Chicago Marathon Training: Week 20/20

Weekly Summary

Miles: 14  (L2=11, L3=12) 

Days Run: 3
XT: -
Rest: 2 

Intermittent Injuries: hip trouble came back with a vengeance... during marathon week, great
Feelings: sad, overwhelmed, stressed, frustrated, stressed, melancholy, apathetic, worried

Monday

Scheduled: 3

Did: 3.1 @ 9:16/mi

Nice, cool, short run with Courtney and Brandi. Shins felt a little sore from power-walking yesterday with baby boy in the stroller. 

Tuesday

Scheduled: 3-4 + strides

Did: 6.32 @ 9:16/mi

Had so many moments during this run where B&B were running faster than I wanted to go. I stayed with them for a bit, and then said, "Screw it. This run means NOTHING. It's a training run", and decided to save my speed for Sunday. Hip felt sore during and afterwards. 

Wednesday

Scheduled: 20min XT

Did: sports massage, 40min walk, stretching

Shin splits from the Sunday Stroller Walk are gone, but my hip's definitely tight/sore. Got a sports massage today to prepare my body for Sunday. Masseuse and I figured out one of the causes of my hip trouble: carrying 25lb baby boy around the house on my left hip. Go figure... 

Thursday

Scheduled: 1WU, 3 marathon pace, 1CD

Did: 5.01 @ 9:16/mi

Planned to get up and go with J&C on their morning tempo, but, after a late night giving a presentation, I decided to sleep in. I'm still dealing with throat soreness, hip stiffness, and some other ailments, and just generally in a worried/nervous/irritable mood. I figured extra sleep could only help. Body ended up waking up (WIDE AWAKE) at 3am and not getting back down until 5... 

I hate not running in the mornings. It just puts this weight on my shoulders for the rest of the day. It's this looming thing on the to-do list, and I hate it. 

It's been a struggle of a day. I'm in a bad mood because my hip still isn't right, and wasn't sure I wanted to run on it at all. What if I made it worse? Also, would I have time to shower afterwards and still get everything done during my day? I really, really should have taken today OFF of work. Oh well.

I had to run some errands at Target, so I drove and parked there, and decided to run a mile warm-up to the greenway, my MP miles there, and then cool-down on sidewalks back to Target. All morning (and week), I was stressing about what "marathon pace" was supposed to be. I ended up saying "forget it", not looking at my watch pace AT ALL during the MP miles and trying to just focus on my body and run a pace that I thought I could sustain for four hours. 

It sucked. I hated running alone. I hated running when I had to rush back and get things done. I hated feeling my hip tighten up and panicking about whether or not it would seize up on me on Sunday, and whether there was a chance in hell of fitting in a massage between coming home and showering and picking up baby boy for his flu shot appointment at the pediatrician. Oh, and did I mention I still haven't packed yet? I don't even have a list. 

All these thoughts made this run 75% unenjoyable. I hope my mood improves tomorrow. I'm too stressed out to enjoy anything right now... 

Friday

Scheduled: rest

Did: rest

Planning on traveling up tomorrow, and then doing a 2-3mi run on Saturday to get used to Chicago weather/flatness.