Amy Will making tracks on a cold wintry day.
The cold temps and shortened spans of daylight can really sap motivation. Where I live, we have what I will call a “seasonal imbalance” where winter consumes half of the year. Staying inside and being sedentary for six months just isn’t an option. Despite my dislike for the winter, I make the best of the season.
Here are a few tips to stay fit when it’s freezing: Continue Reading →
Guest blogger Amy Will shares how she avoided burn out while juggling marathon training and the responsibilities of being a new parent.
As I signed up to run my sixth marathon, the Bemidji Blue Ox Marathon, I couldn’t anticipate how very different this race would be. This would be my inaugural marathon as a wife and new parent.
My post-baby body felt near normal, but I found myself physically and mentally exhausted as I adjusted to being a mom. In the peak mileage of training, I found myself completely burnt out and questioning whether I wanted to even run the race anymore! My desire to run had somehow snuck away. What was I thinking when I signed up for another marathon? Basically, I was burnt out – big time.
The lack of sleep, pressure I put on myself to run a certain finish time, not listening to my body, and the stress of being a new mom eventually got to me. Just in time to run my last training 20-miler, I came down with a nasty sinus infection.
I did my best not to stress about running only one 20-miler, the less than ideal training, and the fact that I didn’t even want to run this race anymore. In the last couple weeks before the race, I did my best to find joy in running again and escape this running rut.
Here are a few ways I beat the training burnout: Continue Reading →
