A New Training Plan.

Today was my first long run post-half marathon. My friend Jamie and I met up at the Pedestrian Bridge to run a relaxing 6 mile Sunday run into Iowa.

Being the first run more than 3 miles since the race in October, I figured I would be a little off and struggle-more-than-enjoy the run...but it wasn't horrible and got me excited to begin training again!

Split Time Distance Avg Pace Summary 55:04.3 6.00 9:10.7 1 9:13.3 1.00 9:13.4 2 9:04.2 1.00 9:04.2 3 9:00.5 1.00 9:00.0 4 9:10.8 1.00 9:10.9 5 9:10.7 1.00 9:10.7 6 9:23.4 1.00 9:23.1

Our pace was much better than I expected. We probably ran so fast because it was so dang hot today (in the high 70's!!) Where did the cool, brisk fall weather go?!?

What was most exciting for me was that this is my goal marathon pace! I've decided that since I have now ran a half and a full marathon comfortably, I need to start working on decreasing my time. I am going into my second full marathon (in May) with two goals in mind:

1. Run the entire thing (except for needed water station drinking).

2. Run in 4 hours or less.

To run a 4 hour marathon, I need to average 9:09 miles, right on pace with today! My first marathon was about 4.30, so 30 minutes is a huge amount of time to shed but I think I can do it. When training for my first marathon, I didn't really follow a specific training plan...we just kind of made it up as we went (and it worked!) but this time I've decided to follow something a little more organized.

Hal Higdon's Marathon Training Plan

I've decided to follow Novice II because I have some, but very little experience with races and the weekly mileage seemed perfect for me. Its only 18 weeks long, so my training will officially begin when I return from Christmas break the first few days of January. If you are thinking about training for a full marathon, I highly suggest you check out this website. It has great training plans from Novice I to Advanced II. Here is what my training schedule will look like:

Marathon Training Schedule: Novice 2

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thur	Fri	Sat	Sun
1	Rest	3 m run	5 m pace	3 m run	Rest	8	cross
2	Rest	3 m run	5 m run	3 m run	Rest	9	cross
3	Rest	3 m run	5 m pace	3 m run	Rest	6	cross
4	Rest	3 m run	6 m pace	3 m run	Rest	11	cross
5	Rest	3 m run	6 m run	3 m run	Rest	12	cross
6	Rest	3 m run	6 m pace	3 m run	Rest	9	cross
7	Rest	4 m run	7 m pace	4 m run	Rest	14	cross
8	Rest	4 m run	7 m run	4 m run	Rest	15	cross
9	Rest	4 m run	7 m pace	4 m run	Rest	Rest	Half Mar
10	Rest	4 m run	8 m pace	4 m run	Rest	17	cross
11	Rest	5 m run	8 m run	5 m run	Rest	18	cross
12	Rest	5 m run	8 m pace	5 m run	Rest	13	cross
13	Rest	5 m run	5 m pace	5 m run	Rest	19	cross
14	Rest	5 m run	8 m run	5 m run	Rest	12	cross
15	Rest	5 m run	5 m pace	5 m run	Rest	20	cross
16	Rest	5 m run	4 m pace	5 m run	Rest	12	cross
17	Rest	4 m run	3 m run	4 m run	Rest	8	cross
18	Rest	3 m run	2 m run	Rest	Rest	2 m run	Marathon

Doesn't look so bad does it? :) Can't wait til January!