What's next for me? Well, I want to focus on swimming, so that when I do my next triathlon, I can be more worried about my time in the swim than whether I can actually do it without drowning. And I want to learn to play the guitar. (I know, not the same thing, but a new challenge nonetheless.)

Joseph says he would like to try a marathon, so if he's serious, I will try to train him.

Mid-week Report

The Marathon is just 72 hours away...

While I am taking it easy this week, that doesn't mean I'm doing nothing. Tuesday I did lower-body strength training. The squats were tough: it had been a while since I'd done them. And I hate the leg curl machine at the YMCA. It can't be adjusted in any meaningful way, and I don't get full range-of-motion in the exercise. I'll try the seated one next time, but I'm hopeful that my old gym will re-open.
Yesterday I was going to upper-body, but I really felt like I needed to get in a run. So instead of strength training, I did an easy, 4.5-mile loop near where I work. The only bad part of that was near the end, when I had to run on a busy road because they were working on the bike path.
Then last night I had a massage from Christine. First she did a 20-minute Sports Massage, followed by an invigorating Zero Balance session. I felt taller when I left.

I'm not certain what the rest of this week holds. I think I'm going to swim today, and then maybe a very short 2-mile jog on Friday, just to keep the engine warm. We leave for Philly Saturday.

For a Taper, This is Hard Work

I've been easing back as I prepare for next weekend's Philadelphia Marathon. But this weekend there was a lot to do. Saturday I did a group run with some people from NVRC. Then I spent about two hours hauling and stacking firewood (I was trying to get as much done as possible before it started raining).
Yesterday I spent another hour finishing up the firewood, then Sue and I went to the gym for some strength training. I swam for about 15 minutes as well. I am learning the Total Immersion technique, and while I have the stroke down, there is still some work to do. For example, I have to remind myself to breathe sometimes, so I wind up with a little oxygen debt that's hard for me to make up. Also, I am so focused on keeping my head down that I failed to realize how close I was to the wall a couple of times.
After all that, I played a few games of volleyball. I thought my legs might be tired, but I crushed a couple of spikes. My timing felt better than usual.

Focus on Running

As the marathon approaches, I'll be spending a lot more time running. And the Knights of Columbus 5K is this weekend, so I've been training with Sue and Joseph, and I really think that they are ready.

I do need to get in some more strength training: I did lower-body on Tuesday, and I will try to do upper body today. And yoga, I need some yoga!