Picking up where we left off
Finishing out week 2 - 2026 Santa Cruz Marathon
Originally published 5/19/26
With my cold behind me and my allergies in full swing, we are finally getting closer to goal mileage and a full week’s worth of runs! Since the last time I wrote, I ended up needing 5 more days to fully recover and get back to running. Fortunately I was able to hit both my tempo and long runs and feel pretty good about both of them. I do think I need to hit up the pharmacy for some Flonase or something because the congestion is seriously gunking up my throat after 15 minutes of running outdoors (if only I had taken up my ENT’s offer to prescribe me some while I still had Medi-Cal…)
Training Updates
As I mentioned last time, I am following Hal Higdon’s Marathon 3 plan. What I did not mention was that one of the distinguishing features of this plan is the appearance of not one, not two, but THREE 20 mile runs. That’s right. I believe the logic is to ensure we hit the necessary mileage to feel properly prepared for the marathon distance. It’s balanced out by more frequent stepback or taper weeks (every 3 weeks. Get it? Since it’s the 3 plan?) and a longer timeline of 24 weeks.
I had accounted for travel and such when plotting out when to begin this plan, but my foresight did not acknowledge the possibility of illness, and being out of commission set me back a week. Rather than jump straight to week 3, I’m deciding to just cut one of the 20 mile weeks and pick up where I left off on week 2. Navigating training schedule interruptions is always tricky, but I’m currently of the opinion that in the beginning it’s better to slowly ramp up and sacrifice a late-plan long run rather than jump ahead too drastically in mileage and risk an early injury.
I don’t think I spoke too much about my nutrition goals last time, but for the moment I’m just trying to convince myself to drink more protein shakes. I’m a fan of Lunar Lifts, but the only flavor I have left is Brown Sugar Boba which 1) is a vegan protein powder, meaning it’s unfortunately a bit grainy, though I heard they recently updated their formula to address this, and 2) tastes exactly like Brown Sugar Boba tea which is great except for the fact that I rarely get Brown Sugar Boba tea. Don’t get me wrong, I like the flavor, but it’s not exactly my everyday carry if you know what I mean. My only other “we have protein powder at home” option is Target-generic vanilla, which I refuse to ingest unless it is in a smoothie. Someday I will migrate our blender from the storage cabinet to the kitchen counter. Today is not that day.
Running Highlights
The first run I accomplished post-sickness was a 30 minute tempo run, which means we are back to decimal points in my mileage (sorry integer lovers). I do think I ramped up a little too quickly too soon, so my 5 minute “maintain peak” pace hit at the 12 minute mark rather than 15. I was able to hit sub-10 for that fast pace, and apparently peaked at 8:57 so that felt really good and comparable to what I was able to accomplish early in my running career 10 years ago. I did have to work to keep the speed up for 5 minutes, but for someone who doesn’t consistently do tempo runs, I felt pretty good about myself, especially when my Garmin automatically registered the run as a tempo. Also I saw a really fluffy pomeranian.
My second run was actually my first long run of the training bloc: a whopping 7 miles! Not gonna lie, mentally this one felt a little more daunting, especially since I missed the 6 mile long run from week 1. I really had to work for this one.
I don’t think it helped that I didn’t have the best preparation that day; I ran in the late afternoon/early evening after a fat post-brunch nap. My pre-run fueling was a can of fruit and a protein bar… mmm… not really what I would usually eat or recommend. I did go out with my running vest for the first time since the LA Marathon, which fortunately still had several gels packed in it, saving my life a mere ten minutes into the run when my legs started to get the shaky “energy low” warning.
The weather was both windy and hot, with the sun setting directly in my face. To make matters worse, disaster of the gastrointestinal flavor struck precisely at mile 5. You learn a lot about yourself in a state beach’s public restroom. For example, I learned that maybe it’s not a good idea to eat mac and cheese two meals in a row prior to a run. I also learned that my jogging-induced BM experience is known as “runner’s trot.” Not exactly the kind of trot I prefer on my runs. That would be Daesung’s latest single, Hando-Chogua (iykyk).
i spent way too long trying to make this
The last two miles were comparatively uneventful. I finished just in time to see the sunset, which my phone camera captured quite poorly.
Running Stats
Week 2.5 Mileage: 9.8 miles
Thursday, 5/14 - 2.8 miles, 30:00, 10:38/mi
Saturday, 5/16 - 7 miles, 1:26:36, 12:21/mi
Total Training Bloc Mileage: 20.8 miles
Total 2026 Mileage: 241.8 miles
