by Jessica Green
While Meghan tackles the first few weeks of marathon training for the Portland Marathon on October 5th, I am re-committing to some type of cross training on a regular basis before my training for the NYC marathon on November 2nd kicks into high gear at the end of July. Although I've been sucessful with some core work almost 5 times a week, it's not quite the same as a full 45-60 minute workout that has nothing to do with running. I'm talking about something like yoga, Pilates, biking or a conditioning class.
In the past, my best races seem to correlate with periods of time where I am committed to my cross training activities at least once a week. These are also periods where I tend to feel the least tight, the strongest and most comfortable in my body and mind. Over the last month, the warmer temperatures and a busier schedule have taken an toll on my body and my cross training. I feel tight and weak and my running feels heavy.
The solution, as I tell clients over and over again, is to do something else besides just running. Time to heed my own advice! There's no way I'm going to make it to the finish line in one piece on November 2nd if I don't clean up my act and find something that will get me cross training regularly. So, this July, my goal is to take an hour-long class 1x/week that doesn't involve any running. This will take precedence over that extra day of running that I usually end up leaning towards. I challenge those of you in my same position to do the same with the ultimate goal being that the routine continues through all of marathon training.
Looking for the right type of cross training class or activity? Ask us to help you sift through the options to find the one that's the best fit for you.