Seeking advice about next steps

[Wines Not Whines]

I just finished my fall running/racing season, and I'm a little lost about what to do next. I had a great year this year, after two bad years in 2016 and 2017 (injuries and slow recoveries). I want to keep the momentum going and keep improving, and it makes sense that I should keep doing what has been working for me this year. But I'm not sure what that means for winter and spring training. 

I usually run a marathon in the fall and do shorter races in the spring (a 10k and 10-miler, sometimes a half marathon). I always think about training for a spring marathon, but by the time winter comes around, I'm not motivated enough to run all those miles by myself in the dark and cold. I may actually be motivated enough this year to do it, and I've also found a few new training partners so I would have company on most of my key runs (long runs, track, and tempos). If I do a spring marathon, it would be 16 weeks after my fall marathon (4 weeks of recovery and then a 12 week training cycle). I think I could do it, but I don't know if it's a good idea or if it will help me with my long-term goal to keep improving at the distance. Do I need a longer break, or will keeping up the training through the winter help me with my goals? Have people run both fall and spring marathons and thought it was helpful to keep up the training and momentum? Were there any negatives? The marathon I'm considering is on March 3, so it's pretty early in the spring season.

If I don't train for a road marathon, I could join a winter trail running group again, which I did last winter. I could train for a trail marathon or my running club's 50k race. My hesitancy with this is that I trained for the 50k last spring, and it was canceled due to weather. I think that's a risk with trail races in the winter and early spring, and it's supposed to be a snowy winter. There's a good chance it will be fine next year, but who really knows? The 50k is the same weekend as the marathon, so I couldn't do both, but I may be able alternate trail running and road running for my long runs to keep things interesting. 

Help me.  

[al320]

Have you considered a later spring marathon? When ive done two a year, my spring race is generally anywhere from late april to late may, and i find that a really good way to space them out. Or do you want to do the specific one on march 3?

[Wines Not Whines]

Nov 19, 2018 19:56:11 GMT -5 al320 said:

Have you considered a later spring marathon? When ive done two a year, my spring race is generally anywhere from late april to late may, and i find that a really good way to space them out. Or do you want to do the specific one on march 3?

I know we already talked about this but I will respond here too. I agree more time would be better. The four local-ish (within a 3 hour drive) spring marathons around here seem to be in March. There’s early, mid, and late March, but several people have recommended the earlier one to me. I’d like to race the Cherry Blossom 10 miler, too, which is in early April, so having some space between them is probably a good idea.

[mrshandy]

I don't do fall and spring marathons usually. It's not even the physical aspect, it's the mental aspect of continual training. Also it's the impact that it has on my husband and kids. I want to sleep in and enjoy Saturday mornings with them. I want to enjoy drinks with my H on a Friday night and not have to worry about a long run the next day. But that's what works for me and my schedule.

I would want to find a later race. But if your heart is set on either this marathon or the 50K. Could you find a 50K later in the season as a backup in case of cancellation? The 50K is certainly more a gamble as far as getting cancelled.

What marathon are you thinking of?

[Wines Not Whines]

mrshandy The marathon is Newport News. I’m not interested in DC Rock and Roll (at least not as a full), and my husband may want to run Shamrock, so I can’t plan for that one.

[mrshandy]

Nov 19, 2018 21:45:33 GMT -5 Wines Not Whines said:

mrshandy The marathon is Newport News. I’m not interested in DC Rock and Roll (at least not as a full), and my husband may want to run Shamrock, so I can’t plan for that one.

I thought so! I did the relay for it last year, legs 2 and 3. It’s a nice flat course and a smallish race so potential for a PR if you’re interested. We had good weather last year, chilly with a tailwind. I think you could do well worth it.

[cinco]

Go for it! I'd probably chose the 50k or marathon based on what more of my training partners were doing. Running peer pressure is the best

I enjoy training year round. I think the key is being a little less type A about your training plans and taking rest as needed. The holidays can be a bit crazy to train during and weather usually messes things up every once in a while, but my faster marathon times are in the Spring. Those unplanned rest days don't do too much harm.

[Wines Not Whines]

Thanks for the advice! One of my running friends/coaches emailed me today to tell me he thinks I should run trails again because it worked really well for me last year. He's not wrong. The trails program starts the week after Thanksgiving, so I guess I could try it and see if I still enjoy it, and make a decision from there. Mostly I just want to run with my friends, but they're all doing different things this winter!