The tapering has begun! My 20-mile run is complete, and now I will focus on recovery and maintaining my fitness until the marathon.
Monday and Tuesday: I did some yoga at home when I could squeeze it in. I wanted to do yoga at a neighborhood studio on Tuesday but it was closed. I did pushups and other exercises throughout the day.
Wednesday: I did a few rounds of sun salutations and warrior sequences throughout the day. I added some pushups for good measure. That evening I joined my first MeetUp group for the Adventure Run at Road Runner Sports Chicago. I had wanted to try an Adventure Run in Tempe but never did it. I now know I was missing out! Before the run we talked to sponsors about races and were given raffle tickets. I was also given raffle tickets for wearing compression socks during the run. We followed one of the Adventure Run leaders to the various stops around the neighborhood. The stops included Moody’s Pub, Eddie Bauer, Vitamin Shoppe, Derby, Massage Envy, Buffalo Wild Wings and My Fit Foods. A couple of the places had us do pushups for extra raffle tickets. SmashBurger asked people to dance for more tickets. It’s a fun way to meet people and be part of the running community. Sadly, I didn’t win any prizes in the raffle. Maybe next time! The total mileage, according to my running app, was 2.65 miles, though I am not sure if that’s correct.
Thursday: It was a stormy day in Chicago. I decided to skip my run for at-home yoga. I didn’t do as much as I wanted. I was sore from the exercises the day before (during the Adventure Run and my pushups beforehand). I was also engrossed in the coverage of the storms in Illinois.
Friday: 1 mile. I can’t get used to this weather. One day it’s 70 degrees and the next it’s in the 40s with wind. I started a run thinking I would go 3-5 miles, but I instead realized I didn’t have it in me in the cold. I recorded at least 20 minutes of yoga at home.
Saturday: No exercise. I drove to Jeffersonville, Indiana, for a bridal shower.
Sunday: Drive back to Chicago. I pushed my run back to Monday.
Monday: 4.01 miles. It was a gorgeous, sunny run, partly on the Lakeshore Trail. I even had to take my jacket off mid-run. I wish it could always be this way. Apparently the nice weather meant that I could record a 9:10 pace for my first mile. My average ended up being 9:50, but that’s still better than I have been doing.
Week’s goal: Run at least three times. No mileage goal this week.
Week’s mileage: 7.66.
April mileage so far: 41.89.
Marette Flora is the founder of Floradise blog and personalized gift shop. Marette is a passionate storyteller and creator. She attended the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University and obtained a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communication.
She is passionate about creating helpful and meaningful things.