Half Marathon Training Done – Now What?

Just like that my half marathon training came to an end – a good end I will say. After starting back in June, yes June, I finally managed to get the distance in without any major injury during my run. After finishing my half is a different story but I’m working on strengthening my hamstring/glutes once again.

Now what? What does one do when they finish their training, complete the race (or not), having nothing left on the agenda? Well, you set other goals. You plan for the next *thing* and you relax a little 😉 You rejoice in 12-18 weeks of hard work, sore muscles and tears.

I don’t have any “races” booked for the upcoming months (2015) and  only recently starting to think about 2016 races I want to do….that list is long but I will narrow it down. I also have a different list of goals I want to achieve next year. Yes, I’m already thinking about 2016 goals, new year resolutions, challenges etc. And that’s a good thing because it means I’m not going to stop running or trying to get stronger. I’ll spare you the details of my goals until next year though 🙂

In December there is a local 5k Santa shuffle (for lack of better word) that I’d like to do however, my husband is away that day so I need to figure out child care and then get my girls to their indoor soccer practices. That is still a month and a bit away so no rush on that one.

261 fearless oct 26

What now?

Well, I need to work on getting my hamstring better. Better? Yes, it’s still not 100%. The PEI half marathon took the good out of my leg as it was sore for close to five days post run. THAT was upsetting because I had had numerous long runs without difficulty.  I think it was because of two things 1 – the last 5k was rolling HILLS and 2 – I didn’t stretch like I normally did after my other long runs. #mistake Most of my long runs did not end with 5k of massive rolling hills and you need strong glutes and hammy’s for those hills.

So for now, I’ll run when I can, attend lunch time yoga when my schedule permits, hit up GoodLife Fitness here and there and work at making my glutes and hamstrings stronger. I’ll be honest, I don’t wish to relive the pain of 2015, the months of frustration and the multiple forms of treatment to feel normal again. I’m not even sure I’ll feel normal again but am hopeful.

I’ve put indoor soccer on the back burner which is huge for me. I desperately love playing soccer and may have had too much fun playing keep-a-way with Hilary at the Parent-n-Tot program last Sunday. I felt in my element on the turf with the soccer ball, running around.

Do you have any more races lined up for the rest of 2015?

Have you started to think about 2016?

What are you looking forward to the most over the upcoming months?

8 thoughts on “Half Marathon Training Done – Now What?

  1. I have the Wine and Dine half in a little over a week, and I think I’ll be doing a Santa race in December, but that’s probably it for the rest of the year. And yes, I’m already thinking about 2016 too!

  2. For 2015, I just need to make it through the next two weeks. Then I can recover, maybe do some holiday runs and REST. For 2016, I am registered for Boston and I am eyeing up the Kentucky Derby Marathon. Other than that, I want to run shorter distances! Congrats again on the half. Your hammy will heal now that it’s all over!!! Keep it up with the PT!!

  3. I hate that post-race feeling! I just ran my last half of 2015 on Sunday and now I’m also thinking that I’ll back off for a while and work on strength training and yoga to get stronger for next year.

  4. Agh, post race is such a bittersweet time. Celebrating your success or evaluating a crummy race and then deciding on what’s next. I have no races on the 2015 agenda, although I usually do the santa shuffle, so we’ll see. My only ‘for sure’ race in 2016 is Boston and training begins in December!

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