RaceReady News

Name: Alison

Question: Hi Mary,
I'm a two-time marathoner training for my third. This time around is different for me, I had a baby boy 8 months ago and am really struggling to train as well as I did for my last two marathons. The best time for me to run is in the evening and often I'm exhausted from my busy day. Do you have any tips for raising energy levels to still have a productive run --- when the demands of balancing family and work are high? I enjoy running so much, I want to keep it a part of my life but am struggling to find a good balance. Also, I'm about 8 lbs heavier than when I ran my last two---any tips for shedding the baby weight?
Thanks so much, Alison

Alison: First of all, make sure you are hydrated before you do your workout. Often times when I feel fatigued I find if I drink a tall glass of ice water I feel more energetic almost instantly. Also, you may want to eat a piece of fruit or some other quality snack about an hour before you are scheduled to run so you have some energy. As far as shedding those few extra pounds, try to increase your walking in your every day habits. For example, park your car at the furthest space from the store when you go grocery shopping. The few extra minutes that you walk into the store adds up! Over time, little life style changes with more day to day walking will result with the pounds falling off. The key is to lose the weight gradually without losing your strength. Wishing you success.
Mary

Posted by mary button at 2:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Name: Kory
Question: I just ran Boston in 2:57 (PR from a 3:02) and was way conservative. I had a brown code alert at mile 9 that took off two minutes and a slow start, because I couldn't weave in and out of traffic. I was conservative because of the weather. But I regret that because I feel I could have run under 2:50.

Two questions:
Question 1
I did speed work in training for Boston which was 6 to 8 yasso 800's pretty much once a week alternating with hill repeats, and a tempo run of 6-7 miles on another day. Do you think that doing mile repeats would be better than the yasso 800's if so how fast would you recommend running them?

Question 2:
I believe I can get under a 2:50 and think I might run either Top of Utah, St. George or Des New Marathons. What's a good strategy to run this time?

Answer: First of all, Congratulations on Boston! That is a great time, and I heard the conditions were pretty miserable.
I would recommend alternating the speed workouts. The variety helps keep you fresh mentally and doing both mile repeats and 800s are both good speed workouts for marathon training. Personally, I have run the St. George Marathon but not the others you mention. I think St. George is a beautiful marathon course, plus it is fast if you practice your downhill running. (It's my PR course 2:42 in 1996, and I've broken 2:50 4 different times there.) However, you really need to practice running downhill and strengthen your quads so they don't take a beating. The race fills up quickly, so register right away if you plan to do that marathon.
Wishing you success.
Cheers,
Mary

Posted by mary button at 1:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)