"Best in Seattle"


Sharing words of wisdom for HIGH OCTANE, balanced, integrated, high vibrational living with Maria J. Toro, LMP.

Monday, March 21, 2016

Massage and 1/2 marathon training:

I did a lot of things right with my training and performance for this Mercer Island 1/2 marathon. Each run is/was a practice of learning lessons… and continued refining. Everything from sock and shoe choice to clothing and food/fuel and proper hydration. Every little detail matters. I began my journey 5 months ago. During this time I have lowered my blood pressure significantly, lost over 30 pounds, gained massive endurance and even more confidence. No better feeling than the runner's high! (well massage feels better). So each time I would run, I would dial in information about myself. to the point when race day came, I knew the clothes I would wear, and what I would eat… and how much sleep I would need, and how I would need to wrap my arches to prevent blistering and to charge my cell phone, so I would not run out of battery for my music, and so forth. I did carbo load the night before. I indulged in pizza! YUM!! I had massive hydration happening mindfully the entire previous week. Both plain water and adding Gatorade. For race day, I cut up a protein bar into small pieces. a protein bar I had practiced with during training sessions, so I knew it worked for my body. I purchased a camel Pak, to STAY hydrated. with a combo of water and Gatorade. I sipped this freely thru the race, and mindfully at certain mile points so I could stay ahead of myself. I got a good night's sleep, and a massage not only the night before, but the night of race day. I believe in massage. Massage is so healing, and such a great therapeutic tool for taking care of the body, mind and energy. Massage felt great the night before, and facilitated a solid night's sleep. And massage aided in recovery for day of race, plus it was something I looked forward too during my run. Mind over matter, and the mind games that happen while pounding out 13 plus miles. I tapered my runs two weeks before race day, hoping the 5 months previous training had made enough of an impact in my muscle memory. This was vital, in my performance, as I felt fresh and not beat up, I had solid energy throughout the performance of running this race. Although for those two weeks of tapering, my body did miss working out, as it effects my mood, I feel good working out. As far as improvements I can make moving forward, as I have several races planned throughout this calendar year, with my peak on December 11, for the Honolulu Marathon. I need to cross train, more than riding my horse;) I need to start lifting weights, and do more lunges and squats. I need to up my miles, perhaps running twice a day. I still need to refine my diet for proper nutrition, to not only lose weight, but also to fuel my body to have the endurance I am asking for it to perform. I believe I will have this down to my own specific science by the time December rolls around. I will continue with receiving massage bodywork to recovery, and keep my muscles fine tuned. I need to add some more stretching or a yoga class so I will be flexible in mind and body. The more I run, the more I learn about myself. The more I learn about myself, the more confidence is built. Not only is massage healing, running is healing too. So here is to the next 9 months, and beyond. Where I will ultimately be building up to a full marathon, and hopefully dropping more weight, while remaining injury free. Stay tuned! XOXO, Maria!

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