No, I didn’t run another marathon after Philadelphia, but last week I sure felt like I did. After taking a full week off from all forms of exercise besides some light yoga, I got back to some easy running and workouts last Monday. I hadn’t been to my beloved Body Pump class since the first week of August. Before that, I attended class 1-3 times a week. I even took classes while training for some of my other marathons. This time, I wanted my full focus to be on running so I just did my own strength training at home.
If you’ve never taken Body Pump, its an hour long weight lifting class with high repetitions. For each track/song, we focus on a different body part. So essentially you end up doing moves like squats for 4-5 minutes straight. Well turns out, the 3 x 15 squats with 8 lb weights that I had been doing doesn’t compare. I kept my weights much lighter than I used to, and still felt the burn immediately. But the actual class wasn’t even that bad- it was the 3 days that followed that made me want to cry.
So, here is how last week looked as far as workouts.
That Time I Felt Like I Ran Another Marathon: The Week in Workouts
Sunday 11/30: Rest
Monday 12/1: 4 miles easy (First run since the marathon! It felt really weird after a week off!)
Tuesday 12/2: 3.86 miles easy
Wednesday 12/3: 2.5 miles, Body Pump; PM: 30 minutes easy yoga
Thursday 12/4: 3.13 miles easy (when I felt like I ran another marathon)
Friday 12/5: 3.25 miles easy
Saturday 12/6: 7.1 miles @ 8:37 pace
Total: 23.84
Honestly, before Wednesday’s class I was feeling good and totally recovered from the race. I felt like in a way it set me back. But really, its a different kind of soreness which is why I did the short easy runs the rest of the week. It felt good to move my legs and wasn’t “painful”- just sore.
I was actually sore for longer from this than from the marathon. For 3 days it hurt to go from standing to sitting! Its pretty humbling when you go from running 26 miles to taking a weight class.
One of the things I wanted to do during these weeks following the marathon was do different activities which work my body in different ways- mission accomplished for sure! I know I need to go back this week so that my body adapts to it again, but honestly I’m a little scared of being sore for days!
However, I challenged myself in an unfamiliar way last week, while also slowly getting back to running, and I guess that’s pretty marvelous!
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Pretty much anything that’s not running leaves me sore and humbled, a sure sign I need to start doing some other fitness activities a bit more regularly! I’m sure that class would’ve left me the same way.
I think its good to take a break from some things once in a while….which is one of the reasons why I took the break from body pump. I just didn’t realize how hard it would be to get back into it!
Anytime I do something that involves weights at reps or positions I am not used to, I am a mess lol. I always laugh and say gee I can run and run but ask me to do something else and I look as though I don’t work out at all…I have gotten better at the cross train and strength training thing so it doesn’t leave me sore but if you threw me into a body pump class again, forget it.
I thought I still had some strength from the weights I was doing, but I guess not compared to what body pump puts you through!
It’s amazing how a different workout makes us feel sore! A spinning class last week made me feel the same way. I probably would have felt pretty awful after a body pump class!
Its been forever since I took a spin class….10 months maybe? I need to wait until I am completely recovered from the marathon/body pump combo before I add that back into the mix!
I love body pump. It is a great total body workout. I miss teaching it. It such a great feeling to push yourself out of your comfort zone.
I love it too and was so happy to be back! I need to keep going regularly so I don’t always feel so sore from it:)
I have never been to a Body Pump class but I always hear so many great things about it. I am going to have to find a gym that offers it here
I think for a while I had a serious addiction to body pump. While I think it was good to take a break from it, I had no idea it would be so hard to go back!
Body pump is no joke!!! I’d be so sore! I ran a half marathon once and I was SUPER sore after that!
Each time I have run a new distance I always end up really sore too! But body pump caused a whole different kind of soreness!
I tell you what–tell me to go run a bajillion miles, and I”m like, ok, but right now, strength training just guts me. I am right there with you.
Exactly! It really goes to show how our bodies have adapted to the running.
I wouldn’t want to do anything else but run with beautiful sceneries like that! It’s absolutely breathtaking. Postcard worthy =D
Thanks! I do get some really nice sunrises. Its hard to bring myself to go inside a gym..although now that its really cold out a warm gym doesn’t sound so bad!
I am so with you! I did wall sits for the first time ever last week and was crazy sore for the next 48 hours! Going from sitting to standing definitely reminded me of the same level of soreness that I experienced after the marathon and the wall sits didn’t take me nearly as long! haha
That first picture of the city at sunrise is beautiful! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks! And yes, I know exactly what you mean. Im sure I would have been in extreme pain from wall sits, too!
I used to go to Body Pump too and it’s definitely more than what I get in at home! I just dropped our gym membership because I don’t see myself getting there this year until the baby drops her morning nap. I asked for a kettlebell for Christmas to hopefully ramp up my at home strength training. But I do like the feeling of being sore and knowing that I worked my muscles well!
The soreness from strength training is a really good feeling! (Actually, usually it is, but this time was really extreme!) I have been wanting to get a kettlebell too but I think my husband will kill me if I bring anymore workout junk into our living room! I really need to make better use of my gym membership…but all I ever want to do is run!
I did sports camps in high school, over the summer, and after the first full day, we were all sore. It hurt to stand, it hurt to walk down the stairs. When we had to warm up it took a while to get from standing to running, but once I was running, I didn’t want to stop.
That really describes how I felt! I think thats why I was able to run even when I was sore. I just started going and my body knew what to do. Easier to run than to sit down, I thought!
Ugh, that’s no fun to be that sore for so long. When that happens to me I take it as my body telling me to work those muscles more 🙂
Im sure my body was telling me that too! I need to go back this week so I can get used to weight training again.
Totally right! Anything that humbles us is a chance to look at ourselves and see that we aren’t really ‘all that’ and that there is always room for improvement. When we did our 4 hour kayak tour of one of the finger lakes with me rowing most of the time, I felt it the next few days and it was awesome 🙂
Great week!
Sometimes I forget what its like to be really “sore” from working muscles in a new way. Marathon training just causes everything to hurt because I use my running muscles so much! Even just adding a hill workout can be good to work muscles in a new way- I know the first time I did hill repeats I really felt the burn!
But I know that it won’t hurt to get back to strength training this winter while Im not training for a marathon and can even get indoors a bit more when the weather is bad!
I run but it is really hard to get going for me after mile four or so I start to loosen up!
I have a co-worker who swears by body pump she loves it!
I think that sometimes an easy run can be a great way to shake out sore muscles…as long as you can get yourself to get through those first few miles!
First I must say that I LOVE how smart you are being about your marathon recovery. The number one mistake I see is too much/too soon post-marathon because people think they are recovered. Second, yep, you’re not recovered. No matter what/no matter who you are, it takes a good month to be FULLY recovered from a marathon. So keep on the track you are on–you are doing great!
Thank you! I made some mistakes in the past with running hard too soon after a marathon, and I think I am finally learning to be smarter about it! I can tell even through my runs that my body still needs a break from anything too intense. Its definitely a good time to do some other kinds of workouts!
Oh my goodness this is me as well! I thought I did a decent job of keeping some strength in my marathon training routine, but until I really hit up the gym last week, my body tells me otherwise. Holy sore everything, Batman! I guess this means we need it, right?
I think so! I know when I am going to body pump all the time, sometimes I don’t feel anything, and I wonder if its even really working my muscles. So I definitely think its a good thing to feel the burn!
I’ve been trying to convince myself to go back to Body Pump. I know it will be good for me and will only help my running I am just always SO sore afterwards! I wish I never stopped taking Body Pump.
I sort of wish I never stopped either! However, when I go all the time I feel like I plateau and when I add more weights i feel like my form suffers. So in a way I think a break was a good thing, but maybe next time I won’t wait so long before going back!
Body Pump always gets me after some time off 🙂 I love it, but it can really make me sore! You’re being really smart about your recovery, I love seeing people take it slow. It’s hard when you feel as if you’re recovered and it can be so tempting to jump right back in.
Thanks! It can be so tempting after a race to want to run hard again, especially when you feel mostly better! In a way the soreness from body pump was probably a good thing because it forced me to keep my mileage low last week.
Have I mentioned that I LOVE your shoes?? <3!
Haha thank you!
I cannot even imagine an hour of weight lifting! That is awesome! I cannot even begin to imagine how sore that would make a person!
It was pretty crazy! I can’t believe I used to do that class all the time and never felt sore!
You have the most beautiful morning run pictures! I’ve never gone to a Body Pump Class, but one of my friends loves it. Last week I’ve been working on strengthening my left leg (apparently it is smaller than my right and significantly weaker), so my entire left leg was pretty sore 🙂 (doubled up on left side exercises).
Wow thats pretty interesting! How did you figure out that your leg was weaker? That seems tricky…like you don’t want to over strengthen the left one and then that ones stronger than the right!:)
When I’m super sore I still try to get a little something in, I feel like it will loosen up the lactic acid or something?
Thats how I feel about it too! I do think that some easy running helped to loosen up my muscles.