It is amazing how often I need to buy new running shoes. This is the latest pair.

(Sunday Paper, Year VII, Issue 36)

On Saturday morning I went out for a run.

I intended to do only about 30 minutes but ended up going for 45.

The weather was perfect - a cool breeze, but not too cold.

Sunshine, but not too hot.

The timing for such a good run was fortuitous - because it’s time to get ready for a new round of training.

I really took it easy this summer…well, even back into the spring.

I ran just a handful of times between the marathon in April and mid-August or so.

And I certainly didn’t watch what I ate.

So the first couple of times I tried to get out and move these past few weeks, it was a bit of a slog.

But I’ve settled into a decent routine of running, which I’m getting ready to ramp up into actual training.

And I figured now was as good a time as any to lay out the plan - partly for accountability, and partly because I haven’t written this down yet and I need to get my thoughts together on it.

(When we were back-to-school shopping I found a fun little notebook that I decided I’m going to keep track of my running in, so eventually some of this information will make its way into that.)

First up is the BAA Half Marathon, which is in mid-November. My running buddy (well, regular buddy who I also run with when we can) Kevin is making the trip and we’ll do that one together.

The Wilmington Half Marathon last February landed almost exactly in line with where I would be running 13 miles in my training for the April marathon.

This time, I’m hoping to go back to Wilmington (with Kevin) and run the Wilmington race as a full marathon. Unfortunately, the BAA Half falls a little too soon to count as halfway through that marathon training.

But just the other day I came to this decision: I’ll train right now for the half marathon, and then after that race in November I’ll re-work my training to start gearing up towards the marathon in February. It won’t be starting from scratch, but maybe I’ll dial it back a bit and then build back up.

I’d like to see how I do in Wilmington on a flat course - obviously the Boston Marathon course is a challenging one. I just want to see what 26.2 miles would feel like without the big downhill to start and the other crushing hills from miles 18 through 21.

And after that?

Well, there’s a chance I’ll do another marathon in the fall (we’re talking 2023 here). I’m going to see if New York or Chicago are possible…and that all depends on how I feel after running the February marathon.

I’ve written some of this on my running Instagram (I’m @johnnyrunsalot if this isn’t enough running information for you and you want updates multiple times a week): I love this time of training.

While I hate losing the ability to run 10-ish miles at the drop of the hat after the marathon cycle runs through, I love that buildup again.

I get past that initial soreness, and I build up leg strength with the running and cross-training workouts, and I eat better and I’m more thoughtful about taking care of myself…and then we’re back to being able to run an extraordinary amount of miles.

It’s really pretty remarkable, and it’s a lot of fun, and I thrive on the routine, that’s for sure.

And it’s all just getting started again.

What I’ve Been Enjoying

“Port of Morrow” - The Shins
“Madonna” - Madonna
“Another Side of Bob Dylan” - Bob Dylan
“Midpoint” - Tom Chaplin
Octopussy
Goldeneye
Tomorrow Never Dies
The World Is Not Enough
Die Another Day
Dirty Harry

I feel OK with what I was able to watch/not watch as far as James Bond movies. As I mentioned last week, they left Amazon Prime on Wednesday, so I squeezed in as many as I could before then. I skipped ahead to the Pierce Brosnan movies and watched all of those. So I’ve gone from saying, “I’ve never seen a James Bond movie” to just “I’ve never seen a Timothy Dalton James Bond movie.” Not bad.

Also notable: This week I passed the 100 movie mark for the year. Also not bad.

Notes

*Another good week for the Mets. Atlanta still doesn’t ever lose, so they’re close behind, but they have to be just as frustrated that the Mets keep playing as well as they have.

*I’m a little excited for the Jets this season - one, because I always get my hopes up, but the big reason has very little to do with the actual football. I’ll be telling you about that next week.

*Man do I love this time of year. That taste of autumnal weather the past few days has been really lovely.

*You can follow my social links - including that running Instagram - at the links below. Thanks, and I hope you’re enjoying the long weekend.