Wondering what all these letters are? Check out my first letter and second letter to myself for more details. Every week, I shall be writing a letter to the future half-marathoner of 26 March 2017, sending out good vibes, keeping her training in check and overall pushing her from today until race day. Hope you enjoy it!
I’m linking up with Courtney of Eat Pray Run DC for her Training Recap linkup and HoHo and Tricia for the Weekly Wrap! Do check out their training and other bloggers for some real inspiration!
(Dear 26 March Self,
Today’s my third letter to you. In 4 weeks, you’ll be tip toeing to the start line of your first half-marathon. This week was the penultimate week of high mileage before taper time. You definitely felt that fact hit you like a brick throughout the week. It’s alright! Before I go on to give you some advice, let’s recap all that you accomplished this week:
Monday:
Your legs felt like lead even for an easy 4 mile run. As with every Monday, you had to lace up after an uber long day at work. So, pat yourself on the back for actually getting your run in. Also, below is what you posted in the heat of the moment. Remember these golden words always.
4 mile splits –> 17:12, 16:45, 16:40, 16:09
Tuesday:
Your favorite hill repeats. Physically, you felt like death. I guess, that’s because of those amazing paces that you hit!!!
6x 400 m @13:14, 12:49, 12:22, 12:52, 12:02, 13:25 min/mile
Wednesday:
Mandatory rest day!
Thursday:
Not a mandatory rest day. You were off from work on Friday and hence decided to switch up your runs and take an extra rest day.
Friday:
Let’s just say that today wasn’t the day you envisioned. You’re partly to blame, not completely. So don’t beat yourself up for it. Here’s the gist!
Saturday:
You took it off today. You weren’t up for a run today. What you really did well today was hydrate – 100 oz. of water and Nuun!!!!
Sunday:
Again, you slept pretty late last night and hence, long run this morning did not happen. No regrets! You did have a nice girls day out filled with yummy brunch and ‘The Lion’ at the movies. But, after all fun and play, it was time to get down to business and get your long run in. Because, who likes to spend next week in its entirety in guilt and regret, am I right?
11.03 miles @17:17 min/mile {3:10:30 on your feet; that ain’t no joke}
Splits –> 17:53, 18:05, 16:52, 19:33, 17:04, 17:04, 17:02, 18:05, 17:04, 16:05, 15:20
Overall, you’ll give this week a 7.5 on 10. Wasn’t your best week, or didn’t go as planned. But, lessons well learnt. The good included getting a solid interval run and long run. Your first 11 miler ever!! There was significant head wind in the first few miles. But, it just prepared you better for race day. Great job on picking up your pace for the last three miles. The bad definitely included skipping your tempo run all together and running only 3 days a week. It’s alright. You have one more whole week before you begin taper. Don’t worry too much about your legs feeling heavy right now. Apparently, the running gurus say it is normal. You’ll feel better on race day. You’re almost there. So, take each day as it comes. Be smart and cautious!! Love each day!!
Love,
Your T-4 weeks self
PS: Believe Endure Achieve
*****
Great job on your long run! You are doing great! Some runs even weeks are just plain tough! But they all make the easier ones worth it!
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That’s true. We appreciate the hard ones on easy runs 🙂 Thanks for stopping by.
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Congrats for getting in your long run! Some weeks are tough and that’s OK. There is always the next week, and the next, and the next… If running was easy, we’d all lose interest quickly. I want to see The Lion. Did you enjoy the movie? Thanks for linking. Madhuri!
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That’s true. If there wasn’t a next goal, once you attacked this goal, running would be mundane. I loved The Lion! I prefer comedies to serious movies. But, it was based off a true story. So decided to give it a shot. Really good one. Dev Patel’s acting is exquisite. Thanks for stopping by!
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Getting that long run in can be a pain but the feeling of checking it off afterward is awesome. Those tired legs will pu off on race day 🙂
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Very true! I felt like a truck run over me on all Monday. But feels good to get it done 🙂
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What a brilliant letter! Love the honesty and the determination you have even when things are not going your way. I have a good feeling 26 March is going to be a brilliant and exciting day for you! Will keep stopping by to check on your progress!
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Thanks for all that support and motivation. I have a good feeling too! Fingers crossed. Thanks for stopping by 🙂
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All in all, it sounds like a great week. Hill repeats are tough!
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Thanks Coco for stopping by. They are!! But, apparently they help…psst!
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I love the format of these recap posts – so clever! Your positivity, even on the not-so-great days, is really inspiring. That mindset is going to serve you well on race day. Can’t wait to keep reading about your training and see how your race goes!
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Thanks Tracy for those kind words. Being positive always is REALLY hard, but I always try. Thanks for stopping by at this baby blog!
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It does sound like your preparing very well for this.
Truthfully being well prepared getting all the mileage in before is really the only thing you need. Makes it so come race day you can run your hardest and enjoy each moment.
Just a few more weeks and you’ll get the reward for all your hard work!!!
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Thanks Kristy for that pep talk. People say your first HM mostly like will suck. But, I feel hopeful that I am going to enjoy it 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
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Amazing job on the 11 miler! We all have weeks where training doesn’t go to plan, I’ve had my fair share. And bad runs definitely make us appreciate the good runs even more and they can teach us a lot too!
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Indeed!! Thanks for stopping by this baby blog!
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For every bad runs, it makes us appreciate the good ones. We all can’t have great runs every day! I have that same wrap. You got this! I like those new ones!
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True indeed! Some times bad runs teach us more vital lessons. i love MJ wraps!!
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Totally normal to have tired legs towards the end of training! You’ve earned that soreness – embrace it!
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Thanks Courtney. Yes, that’s what I’ve heard. Although I can’t wait to start tapering in few days (all that free time in life!), I will definitely miss training 🙂
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Way to go on that 11 miler! Sunday was definitely windy, which was no fun.
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Thanks Chaitali. I know right? I didn’t expect that sort of windy day.
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This is such a cute idea for a post! Sounds like you are preparing well!!
Also, wasn’t Lion the best ever!! I thought it was so good.
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Thanks. Some days I feel it’s going well, some days they suck. Haha. But, just taking it as each day passes by… I know, I didn’t do much reading before the movie and just played along with friends. Loved it. Dev Patel’s acting is top notch…. if u like him, do check out ‘the man who knew infinity’. Thanks for stopping by!
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