With my 2013 race training just recently completed it's time to decompress and reboot for 2014. Having begun training in earnest in August, the plan was to ultimately run my first marathon this past weekend.
Unfortunately, there were some bumps along the way and everything didn't work out as I was hoping. Training started off well enough but between traveling and injuries I never got to the level I wanted to. I also was unable to run the 26.2 due to the loss of my father-in-law and some nasty winter weather.
But not all was bad though. Even with some missed training, I still managed to log over 600 miles from August through February and raised the bar by setting a new PR for every race and distance I participated in, including an 11+ minute improvement on my half-marathon time.
While I still have a lot to learn about running, I did pick up some valuable lessons that I look forward to taking into my next training cycle.
So while it's still up in the air as to whether I'll take another shot at a marathon, I plan on spending the next month getting my legs back under me and running for the pure enjoyment of it throughout March. Once April rolls around I'll get working on some speed-work and building back my core strength throughout the summer.
After realizing I started my last training cycle too early, I don't plan on really racking up the serious milage until October. This way I won't peak too early or be burnt out, like I was this time, when the January/February 2015 races come around.
Other than One Run for Boston (which isn't even a race) and Pat's Run, I have no race schedule planned. I'm sure I'll do a 5K or 3 but the bottom line is that running is supposed to be fun and I'm going to enjoy it for for that very reason.
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