Chicago Marathon and Ronald McDonald House, I have met my minimum fundraising goal for the race. Yay! I am so thankful to everyone that has donated. I want to raise more. I just feel so much less stress about this race now. I looked at one training plan which has my official start date at May 29th. It's on my calendar. I want to try really hard to stick to a training plan since this will be my first marathon. I am feeling good at where I am milage wise right now. The other week I did a 10 mile run just to test my body. I figured if I maintained a 9:55 pace I could PR my half marathon in May. We ended up sticking to a 9:29 pace. I felt really good after. I would love to be able to PR the Great Western Half Marathon.
Last week my running got a slight derailment from back and leg issues. I took a few days off and ended up buying new shoes. I have been stretching, and resting as much as I can. I did a test run last night and was pain free for 3 miles. Such a great feeling. Now I'm still have lower back pain but my leg feels great. Oh and my new shoes, Hoka Clifton3, feel like running on clouds. I wanted to happy dance last night.
I have also been working at trying to build strength in my core and upper body. I feel like I spend a lot of time at the gym but I know it's good for me. Weights, pilates, and yoga have become my off day routine. I am lucky that the kids don't complain to much about going to the gym with me.
