Training while Packing

One of the most difficult parts of training for a marathon is trying to keep up with all of the "other things" life tosses your way. This weekends long run was a bit difficult as I spent most of the weekend packing up my apartment. I'm moving into a new apartment tomorrow. Although I only had to do a 13 mile run today, my energy level was pretty low. Packing up an entire apartment takes a lot of time and energy. Afterwards, I'd usually spend the entire day relaxing on the couch. Today I'm sucking it up and continuing with the packing of boxes. Days like this I remind myself that I'm lucky to even be able to train for a marathon. There are others out there who may not be healthy enough.

Don't forget to check out my personal fundraising page for the American Cancer Society:
http://main.acsevents.org/goto/Kevin.Fletcher


Until next time,


-Kev

18 Miles with Meg!!

Today I ran 18 miles with my friend Meg who is also training for the Chicago Marathon. Check out her blog here: http://runningwithoutheels.wordpress.com/. This is the longest distance I've conquered thus far in my training. I usually train solo, but having Meg along helped a ton. When you're running 3 hours straight without music, having a buddy along the way can help pass time. Meg and I haven't talked in a while, so our 3 mile run was a nice time to catch up. Everything went well for the most part. We planned different loops around the Charles so that we'd have multiple chances to refill our fuel belts with water. It was also helpful having a partner, as those last few miles got a bit rough. Hearing that "we're almost there" and "we can do it" can go a long way when you're ready to stop and walk. Looking forward to running my 20 miler with Meg in a few weeks. That will be the longest distance in the training program. My legs are sore, hoping they'll recover for my next run in a few days.

The marathon is only 49 days away. Check out a photo of the beginning of last years race. I can't wait to join the sea of other athletes!!

Don't forget to check out my fundraising page for the American Cancer Society, every dollar helps!!
http://main.acsevents.org/goto/Kevin.Fletcher

Until next time,

-Kev

Lost in the Woods

"Lost in the Woods"....sounds like the title of a scary movie or something. This week it applies to my 15 mile run I tried to tackle! I left my apartment early this morning in an attempt to beat the heat and try out a new route along the Charles. My usual routes never really go past the J.F.K St bridge, but this week I planned to go out towards the Mt. Auburn St bridge in Watertown. Everything seemed to be going as planned until I reached around mile 9. The area along the Charles river near Watertown is pretty much new territory for me. I ran with a fuel belt filled with H2O and Gatorade, but with the heat steadily increasing early in the morning, I seemed to start to run a little low. Usually there are water fountains along the Charles I can depend on to rehydrate. This time to my surprise there were none! So that was the first downfall in my run for the day. Then I went on to get lost while trying to find the Mt. Auburn St bridge. I somehow got off course, and ended up turning around and crossing over the river at the N. Beacon St. Bridge. This "lost in translation" probably added about 2 miles to my 15 mile run. So not only was I lost, and running in unchartered territory, but I was also completely out of fluids. It was extremely hot, and for one of the first times during my training runs, I was plain frustrated!! Running is a very mental game, and when you lose your focus, its very difficult to get back on track. Getting lost turned a normal training run into a miserable voyage back to my apartment. My only goal at that point was to make it back home, hopefully passing a water fountain on the way. I'll even admit that I even walked part of the way, something I usually try not to do unless stopping at an intersection! I guess all of my runs can't be "perfect". A definite lesson learned from this one, always plan for the unexpected, and don't let getting lost get you down! After getting back to my apartment and stretching at a nearby park, I went out for some food with a buddy to rant and refuel.

Hopefully next week's long run will be a bit more pleasurable!

Until next time,
-Kevin

Tackling the Back Cove

This week my midweek runs have reached 7 miles. Its awesome that 7 miles no longer feels difficult at all to tackle. Although only a minor portion of the 26, its still great to feel like running 7 miles is a short run for me. I still recall the days when even tackling a mile was a breather! It feels good to consistently see progress. I'm truly a believer that anyone can make the same progress with CONSISTENT training. Your body is an amazing being that adapts like no other! Ok enough of that rant, this weeks 7 mile run allowed me to tackle the Back Cove Trail in Portland. The "locals" have raved about this trail, and I was happy to finally see what it was all about. The Eastern Promenade Trail in front of our work hotel connects to the Back Cove making for a little over 7 miles. So yesterday morning I woke up early before checking out to get in my run. Although it was raining a bit, the run was pretty pleasant. I think the odd part was running under an underpass where the two trails connect! It was also great that the Back Cove had multiple water fountains along the trail, making for a nicely hydrated run. After my run was over, I stopped in the hotel lobby to pick up some breakfast to "refuel". I'm starting to realize now how important fueling and refueling really is as the miles increase. Although its kind of hard to keep up with the calories, I can tell that my appetite has increased drastically, and that I'm always hungry! I'm sure anyone out there training for a marathon feels my pain. I guess I'll have to increase the amount of cliff bars and protein shakes I take in during the day.

Well thats all for now. Until next time!
-Kevin

Also don't forget to donate to the American Cancer Society and help me reach my $1,000 goal!!
http://main.acsevents.org/goto/Kevin.Fletcher

Running in Portland

After returning from vacation at the beach, I began a new project for work in Portland, Maine. This prompted an immediate change in my running schedule. Now that I was on the road Monday through Thursday, I decided to adjust my running schedule so that my long runs were now on Sundays instead of Saturdays. The cross training and day "off" at the beginning of my travel week made things alot easier. I was also lucky in that my hotel was right in front of a running trail! This made it very easy to wake up at 5:30 am and get my run in before the day started. The trail in front of the hotel was right along the coast with a boating dock and small beach.

This made for nice scenery during a run! Although it took some discipline, I can say that for the most part I have kept up with my running over the past two weeks. Mid week runs in Portland, and long runs on Sundays in Boston. This weeks milestone was reaching the 13 mile long run mark. Although I've ran a half-marathon before, it still felt great to get to this point in my training plan. This 13 mile run was also much easier than my half marathon. I guess my fitness is starting to improve. I finished with energy left in the tank at the end. I even sprinted part of the last mile!

Until next time,
-Kevin

Training at the Beach!!

Summertime usually brings a few vacations if you're lucky. I was able to spend the past week vacationing with friends at the beach. Its always nice to get out of the city and just relax. However, its not as easy to keep up with your training while "away". I was disciplined this time and stuck to my schedule. The initial run at the beach was a 6 mile run. This was probably the most difficult due to the weather. Anyone on the east coast can probably empathize with me on this one. Even running at night next to the ocean was just plain difficult. The air was so thick, you could hardly breathe. The next run, a short 3 miler wasn't too bad as the humidity eased up a bit. Running along the beach provided my legs with a nice soft surface. A very nice break from the concrete and roads while training in Boston. It was also calming to run along hearing the waves crashing and smelling the salt water of the ocean. My long run for this training cycle was only 7 miles, a step back week. Instead of running on the beach, I decided to run along the streets and explore the shops and scenery of the beach town I was visiting. Running at sunset was pretty amazing. The sunset was so picturesque, I actually stopped for a minute to take it all in. I wish I had a camera with me to show you all just how beautiful it was. Instead I'll have to leave you with a similar photo I found online. Until next time!

-Kevin

P.S. Don't forget to donate to the American Cancer Society, I still have a ways to go to reach my $1,000 goal!!

http://main.acsevents.org/goto/Kevin.Fletcher

Back on Track

It has been a while since my last post. I have continued on with my training, however; I will admit that I have skipped a few running days! It's way too easy to skip a day, or 2.....ok maybe 3 days during the summer!! During a recent vacation, I packed my running shoes and was determined to keep up with my schedule while "away". A few "nights out on the town", and various other distractions later, I skipped nearly a week of running! My first morning back in Boston, I was determined to get back on track. I made a slight detour from my running schedule and ran 6 miles over the normal weekly 3 mile runs to make myself feel better. I'm happy to report that the 6 mile runs are starting to feel shorter and shorter each time!

On Saturday morning, I went for a nice 10 mile run around the Charles River. Although all of the preparation for the Boston fireworks caused a few runner "detours", I did get a behind the scenes view of all the preparation that went into preparing for such a big show! Check out the clip I took below from the finale of the amazing fireworks display on July 4th in Boston.

Ok, back to the running now. Since this was a pretty long run, I decided to use my GU energy gels and the fuel belt for hydration. I haven't had the GU's in a while, but the chocolate outrage flavor was a pretty awesome treat midway through my run. It tastes just like chocolate pudding! It was also great to have the fuel belt with the extreme heat outside. I'm trying to be extremely careful about hydrating myself so that I don't end up with heat exhaustion.

At the end of the 10 mile run, I did a nice stretch routine in the park near my apartment which was awesomely relaxing. I also gulped down 2 large Powerades! I'm thinking I'll have to pack my fuel belt next weekend with H20 and powerade to keep up with my thirst.

I also find it funny how ridiculously hungry I am after a long run of 10 miles. I had tons of carbs a few days before, and had a lsnack before my run. After the run I had a protein shake and more pasta. Two hours later I was still hungry! One of my buddies invited me out for Mexican food, so I let the awesome enchiladas and nachos take care of my appetite. If running this much allows me to eat as much food as this, I think i'll keep it up!

This was a pretty long post, but like I said before it has been a while. I am back on track now with all of my training, and look forward to my midweek runs reaching 5 miles this week. I'll continue to keep you posted.

Also, don't forget to donate to the American Cancer Society. I still have a long way to reach my $1,000 fundraising goal: http://main.acsevents.org/goto/Kevin.Fletcher

Until next time,

-Kev