I'm in the middle of Week 8....

This is Hal Hidgon's plan for running marathons 8 weeks apart. He also has plans for running them 2, 4, and 6 weeks apart.

EIGHT WEEKS BETWEEN MARATHONS
Week Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
8 Rest 2 mi 3 mi 4 mi Rest 6 mi 1-2 hrs.
7 Rest 3 mi 6 mi 3 mi Rest 6 mi 12 mi
6 Rest 4 mi 6 mi 4 mi Rest 6 mi 16 mi
5 Rest 4 mi 6 mi 4 mi Rest 6 mi 20 mi
4 Rest 4 mi 6 mi 4 mi Rest 6 mi 12 mi
3 Rest 4 mi 6 mi 4 mi Rest 6 mi 16 mi
2 Rest 4 mi 6 mi 4 mi Rest 6 mi 12 mi
1 Rest 4 mi 6 mi 4 mi Rest 6 mi Marathon


Well, I can't get the columns to line up right. You wouldn't believe how much time I've spent on this. If I'd been out running I'd have my long run done for the week. I've tried copying it from the site, did a "View Source" and copied the HTML layout (which messed up my whole blog, repositioning my profile to the bottom), finally typing it out longhand.... Anyway, Mondays and Fridays are rest days, Saturday is 6 miles, Sunday is a long run, and everything else lines up on Tue., Wed., and Thurs. Your brain will figure out the line-up (the computer can't.)

I don't think I'll do all those longies... 2 16's and a 20. I think I'll go easier there, maybe 14 or 15 in Week 6, 16-18 in Week 5, 18-20 for Week 4's long run. I see what he's doing, alternating long-run weeks with runs not quite so long. We'll see. I never follow any plan exactly, even my own.

Last week, I guess, was Week 9. My marathon is more than 8 weeks from my last one but I'm just getting back to actual running after my post-IM slump (which I'm still in, actually.) I did get in that 8-miler last week, and the "first" week of this program, Week 8, looks very doable from where I am.

So, today is Wednesday of Week 8. I didn't run :-/ We went shopping and then stopped at my in-laws to surprise them, then ended up going out to lunch (late, like 2p.m.), then got home around 4, and I was depressed about a bunch of things and went to sleep. When I got up it was to late to come back to consciousness and then do a run. I went and sat in the hot tub.

But I did the 2 miles yesterday, with a 5-minute walk as warm-up and cool-down, making 30 minutes and a total of 2.6 miles. Maybe I'll do the 4 tomorrow morning, after making the cranberry-orange relish to take to dinner at my sister-in-law's. We're headed to mom-and-dad-in-law's by noon to head on up to Michelle's for dinner. No doubt we'll get back pretty late, too late to run.

Michelle lives in Scottsdale (oh, yeah, forgot to blog about traveling to the Phoenix area.... we traveled to the Phoenix area). There is actually a sprint tri there tomorrow morning, but I don't have it together to get up way early, talk my husband into going up there way early, pay the $70 bucks and do the race. If I'd had more notice I could have gotten my mind around it and talked him into it, and gone over to Michelle's from there. Michelle and her husand are actually runners and bikers but they are way, way faster than I am. Even if I could talk Michelle into RNR Arizona, it wouldn't work for us to train together.

I'm joining up with the Phoenix Triathlon Club, but you can only join by mail and tomorrow's a holiday w/o mail. They have an online forum but you have to be a member to use it. I am dying to find a pool, a masters swim program, a swim coach. There is a pool here at the campground where we'll be for the next 4 months but.... it's about the size of our RV living room. No way can I swim laps in it.

If I don't find some friends around here I will go crazy. Running/biking/swimming friends. Tri friends. Any readers of my blog live near Phoenix, Mesa, Tempe, Apache Junction, Florence?