My September goal was to build a strong base for marathon training. While that is “late to start training,” my mileage is high enough, and there was no need to run a bunch of 20 milers three months before CIM. I wanted to build a strong foundation of 16 million, and so far, I’ve mostly gotten that. My 17 miler felt strong, and my last mile was the fastest.
Quick Facts:
Miles run: 338
Range of paces: 6:17-13:12-untimed
Rest days:4
Longest Run: 17 miles
Shortest Run: 2 miles
Swimming: 13.82 miles
Strength Training: 4 sessions
Races:
Conquer the Bridge 5.3 miles
Santa Monica Classic 10k
Surf City 10 miles
As always you can follow me on Strava.
Thoughts:
Training for September went well. I hoped to swim more, but the pool schedule wasn’t great. Thankfully, they open it back up in the afternoons for October so I can swim after work. But the primary focus right now is running, and I must remember that when I want to *do everything*.
Anyway, back to running. My goal was to get comfortable with 16 milers again. I took almost four years off of running anything more than a half marathon. The last training cycle for Los Angeles went well, and I felt like I made significant gains from where I came from, but my base and endurance weren’t the best because the training cycle was so short without having a solid long-run foundation. I knew I needed to get comfortable running longer distances for this training cycle. So, for September, I focused on running a few 16 miles. The only goal was to finish strong. I didn’t want to feel like I couldn’t run another mile. My last 17 miler felt like I could run 20 that day, but I didn’t want to push it.
September in the Los Angeles area brings some of my favorite races. The Conquer the Bridge and Santa Monica Classic are my favorite races of the year. I surprised myself at the Conquer the Bridge when I was third woman overall and ran under a 7-minute pace (With 400+ feet of elevation gain, that race is not easy). Then, at Santa Monica Classic, also not an easy course, I ran 44:14. I’ve split faster, including in RnR San Jose when I ran a 43:14 and included a quick bathroom break.
I’ve also committed to doing once a week strength training. I’ve usually said, “I’m going to commit to strength training,” but I barely do, so I’m trying to stick with it. I’m working a lot of ankle and balance strength and some complete bodywork.
As far as swimming, I swam 13.82 miles last month. I wanted to do more, but as mentioned, the pool hours don’t work for me (mid-day). It’s OK because swimming is supplemental and not what I’m training for. October means the pool is back to open in the evening, so I hope to get back to twice a week.
So in all, training in September went well. It could be I am getting fitter or maybe the weather is cooling down. I’ve done most of my workouts on the sand dunes, which isn’t *fast* but the effort is there and it has built a lot of strength.
What’s Next?
October means it’s time to run at least 20 miles. I’m running a few races, including the Long Beach Half, and I’m looking forward to continuing to build a base. October is maybe the most critical month for the CIM training because the meat of long runs will be done there, and at least half of November is dedicated to taper.
Posts from the Month:
Shoe Reviews:
Newton Issac Shoe Review
La Sportiva x Janji Jackal II Trail Running Shoe Review
On Cloudboom Echo 3 Shoe Review
adidas Ultraboost Light Shoe Review
Hoka Zinal 2 Review
Gear Reviews:
Fourth Frontier X2 Heart Rate Monitor Review
Maurten Gel 160 Review
OneOdio OpenRock Pro Headphones Review
Precision Hydration Review
UCAN Edge Review
Copper Compression Review
Questions for you:
What are you training for?
How was your September training month?