New York City Virtual Marathon – Training Week 15

Week 15 of Virtual Marathon Training Plan

My training keeps moving along and I am getting closer to running the New York City Virtual Marathon. I finally decided on the dates I will run the virtual marathon. I am planning to run either Saturday or Sunday, and will pick the day once I know what the weather looks like. One of the benefits of running a virtual race is getting to choose when you race. It is getting colder here and I am looking forward to running with long sleeves again!

Strength Training

I have been doing better with twice weekly strength training sessions. I transitioned to temporarily working from home again. This has allowed me much more time to focus on strength training. With no commute to work, I have extra time for exercise. Strength training is such a key area in any running training plan. It is important to keep up strength training to prevent injury.

Cross Training

As it gets colder out, I have put my bike away for the year. My stationary bike has become my new friend. Since I have been working from home, I have been walking my dog every day during my lunch break. She has been loving having me around all day and it has added more activity for me. I have been adding more yoga into my plan, which has helped with strength, balance and helps stretch my stiff sore legs.

Training Runs

I had three 5 miles runs this week. One of the runs was at race pace. Fall is in the air. Running is becoming easier with the cooler fall temps. I have been able to avoid the treadmill in the morning. Since I am working at home, I have about an hour after I drop my daughter off for school and the start of work. Its still light out and I have been able to run outside again!

Last Long Run Before Running a Virtual Marathon!

Twenty miles this week. The longest run of the training plan. I have been running sections of the Ice Age Trail. My love of trail running and fall leaves were calling me. I decided to split my run. I have a friend that loves to run trails too. She couldn’t head out to run until late morning. I knew that I needed to run this one with someone. If you have never run with someone else there are many benefits. It made my long run fly by. Check out my post Reasons Why Running is Better with Friends.

I decided to run 10 miles around my house and then drive to the Ice Age Trail . It’s about a 45 minute drive to the Point Beach Segment of the Ice Age Trail. We both had run this segment before. It did not disappoint. Running two miles up a gorgeous Lake Michigan sand beach, and then heading into a woods full of amazing fall foliage. How does it get any better?

One thing about fall running, it seems like there are more snakes. Both of us are afraid of snakes and I am not sure how many we saw on the trail, but more than enough. I am laughing about this now, but I am sure you could hear us screaming in the next county.

One of the highlights of the Ice Age Trail run was the fall leaves. At one point we were running along the trail in the giant hardwoods. The trees were huge and canopied over the trail. As I ran down the trail, yellow leaves were falling down on me. It reminded me of a gorgeous winter run with the light snow falling. It was truly amazing!

Taper Time!

I am getting nervous about the taper. Not the shorter runs or the anticipation of running the New York City Virtual Marathon, but getting sick and not being able to run. My last marathon attempt I developed achilles tendonitis and not only missed the marathon, but had to stop running for a month. It was just prior to the taper, so it was hard to deal with. With everything going on with the pandemic and a surge of cases in my area, I am nervous. The thought of not running 26.2 is hard to imagine.

To quell my fears, I decided to try to focus on things that I can control. I am focusing on clean eating, hydration and sticking to the training plan. I have been adding in more yoga, which has helped me mentally. The peak of training for running a virtual marathon is always challenging both mentally and physically. Staying focused on the end goal has been helpful.

I have my race dates picked, race clothes chosen and the race route mapped. The last few weeks before the race are going to go by quickly! I can’t wait to start running the New York City Virtual Marathon. Curious how my other weeks of training went check out weeks 4 and weeks 10. I would love to hear about virtual races you are running.