Training Plan
I’ve always wanted to be a runner.
Who knows what that actually means, but when I think of that term, I think of people like my sister who run at least one (but now usually multiple) marathon a year. They are dedicated. They run in rain, shine, snow, sleet…really any form of precipitation, or lack thereof. They enjoy hitting the road at 5am, 9pm or anywhere in between.
That’s definitely not me. I am more of a ‘list every excuse’ kinda gal and no matter what I can find a reason why I should put off a run: It’s cold. I’m tired. My pajamas are more comfortable than my running bra. I worked out yesterday. I ate a cookie and that will weigh me down. All valid reasons.
Well, I’m now dedicated in 2020 to running a half marathon, mainly because I wrote it on this blog, so I needed to come up with an action plan.
The half marathon I hope to run isn’t until October, so I like to refer to the following as my ‘30 Week Training Plan.’ It sounds ridiculous and overbearing, but I like knowing I have an entire THIRTY weeks to get myself to ‘a runner.’
1. Run at least one mile a day for 30 days. I am two days away from completing this. I started on January 27 and haven’t missed a day yet. Even on the days I dread it, I just tell myself… ‘1 mile. You can do anything for 1 mile.’ While I can’t say this challenge has gotten me excited to run, I am immensely proud that I am this close to finishing. I’ve gotten to the point where I can run up to three miles without stopping and run a mile in under 10 minutes. It’s a great feeling, but I am looking forward to not having the weight over my head of running everyday.
2. 12 Week 10K training plan. This starts on Monday, March 2 and should end on Saturday, May 23. It requires three runs a week and I plan to make them happen on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays.
3. 20 Week Half Marathon training plan. I’ll start this immediately following the 10K plan on Monday, May 25 and will end with the half marathon on October 10. This also requires three runs per week and hopefully I like my Monday, Wednesday, Saturday layout and will continue, otherwise, I’m open to what works with my schedule and life in general.
Half the battle is getting a plan in place, right?! So at least the hardest part is out of the way. Here’s to finding my groove and potential love of running.
à la prochaine fois,
anna