6 Days to Race Weekend, 41 Days to the AVON Walk!

It is Sunday morning and I am chilling out in a hotel in Milwaukee, waiting for Room Service to bring breakfast. I am relaxing, watching MythBusters, after doing a quick run in the Fitness Center at 7:15am. I got in 3.65 miles at a 10:45/mm pace (including my warm-up/cool-down walks) and felt pretty good. My 3.06 mile run segment was at a 9:34/mm pace which is acceptable. That brings my weekly mileage (both run and walk miles) to 24 miles (definitely in Taper mode). Now it is time to let my body recover and get ready for the Illinois Marathon Weekend on April 27-28.

I am really looking forward to this weekend. I have running the 5K on Friday night and then the Half Marathon on Saturday. I want to PR both races. I feel that I am prepared physically to achieve my goals. The only concern is the fear of injury during the 5K that could prevent me from running the Half (that would be devastating). My piriformis is doing much better (only slightly sore now), and I am hoping the massage I have scheduled for Tuesday night will help loosen it up a bit further.

I am going to take this week pretty easy. I have a CardioPoint Assessment scheduled for 7AM on Tuesday (to evaluate my heart rate zones since my last assessment in early January). I want to make sure my HRM is set accurately before the race weekend. I look forward to seeing if my VO2 MAX has increased and how my zones have changed. After my assessment, I am going to run a 3-mile Easy Run (my last run before the race weekend). Then later that evening, I will have a 1-hour Sports Massage with focus on my hips, piriformis, and legs. I think that is the most I can do to prepare myself. Starting Tuesday, I will begin carbo-loading across the three days leading up to Friday.

Hey! As of today, I have logged 97 miles! I will surpass 100 miles for the month on Tuesday after my 3-mile run! W00t! Then, add to that 19 miles from the race weekend and a Long Walk on that Sunday (for up to 11 miles), I may log a total of 130 miles for April!! How crazy is that!?

In May, I only have one race scheduled -- the Soldier Field 10-miler. Not really planning on running that race hard - I am treating this as a Fun Run, because the main excitement is to run down the field to the 50-yard Finish! For a Bears fan, it doesn't get much better than that. LOL But other than the 10-Miler, I am going to be reducing my running and increasing my walking in order to be fully prepared for the 39.3 mile AVON Walk. I need to get at least one 18-mile Walk in before the actual event.

So my plan for May is three Walks and one Run each week (the run will be a 6-Mile Easy Run). My three Walks will be a 6-Mile on Wednesdays, a Long Walk on Saturdays, and a 10-Mile Walk on Sundays. The Saturday-Sunday walks are similar to the event itself (which is like the WDW Goofy Challenge but for walking). This will get my body/feet comfortable with the two-day Walk schedule. My 18-Mile Walk is scheduled for the May 20th, 12 days before the AVON Walk itself. I should be in good shape at that point, with plenty of Taper time before June 2nd.

May is going to be another large mileage week, with over 100 miles of walking and 34 miles of running. This will probably be my highest mileage month of 2012. I worry that this might be too many miles! But I am not sure how else I can gradually increase the distance. I suppose I could skip or reduce the Sunday walks. We will have to see how my body responds. I definitely don't want to get injured.

But to raise money to help the fight against Breast Cancer, I am up for the challenge! And if you believe in this fight too, you can help me by making a donation. I appreciate your support.

Bring on the Illinois Marathon Weekend and the AVON Walk for Breast Cancer! I am stoked!!