DL half marathon training: 4 weeks to go!

4 weeks!  That is only one month away!  This week was a big one because I had a 13.1 mile training run – in other words, the full distance that I’ll be going on race day.  They are always tough, but always make me feel a little bit better after the run because I know I can do it.

One thing I really decided this week is that I want to focus on getting the mileage done, and not the speed.  Yes, many of my runs are not where they were about 6 months ago in terms of speed.  But I’m still getting it done and I think running 13 miles is an accomplishment in itself.  When my time turned out to be slower than my half marathon pace at the Princess half marathon last February, my mind was full of excuses – it was hot, I’d forgotten to take my nasal spray to help me breathe better, I hadn’t gone shopping so I didn’t have my usual fuel, etc.  And then I realized I shouldn’t be making excuses for anything – I just ran 13.1 miles in under 3 hours!  So I’m going to try really hard to get into that sort of mindset for the remaining training runs.

Monday was a good, steady run.  I stayed true to my goal of not worrying so much about time, and while it was a little slower than average I felt good.

Wednesday morning I woke up early before work to get my run in and it was so cool outside!  I think it was about 65 degrees while I was running which just felt wonderful!  It was worth feeling a bit tired the rest of the day.

And on Friday was my big 13.1 mile run.  The training plan actually calls for 12.5 miles, but if I’m going that far I’m just gonna do the whole half marathon distance.  I didn’t get up as early as I was intending to run (it was an exhausting week) but I got it done!  Disneyland half marathon, here I come!