How I dropped my marathon PR by 36 minutes

It had been six years since I had run a marathon when I decided to sign up for Appletree and start focusing on the distance again. I had a baby under a year old and a busy toddler. I knew training would look a little different than it had prior to becoming a mom, but I also had new motivation. When reflecting back over the differences in training for my previous marathons compared to this one, I realized there were some fundamentals that were worth sharing. Not all of these strategies will work for everyone, but hopefully you’ll find something that may help you!

1. I started running (a lot) more- consistently running 6 days a week and taking my mileage from about 30 miles a week to 50+. I settled around this number because it felt good on my body and it fit within the time constraints I had. (I peaked at 60 miles).
2. Got very comfy with running longer distance- I ran 9-12 mile “medium long runs” during the week and completed my long runs each weekend.
3. Increased my 20 mile long run from one per build to three- this helped me get over the mental hurdle of the distance. I felt very confident that I could run 26.2 miles before race day. It took a lot of the fear away for me.
4. Ran (a lot) of half marathons- got super comfortable with the distance and holding a faster pace for that long.
5. I became a student of the sport- I learned as much as I could about marathoning- listening to podcasts, reading books, and completing a run coach certification course.
6. Threw out the scale (err toddler broke it!)- and didn’t worry about what I weighed. 
7. Stopped eating foods that my body didn’t agree with (gluten and dairy) and focused on eating as much as I wanted of the foods that suited me. I stopped any kind of restrictive eating habits.
8. Learned to fuel and hydrate very well on the run- I focused on increasing what I could tolerate for electrolytes and gels while running. I fueled while running fast, while running slow, while running long, and even short and was consistent with it.
9. Wore my “uniform” and had a dress rehearsal every long run and race- I found what worked best for me in terms of shoes, sports bra, shorts, and socks and bought a bunch. That way on race day I was comfortable and my clothes were not something I gave any thought to.
10. Cross trained much more consistently- I tried to get on the Peloton bike once a week and practiced yoga. 
11. Took hot epsom salt baths every night before bed- this is something I do each night to relax and help with recovery.
12. Kept it FUN! I have never had so much fun training as I did in this block. I ran with friends 2-3 times a week and made weekend long runs like parties!