Boston Marathon 3 (Reflection/Recovery)

The soreness is gone. I have been consuming lots of peanut butter, avocados, and milk to aid in my muscle recovery. I am jittery with anticipation to run today and I'm meeting my running group in just a few minutes. And, for the first time in my running life, I have that feeling of, "Now what?"

In the short term, what is next is a summer of shorter distance races that shift my focus from long distance training to increasing my speed workouts. However, I still want to maintain my huge base of miles. I think of myself more as a marathoner than a 5k or 10k racer these days, so I will probably do less intense track workouts (none?) and more longer runs. I think my running identity lies more with the marathon, and frankly, I think I'm a more competitive racer at the longer distances. My body lends itself more to distance running, too. Might as well use this coat hanger build to my advantage. I'm not designed to play football or explode with top-end speed in shorter races. So, I will go with what God gave me: namely, a body that can run lots of miles with minimal impact due to a small build.

In the long term, this recovery cycle will allow me to think about what marathon I might want to run in the fall and next spring. Right now, I'm thinking Memphis in December, but I'm completely open next Spring. There are lots of interesting races to be run.

I have spent the last week basking in the Boston afterglow, but it is time to turn my thoughts toward goals for the Summer and Fall.

1. Run a sub-17.30 5k by September
2. Set a 10k PR in October (currently 37.57)

I hope to do this while still keeping up my long-distance training so that I will be peaked for Memphis next fall.

Most of my entries are not quite this self-focused, but I wanted to get some goals down in writing for all to see and to help motivate me as I work through this Boston hangover.