Half Marathon Training: Week 1 In Review

First, a picture I took of a tree outside my apartment building today...I love the way fresh snow looks on trees. And gray-blue sky is a great background!

This past Monday I started my official half marathon training. My week was as follows:

Monday: 1 hour of yoga, strength training on arms and stomach

Tuesday: 2 mile run

Wednesday: Rest day

Thursday: Run 3 miles

Friday: Run 2 miles

Saturday: Run 3 miles

Sunday: Run 4 miles

I've had a stressful week, which impacted my sleep, which impacted my aerobic performance. I dragged all week long. I ran every mile I was supposed to, althought Wednesday ended up being my rest day instead of Thursday. To put it simply, every mile was agony this week. BUT I ran every one I was scheduled for.

This is especially hard for me, because this is time of year that my fibromyalgia rears its ugly head in full force. Now, I experience pretty mild symptoms, but it's enough that it incapacitates me to some degree. I generally experience symptoms in my legs, and running makes it worse, quite honestly. My legs start aching pretty desperately after I've run about 2 miles. I'm trying to remedy this with Ibuprofen and just power through.

I must hail the power of Gatorade and Powerade. Without these, I absolutely could not run. Water doesn't put a dent in my thirst when I'm running and I tire quickly. But with the magic of G2 and Powerade, my thirst is quenched, and I run better. For anyone consider running, I absolutely recommend a sports drink.

I'm hoping this week will be better and I won't drag so badly. Working full-time and training really keeps me busy, considering I have to factor in eating, spending 1 - 1 1/2 hours digesting, and then running time and showering.

Next week I will measure myself and share how many inches and pounds I've lost. It's a pretty slow process, but definitely worth it!