Ramping it back up

Last time I blogged anything about running, it was to pull the plug on the 2012 racing season. It wasn't an easy decision to make, but now as we head into December and I'm about to embark on my next marathon training cycle, I'm glad I did it. My hamstring feels strong and I can run fast on it without worrying about pulling it again.

The last 3 weeks have looked like this as I've started ramping it back up...

I like to use a Google Doc with a "calendar" view to look at big chunks of my training at once. I find it a lot more useful than simply looking at a week view. Big picture thinking is always best! [Day by day log for November is here]

The next couple weeks I'll blend together a variety of workouts and do a couple long runs - basically, get myself back into the workout routine and touch most of the paces / systems. I know that a handful of the early workouts will feel a lot harder than I'll want them to, but that's part of the training process. The goal is to be back in the groove by Christmas, and start hitting some good sessions around the holidays. If that happens, I'll be where I want/need to be.

In terms of races, I'm probably going to run the Phoenix Marathon on March 2nd. And since I usually like to get in a good half-marathon 5-6 weeks before a target marathon, PF Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Half-Marathon looks to be my likely destination. Locally, I'll run the SLC Track Club Winter Series. I know I probably should go run the USA XC Championships... but I am having a hard time convincing myself its a good idea to book a plane ticket to St. Louis in February. Why can't the championships just be in San Diego every year? :-)

Beyond that, I'm not planning much. Hopefully in a few days we'll know the Olympic Trials qualifying standards and time window for 2016. That will heavily influence what I'll be doing going forward... but barring any unforeseen circumstances, I'll likely focus my spring/summer around the USA Half-Marathon Championships, which will be back in Duluth next June. Andrea and I both ran pretty well there last year and really enjoyed the whole weekend in Duluth.

Speaking of Andrea - since writing her "still on the sidelines" blog, she's been making slow but steady progress... running 3-4 miles every other day without any major adverse side effects. Keep your fingers crossed for her!