Weekly Wrap-Week 17 Marathon Training

November 23-29, 2015

I am joining the Weekly Wrap hosted by  Holly from HoHo Runs and Tricia from MissSippiPiddlin. The Weekly Wrap is a blog link up where bloggers share their active lifestyle and other exciting things weekly. To find out more, click on the image below. Feel free to join in on the fun.

 

I am currently training for my second marathon at St. Jude Memphis this December. I just completed Week 17 of Hal Higdon's Novice 2 Marathon Training Plan. I will recap my training and other highlights from my week here in the Weekly Wrap

 

Monday, November 23rd

 

Monday was a scheduled rest day for running. I slept in until around 8:30 since we were out of school for the whole week of Thanksgiving. I worked on my blog posts recapping the Magic City Half Marathon and catching up on the Weekly Wrap link up. I got some exciting news that I was accepted into the 2016 Honey Stinger Hive Sponsorship Program. I started using Honey Stinger waffles while training for my first half marathon two years ago. Since then, I've relied on Honey Stinger's all natural products to fuel my long runs. I'm so excited to be part of this program and receive awesome discounts on products that I love!

 

 

Tuesday, November 24th

 

Tuesday was my 29th birthday. I really didn't do anything special to celebrate. I took an extra rest day from running because I was still a little sore from the half on Sunday. I slept late and woke up to some nice surprises from Michael. Not only did he outdo himself on the cake last Tuesday, he showered me with too many gifts. He gave me my favorite Bath & Body Works holiday scent Winter Candy Apple gift set, a book signed by Meb, and my first piece of jewelry from Tiffany & Co twist knot earrings.



 

To top it off, he brought home ice cream cupcakes from DQ. When I was younger, they had these in the freezer. You could just walk in and grab one, but now they have to be special ordered and they're only available at certain Dairy Queen locations. It was a real treat!

 

Wednesday, November 25th

 

I ran 3.1 miles as part of the Girls Run Fast Women's Virtual 5K/10K. I've never done a virtual run before, but as a Girls Run Fast Ambassador I thought this would be perfect for my first. I submitted my results and was informed that they had to order more shirts and medals. I was glad they had great participation in the event. I can't wait to get my goodies in the mail.

 

 

Thursday, November 26th

 

I did not participate in a Turkey Trot or Turkey Burner event, but I loved seeing everyone's photos on Facebook and Instagram. I did run 4 miles before going to my parents house for Thanksgiving lunch. Afterwards, I came home and walked Allie. Then, I took a long afternoon nap. I woke up and had leftovers for supper. I was stuffed!

 

 

Friday, November 27th

 

I got my final long run of 8 miles done. I had to test out my Heroes singlet. Nothing new on race day! I can't believe I'm coming to the end of my training cycle. Just a few short runs left before St. Jude Memphis Marathon.

 

 

We decorated for Christmas on Friday afternoon. Then, we went to my friend's house for potluck dinner and a bonfire later that evening.

 

Just one picture of our decorations. No, that's not a real fire. It was 80 degrees here on Friday!

 

Saturday, November 28th

 

Mom and I ran Ryan's Run 5K with Kylie from Ainsley's Angels. We were so excited for the opportunity to run with this organization which ensures that everyone can experience endurance events. We hope to do more runs with Ainsley's Angels in the future. To read more about our race, click here.

 

 

Later Saturday afternoon, we watched the Iron Bowl. The game was nerve wrecking at times, but Bama put the game away in the final quarter. I was so glad Derrick Henry got that final touchdown to beat the school record for most touchdowns in regular season play. Our kicker, Adam Griffith also had a great game putting 17 points on the board. ROLL TIDE! SEC Championship bound!

 

Sunday, November 29th

 

I woke up with a terrible headache. It feels like sinus pressure, so I've been drinking my apple cider vinegar. I'm praying it's not the onset of a sinus infection. Ain't nobody got time for that! I've got a marathon to run in less than a week.

 

Michael and I met my parents and grandfather for lunch. Then, we went by the school to decorate for Christmas. I want it to be nice when the kids return tomorrow. I took a long afternoon nap, which helped some with the headache. Later, I cleaned house and got the laundry caught up.

 

I'm so excited (and a little nervous) that race week has finally arrived. It's going to be a busy week at school, especially since I will have a sub on Friday to travel to the race. I'm riding with my parents to Memphis. Michael is staying at home for this one. He was there for my first marathon and I know he'll be tracking me from home. I've got a few 2-3 mile easy runs on the schedule for this week, which means I won't have to get up as early before school. The weather is looking nice for Saturday (I've been checking it obsessively). It might be a little on the warm side this year, but I won't complain as long as it's not raining and there's no ice storm (hence 2013 cancellation).

 

How do you deal with prerace jitters? Any last minute tips for the race?