What to do on an off day?

So you’re training for a marathon. Maybe a half-marathon. Even a 5K, 10K, or a mud run. In our town, they host Color Runs. I best describe these as running a 5K while having a food fight.

Not sure about the shorter distances, but for marathon and half-marathon training, the good news is that you’re not running everyday. You’d quite frankly get burned out and feel like “mud.” People say you get what you pay for, but keeping in mind the RunKeeper App is free, you get a lot. There is a paid version of it, but from what I see, the free version handles all your basic needs. Today being an off-day, it even offers words of encouragement or a helpful tip. Today’s tip:

Empty carbs are the enemy! Delicious as they might be …

I signed up for the marathon training plan about 150 days away from the actual event and it has me running Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday up until the day of the race. I’m sure if you signed up 100 days away, there would be a different plan and I don’t envy the person that signs up for the marathon training plan 50 days away from the event. It will probably just say, “Are you kidding?” and tell you to think about next year as their helpful tip.

So what to do on your off days? Here are 5 tips.

1. Celebrate your accomplishment. This will help maintain your passion, enthusiasm, and energy as you press on towards your goal.
2. Change your routine. Doing anything repetitively can and most likely will cause damage. Running isn’t exempt from this. All that road-pounding has to do something to our knees, backs, and feet. Do some pushups which help strengthen your running posture. Even a short walk and some light stretching will be a helpful change to loosen you up for the next day’s activities.
3. Reflect on your past activities. Reflecting offers a way of measuring progress. You don’t how far you’ve come if you don’t know where you’ve been. My Day 1 was at a 10:49 pace and I had to stop 3 times for a 4.91 mile run. My Day 115 was at a 9:08 pace with no stops for a 6 mile run. Reflecting allows you to celebrate your progress and address the areas that need improvement.
4. Stay positive. Making a decision to get up and move was the hard part. Now that you have made the decision, do your best and forget the rest.
5. Get some rest. Sleep is the best way to recover from the previous days activities and prepare for the upcoming activities. It can help prevent injury and you’ll just feel less fatigued. Now if I can only listen to my own advice.

Morning weight = 170

Today’s Meals:

When Did I Eat

• 8:15am (Meal 1) — Herbalife Protein, Fruit, and Veggie Smoothie. Jamba Juice got nothing on me!
• 10:15am (Meal 1.1) — Snack time. High in protein, low in calorie. My kind of snack.

• 1pm (Meal 2) — Homemade Grilled Cheese. Actually, homemade gourmet grilled cheese. Nothing says gourmet like American Kraft Cheese Singles. For more protein, 4 slices of Morning Star Veggie Bacon and my favorite salty snack, Original Lays.

• 2pm (Meal 2.1) — Herbalife Herbal Concentrate Tea. I use this as my secret fat burning weapon. If I didn’t make such a good choice, Herbalife Tea to the rescue. It’s my food superhero.

• 5:45pm (Meal 3) — Johnny Rockets boca burger (extra crispy) and some fries. A little known secret. They have bottomless fries! But like my friend Angela “Bon Qui Qui” Johnson says, “Don’t get crazy!” Now, the Apple Pie Shake is an entirely different story!

Today’s Activities:

• Rest day.

Thursday, 10-03-2013