It's been awhile...

...since my last post.

As thrilled as I was with finally breaking that 4 hour mark in Tulsa's Route 66 Marathon, I paid the price for the intense training.

It hit about two weeks after the Rock N Roll St. Louis marathon, about two weeks before the Tulsa Route 66 Marathon... a severe case of burn-out.

After St. Louis, I had every intention of picking up my training with a "12 - 12 - 8 - race" long run schedule culminating with Tulsa, but it just didn't work out, except for a half marathon on the week of that second 12 mile long run.  Even my week day runs were difficult to me to motivate to get out for.  I was doing good to run there miles every other day and to get five miles in on the weekends.  Thankfully, I was still able to pull off the sub-4 in Tulsa.

After Route 66, I decided it was time to relax the running schedule.  Hubby & I had signed up for a Thanksgiving morning 5k, which we still participated in (and I managed to still run a great race despite the marathon 5 days prior, finishing in 21:45 and missing 3rd in my age group by 4 seconds), and followed that up with a 5 mile fun run with the Belleville Running Club.  I didn't run another step after that until a week later, where I ventured out for an easy 4 miles.  It was really hard to believe that I had a whopping 2 running days in as many weeks - I can't remember the last time I ran that little.

I've actually managed to get out the door two days in a row this week...  I just couldn't pass up the awesome weather.  I ran a good 4 miles yesterday - it was 60* out - absolutely GORGEOUS for the beginning of December.  Today, it was 55* and raining, but the 3.25 miles I got in still felt good.

I definitely still want to take a relaxed approach to my training for the time being, but with the runDisney Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend approaching in a mere five weeks, where I will be participating in Goofy's Race & a Half Challenge, I need to get at least some base runs in to maintain my fitness.  No doubt I can complete the 39.3 total miles that weekend - I've done that on considerably less training five times before - but I still want a good base so that I come out healthy and ready to jump into my next training plan.

What's up next...

Well, if I can manage to get myself registered, I might just try to BQ (<3:35) at the Illinois Marathon on 27 April 2013.  It's a fast, flat and gorgeous course, and it's relatively close to home.  Top it off with an awesome medal and a finish line on the 50-yard line of the stadium, and you've got yourself a pretty good event.  The decision isn't final yet - but the thought is definitely there.