Training for a half and summer goals

Summers are gorgeous in this area, and it seems like everyone has come out of hibernation and laced up their shoes.  Running culture is pretty prominent here, and I am constantly hearing my coworkers talk about their race schedules and how they are training for their next event.  They are using apps, books, online coaches, etc.  My company blog has even started a "Get Fit Series".

And everyone once in a while, someone will stop by my cubicle and say, "I heard you're running Wineglass!  How is training going?"

Cue the crickets.

The truth is that I'm not really training.  I'm not following any plan.  I just run when I can, and I trust that by the time Wineglass rolls around, I'll be fit enough to finish.

Don't get me wrong, concrete training plans really appeal to my Type-A-ness.   But between school and work and volunteering, I'm working about 80 hours a week, and adding 5 to 6 days of running on top of that is unfathomable.  Heck, sometimes I can't even handle one run a week.  


So how am I preparing for my half in October? I'm giving myself a lot of time.  Most training plans are 3-4 months long.  I've been working on building speed and distance over a much longer period of time - essentially from when I signed up in January.  Most of the time, I can manage 2 or 3 runs a week, and on one of those days, I will push myself to go either faster or farther than I have done before.  I take it easy on the other runs.  If I'm running short on time, I might do a quick core workout.

"Don't you have a time goal for the half marathon?" asks the co-worker.

No.  Do I have to have one?

I run because it helps me cope with other stressors in my life.  I really enjoy my time out there, and I don't want to let some monster goal for my next race interfere with that.

That being said, I have a couple loose, and perfectly achievable goals in mind that might help in preparation for the races I'm planning.

1. Run a sub-25 minute 5k (I see some 5ks in my future - more on that soon).
2. Run 10 miles.

I'm really close to reaching both of these.  I don't think I'll have to do anything special except to keep running.  And I'll be proud of myself when I finally get there.

Happy running!