Tokyo Marathon Training: Weeks 6 to 10
Training Weeks 6 to 10 in a nutshell
- The slew of holiday parties have begun! But training never stops
- Half marathon in La Mesa Nature Reserve
- No more post-run yoga
- Can go faster without stressing my shins!
- Training break because of travel
Sprints
I started doing sprints. I do it on my first run for the week. Here’s what I do:
10:00 warm-up
8 x 1:00 sprint
8 x 1:00 easy pace
10:00 cool down
For longer runs, I started extending my runs in BGC to the McKinley area. I’m learning to love the hills there.
I continued climbing 6a and 6b routes and doing indoor cycling as part of cross-training. I should be doing more running drills on cross-training days.
No more post-run yin yoga
Since my weekday runs were getting longer, I found that I didn’t have time to go to 334 Yoga studio to join the yin yoga classes. I used to be able to do it when my runs were shorter. I’m normally hungry after my long runs and I so I have to eat right away. I can only run in the afternoons or early nights because that is the only time my work schedule allows it. I was sad to let go of yoga during weekdays, but it just wasn’t fitting my schedule.
I’m of the mindset that some things shouldn’t feel forced. Training is no exception. If there is no space to do yoga as part of training, then it is out! No use trying to make it happen. The more you want to make it happen, the more that it will feel like work you have to do. Then the fun in it is gone. Training is a commitment and you have to design your life around it. However selfish that may sound, that’s just how it is. Every second of your time is a conscious decision to support this commitment. One’s commitment shouldn’t falter, but the methods to honor this commitment should be flexible. Yoga is a method in this case. There are other methods to train.
Half marathon on trail
Week is when I’m supposed to do the half marathon. Thought it would be fun to do it on trail. Cali and I went to the La Mesa Nature Reserve (LMNR) one Sunday. It’s a bit of a drive from where we live but it was a welcome detour. It’s a nice change of scenery from my usual weekend long runs on road. LMNR is a hilly, forested area with a reservoir in the middle. I thought I could use some outdoor training for the Annapurna Basecamp Trek that we would be doing next week.
It is required to hire a guide to run in the LMNR. We paid a total of PHP 1000 for guide services. We texted LMNR a few days before to let them know we were coming, and they assigned a guide to go running with us. On the day of the run, our assigned guide asked us what distance we wanted to do then off we went!
Weeks 9 to 10: No training
I took a scheduled break for two weeks. We went to Nepal to do the Annapurna Basecamp Trek, which took us 8 days total. It was a dream come true and I’ll write about it separately. I didn’t have time to continue my training runs there in Nepal.
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