Marathon Training Officially Begins July 6th!

I'm trying to slowly get back to running 3 days a week at least plus starting that long run on the weekend thing. I ran 6 on Monday, 3 yesterday, and plan on running 4 this evening. According to the handy Runners World schedule, I should be jumping into official marathon training next week for the Marine Corps Marathon. Yup. And so it begins. I'm trying to get my girl-positive hat on but honestly, getting back into already seems mighty soon. I was just getting used to being 'run whenever the hell I feel like it' girl.

Tomorrow evening will be week two at the track and I have my fingers crossed that I wont have that overwhelming feeling that I want to barf like I did last week. Then on Saturday, our group long run calls for 6-8. I do like that we are starting off with such low mileage, that's for sure. In addition, I'm trying to keep up with my twice weekly strength training class because I really enjoy it which is most important but secondly, I really feel like the weight training helped with my running when I was training for Shamrock.

Speaking of running and strength training and being as big a bad-ass as you can be, have you ever heard of Tracy Anderson? She is Madonna and Gwyneth Paltrow's trainer. And apparently, she wants us all to have the body of a 12-year old, pre-pubescent girl. She just launched a new gym in New York where the membership will only run you $900 a month. But for that small fee, you too can have a 'teeny-tiny body', a 'Victoria's Secret butt' and 'absolutely not have cellulite!'. She is big on using either no weights or very low (2lb) hand weights and doing a bajillion reps - 60 - 100 - of your standard exercises such as bicep curls, squats, etc. Oh, and you have to dance a lot too. Ok, fine. To each her own. If you are into that, more power to you. I'm an advocate of people moving, period. Do whatever feels good to you but just do something. Having said that, I hate that she constantly tells us to go for that 'teeny-tiny body' and that bulk (um, you mean muscle?!) is ugly. And that she bashes certain forms of exercise that work for a lot of people, i.e: yoga and Pilates and running. Yup. Running too. She says plain and simple regarding yoga and Pilates that 'they don't work' and that she has 'banned' Madonna and Paltrow from practicing yoga. And if you don't move for at least 30 minutes a day, 6 days a week, it isn't going to be effective. Period. Really? Is that really the message you want to give people? I'll stop now. I could go on and on about this for way longer than necessary. I'll just leave you with this quote from a recent interview with the Telegraph UK. "...running gives you an ugly butt – 'because, as with every other type of exercise, using the same muscles again and again will build too much muscle in certain places and bulk you up, and a bulked-up bottom is not a pretty one’." She can kiss my bulked up ass. Oh, and then give each of my bulked up biceps a peck too.