Racing Chalkboard

I just posted my new training schedule up on the kitchen chalkboard. I don't think race schedules was what Doug had in mind but our cute little chalkboard has become the place to post the latest training plans as well as the place to write little notes to each other that often look like: 'Gone for a run. Be back by 5. Love, C' or 'peanut butter and raisins'.

Last night, my training schedule was posted just below Doug's NY marathon training plan. I made sure mine looked like his so we could glance at it and see what each person was planning to do on any given day.

I have three, maybe four, races planned for the next few months and, until I sat down with my calendar, I had no idea when to start training. I've been running three times a week since my half in June: 5k on Tuesdays, 7k on Thursdays and 10k on Saturdays. Enough to keep my legs moving but not enough to help me get faster and stronger. And I don't typically run other races during a training schedule - I just focus on the race at the end of the plan. This time though, it's looking a little different.

Race number one is the Niagara triathlon on August 12th. That's coming up a little too quickly for comfort. I can already swim, bike and run the distances so I just need to keep healthy, get a few brick trainings in and make time to train on the notoriously nasty ride up the Niagara Escarpment. I've ridden that hill four times now and it still scares me. The ride up is really really hard and the ride down is really really scary. I need to practice it a few more times so I feel a little more comfortable on race day. Other than that I am guaranteed a personal best since it will be my first sprint triathlon and I'm just doing it for fun and for the experience. No expectations here.

Race number two is the Guelph triathlon. I'll decide about that one once I do Niagara and once I have a few weeks of longer runs under my belt. If all is going well, I'll sign up. If not, I'm not too worried. It will be there next year.

Race number three is the Medtronic Twin Cities 10-miler on October 7th. Doug and I just completed our registration the other night and it's getting pretty exciting to think that, in a few short months, we will be wearing our Global Heroes singlets and racing together.

Race number four is two weeks later - the Niagara Falls Half Marathon. I've never run that half but I ran long stretches of that route several times training for the marathon last year. Enough to know that it's beautiful and very flat.

None of these races are very complicated or problematic. I just needed to sit down with my calendar and my training schedule and work out the days of my long runs, my easy weeks and my taper. Now that the schedule is up, I get to make a little checkmark next to every run I complete. It's fun to watch the weeks go by and the checkmarks pile up. It's reassuring to feel my confidence grow as I run 12k, 14k, 16k, 18k...

This is my first half marathon training when I also want to make sure I fit in three swims a week and, ideally, two bike rides. That's a lot of activity and more than I've ever done before while training for a race.

First things first - post the training plan.

Then I can start freaking out (just a little) at all the other stuff I'll be doing.