Marathon Training Schedule and Fake French Fries

Sucking air.

The Goal:
Kevin and I have decided on the White Rock Marathon in Dallas, TX on December 5. This will be my first (and possibly my only depending on how it goes), so I'll be writing a lot about it as well as discussing new recipes to keep me motivated in the months to come.

The Plan:

In order to maximize pain and increase the possibility for a mental breakdown, Kevin and I sat down this past Friday evening and outlined a training schedule for the marathon. Ha! No, it's not that bad. A training schedule is actually really necessary so that we don't wear ourselves out with unnecessary workouts or speeds. Take a look below, and I'll describe the reasoning shortly after.

1. 8/21:     6 miles,     Fast Pace (FP)  completed, see my training log!
2. 8/28:     14.5 miles,Race Pace (RP)
3. 9/4:       7 miles,     FP
4. 9/11:     16 miles,   RP
5. 9/18:     8 miles,     FP
6. 9/25:     18 miles,   RP
7. 10/2:     9 miles,     FP
8. 10/9:     19 miles,   RP
9. 10/16:   10 miles,   FP
10. 10/23:   20 miles,   RP
11. 10/30:   11 miles,   FP
12. 11/6:     21 miles,   RP
13. 11/13:   12 miles,   FP
14. 11/20:   22 miles,   RP
15. 11/27:   6 miles,     FP
16. 12/5:     Race Day

So basically every other week we'll be working on long distance speed work (fast pace runs) while the other weekends we'll be trying to stick with the pace we have in mind for the marathon (race pace). We might have to change it up a bit because we also have the Turkey Trot 5K on November 20, and that'll conflict a bit. This type of training will hopefully ensure that we can maintain our race pace throughout the marathon because we've actually trained to go faster. My goal is to run the fast pace runs in under 10:30 per mile while a pace just under an 11:30 will be my goal for the marathon. This is a finishing time of 5:00 hours.

AAAAHHHHHHHH! Um, I'm going to try and not think about how long that is....

These times might change as the temperature drops and my heart is using less energy trying to cool me down when it's in the 90s.

Now, this schedule does not include any cross training exercises (weight lifting, sprints, biking, swimming, etc) that we will be doing during the middle of the week. We have to do other activities Sunday-Friday so that we feel adequately prepared for the long weekend runs, but we'll be a little more spontaneous about those.

Questions? Concerns? Psychoanalysis?

The Motivation:

In order to make running as easy on my muscles, joints, and mind as possible, I'll be trying to loose a few pounds or as much as possible. It's the eternal struggle. So I'm still trying to reduce calories in all my meals and snacks. This weekend, Kevin and I decided to make some George Foreman-grilled hamburger patties with french fries. Typically french fry recipes have an enormous amount of calories especially in comparison to a regular baked potato.

• Large French Fries from McDonalds (serving size is 5.4 oz, or 154 g) = 500 calories, 220 from fat
• Ore-Ida Golden Fries (serving size is 3 oz, or 84 g) = 130 calories, 30 from fat
• Small Baked Potato (serving size is 3" to 4-1/4" diameter, or 4.86 oz, 138 g) = 128 calories, 2 from fat

So how can you get the "beeest of both wooorlds" (Hannah Montana fans, please send me no hate mail)?

Fake the french fry! A childhood best friend of mine invited me over to spend some time with her and her immediate family at her grandparents house when I was in middle school, and they made this wonderful baked french fry recipe that I used this weekend. Given that I had been between 12-14 yrs old at the time, I've had to experiment few times to get this recipe right. But basically you can use Pam (with the oil of your choice) to make the fries in the oven and add only a couple of additional fat calories. Here's how it works:

Fake French Fries
Ingredients

• Slice up the potatoes french fry style (1/4 to 3/4 of an inch wide)
• Pam Spray Oil (I used the original version, but they also have corn oil and a few others)
• Salt
• Onion Powder
• Garlic Powder

Directions

Take a baking pan and lightly spray with Pam. I typically cover my pans with tin-foil before spraying to save on clean up time, but whatever floats your boat. Add the sliced potatoes to the pan and spread them out to where they are only one layer thick. I don't peal my potatoes because there are a lot of nutrients and fiber in the skins, but you can to make them a little more authentic-like. When they're on the pan, the fries can be pretty close together and touching to get more in. Then spray a light layer of Pam on top of all the fries. Add salt and and other spices to your liking. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown like the ones in the picture up top. You can flip them if you want all sides to be golden, but I haven't had the urge.

If you're really hungry, the fries are actually completely cooked in about 30 minutes, but they won't have that gold color or the taste that comes of it, like this picture.

By the way, Happy Belated Birthday, Lindsey! May remembering the happy times with your brother make this year and every year blessed.