One week until Marathon Monday. If you are running the Boston Marathon, best of luck to you! Enjoy the experience and remember how privileged you are to be there–many people make it their life goal to run in one of the most prestigious races. One of my athletes is running, and I can’t wait to see how she does. Despite some injuries, she did not give up and will run strong. Good luck, Jo!
I’ve seen a lot floating around the Internet about the Boston Marathon and here are a few of my favorites.
This video so accurately depicts training in a cold-weather state. Watching it makes me wish I were running the race again. Some day I will be back. [Recap from my 2013 Boston Marathon race.]
I saw these shoes by Brooks on another blog and couldn’t wait to try them on myself. When I was working at the store on Saturday, I wore the new Brooks Launch around for a few minutes to see what they were all about. I definitely prefer a light-weight running shoe with less bulk and would consider buying these. (I first have to make sure they feel good with my orthotics.) Plus, all the special Boston features make when pretty unique.
This Boston Marathon-inspired shoe will represent the spirit of the famed race with its lobster images and its blue ocean-like midsole, which serves as an ode to the Atlantic Ocean that banks our city. Additional details on the running shoes include rope laces reminiscent of the fisherman’s rope and wood lace aglets that represent the fishing traps used to catch lobsters. The shoes also comes packaged in a white, branded fishing net and cost $100.
[Source]
If you need tips on how to strategically run the Boston Marathon, check out this post: Your Guide to Running the Boston Marathon Like a Pro. I would give some of the same tips myself. The other piece of advice I received before I ran Boston was: run the first 10 miles with your head, the next 10 miles with your legs, and the last 10K with your heart.
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This past week I’m happy to say I hit 60 miles! I definitely did not think I would be able to be running so well postpartum (5.5 months now). I count my blessings I am feeling good and haven’t had any injuries creep up. I am going to continue training as much as I can for all of my upcoming races this summer.
Here’s a recap on how this past week of running went.
Monday
8 miles | 1:06 | average pace: 8:21 | Hill workout
I did a moderate-intensity hill workout with Brittany. I think the trickiest part of the run was trying to figure out how to avoid the moose that wanted to cross the road in front of us.
Tuesday
10 miles | 1:19 | average pace: 7:58
Easy 10 miles early in the morning. I was surprised at how well this went.
Wednesday
10 miles | Track workout
4 x 400, 2 x 1600, 4 x 400
Splits: [1:28, 1:29, 1:29, 1:28], [6:23, 6:21], [1:27, 1:32, 1:32, 1:32]
Overall, I was happy with how this workout went. I would have liked the last set of 400s to have all been sub 1:30, but that just shows you I was pushing hard and just plain tired.
Thursday
7 miles | Treadmill run | uptempo run
Treadmill run while Cullen played next to me. I ran the first two miles at 8:30 pace, 4 miles at 7:30 – 7:45, and the last mile at 7:20 – 7:30.
Friday
Off
Saturday
18 miles | 2:25 | average pace: 8:04
This was a solid long run for me. My legs felt good (relatively speaking for a long run), and I was happy my overall pace was so good. I was even able to pick it up for the last 5 miles.
Sunday
7 miles | 57:04 | average pace: 8:09
Ran around noon, and it was beautiful, sunny, and warm out. Nice easy recovery run after a long run.
Total: 60 miles
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Questions
Anyone running the Boston Marathon?
What type of running shoe do you prefer?
I’ve been running in the Launch for several years and love it. I love how the shoe doesn’t have a lot of frills but still holds up as well as my more expensive trainers (Ghost). Matt and I are both running Boston this year and we’re getting pretty excited 🙂
I saw you were running Boston–congrats! So you like the Launch better than the Ghost?? I think I need to try both on side-by-side. 🙂
I came across your blog and read quite regularly. My son will be 3 months this Thursday. I had a few mama questions for you. I have been researching on the internet about breastfeeding and running. I have been running aND on some days feed him promptly after my run. There are some studies that say to wait 90 days due to the lactic acid buildup. Also, that running can negatively effect your supply. How are you balancing both? Also, have you noticed any negative effects?
These are such good questions and the exact same concerns I had right around 3 months! I consulted other runner friends and read a lot online. The good news is that if you go about it in the right manner, you shouldn’t lose your supply! I am up to 60 miles and still exclusively breastfeeding (no formula). A couple keys to making sure your supply doesn’t dip: eating enough and staying hydrated. Cullen never refused the boob after I got done running. I’ve heard of babies being able to taste the lactic acid, but he sure never seemed to mind. (And I’m guessing you meant 90 minutes instead of 90 days?) A good friend of mine wrote the following post of running while breastfeeding that is really good.
http://travelrunlivelove.blogspot.com/2015/01/running-and-breastfeeding.html
Yes, I did mean 90 mins!:) Thank you for the quick response. This was super helpful. I’m in the same boat as you where my son is doing great and I haven’t had any issues with my supply. I want to be sure his nutrition is priority. Again, this was super helpful! Thank you!
You’re welcome! As much as I love running, I too did not want to compromise feeding my son the best source of nutrition for him. 🙂
Thanks for sharing the video – I loved it! You are so right, the winter running is totally accurate!!