First official day of training

I have reviewed a ton of training plans, and i guess there is not silver bullet other than to say that whatever feels best and fits with your lifestyle should be the one to use. I reviewed several off of runnersworld.com under the smartcoach. It gives you the options of putting in times for recent runs, how hard you want to train and for how long. The one i choose was a bit different than many as it only recommends you running 2 days a week, with the other 5 being rest or cross training days. First week is 11 total miles, and takes the stair step up then down, then up again approach.

Cross training for me is going to be easy runs, stationary bike, and possibly swimming with plenty of weights. I have found some great workouts from Mens Health for core and strength training to make sure i am giving equal time to all muscle groups.

Most things i have seen recommend training with someone. that is tough for me as i have almost always run on my own. I have run with several of my friends in workouts and in races, but i "got the bug" more than most of them and in most cases have gotten faster than them, which has seemed to make them less open to run with me. That and life tends to get in the way. Many of my friends are now having kids, and I completely understand (as you see the picks below) how that can change you time allotment in your life. Anyway, i want to do this training on my own, and know that it will be a tough road, especially in those last 5 or 6 miles of the marathon when you have the virtual wall rear its ugly head. I hope this blog will serve as my venting place, and if a few people read it and respond to give advice, great!

Ran 2.5 miles at 9:13 pace (this is a XT day) Dumbell squat to press, 2 sets of 10 with 35#, leg lifts 2 sets of 12