Run Jen Run

Wednesday, October 18, 2023

NYC Marathon Training | Week 13 of 16

13 weeks down, 3 to go!

It’s my favorite part of marathon training - taper time! The hard work is done. Time to recover and get ready for race day.

I received a few more donations this week which brought me up to 66% of my fundraising goal for the MEB Foundation. Getting close! If you haven’t donated already, doing so not only gets me to the start line in New York City but also helps give youth the opportunity to succeed in the areas of health, education and fitness.

Here’s the link to my fundraising page: https://www.givengain.com/project/jen-skiba-raising-funds-for-meb-foundation

It was also an exciting week because bib numbers and start line waves/corrals were assigned! I am number 18824. Woo woo!

Ok back to training… Monday was a holiday. I was originally planning a day off from work so I cancelled Foam Roll and Stretch but ended up booking a couple clients and headed in for the morning.

On Tuesday I taught low impact aerobics then ran 5 after work. It was a lot warmer than I thought but I felt good. I had an appointment at CVS for my flu shot and even though I gave myself plenty of time, I still hurried along. The worst part was when I got there I found out they didn’t have any left. I was so annoyed. Thanks for the notification.

I had to open on Wednesday morning and it was nice to not feel crappy from a vaccination. I got home and took Reggie out with the intentions of running 5 miles. We ended up going for 6 but then as we were running up the driveway I remembered I left a poop bag at the corner. Bonus mile for Jen!

Thursday started with a really fun aerobics class but then the day dragged on. I felt more tired than I did the day before when I opened! My run sucked. My legs felt heavy. My mind wasn’t in it. I even had a little mid-run beach walk but found ZERO pieces of sea glass. Lame. Then I stopped at one point during the last mile to walk up a hill and forgot to stop by watch. Oh well. I was happy when it was over.

Friday was another weird day. I woke up to some bad news about a friend then felt a little off the rest of the day. I had an ocular migraine which caused a headache and nausea then some new neck pain which also didn’t help. I closed at work and took the afternoon off from running. I had to rest up for Saturday’s long run!

You read that right - Saturday was long run day this week! Not only was the weather looking better on Saturday but on Sunday Craig and I had tickets to Oysterfest in Wellfleet!

I woke up Saturday morning feeling a little nervous but ready to get my longest training run over with. I got ready, packed everything up and was on my way to Falmouth.

My dad joined me on his bike. The weather was PERFECT. Temperatures in the low 50s, sunny with a slight breeze. At one point I even told my dad if the weather was like this on race day, I would be one happy runner.

I wish I had more to say about the run but it wasn’t that eventful. I didn’t feel all that bad. A little tired the last couple of miles, but that’s expected. I had no ankle pain. My dad stayed upright on his bike. We each found only 1 piece of sea glass. I didn’t even feel very sore after. The biggest news was that I got it done. 20 miles. 36 miles total on the week.

I stopped for Starbucks and Duke’s Donuts on the way home then housed 2 double glazed donuts in the parking lot. Later that day, Craig and I took a drive to Turk’s Seafood in Mattapoisett and I crushed delicious scallops, tuna tacos and a lobster sushi bomb.

Sunday was a good day. Craig and I got to sleep in then met up with Pete, Meg and the girls for Oysterfest. The Bills played Sunday night but I barely made it to halftime. I was exhausted. What a weekend! So happy to say it’s time to taper… 3 weeks to go!!

Monday 10.9.23

REST

Tuesday 10.10.23

5 miles (38:52)

Low Impact Aerobics

Wednesday 10.11.23

5.97 miles with Reggie (47:07)

1.02 miles (7:43)

30 min Mat CORE

Thursday 10.12.23

4 miles (32:12)

Low Impact Aerobics

Friday 10.13.23

30 min Mat CORE

Saturday 10.14.23

20 miles with Daddo on the bike (2:40:23)

Sunday 10.15.23

REST

This week’s mileage: 36 miles

This week’s Reggie mileage: 6 miles

Training totals: 351 miles

ICYMI

Week 1 of 16 Week 5 of 16 Week 9 of 16

Week 2 of 16 Week 6 of 16 Week 10 of 16

Week 3 of 16 Week 7 of 16 Week 11 of 16

Week 4 of 16 Week 8 of 16 Week 12 of 16

Why I’m running the 2023 NYC Marathon

If you would like to support me and donate to the MEB Foundation, visit my fundraising page: https://www.givengain.com/ap/jen-skiba-raising-funds-for-meb-foundation

Wednesday, October 11, 2023

NYC Marathon Training | Week 12 of 16

12 weeks down, 4 to go!

I can’t even believe how good I feel running and how quickly these weeks are passing by.

As of today I’m at 60% of my fundraising goal. I appreciate the support from each and every one of you that’s donated so far. If it wasn’t for this opportunity from the MEB Foundation, I wouldn’t be running the NYC Marathon. I just keep thinking back to those days on the couch in the beginning of the year and those first few walks around the block when I was cleared to start moving. It was then that I set this big goal for myself. When the MEB Foundation accepted me as a charity running, I was initially excited but then equally as terrified. I could barely walk a half mile, how was I going to run 26.2 miles again?!

Fast forward to today as I write about running 34 miles during week 12 - my biggest week of training so far…

My week started off with a rest day. I Foam Rolled & Stretched, worked with a few clients and was surprised when I heard from Craig in the early afternoon to see I wanted to go golfing after work. He’d been sick on the couch the past couple of days and apparently was feeling good enough to get out for 9 holes. I made a quick call over the club house and in about an hour Craig and I were teeing off on Hole #1 of the Dunes Course.

For only my second time out this year, I wasn’t all that bad. The weather was beautiful, the course was quiet and I actually parred two of the Par 3 holes.

Tuesday was perfect fall running weather. My plan was to run 5 miles after work but it was so nice, I had to add on an extra mile to make it 6 total. Tuesday was also my 9 year anniversary with Georgie. NINE YEARS. Obviously I took her to Somerset Creamery and we were happy to have Craig and Marky join us.

I ran 5 after work on Wednesday. It was really warm with no breeze and I was definitely overdressed. I didn’t run on Thursday but I did go out for another 9 holes. My parents were mad I didn’t invite them on Monday so I made tee times for Thursday. When we got there, we were offered to switch the Ocean Course. Beautiful day, no wind. Of course we would say yes!

Craig and I were supposed to go to Maine for the long weekend - well actually we were originally planning to go the week before - but plans changed. We both still took Friday off from work and I even got him out the door for a short run with Reggie! What a treat!

Later that day we got Duke's Donuts then headed up to Boston for date night. We stuffed our faces with Dumpling Kingdom then ended up at a Gucci Mane concert at the Roadrunner. So random but so fun. We got home really late. The next day I slept in (kinda) and spent a lazy, rainy day at home.

Sunday was long run day! Another 18 and another beautiful day. The temperatures were cooler (high 50s) and the sun was out but it was WINDY. Running along the water in Falmouth would have been brutal so I decided to run the same 18 miler through Cotuit as I did 2 weeks ago. I also remembered that it was Cape Cod Marathon weekend which reconfirmed my decision to avoid Falmouth.

I didn’t set an alarm and got out the door a little after 8:30. My dad joined me on his bike for the second week in a row. I warned him that Cotuit was hilly but he insisted on tagging along. I think he had it harder than I did on some of the rolling hills. I was feeling strong and much better than the last 18 miler in the rain. I started to get tired the last 4 miles but like last week, having my dad there led to less walking breaks during the final miles.

The Bills played in London at 9:30am so I was getting alerts throughout my run. They were not playing well so it was nothing to rush home for! By the time I did get home, Craig was at work so I spent the rest of the day on the couch watching football with the pups.

Monday 10.2.23

REST

Foam Roll & Stretch

Golfed 9 holes

Tuesday 10.3.23

6 miles (47:39)

Low Impact Aerobics

Wednesday 10.4.23

5 miles (39:17)

30 min Mat CORE

Thursday 10.5.23

Low Impact Aerobics

Golfed 9 holes

Friday 10.6.23

2.15 miles with Craig & Reggie (17:12)

2.82 miles (21:41)

Saturday 10.7.23

DAY OFF

Sunday 10.8.23

18 miles with Daddo on the bike (2:25:00)

This week’s mileage: 34 miles

This week’s Reggie mileage: 2 miles

Training totals: 315 miles

ICYMI

Week 1 of 16 Week 5 of 16 Week 9 of 16

Week 2 of 16 Week 6 of 16 Week 10 of 16

Week 3 of 16 Week 7 of 16 Week 11 of 16

Week 4 of 16 Week 8 of 16

Why I’m running the 2023 NYC Marathon

If you would like to support me and donate to the MEB Foundation, visit my fundraising page: https://www.givengain.com/ap/jen-skiba-raising-funds-for-meb-foundation

Wednesday, October 4, 2023

NYC Marathon Training | Week 11 of 16

11 weeks down, 5 to go!

This week was a recovery week before the two biggest weeks of training. I enjoyed a rainy, rest day on Monday which included another Foam Roll & Stretch class. I couldn’t believe how sore I was from Sunday’s 18 miler but Craig reminded me how cool and damp it was and the fact that it was my longest long run in years.

The soreness was even worse on Tuesday - two days after my long run. I forgot to bring my running shoes to work so on my drive home I actually debated not running at all and taking another rest day until I got home and saw the look on Reggie’s face. I knew I needed to lace up and and take her. I only made it 2 miles but Reggie was one happy pup.

Wednesday was a much better and I was able to make it 4 miles after work around New Seabury. I taught a really fun low impact aerobics on Thursday morning which featured a new latin playlist. It turned out to be another beautiful day and I knew more rain was coming on Friday and Saturday so I took Reggie out in the afternoon for another 4 miles. That night I convinced Craig to go get my favorite empanadas at El Mariachi Loco on Main Street Hyannis. Happy Jen.

I took Friday and Saturday off from running. We took the dogs for a super short dog walk on Friday before the rain. It’s really sad to witness Georgie getting older as a half mile around the block is just too much for her poor hips these days.

Saturday was my last Saturday Strength class for awhile as I decided that I’m going to take Saturdays off from work the month of October. I’ve pretty much been working 6 days a week since I started at NS and that extra day off is going to be huge leading up to to race day.

Since it was a recovery week, I only had 14 miles on the schedule. ONLY. When did 14 miles become ONLY 14 miles?!

My dad surprised me and said he wanted to ride along with me for the whole ride. My mom told him it was a shorter run week for me but what she didn’t tell him that I would still be running for almost 2 hours! Back when I was training for all my other marathons - Chicago, Houston, Miami, Boston 2018 & Boston 2019 - he biked with me for almost all of my long runs so it was such a treat to have him back. He only almost fell off his bike twice in the first 2 miles. LOL.

The weather was a little cooler at the start. It was also very windy. The sun was just starting to come out and it was pretty humid. The run itself wasn’t too eventful. I felt really good and relaxed. I am finally feeling like my fitness levels are where they should be and that allowed me to talk to my dad the whole time. I did start to get tired with about 5 miles to go but I blamed that on the fact that I had a hard time falling asleep the night before. I took a lot less breaks in the last couple of miles with my dad along side me as the conversations were a good distraction.

After the run, I headed home to a sick Craig on the couch. We were both bumming because we had to cancel our afternoon lunch date with his uncles in Provincetown. Instead we watched about 8 hours of football including a huge win for Buffalo over the dolphins. Go Bills!

Next 2 weeks are going to be tough. I have my 18 and 20 coming up… let’s go!

On another note, I’m at 48% of my fundraising goal for the MEB Foundation. The foundation does great things to help support youth health, education and fitness.

Since 2010, the MEB Foundation has been a leader in providing impactful support to those in need. Annual and one-time grants have been given to the following causes:

The 26.2 Foundation
Martin Richard Foundation (MR8)
Armory College Prep Program
Atlanta Track Club Kilometer Kids program
Philadelphia School District Youth Running Program
Girls on the Run, Tampa Bay
Transcend Academy, Kenya
Eritrean American Diaspora Network College Scholarship Fund
San Diego High School (Meb Keflezighi Scholarship)

Together with MEB Foundation volunteer Vanessa Baumann, over 70,000 pairs of shoes have been provided to children and communities across the globe. Recipients of shoe donations include: