It’s crazy to think that Evan is already 6 months old! I know I say that every month, but I really do feel like I was 38 weeks pregnant and trying to “run” him out (unsuccessfully).
Seriously mom, wear hats all the time. They taste so good.
I initially planned on updating my running progress on a monthly basis — but I apparently overestimated the time and energy I would have to write my blog posts. Do you know that I used to post more than once a day? How did I do that?
So, to to follow up my last post on postpartum running – here’s my 6 month check in!
What and how I’m doing:
I’m still not up to any serious kind of mileage, but at 2-3 months postpartum I was happy to be hitting 10 miles a week. I’m happy to report that on an “on” week (more about that in a minute) I’ll hit about 20 miles. A far cry from when I was marathon training, but more than I’ve run for over a year.
I’ve gotten MUCH better at taking selfies though. Priorities.
As far as a running schedule goes… my body is STILL recovering from pregnancy. Since I’m breastfeeding, I still have extra hormones hanging around that make it difficult for me to go “balls to the wall.” My biggest weakness is my hips. I’ll feel great one week and then I’ll randomly have hip flexor pain. I think a lot of this is because I quit my chiropractor. It wasn’t something I WANTED to do necessarily, but his office has weird hours and none of them fit into my schedule. I discovered that there is a sports chiropractor near work – so I’m hoping to check him out soon.
Until then I will be following a “week on” and “week off” running schedule. One week I’ll put in 20-25 miles and the next I’ll put in 5-10. For whatever reason, it’s working right now. I feel stronger and faster every on week. I focus a lot on strength training on my off week. This schedule also makes me miss running – so when I comes time to get my long run in, I am completely pumped up for it!
Seriously – how good is this selfie?
What’s on the schedule?
My next race is the Orlando OUC Half Marathon on December 7th. This is my third time running it and it’s a favorite – I guess because I really enjoy running through my city!
After that I have two half marathons in January (back-to-back weekend– so I’ll really be pushing it) and The Best Damn Race in March:
- ZOOMA Florida <–Prettiest race you’ll ever run… read last year’s recap!
- Celebration Half
- Best Damn Race Orlando <– Better live up to its name
Psssst – I am a ZOOMA Amabassador — use code FLAAMB8 for a 10% discount!
What’s next?
I’d like to run a few more races in February and March, but I’m not committing to anything YET. Once April hits it’s generally too hot to run during the light of day, so after that my sights will be turned to MARATHON TRAINING! *excited*
I have yet to register for these said marathons (yes, plural), but it’s exciting to think about. Of course, I’m getting a little ahead of myself. I really need to focus on getting back to running 20-25 miles a week. I would help if Evan would start sleeping through the night (ha), but that doesn’t look like it’s happening any time soon. Instead, it means I need to start getting my ass up at 5am again to run.
Hmmm. I’ll you know how that’s going at my next check-in.
Inspirational words of wisdom (aka – a pep-talk to myself)
I’ve read a lot of blogs where women are up and running 2 week postpartum and running marathons after 4 months. And you know what? That’s awesome for them, I guess. A part of me thinks, “why would you want to run that much with a little baby?” I get it though. It helps them feel like them again.
I thought the hats were tasty — OMG the straps on these medal things are AMAZING. PLEASE KEEP RUNNING, MOM.
However, part of me is envious that they are able to “bounce back” so quickly. Here I am 6-months in and still struggling to build back my strength and speed. I know a lot of it has to do with priorities (I know it’s shocking that running isn’t my #1) and breastfeeding. But, I do want to put out there and remind MYSELF that it’s OK. Just because I’m not back to “normal” at 6 months postpartum doesn’t mean my body isn’t capable of doing more. It might take another 6 months or a year, but pushing my body beyond it’s limits is NOT a good idea when I have a little person who is primarily dependent upon ME.
So, if you’re like me and you aren’t running all the races or PRing all over the place, it’s cool man. Be patient and keep working at it. Instead of diving in head first you’re chipping away and building a solid base. At least that’s what I keep telling myself 😉
At least the baby is cute.
Yep. Worth it.