Two busy months: September and October running wrap-up

Posted on by Vanessa Junkin (She Runs by the Seashore)
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Here’s a photo I took with the self-timer before setting off on the Halloween run that would get me to my highest-mileage month ever. I love candy corn, if you can’t tell from the outfit (shirt, shorts and socks). (with Instagram filter)

September and October were both busy months — so busy, in fact, that I am going to wrap up both months now. By the time I finally had time for September’s recap, October was almost over anyway. During both months, marathon training was a prevalent part of my schedule, with plenty of long runs.

So, here are the recaps for each month:

September

  1. I ran 113.08 miles. At the end of that month, that was my highest monthly mileage.
  2. I ran five races. These were the Mike Sterling 10K, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon, the Run, White and Blue 5K, the Bottle & Cork 10 Miler and the Dogfish Dash 8K. The first four races were within the first nine days of September, and by the time I got to the Bottle & Cork 10 Miler, I was pretty tired out.
  3. I ran in a few different areas. My unique running locations during September were Winchester, Virginia; Westminster, Maryland; and the B&A Trail in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.
  4. I had a few faster races. Although the only PR I’ve earned this year is the one for the 50K — because it was my first 50K — I did run my fastest 10K, half marathon and 5K of 2017 during September.
  5. I went to one yoga class and one spin class. I would have liked to have gone more!
  6. I met my water goal 15 out of 30 days. October was even worse for this one, so I guess I should be happy about — or at least OK with — September’s numbers.

October

  1. I ran 140.5 miles — my highest ever in a month! It was exciting to see that I could make it to my highest mileage ever in October. My previous highest-mileage month was 138.88 miles in December 2016, which was also the month before I ran a marathon.
  2. I ran one race. This was the Seaside 10 Mile Run, and I was happy with how it went. It was my fastest 10-miler of 2017.
  3. I went to a few different yoga events, but not on my regular schedule. Not in this order, I went to one of my regular Monday classes, a Pints & Poses event at Dogfish Head Craft Brewery (I did a very short run at a nature preserve beforehand; hopefully I’ll run out there again and write a fuller post) and an arm balancing workshop at Soul Yoga Studio, where I take my usual class. The fact that I went to a workshop doesn’t mean I’m good at arm balancing — I am definitely a beginner there!
  4. I went to the gym twice. This included one barre class and one spin class. I’d like to make it to the gym more in November, although I’m not doing much this week, leading up to the Richmond Marathon, or the week after the marathon.
  5. I hit my water goal 11 out of 31 days. That’s embarrassing, and I’ll try to do better this month! Hopefully I will, as I’d like to be extra hydrated before the marathon.

Overall, marathon training has been going well — not exactly according to the plan, but there was only one run that just felt terrible that I can recall. I had a great last 20-miler and then I felt confident about my 10-miler time at the Seaside 10 Mile Run. I’m sticking with the A goal of trying to run under 4:45.

Stay tuned for that recap!

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