It is now officially under one month – LESS THAN FOUR WEEKS – until I am heading to Rome.
Yes… it’s all becoming very real now. In just four weeks’ time, I will officially be part of the marathon club!
And honestly? I have no idea where the time has gone. It feels as though I was only booking my ticket yesterday – when in actual fact, the countdown is properly on the way. I am so full of excitement, nerves, adrenaline, apprehension and just, flat-out, fear for the big day (both good and bad of course…🫣), but more than anything, I just cannot wait now.
With it being so fast approaching, I thought now would be an ideal time to blog a quick breakdown of what my training is currently looking like as a non-professional. Especially as I start my PT course next week – which may well shake things up over time🤷🏼♀️😂.
The truth is… every week looks different for me. Although I aim to hit both lower and upper body sessions in the week, and complete 2-3 runs throughout – all whilst continuing to enjoy my fitness – there is not a set plan that I am sticking to in this block.
I have found it more important to just get everything in that I can – focussing on consistency over perfection. Not over or underdoing it. Fitting it in around work and life. Listening to my body. And most importantly – still having lots of fun.
Because (and I will always say it), balance is what makes this whole journey sustainable.
For instance, last week (16th-22nd February) my week looked like this:
Monday: Evening gym session focussing on upper body. This was followed by a 10 minute interval row leg.
Tuesday: I went on a 17km run in the morning
(and went to see Wuthering Heights in cinema in the evening – which I have uploaded a review for here.)
Wednesday: I went on a steady 5km run in the morning to stretch out my legs a little, and then attended our weekly ‘functional fitness’ and ‘legs, bums and tums’ classes in the evening. Mum and I go together every week and they are genuinely a highlight for me – tough, but always so much fun!
Thursday: Before work, I went to the gym. I went on the StairMaster for 30 minutes, before completing a low weight, leg workout to aid strength, stability, and recovery.
Friday: Like every Friday, Mum and I went to our favourite, non-negotiable HIIT and Abs/Core class in the morning. This is a staple in my ‘routine’ at this point.
Saturday: I completed a treadmill interval run for 20 minutes in the gym in the morning, before doing a Hyrox-inspired circuit. This included the ski-erg, weighted lunges, squat extensions and then weighted balance moves. Hard, but effective.
Sunday: The day of rest… On the final day of the week I had an active recovery day where I walked to a coffee shop for a matcha – hitting 10k steps – before taking it steady.
Nothing wildly complicated. Just a mix of strength, endurance, conditioning and recovery – all fitted around life, work and a lot of coffee.
Now I am not saying that this was a “perfect” week – but it worked for me. I managed to get in everything I wanted, I sustained my activity around my life, and I enjoyed it.
This coming week already looks different too – where yesterday I walked the dogs in the morning, followed by playing a friendly game of badminton with my Dad.
(I won.)
And with the weather finally starting to improve, I’m hoping to get a bike ride in tomorrow morning. This keeps everything fun and varied – more refreshing than solely focussing on the 26.2miles I will have to run in only a few weeks, indeed…
Stepping away from the prescriptive “you must do X, Y and Z only to be successful” approach has been really beneficial for me recently. And although I completely appreciate the value and power in strict planning and structured programming – especially for performance – right now, flexibility is what’s keeping me consistent.
And that’s what will always matter most to me.
Rome is getting closer by the day, and I’m excited to keep showing up like this until I reach that start line.
And after that? Who knows. There may be a slightly stricter routine waiting for me… ready for my next challenge… But more will come on that very soon!
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