If I could summarize this week in one word it would be: exhausted. And the sad thing is, it had nothing to do with marathon training. I haven’t even reached high mileage or tough workouts. I think my fatigue came from a variety of factors: stress, poor sleep habits, and dehydration.

Something about running during the winter makes me forget that I’m still sweating and losing water. I think it’s because I’m freezing all the time. It’s easy to remember to drink water when it’s hot and you realize your thirst. So my big goal for this upcoming week is to make going to bed early and drinking water two main priorities.

Stress at school played a role too, but I’m not going to go into details there. We also had a little scare when Baby Girl tripped and fell and we needed to make an emergency trip to the ER for 4 stitches on her lip. She doing fine, but suffice to say, when a snow day was called on Friday, I was ecstatic. I needed the mental break and the chance to stay home with my kiddos. Trying to balance the stress at work and home is a constant struggle for all of us. Luckily this upcoming week is a short week and I’m looking forward to getting some work done around the house, spending time with kiddos, and maybe catching some extra sleep.

At times like this when I’m exhausted and I’m feeling like I can’t possible continue, I remember the words from Isaiah:

I can do this. I may be tired, but I can do this. I can be mindful not to wear myself straight into the ground, but rather take care of myself.

This week’s training was a little hit and miss. Some bad weather forced me on the treadmill a couple of times which I tried to make work as best as possible. I had a couple a really solid runs and a decent long run, so overall I’m pleased.

Weekly Training

• Monday: Treadmill run, 2.5 miles of fartleks and hill work. Not ideal, but all I could squeeze in after school.
• Tuesday: 6 early miles at about goal marathon pace (8:50/mile)
• Wednesday: 4 miles easy treadmill run (9:19/mile)
• Thursday: 6 early miles a little faster than goal marathon pace (8:42/mile)
• Friday: Rest/ recovery – 30 minutes of yoga, originally I had hoped for an easy run here, but I was wiped so I took it easy with some yoga instead.
• Saturday: 14 mile long run – probably ran this too fast for a long run (9:04/mile) probably will need to make a conscious effort to slow those long runs down.
• Sunday: Rest
• Weekly Total: 32.5 miles

I’m a little disappointed in my mileage, mostly because I didn’t really build from previous weeks, but like I said, overall I’m happy.

I have noticed that my goals of weight training are slipping away and I need to refocus on them. I really do NOT want to get injured this marathon cycle to I have to redirect my focus there.

Goals for this Week

• Drink more water
• Get to bed earlier
• Take a few moments to relax and recover
• Increase miles during the week, not long run.
• bring back yoga and weigh training

I need to keep reminding myself that I can do this. Even when I’m exhausted beyond belief. Even when I want to roll over and go back to bed when my alarm rings at 4 am. Even when life and work and family add stress and worry. We can do this. Let’s turn to our Heavenly Father, trust his promises, and rely on him for strength!

Are you training for anything? How is it going? What is your biggest obstacles to your training?

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