There is always that period of time after a big race when there can be a let down. It’s not always the “what now?” kind of let down. I many cases it is in the form of needing to rest the body and having a hard time getting back to running consistently.

I know from my past marathons that this is one of my biggest concerns. It’s so hard to get back into any sort of regular running after you have been running consistently for 16-18 weeks straight. Thankfully, I know I’m not the only one who has had this problem.

Part of the problem for November marathons is the timing. They usually happen a few weeks before Thanksgiving and well we’re still taking it easy from the marathon and then there is the pie. We can run later. Work with me here, I’m trying to create a sound theory for us. By the time the long Thanksgiving weeks rolls around I always feel as though I am shaped like that last piece of pie I ate, for breakfast, before that run.

Then there’s all of other winter holidays and parties and well drinking loads of wine while reconnecting with all those people you lost track while training for the marathon is more important at that time. Sometimes you need the wine just to deal with all those people.

Yup, still working on a theory here.

Let’s not forget that it gets cold. Weren’t we just running in shorts? This week is the perfect example. On Friday, I ran in shorts. Today it was thin running tights, tomorrow it’s supposed to 14 degrees here in NYC. Seriously????

The theory I’m working on is look at all that stuff! No wonder it’s so hard to run consistently during this time of here and of course we can become disconnected from the sport we love so much.

You know how when you go on a trip for a week and you find you miss someone so much that it almost hurts and then when you finally get home and they hug you your world gets right again? (And that was an awesome run-on sentence that I refuse to change.) That amazing feeling of reconnecting with someone is incredible. That’s the feeling I also experience when I reconnect with a regular training program. It helps me find the balance I need in order to be good to myself and my friends. Yes, it also helps that the majority of my friends are runners but that’s besides the point.

Yup, we’re going back to this place again. Ready to join me on my crazy train? (c) Stacey Cooper

So I’ve already got my training plan for the Miami Half and now, now, now have decided on a spring marathon. This will be the first time I am ever going to do a spring marathon so the panic attack will start right about now.

I’ll be running the New Jersey Marathon on April 27. I’ve got my number one fan and support team (Team Scoops) in place. Amazing people I tell you.

Now I just have to figure out how to do long runs in winter. If you live in NYC there is a good chance I’ll just be showing up at your place for a warm shower, a foam roll, and hot cocoa. You’re ready for me right?

Seriously though, how the hell do you run 20 miles in winter and not die?

I’m looking forward to this new challenge and yes, I have a new goal time in mind. (Panic attack number two just started.) But the thought of reconnecting with my training plan and tweaking it here and there is incredibly exciting.

Let’s do this thing!