Aesthete Runner

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.

The last few weeks since the GRT 50k have been full of rest and active recovery. They have also provided me with time to go back and review my training, think about what worked well and what didn't, and look forward to the next training cycle. There is a definitely lack of solid 50k training plans available, so I think it is important to share my thoughts on the McMillan 50k plan so others may decide if it might be right for them.

This is it, the final week! Race day is almost here and overall, I am feeling ready. Between checking the weather forecast hourly (alternating between rain and heat) and checking items off my to-do and packing lists, the time has flown by. 

6 days to go!! While I wouldn't say the last 17 weeks have flown by, I also can't believe that race day is finally almost here. For a long time all I could think about was just getting to the taper, and now it finally feels "real". This is happening!

I made it to the taper!!!! Week 16 was my last 50k-specific week of training, and now I have entered into the Peak Phase, or the taper. It feels really good to be here. While the taper brings all sorts of challenges of it's own, I am really ready to focus on mental and physical rest to get ready for race day.

Week 15 was a recovery week, and it couldn't have come at a better time. The 5 hour long run at the end of Week 14 really took a lot out of me and my body needed lower mileage. However, recovery week doesn't mean an easy week, and I still had two quality runs including a long hill workout to complete.

One month out from the Glacier Ridge Trail 50k! Week 14 was a big week. While the midweek runs were nothing out of the ordinary, this weekend brought my longest run yet - 5 hours. I struggled with motivation early on in the week, but seemed to find it by the week's end.

With just over a month until the Glacier Ridge 50k, I am at that critical point in training where I am tested physically and mentally. This was very evident this week which consisted of three long runs. Thankfully I survived and am all the more stronger for it.

Twelve weeks down, six weeks to go! Are we having fun yet? This was another solid week of training to add to my bank of miles. I think this mentality has helped me get through some difficult weeks, as it really does help to think of each run as a step forward towards my end goal. When I feel as if I have no motivation to run or am exhausted, I remind myself that each run does matter. I really had to draw from this toward the end of my week as I was left both physically and mentally exhausted.

A wonderful recovery week! Thankfully Week 11 was a mileage cut-back week, and while I still had hard effort runs, it felt good to have a reprieve from higher mileage and a long weekend run.

For some reason week 10 has a weight to it. Now we are in the double digits of weeks of training, and it is more of a count down now to race day. Coming off a high mileage week I was glad for a little drop in mileage as well as a reprieve from the back to back long runs for a week.

I made it to the halfway point of training! 18 weeks is a long time to train, and I think it is important to celebrate the mini milestones, especially the half way point. There is still a lot of work to do, and may more miles to put in, but it is exciting to be half way to race day and a celebration of my training.

The most frequent question I receive when talking about my training is running by time vs miles. I thought this topic warranted it's own post since I have a lot to say!

Week 8 - the last week of the Pre-50k phase and a mileage cut-back week. While I probably didn't take advantage of the cut-back as much as I should have, I enjoyed only having one long run.

I am finally through the third week of this training Pre-50k training block, and into a cut-back week again. I couldn't be happier! Week 7 was both a week of some really great runs, but also one not-so-great run. Nevertheless, it was a week of feeling humble and allowing myself to learn.

With Week 6 out of the way, I am officially one third of the way done with my training. Thinking about it that way really puts things into perspective. A lot of the time during training, especially in the early stages, it is hard to picture race day. I tend to think about all the work that is ahead of me. I can definitely say that continuing with the "Pre-50k" phase has really started to challenge me, but also shown me how my fitness has continued to improve as the weeks have gone by.

After a nice cut back week, I was excited to start the next training block. The first 4 weeks of the Glacier Ridge Trail 50k training plan were the "Endurance" phase. With week 5, I began the next 4 weeks of the "Pre-50k" block which is designed to help give me the fitness needed for the more difficult workouts ahead. The Pre-50k phase has a lot of hill workouts, and the ever popular, back-to-back long runs!

Week 3 of Glacier Ridge Trail 50k training was a solid week. Even though the weather wanted to make things difficult for me, I feel like I nailed every run and my recovery from my longer or more difficult effort runs was faster than expected. Maybe it was the sports massage I had on Wednesday, but mentally I was in a great space this week.

Another week down and I'm feeling good. It was a solid week of training that went well despite some winter weather that made it more challenging. I reminded myself a lot this week of each run's purpose in the larger picture of the entire 18 weeks.

Week 1 is in the books! There is always a sense of satisfaction starting a new training program and already putting a week behind me. I know there are many challenging weeks ahead but it feels good to be jumping in and moving towards the Glacier Ridge Trail 50k.