And so it begins…..again :)

Happy 2012 Blog World!!!

Hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season filled with lots of treats and equal parts of exercise 🙂  I sure had my share of Christmas cookies and cosmopolitans but I got in some decent workouts and didn’t feel too blobby so it’s all good.  The time off from work was good for my totally fried brain but it’s nice to be back on a schedule once again.  There were days when it was close to 1pm and I was still lounging in my PJs where I literally had to peel myself off the couch to get a run in!

SO…..big news on the running front….I’ve officially registered for marathon #2!!!!  I had been kicking around the idea since the middle of November but was nervous to register for some odd reason.  Then right before Christmas break a coupon code popped in my email and I knew it was fate 🙂  I still held off until 12/30 to actually hit the register button but now there’s no turning back and May 6th will be here soon.  I’m excited for my second marathon to be close to home with minimal logistics for getting there parking, spectating, etc.   An added bonus is that the ocean will still be pretty cold at that point so I fully plan on soaking my legs afterwards if it’s calm enough to do so.

Since I’ve already have the distance under my belt, it’s time to tackle this marathon with some new goals:

1. Stay injury free during this 18-week training cycle
2. Complete a 20 mile training run BEFORE actual marathon day
3. Don’t call my husband  crying at any point in the race
4. Beat my first marathon time (shouldn’t be difficult to do if I stay injury free!)

I have decided to follow this Furman FIRST training plan (novice).  After reading it over and over and over again, it seems doable and I like that I can still incorporate swimming and lifting into the training schedule on my cross training days.   I am really looking forward to this training cycle and I’m hoping that I can really tap into my body’s running potential without any obstacles.  So with that, here’s what Week 1 of my training is looking like:

Monday: 5.25 miles – speedwork  (1 mile warm-up, 3X1600 with a 400m recovery interval in between and a 1/2 mile cool down)

Tuesday: 1250m swim, LB strength and stretching

Wednesday: 6 mile tempo ( 2 mile easy warm-up, 2 miles at short tempo pace, 2 miles cool-down)

Thursday: 1250m swim, LB stength and stretching

Friday: 8 mile long run

Saturday: Yoga and core work