Email #9 from Coach Don

Good / Bad Runs: We will be training for 25 weeks for the marathon. Having done this for a few years now, I can say with fairly good certainty that it is very rare (if not never) that a person goes thru the whole training process without having one or more long runs that I would classify as a bad run. You may not of had one yet but it is the run that in the first few miles you just don't feel right. Your body is not quite in total sync. And during the course of the run it might get some better but not really a whole lot. And the last few miles are just a bit of a struggle to finish.
Well, we all have these runs. And just because you have one on an occasional basis is not a reason for great concern. There are so many factors that come into play when you are doing these longer runs (sleep, nutrition, stress, weather, etc) that having one is not a big deal. Just realize that this one specific day is not your A+ day and when it is over, just forget about it.

Remember that there is always the next week / the next day and that over time you will have just as many days that are super easy and over time they will even out.....

The Schedule...who are you?: After a couple of months your training regime should have gotten established. I like to classify people into several types. I am sure that you can all think of several more. (and these are always fun). So see which one you are and there is some advice for each of you.

• The Slave...has the schedule tattooed to their forehead and several other places. They religiously run each and every day / mile that is on the schedule. They don't miss a workout. Advice: Be careful. These people may well have a higher chance of getting hurt. They press for more miles when they are tired or hurt. Of course we want you to run the miles on the schedule. But we are training for six months. Over that period you will have days that you will not feel quite 100%. Or you will have days where living your life takes a little bit more. So don't be afraid to switch a day if needed. Or don't be afraid to miss a day if you are not feeling all there. But don't try to make it all up on one day (so if you miss Tuesday and Wednesday, don't run the mileage for all three days on Thursday)
• The Overscheduled...works, has a family, their plate if fairly full. They really try to run every day on the schedule. But the kids have a game/ the boss need you to work late. And you always miss one or two days per week. Advice: Make time for yourself. Look at your schedule and see when you run. Maybe you have always run in the evenings. But things crop up during the day. So maybe you need to look at running in the morning (or lunch) before the day can interfere. One thing that can help you is to schedule your run on your day timer. Block off the time for yourself to get in your run. Or plan your run around other things. So you children have a soccer practice. Run around the field for the 3-4-5 miles you need during the practice.
• The Hurt...run thru anything. They think their injury is minor and that they can just run thru it. Advice: This one is tricky. You need to learn about your body. Some injuries are just minor things and you can run thru them. For example, you calf is just a little tight and loosens up after 5 minutes of running. And it gets better each day. This you could run thru. But if each day it gets a little worse, you need to do something about it. My number one advice about injuries. You need to get well first. If you miss 3-4 days when you are slightly injured it is a lot better that trying to run through it and wind up losing 3-4 weeks when the injury gets worse.
• The Way Behinders...well, they are way behind. They have not really established a routine. They have missed a lot of the runs. They don't know if they can do the mileage. Advice: Talk to us. We can usually re work the schedule and get you back on track to catch up with the team. Or we can tell you if you are too far behind. But most of all, talk to me or one of the coaches.
• The Why Did I Sign up for This...never got with the program. It was a good idea back in May. But you have never gotten your act together. Advice: Let us know. We have 5-7% of the team that falls in this category each year. It hurts us not to see you accomplish your goal, but that is ok. Just please email us back and let us know so we can reclassify you on the roster.

So see where you fit (or make up you own category.)

OTHER BUSINESS: A kudos to Briana Whaley, one of our team members. At the Cul de Sac 5K race last Monday she not only won the Women's race but she also set a course record in the process. Great job.