Pre-Marathon Training

When I ran my first marathon three years ago, I thought I was just doing it to cross it off my bucket list. Now, on my third race, I don't know why I signed up but I have so many emotions running through me!

1. EXCITED: I'm so excited I cannot contain myself. The thrill of running for hours on end, clearing my mind and meeting another goal gets all these happy feelings flowing. AND I can officially eat whatever I want. Though I'm hoping I can manage my macros a little better this year.

2. NERVOUS: What am I thinking? Why would I sign up for another 26.2 mile race? Who does that? Only crazy (fun) people I'm sure. What if I don't finish? How can my schedule allow me to train for this and still have a life?

3. SAD: After going through my schedule and realizing I will miss every Saturday at my Crossfit gym. :( Those are my favorite days at the gym. But I will still have my Sunday's at the gym!

4. TIRED: Already I'm tired just from looking at my running schedule. I have this saved on Google Drive if you are interested in a 20 week training plan. I plan to run 4 days a week including my long run. Working a full-time job and still wanting to have somewhat of a social life (aka go to the gym more than once a week), I will have to wake up before work to get most of these runs in.

5. MOTIVATED: Most of my weekday runs will consist of 3-5 miles with the exceptions of Wednesday's. That is VERY doable! It's like the saying, "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time." It makes me believe this training will be doable and I will make it out alive (again). And because the mileage is short, I can run with my dogs!

Training officially starts on Monday, May 23rd. I'm almost ready. I am still in need of some really good running shorts. If you have any recommendations, they are appreciated! The next few months you can expect to read about my training, the food I'm eating, how I'm trying to maintain a social life and still get all my runs in. As I was looking through Pinterest for "marathon motivation" I came across this article. The 37 Happiest Things You See While Running A Marathon Every point is right on and exactly why I choose to sign up for a marathon every year!#fitness #food #goals #marathon #running #training