The Aftermath

The last few days have been a pretty laid-back affair for me... After months upon months of following schedules and stressing about fitting everything in I almost feel guilty about taking it all so easy... But only almost :)

As promised, there have been no runs... Until today I wouldn't have been able to if I tried! My legs, especially my quads, were super tight! Even the spa day seemed to do very little to loosen them up. But I am content in the fact that it's a hard earned sore. I've been getting plenty of walking in, even though it was a pretty stiff gait for the first couple of days.

Even though I haven't actually been running, it's not been far from my mind. I am already making my 'what's next' plans. I have definitely decided that half marathons are my distance of choice - enough to be a challenge but without requiring hours upon hours of weekly training. At the moment I have my eye on The Age Run Melbourne in July and then back to do the half distance for the Melbourne Marathon in October (are you going back Char?) I'm keen on a sub 2:00 for one or both of these!

But for now it's all about enjoying my 'rest week'... Going to the spa on Monday was pure bliss. When I got there I felt a little guilty for doing something that was so self-indulgent. I made it all the way to the facial before I feel asleep haha!

Dinner that night was at my favourite Mexican restaurant... Corn chips, guacamole, chimichangas. Holy moly! I had two glasses of fantastic red wine but they went straight to my head! Three months without adult beverages have certainly increased my sensitivity to alcohol!!

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I've been trying to be careful to not get too crazy with the post-marathon 'food' celebrations. I gave myself the Monday to kick up my heels when it came to food choices which worked out well because I was starving all day long. But when Tuesday rolled around I knew I had to start being more mindful or else risk a major post-marathon weight gain!

What surprised me most was that fact that I missed keeping a food diary. Even though I had listed it as one of the things I most looked forward to about finishing training, I found that it was a habit that had become firmly ingrained so yesterday I fossicked through our spare room until I found a blank notebook and I started a new one!

Something else that has made a return is my beloved coffee!! I'm not keen on getting back in the habit of drinking calories so I have told myself that I can have two a day at most, made at home with the Nespresso machine... None of these cafe coffees! They pack too much of a punch in the calorie and dollar departments and I've quite enjoyed the extra money I've been saving by not visiting the nearby coffee shop everyday! 

This weekend Danny and I have the last of my post-marathon wishlist items - a weekend away (complete with fancy hotel, spa bath and red wine!) - and then it's back to the real world... Barrecode is booked in for Tuesday, I'll do my first post-marathon run on Wednesday and I am determined to get Menu Plan Monday done on Monday this week!

Before I wrap up this post that's really been about nothing at all I wanted to do a shout-out to Mandy over at No Standing Still. Have you met Mandy? She's pretty amazing! I have spent the last three days cursing my sore legs after 42.2km... But Mandy? She's really got something to moan about! Last weekend she completed the Goofy Challenge at Disney World - A Half Marathon on Saturday followed by a Full Marathon on the Sunday... I can't even fathom this! 

Seriously, if you don't already read her blog, head over, have a read of the race recaps and give her a virtual high-five because she is legen-wait for it-dary

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