Resetting...

I laid out a race schedule over the past month that looks like this:

• Peachtree Road Race 7/4/2024

• Guild 7 Trail Race 9/21/2024

• PNC 10 Miler 10/20/2024

• Invesco QQQ Half Marathon 11/28/2024

• Schneider Electric Paris Marathon 4/13/2025

I'm running the Guild 7 and PNC 10 Miler but I'm not fitting my training around those events. Instead, I'm going to use the Hansons Marathon Method Beginner Program to prepare for the Half and the Advanced Program to prepare for the full marathon in April. I was lucky the timing works so well. Each program is 18 weeks and they fit nicely into the time available.

I start the beginner program August 1st. That gives me a month to recover from an overuse injury and build up some more base mileage.

I'd also like to use this break to lose some more weight. I had been losing weight at a rapid clip but that slowed when my training picked up. Since I haven't run in the past three days, I've been more careful with my diet and I've lost a few pounds very quickly. I was at 166 pounds this morning, which is 52 pounds less than a year ago. I'd be very happy if I could shed 12 more pounds and get down to 155 by mid-August. (My smart scales have widely divergent estimates of my body composition so I scheduled a DEXA scan and VO2 max test for August.)

My left shin/ankle is bothering me a bit. Anterior Tibialis Tendonitis perhaps? That was true before the Peachtree and the race made it worse. With three days of rest it is already much better. I'd really like to have it healed before I dive into back-to-back 18 week training blocks. I'll start running again when it stops hurting or after a week, whichever comes first. Worst case, I'll be taking a few weeks off.

Thinking more about the Peachtree brought back some old memories. When I reached the three mile mark, the hills began and I realized I was running well and had the chance to achieve a solid time. For the first time in decades I felt it was time to push and push I did. I powered up the hills from mile 3 to mile 5 and kept a strong pace to the end. I didn't negative split but I wasn't far off. I remember that feeling of pushing at my limit from back in high school. Doing it again felt great.