Aesthete Runner

One week ago I was sitting on my couch watching the Chicago marathon feeling sore but on cloud 9. It is hard to believe after so many weeks of hard training, my first 50 mile race has come and gone. Running 50 miles is pretty life changing, and it is strange to think that while I was doing something major, the rest of the world just kept on turning.

This is it, the final week! It is hard to believe after 16 weeks I will be running my first 50 mile race in 6 days. I alternate between feelings of excitement and terror, which is completely normal, but I have been an emotional wreck. As much as I love the taper, I have felt horrible the past two weeks.

I received the remainder of my training plan from my coach this week and it was crazy how close I am to race day! It didn't seem real until I realized how few weeks are left. Thankfully the Evergreen Lakes 50k was my longest training run and each week decreases in mileage and time more and more from here on out. As a friend reminded me, the work is already done and the focus right now is on rest and recovery from the 50k, and putting in the time on my feet until race day.

Week 14 was a big week for me, as it marked my longest training run before the Hennepin 50. It was a week that I was both nervous but excited for as it marked a 50k being a training run distance vs a race that I was training for. While the race itself did not go as I expected, I was able to take away a lot from the run and it still is satisfying to complete the distance especially in less than ideal conditions.

It's hard to believe in just 4 weeks at this time, the Hennepin 50 will be over. When I hit the 30 day mark last Thursday, I was both excited and nervous at the same time. But I've had to carefully tuck this away in the back of my mind and keep the focus on where I am at right now, which is finishing Week 13 and looking ahead to my last long training run during Week 14.

What a difference a recovery week makes. Sometimes the recovery is purely physical, but this week I also felt recovered mentally from the challenges I faced in Week 11. I started the week feeling like I was ran over by a bus and down in the dumps about how my back to back long runs had gone. With a little encouragement from my coach and friends, extra rest and recovery, and some enjoyable runs, I am feeling much more like myself.

Oh Week 11. Where do I begin. I knew this week would be tough, with long back to back runs, but I never expected it to be as hard as it was. I struggled a lot, both physically and mentally and feel a bit raw in the aftermath.

Week 10 of 50 mile training continued to build on distance and time on feet. After receiving some helpful feedback from my coach last week, I was able to maintain confidence with where I am at in the training cycle, and thankfully my body continued to respond well to the load.

Welcome to Week 9 of training for the Hennepin Hundred - 50 mile race. This week is just over the half way point of training, and Monday was the exact two month mark until the race. For the second week of the "50 mile specific" phase, I was pretty much thrown into a high mileage week. I haven't run mileage like this since the end of my 50k training, so my previous concerns regarding where I was at in this plan were obliterated.

Welcome to the first week of the 50 mile specific training phase! Thankfully Week 8 was a recovery week, so not a bad start to the real heart of the training plan. When I first started working with my coach she asked about any vacations or time off that I had planned and was able to incorporate that into my training schedule. This week happened to be my annual camping trip and rather than try to cram long runs into the week, she scheduled me for recovery.

Week 7 of 50 mile training was the last of my "Introductory" phase. From here I move on to the 50 mile specific phase, which will focus on the runs that will prepare me to run the Hennepin Hundred. So far I have really enjoyed how gradual my training has been in terms of adding mileage and speedwork. While at times I see how far others are already running for the Chicago marathon which is the day after the Hennepin Hundred, I also fully trust my coach and the plan. My coach knows what is best for me in the build up to this distance, and I still have 10 weeks of hard work to go.

I am in still in the "Introductory" phase of training for the Hennepin Hundred- my first 50 mile race, and Week 6 was a bit of a recovery week after the Waterfall Glen Xtreme 10 race last week. My coach advised me to run easy and gave me some options for additional recovery if needed. Recovery was difficult this week, and it was one of the few races that I have really struggled to come back from.

Week 5 of training for the Hennepin Hundred also coincided with the Waterfall Glen Xtreme 10 race I run yearly. I haven't missed the race in 5 years, and while each July I always worry about my fitness level, I keep coming back. Not only did I have a solid week of training, but I also had a great race.

Recovery week! It also happens to be the start of the next training phase - the Introductory Phase. My coaches notes are to be patient. My mileage is still low, workouts haven't become too difficult, and it is easy to want to jump ahead and do more. However, just because I know I can do more doesn't mean that I should. To get to the start line healthy and ready, I know I need to trust my coach and plan and get my body ready to where it needs to be.

It was another hot week of training. I complain about the heat every year and miss it in the winter, but it really does make training for a fall race infinitely more difficult. Thankfully it also prepares you well for what's to come.

Week 2 of 50 mile training went well. It was another base building week, which has been nice as I lost some fitness over the past month of recovery from the GRT 50k. This slow build up back to training has been perfect, and while I am still curious to see how the next 15 weeks will look like, this is another reason why I am happy with my coach's approach to training.

And just like that, I am done with my first week of 50 mile training. As detailed in my previous post , I am now training for the Hennepin Hundred - 50 mile distance which will be my first 50 mile race. As with other training cycles, I am detailing my training each week.

It's hard to believe it has been a month since the GRT 50k. At times it feels like so long ago, yet other times it makes me sad that it is over. I am thankful I had a wonderful experience, as it gave me the confidence to head towards my next goal - the Hennepin Hundred.