My Koach

First of all, I survived the root canal yesterday. It was my first one, and as I told Jimmy when I got into the van after the procedure, I have checked THAT off my list! No more root canals for me.

When Lynn and I first began discussing the possibility of training for a full marathon a few weeks ago, I spent some time searching the internet for marathon training programs. I also printed out Jimmy's and Kelly's first marathon training plans to compare them to what I found on the internet. Runners have differing opinions on how many total miles per week and how long your longest run should be prior to the marathon. Also, many of the internet program included speed work, which I am unwilling to do--I am trying to stay injury-free, plus, I really just want to finish the marathon, not try to break any records.

So, Jimmy suggested that I contact the Marathon Koach, Kenneth Williams. "Koach" as he likes to be called (I used to call him Mr. Williams, until he kindly asked me to just call him Koach), has been a runner for over 30 years, and he has successfully completed 47 marathons, 8 of which were Boston. Not only is he an expert in his field, he is very kind, encouraging, and motivating. You can read all about Koach by visiting this website.

Jimmy has known Koach all of his life since they are both from the same town, and he really enjoyed him being his marathon Koach. I contacted Koach, and he agreed to help me! I filled out a detailed questionnaire, and I added many comments and paragraphs just to make sure that Koach knew what kind of runner I was. I am seeking longevity in the sport. I enjoy running long and slow, but I do not want to do any speed work. Running is a stress reliever for me, but scheduling time to run is often my biggest stress producer.

I was very nervous about receiving the actual training plan, but once I got it I was relieved. I knew that my training plan was created for me, based on my past running experience and my personal goals for the marathon (to survive the training, and simply to finish). The weekly mileage peaks to a little bit longer than what I anticipated, but the longest run is just what I had in mind--22 miles. There are a few weeks of 20s, and 18s as well. Looking at the entire training plan can give me an anxiety attack, so I am just looking at one week at a time!

You can follow Koach on Twitter; just look for the link on this page. The Twitter link is on the right hand side. You can also click on the link under Kenneth's picture to read all about Koach. He has led a very interesting and adventuresome life. He climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, and recently he swam from Alcatraz to San Francisco!

I am so happy to have Koach guiding me through my first (and probably only) marathon experience.