The Start of Chicago Marathon Training

Posted on June 24, 2014 by Hannah McGoldrick

(Source: Etsy.com although it’s no longer available. Womp womp.)

I love the beginning of a new training cycle.

Similar to the first day of school, a new training cycle is filled with opportunity. There are goals on the line and the hope of success at the finish. There’s also room for mistakes, meaning plenty of opportunities to learn. Sometimes you don’t feel completely prepared at the start but to me that’s the beauty of training for a marathon. You can plan for everything but then the unexpected can happen.

Yesterday marked day one of training for the 2014 Chicago Marathon. While I feel prepared in the logistical sense – I have a training plan and goals – I’m not sure my fitness is where it should be at the start of marathon training. After my failure of a spring goal race in April, I took it easy (maybe a little too easy) and I think I got a little out of shape. I spent the winter and spring training for a just-out-of-reach half marathon time goal. While I felt overly prepared going into that training cycle, I lost sight of the smaller things like taking easy runs easy, not pushing the pace too much in workouts, remembering to stretch, and more. Forgetting those things during training turned my just-out-of-reach goal into a completely out of reach goal.

That’s not going to happen for Chicago. In Chicago, I know I’m going to reach my goal. I’m going to train hard but not overtrain. I’m going to stretch and listen to my body and not push myself when it’s telling me to take it easy. I’m going to challenge myself in workouts. Wake up early for long midweek mileage. Eat right. Get enough sleep. At least that’s the plan for now.

More than all of these plans and goals I want to have fun with this training cycle. Training through the summer can be miserable, hard and really test the dedication of even the most determined runner. But with my last training cycle I pushed myself too hard and began resenting (even hating, sometimes) running. I don’t want that this time around.

I love the beginning of a new training cycle because of the opportunity but also the unknown. Good luck to everyone training for Chicago!

{Monday Motivation} Love the Process

Posted on June 16, 2014 by Hannah McGoldrick

My running has been in a bit of a slump lately. If I’m being honest with myself, I think I’m out of shape. Since my bad race at the end of April, and the doctors appointments that followed (still trying to get that sorted out), I’ve had to take it easy. No speed workouts. No racing (although I did run our Heartbreak Hill Half which was a blast!). No pushing the pace whatsoever. I hate this! But with training for the Chicago Marathon starting in a week, now is not the time to push myself too hard and possibly get hurt.

During this “off” period though I’ve been able to get some other habits into place that I hope to continue with during Chicago training. I’ve been going to spin at least once a week and I’ve been running in the mornings. I’m learning to love my morning runs because it’s just so peaceful and the cooler weather doesn’t hurt. I’m loving spin because of the challenge it poses for me. I think I’ve needed these changes these past few weeks to get me more motivated to start training hard for Chicago. I know once I start my training plan I will be able to focus in and get inspired, but for now, I’m learning to love the process. Happy running this week!

{Monday Motivation} Heartbeat

Posted on June 2, 2014 by Hannah McGoldrick

I saw this graphic on Pinterest and thought it was a good reminder for this week as I await results from the doctors to find out what caused my chest pain at the half marathon about a month ago. I keep stressing about whether or not the results will allow me to continue to run (fast), how I will react to the news, and what my life would look like if I couldn’t run. But none of that is important right now. Someone once told me, “Worrying about something that hasn’t happened yet is just a waste of time.” And it’s true. So I’m going to relax and wait for the news but in the meantime I’m not going to worry, I’m going to just live.