I was looking over the calendar and was surprised to find I have 16-18 weeks until the marathon depending which I chose. For whatever reason I thought I would only have 12 or 13 weeks and its nice to have the unexpected extra training time.

So now what do I do with all of this time. I know from experience that I am just not good at following a strict plan, training for me is more effective when I kind of do my own thing. Looking back to past races, Chicago, although not my fastest, was the best marathon I have run. In the 15 weeks leading up to this race I had consistent 60+ weekly mileage with some tempo runs, fast finish long runs, and mid-week long runs that built up to 15 miles as I approached the taper. I dropped weekly mileage goals on the calendar and each week I would plan my runs to reach this goal. This year I plan to do the same thing with the major goals being:

1. Consistent mileage
2. At least one session of speedwork each week including, tempo, fartlek and intervals.
3. Easy miles on easy days

If I stick to these three simple ideas I think things will go well. Sounds easy, now I just have to put it into practice, get out there each day, and keep the enthusiasm up.

Last night I put in 8+ miles mostly on Forbidden Drive in 64 minutes. I felt smooth but a little tired at the end. The trip up Rex Hill at the end took nearly 5 minutes, more than a minute more than my best, I was moving slow at the end.

This morning 4+ miles around Chestnut Hill. I was surprised at how cool the air was when I stepped out the door and I was happy that I was able to get up. I definitely enjoy these slow, lazy morning runs when most of the world is still asleep. Especially this time of year when the sky brightening by 5:00 and I can run into the sunrise 36 minutes.