I just completed week 9 of marathon training; officially the halfway point! 

Where did the time go?

Long runs from now on will become really real.  Next Saturday calls for a 15.  I haven’t run 15 miles since that time my friend Liza and I got horribly lost on the Reservoir trail last summer; an unplanned and painful 15...

I fell hard on the trail today.

...on that rock right there.  See it?  Neither did I :\

Today's lesson:  Pick up yo' feet.

It wasn't a hard fall. Just a surprise.  Breaking into trail running is hard.  I'm still getting used to the rocks and roots and having to watch out every second of every run.  Hazards you don't really have on the road.  Thankfully the spot where I fell was pretty clear with just some loose rocks, dirt and snow.  No stumps sticking up or twigs which could puncture.  The snow help to break some of the friction as I slid to a stop and though my knees got a little banged up, I was able to get up, dust off, and keep on running.  From then on, I was hyper aware, tripped a couple of other times, but did not fall again.  Win!

There were also these weird frozen dirt pods in the ground that kept startling me.  By the end of the run I learned to look out for them.  I'm sure there's a name for them but I don't know what it is.  It looks like maybe the dirt got wet and then froze but some of the dirt underneath got washed away.  At first glance it just looks like you're stepping on frozen ground but then your feet break through the froze dirt facade and you sink/trip a little.  Weird, right?  Yah. Weird.

Today's lesson (updated): Pick up yo' feet.  And, also watch where you put them down.

I've fallen before on the trails but today's fall came while I was already feeling "off".  Or, maybe it happened because I was "off".  I don't know.  Perhaps I woke up tired or something but today's 12 miler felt 10x harder than the 10 a couple weeks ago.

• I wasn't prepared for it to be so sunny.  The sun was blinding the whole way.  I normally LOVE the sun but today it was bugging me.
• That and the sun and the cold were making my eyes water.  I found it really hard to keep my eyes on the trail while they're welling up and because I wear glasses and I was wearing my big winter gloves, I couldn't just easily wipe my eyes.  I had to lift the glasses with one hand and wipe my eyes with the other.  I tried this once while still running which you could imagine was not a good idea.  So I had to keep stopping to take care of this weird issue I've never had to deal with before...
• I developed a headache midway through the run. Probably because of the cold and the sun.
• And, I just felt like the whole thing was a slog.

So I guess Today's lesson (updatedx2):  Pick up yo' feet and watch where you put them down and wear sunglasses if it's sunny?

K, enough complaining.  

It's the end of marathon training week 7!

Today's 12 miler was one step closer to my goal of training for the TARC Spring Classic marathon.  The course is a 10k (6.2 miles) loop of mostly single track trails in Weston, MA.  It's all trails [all the time!] so it's my mission to get better at trail running before April 22.

I'm following the Hal Higdon Novice 1 training plan.  Back in 2012 I followed the Novice 2 program for my first marathon and it really helped me prepare well for it.  This time around I chose the more beginner program for its conservative build up.  Coming off of a lighter running year last year and surgery this fall I really wanted to make sure I'm being careful in training.

So far, I have found myself super motivated to complete workouts and to take rest days.  Rest days. Rest days. Rest days!  This plan only calls for a 4 day running week with 2 rest days and a cross training day.  This week I took all 3 days as rest days but normally, I would use the cross training day to bike.

I am really trying to stick to the plan and not give in to that beckoning 5th running day.  Being fully recovered especially for the weekend long run is going to be the key as the higher mileage weeks come along.   I'm looking forward to it. 

Today was hard and I admit I was a little discouraged that the trail and "circumstances" kicked my butt.  I'm not giving up though.  As long runs get longer, I'm giong to try hard to find running partners to run with.  I think that will really help.

What about you?

Have you ever had an "off" day on the trail?

Do you run with others or mostly by yourself?

Thanks for reading!  I would love to hear from you so leave a comment below.