Now that the Mighty Niagara Half-Marathon is over, I have entered into what I am considering my off season.

It sounds so funny for me to be using an athletic type term, lol. I’ve never thought of myself as “athletic” until the past year. Training for the marathon and the various half-marathons Dave and I have been doing has really changed my thinking.

Even though I will never be an “elite” ANYTHING, I do think I have earned the right to think of myself as athletic (even if nobody else does!)

I’m a little nervous going into this period of not training for anything.  I am the type of person that does much better with a goal. Run 8 miles, run 12 miles, run backwards 1 mile with 5 bunny hops and 2 hand-stands….whatever the training says to do, I will do. Well, as long as it’s physically possible…I can’t do hand-stands!

So I will have to proceed with a “goal” of making sure I get out there and run to keep up my fitness level so I am not starting at ground zero when I start marathon training in January (did I tell you I signed up for the Buffalo Marathon again??? YAY!).

The Plan

The internet is a wonderful place for runners, and I have been doing a bit of research on what I will do in this off-season. Most plans aren’t really plans, but direct the runner to drop mileage between 20-30% depending on who you ask.

I’ve pretty much settled on running by time, though, not by mileage. So Mondays and Fridays get out for 40 minutes, Wednesdays for 60 and once on the weekend for 90 minutes.

I’m also going to run by “feel” not pace. If I feel great and bouncy and fast, I’ll run that way. If I’m sluggish and just not feelin’ it…I’ll run like it! Determining that before-hand gives me “permission” to run how I want instead of trying to beat my last run or keep a certain pace…a great way to burn-out or develop an injury.

We have some really nice trails that are beautiful in the Fall, so I am hoping to get out and run some of those to mix it up a bit. When Dave and I are training for a race, we stick closer to home since we have a bike path that stretches for miles right outside our door.

Cross Training

The calorie-burn from running is a great benefit of the sport, and I want to be able to keep that up (hello, weekend eating) so I will be hitting the gym more regularly than I have been.

Spin classes, yoga, swimming and strength training are all on my “to-do” list (there are A LOT of air quotes in this post).

Cross training is something runners really need to get better at. Those of us who love to run have a hard time devoting any time to other kinds of training, but it really will help us run.

I’m certainly bad at fitting in cross and strength training, but during these next few months I want to focus on making it a habit so when I get back into marathon training I have some good cross training routines in place.

I really like Fitness Blender for at-home workouts. I’ve been wanting to concentrate on my upper body and abs for a while now, so use their Youtube videos on the days I don’t run.

My Runs so far

The first week of running by time was really good. It was nice not to be married to my watch, and I was able to not look at my pacing or miles.

The cooler weather has made running very enjoyable and I am finding myself really excited to run. Not having a race to prepare for a race also makes the run fun again, since I am not trying to hold a pace (which I SUCK at).

I am going to continue to run by minutes and not miles and see what I think. Not sure if I want to do it for training yet, I need to see if I feel like my running is improving.

Yesterday’s run was an hour and a half on the Tonawanda Rails to Trails. That time will be my staple weekend long run, though I do want to do some a bit longer once every few weeks.

Bladder Issues

The first half mile was miserable… my coffee kicked in and I had to pee SO BAD! I actually almost considered stopping. Thank goodness a gas station came into view!

By the way…this may be a little TMI…but if you do have to go on the run, make sure to empty your bladder.

It is tempting to get in and out fast so we can get on the road again. I tend to try to rush it and then feel like I have to go in another half hour. When you think you’re done, give it another minute or two…you may be surprised at how much more you can go!

Urine that doesn’t get out can lead to Urinary Tract Infections and also the uncomfortable feeling of having to go, which when running can feel like torture with every step.

If you seem to have trouble emptying…try this trick. Lean forward and touch your toes while on the toilet. It will put your body in a position to “want” to fully go.

I took the time to make sure I was empty and you know what? I felt so much better, without having any more nagging feelings. At 51, I usually have to go 24/7 so that was a miracle!

I did a post on athletic incontinence here, and some things you can do about it if you tend to leak during exercise.

Well…that got off the rails, lol.

Back to the run…

My legs felt really heavy and tired, but I let myself feel that and slowed down. When I run by minutes, I can go fast or slow and the goal isn’t going to change, so why not make it enjoyable.

Especially for what should be a long, easy run. I hear trainers, coaches and elites say over and over that most of us run our easy runs much too fast.

One of my goals for this off-season is to learn how to take it easy on my easy days so when I get to my training season I know what that feels like.

By January, I will be ready to get back into the harder work of training and hopefully will see the benefits of giving my body a break!

UPDATE: My Thoughts on Running by Minutes

As I read last weeks post about Running by Time, I was laughing as I read how enthusiastic I was!

When you have a blog, many times the posts are started a few months before the actual publication date. This particular post was started back in September and as I type this we are almost to Thanksgiving.

After a couple months of running the minutes over miles, I have a few pro’s vs. cons…for me personally, anyway.

Please note, I still think it is a great way for beginners to start running. I have a friend who was able to run for 30 minutes straight in only a short amount of time after never having run before.

There are people who train this way all the time, and for them it is ideal. Only you know you, so I would still encourage anyone to check out running by time.

And check out Tina Muir’s post on it here, if you are interested in investigating more from an elite runners perspective.

All that being said…here are MY pro’s and cons.

Time Over Distance Pros

A big thing for me is not having to really think about my pace/speed/etc. I can just go out for a run. The App I use (Intervals) counts down the minutes for me, and tells me when I am half-way done but doesn’t let me know when I hit each mile.

This can make the run more enjoyable since I am not focussed on my watch and I have a definite end and know exactly when that will be. That makes it easier to figure out how hard I can go.

I also like being able to figure out based on what kind of day I have scheduled when it makes sense to run. If it’s Wednesday and I have an appointment at 11am, but I know I am supposed to run for an hour I know I can do it at 9 and still be where I need to be.

When I run by distance, it isn’t as cut and dried (although we all have a good idea of how long it will take us for certain distances). I may wait until I get home (when I’m less likely to go out again for the run) if I feel like it would be stressful to try and get a run in before having to be somewhere.

Running by time also makes it much easier to pick what podcast episode I’m going to listen to!

Time Over Distance Cons

I LIKE the challenge of goals. I’m much happier reaching a goal of 6 miles, over 60 minutes. Even though I am enjoying my runs, at the end of it I would rather see a whole number in the distance category.

There is something psychological about running for distance for me that spurs me on. Even though I can look at my watch and know “ok, you have to run for 10 more minutes” it isn’t the same for me in my head as “ok, you have to run for another mile”. I don’t know why and it is hard to explain, but the brain part of running for me is more satisfied and encouraged by distance.

As I have said many times, I suck at pacing. I just can’t do it. I will THINK I am running at a certain pace, but I’m wrong every time! That is one of the reasons I wanted my husband to run a half-marathon with me during my marathon ( a nice perk for the Buffalo Half and Full is they start at the same time which is nice if you run with someone who runs the opposite distance). He keeps me on pace so I don’t burn out.

That being said, I have been trying to find what will be the magic that teaches me how to be better at pacing. When I run by time, I can’t see that… so even though I am more in tune to how I feel and adjust to the physical…I am totally lost as far as what my actual pace is.

This is fine for running in the off-season, but wouldn’t be ideal for me when I am training for a race.

I don’t know until the end of my run what the miles and paces were. Most of the time that doesn’t matter. But if I go into a race with a time goal, there are strategies I use that demand I know the pace. Which can be slowed down if I am having to look at my watch all the time…hence my push to learn what paces feel like.

If I feel like crap, or I’m crabby or I just don’t want to be out…running by time doesn’t end until that time runs out. Some days I just don’t want to know I have 15 more minutes of misery. Running by distance allows me to end it faster by speeding up! Not always what I should be doing…but it gets the job done.

Training Season

So what does all that mean for training season?

While I am definitely enjoying my running, I don’t think I will run by time while training for the next marathon. My brain just doesn’t like it as well as running by distance.

I am going to stick it out over the next few months, and perhaps I will re-train my mind to be more open to it. It will probably be something I re-visit next year during my off-season and try again.