March Training Log: Races X2, Sickness X2

March was not an easy month for me. When I say it was a roller coaster, I mean it. I ran the Napa Valley Half Marathon, got the stomach flu, ran the Los Angeles Marathon, and then got the regular flu. What a month.

Quick Facts:

Miles run: 183
Range of paces: 6:20–15:30–untimed
Rest days: 12
Swimming: 2x

Thoughts:

As mentioned, it was a weird month. I started off at the Napa Valley Half Marathon. I thought the race went pretty well. Not amazing, but I ran well enough. The next day, I got the stomach flu—and it all made sense. That knocked me out for 3–4 days, and with just 10 days before the marathon, I was getting worried. I did a much more drastic taper than I usually would have and cut my miles, just hoping to recover.

That seemed to work, and I ran an LA Marathon PR of 3:21. Even though it was my fastest Los Angeles Marathon (of 3), I didn’t feel amazing and had some weird issues during the race. It turns out I had the regular flu, which knocked me out for about 5 days. I had the flu shot in 2025, so I know it was “less bad.” I laid around for about 5 days and took a week completely off from running (I had always planned to take 1–2 weeks off post-Los Angeles, so no big deal). I have mixed emotions about Los Angeles. On one hand, it was my fastest Los Angeles. On the other hand, I know I was coming down with the flu. Luckily, it was day 1, and I didn’t feel as bad as days 2–5. I guess! Would I have run LA if I knew I was coming down with the flu? I don’t know…because I know it wrecked my immune system more.

Now, I’m just getting back into running. I have some bad memories about the flu and it taking me 8 months to recover in 2022, so honestly, I am worried about that. My next race is Mountains 2 Beach on April 13.

Cross Training:

I’m not swimming much right now—maybe once a week if I’m lucky. I’m really into Pilates, and I celebrated 250 classes. I think it’s helped my running, although it’s tough to tell. Honestly, it’s been a good addition to my workouts because I actually do dedicated strength training and core work.

In all, this month was a roller coaster. The results were decent, but it’s easy to look back and say, “What if.” I’m trying not to…but it doesn’t mean it’s not hard.