I've become somewhat comfortable with the half-marathon distance so I recently haven't been as concerned with hitting all of my training runs. If I missed one here and there I wasn't at all worried because I knew what the race would be like. Having no experience with anything longer than 13.1 miles, I think the fear of the unknown is a major factor in my motivation during training. I still have some work to do on my "non-running" training, ie. stretching, strength training, recovery work, etc., so that will certainly continue to be a focus as we move into January.

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Monday, January 22 - Rest

I work on a college campus and the students came back on Monday. Needless to say, work was a bit hectic so I definitely appreciated a true rest day with nothing else planned.

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Tuesday, January 23 - Planned 3 Mile Run

Ran 3.01mi in 25:28 at an 8:28 pace

I was shaking off a few aches in my knees but nothing too bad. Everything seemed to wear off pretty early on in the run. I know I say this every week, but as the mileage climbs, I really need to focus on keeping a slower pace. I don't think I can maintain an 8:30 successfully at higher mileage. I also managed a short core routine that was a killer on my abs.