Running Renaissance: One Skip Ahead of my Doom

[GollyGadget]

Sept 11-17 Recap (109 Days until WDW Marathon)
Since I’m a day late posting this, we are officially single digits away from double digits! My training is just getting underway and I feel like I'm a little bit behind since my longest run of the week was 4 miles. I was looking at the Galloway plan and it's already at 13 miles. Trust the training.



Otherwise training is going well. All of the runs so far have been easy, as designed, and my venture into strength training is going. Obviously, it’s too early to tell if it’s helping but I did look at myself in the mirror this weekend and thought “Where on Earth did those quads come from?!?!?"

Monday - Strength
Monday was scheduled for my first strength training session in a long while. I still wasn't sure what my strength plan would be, but I knew I had to start somewhere. Ultimately, I decided to start with workout 1 of Jillian Michels Body Revolution. There were a few reasons for this:

• I had it in my basement
• The workouts are only 30 minutes
• It starts with low impact and mostly body weight
• I've never made it to the last videos so I'm hopeful this might be the time I finally make it

What a wakeup call that workout was. It consisted of different squats, push-ups, bicycle crunches and other shoulder & chest workouts. I was able to complete the workout which was a relief but I was mighty sore afterwards. Typically, I think of myself in pretty decent shape, (I run for hours after all!) and it was good to remind myself I still have lots of areas for improvement.

Tuesday - Easy 2 (3.2)
I'm on the committee for my work 5k next month and Tuesday was the first of our scheduled training runs. I've never actually ran with a group and we weren't sure how many people would show. I was actually kind of surprised when there were people other than the organizers. In total we had about 15 and everyone just kind of ran at their own pace so it really wasn’t any different than any of my usual training runs except that I felt guilty about cutting the course so I ended up running the entire thing.

Wednesday – Strength (+3)
Wednesday was my scheduled strength day and I was still feeling the workout from Monday. Luckily the workouts alternate so I was able to move onto workout 2 without much struggle. Workout 2 focuses on the back, butt, hamstrings, and biceps. There were a lot of lunges and curls and some more core work. Overall, it felt a bit easier than workout 1, so that was a welcomed relief. Maybe I do have some muscles.

On top of the strength workout, I had to fit in my scheduled Thursday run. We were traveling back to my family for my sister’s wedding on Thursday after work. It’s roughly a 4 hour drive and with a 7 am meeting, I was fortunate to have the flexibility to move the run up because I wasn’t willing to run at 5 am or 10 pm.

Friday – Easy 3 + Strength
Nothing too exciting to report about my Friday morning. My app didn’t start tracking me right away and by the time I realized it I was roughly a mile in. It’s always a bit annoying when that happens.

After the run, we had to go help decorate for the reception and once that was done I was able to complete my strength training. Since I was away from home, I didn’t have my hand weights or my dvds so I decided on a Nike+ Training exercise. Well, actually two of them. One dedicated to core and one for flexibility/stretching.

Saturday – Easy 3
Saturday was wedding day. I woke up early to get my miles in before all the chaos that was to come. I ran a slightly different route than on Friday and nearly got lost. There are lots of streets where my mom lives that just randomly change names and directions. You’ll be running on Street A and then all of a sudden come to a cross street and it happens to also be Street A because the street you are on actually changed names to Street B. It honestly makes no sense to me. Luckily, I grew up in the area and typically have a rough idea where I am.

Sunday – Easy 4 (0)
When I woke up on Sunday I decided to spend my morning hanging with my niece and nephew and postpone the run until after we drove back. I still fully support this excuse for not running in the morning. However, as for why I didn’t run later in the day, there’s really no good excuse. It mostly just boiled down to being lazy and knowing I could fit it in on Monday. This is why I can’t have a training plan with less than 5 days, I’d just perpetually keep pushing off my runs. I enjoy running, but I also really enjoy sitting on my couch, especially on Sundays.

Total miles: 12.4
Total time: 2:02:25

This week’s schedule:
M – Strength + Easy 4
Tu - Easy 4
W - Strength
Th - Easy 4
F - Easy 4 + Strength
Sa - Easy 4
Su - Easy 5

 

[GollyGadget]

Sept 18-24 Recap (101 Days until WDW Marathon)

I’d love to tell you that I waited to post this specifically so I could inundate you with cute pictures of dalmatians, but life has just been crazy the last few days. On the bright side, my training only encountered a few small hiccups this past week despite lots of long hours at work and spending 8 extra hours in the car. Because of the few snags, I’m reinstating my goal to stick to that darn schedule for this week!

Since my last post, I also had a very informative conversation about heart rate with @DopeyBadger and we were able to put together some target HRs based on resting HR of 49 BPM and max HR of 194 BPM. These past few weeks have been focused on recovery and gearing up for the plan ahead so all my runs have been easy. I was a little bit concerned that maybe I was pushing too hard in some of them and this confirms that I likely was going just a tad too fast. It’s so hard to go slow when feeling so fresh! Another goal for this coming week is to make sure I’m taking it easy while I can. Oct 10 is my first speed workout of the plan and I need to enjoy these easy miles now.

Easy
57-65% HRR
132-143 BPM

Long Run
69-72% HRR
149-153 BPM

Marathon Tempo
77-80% HRR
161-165 BPM

Half Marathon Tempo
83-87% HRR
169-175 BPM

10k
87-90% HRR
175-180 BPM

5k
94-100% HRR
185-194 BPM

Monday – Strength + Easy 4
Due to my slacking off on Sunday, I had a 4 mile run and strength training on Monday. I started the day with a 6:30a meeting, which is not my favorite way to start the week, but it’s becoming increasingly common. It makes running before work pretty much out of the question, in my opinion. Luckily, the rest of my morning was pretty flexible and I knew I would be working late so I just went for my run after the early meeting. I’m guessing this is also when I did my strength training, but I really don’t remember. The only evidence I have is that there’s a sticker on my calendar. I’m kind of like a toddler in that I’m motivated by stickers. This month it was square stickers for strength and round stickers for running. I just love looking at the calendar and seeing it covered in stickers!

Note: I think Lucy earned more stickers for making good choices than I did last week…

Tuesday - Easy 4 (0.0)
Tuesday I was absolutely exhausted. As I mentioned, Monday started at 6:30a and I didn’t get home until near midnight. I actually went home around lunch to take a nap. That plan didn’t work out so well and I ended up just working from my couch rest of the afternoon and never really left it until bedtime. In short, I never did get the energy to go out for my run. Also, I knew I’d be able to fit it in the next day. This procrastination is something I’m really trying to work on but it’s been an uphill battle so far.

Wednesday – Strength (4)
Since I slacked off on Tuesday, Wednesday I had to run and do my strength training. We had a bit of a heat wave so I decided to stick to the treadmill. Overall, pretty boring but at least I got it done. Again, I really don’t remember the strength training, but I know I did it because STICKERS!

I don’t know this girl, but I like her style.

Thursday - Easy 4
Thursday I had to travel right after work so I went for my run in the morning. Since all of these runs are easy, there’s nothing much to report besides I did it. Just another run around the neighborhood.

Friday - Easy 4 + Strength
Friday morning I woke up in a hotel. I headed out for my run and it was still a bit dark. This only added to the fact that I really had no idea where I was going. I tried to look at a map but eventually just set off in one direction for an easy out and back which just so happened to finish at Panera for breakfast.

Due to the travel and spending all day interviewing college students, I totally forgot I was supposed to do strength training. Whoops.

Saturday - Easy 4
Somewhere in the past few weeks, my husband and I decided we wanted to paint our door orange. It’s been black since we bought the house and I never really liked it. Orange isn’t really a conventional door color but our neighbors already had red and a house directly across the street had blue and we wanted something different. It’s definitely different!

Anyway, one of my many questionable choices of the week includes deciding to paint our door on Saturday when we were experiencing record high temperatures. Ideal time to take your front door off the hinges, right? Due to the number of coats it was going to take to cover black with orange, I had to get an early start. Since I like to shower almost immediately after running and felt it was really silly to shower only to splash orange paint on myself later I delayed my run until later in the afternoon. Remember those record highs? Yeah, I stuck inside to the treadmill.

Sunday - Easy 5
When I woke up on Sunday, I still needed to get a few more coats of paint on the door. However, first I wanted to get my run in outside before it got too warm and go watch our local marathon. I somehow managed to wake up before the sun and got out the door just as the sun was starting to rise.

Every year on the same weekend as the marathon, there’s also a hot air balloon festival. My husband and I got to enjoy this view while eating breakfast from our kitchen. No complaints here. We actually saw a few balloons fly past and one of them landed in our neighborhood. We’re pretty sure this was unintentional but it was really cool to see it up close and maneuvering through houses.


After breakfast we headed down to the marathon. We were just in time to see the 1:50 half marathon finishers. I remember thinking how awesome they all looked despite the conditions, most of them looked effortless. We walked around for about 20 minutes before the first marathon finisher would break the tape. It was nice that the half marathoners were finishing at the same spot as it was really fun to watch them. Many of them grabbed their kids from the crowd to run to the finish. Perks of a small local race! We stuck around a bit longer for the first female marathon finisher and one of our friends who was running the half. After that, I started to get warm and knew I had a lot of painting in my future so we headed home.



Total miles: 25.11
Total time: 4:17:20

This week’s schedule:
M – Strength
Tu - Easy 5
W - Strength
Th - Easy 3
F - Easy 3 + Strength
Sa - Easy 5
Su - Easy 5

 

[GollyGadget]

Sept 25-Oct 1 Recap (97 Days until WDW Marathon)
Well guys and gals, we’ve officially made it to double digits! I set a few goals for myself last week that I want to share with you all but it’s going to have to wait. My husband has been gone for a week. He spent the work week at a conference out of town and then a few friends met him there for a concert over the weekend. Some of you may see where this is going…he was in Las Vegas at the Route 91 Festival. At 1:40 am, I woke up to my phone ringing and my first thoughts were that he had drank a little too much and was calling to tell me he missed me. By the tone of his voice, I could immediately tell it was something else. He and his friends all made it safely back to their hotel and are scheduled to fly out this morning. When I went to bed on Sunday, I was excited to see him the next day. That feeling has since changed from excitement to necessity. I haven’t slept at all and am currently just trying to keep my mind occupied. My scattered thoughts are with everyone affected. May we come out of this tragedy stronger and united.

Needless to say, I’m a little distracted and having trouble putting words together this morning. Most of what you read below was put together last week.

Monday – Strength
I was legitimately disappointed on Monday when there wasn’t a run on my schedule. For some reason I thought this was the week that training went from 5 days/wk to 6 but apparently it’s not. If only I could remember this feeling on days I don’t want to run….

Ultimately, I decided to stick with the schedule and enjoy the day off. I tried to go for a walk but Bucky wasn’t cooperating and we barely made it around the corner before I decided to turn around. It’s a good thing I did because we weren’t prepared for the rain that seemingly came out of nowhere during our half block walk back home. I did complete my strength training, third time for Workout 1 from Jillian. I can tell I’m getting stronger because I’m not nearly as sore anymore. If I were following the actual program, I’d be doing this workout twice a week and already moved on. However, since I’m only doing it once per week, I decided to stick with doing it 4 times before leveling up.

Random tangent warning…husband and I decided to go as Wreck-It Ralph and Vanellope for Halloween. I really wanted to go as broccoli but he didn’t think that was a good costume idea… Anyway, I’m still happy with the choice. Depending on the final costume, I might break it out for marathon weekend or for a Halloween themed race. I’m still very much on the fence about wearing a costume for a marathon. As you can probably tell, I’m not very good at making decisions until the last minute so we’ll see how that goes.

Tuesday - Easy 5
On Tuesdays, I help host training runs for my upcoming work 5K. This really doesn’t involve much except making sure I’m there to run and answer any questions beforehand. Since the race is only a 5K, I ended up doing a couple of miles beforehand. The weather was awesome and my HR stayed below 135 except for a few spots on the uphills. My average HR was 131 but it’s a little skewed due to the couple of minutes I spent standing around between my 2 miles and the 5k training run.

Wednesday – Strength
Oh strength training… I thought I was getting the hang of it but I must have gotten just a tad too cocky because Wednesday was a rough one. Wednesday workouts focus on butt, back, hamstrings and biceps. My back has always been one of my weaknesses and it came out screaming during the first 10 minutes. The good news is I wasn’t too sore afterward and hopefully this will improve my core strength for running. I’ve ran a few distance races while not being properly trained and my back is where I feel it the most. You might think it would be legs or feet or something but for me it’s definitely my lower back.

Thursday - Easy 3
By Thursday, I was ready for the week to be over. I had all-day training Monday & Tuesday followed by an all-day meeting on Wednesday. It was physically and mentally draining and all I wanted to do was lay on my couch Thursday evening.

Body: It’s only 3 miles, what will it matter if I skip?
Brain: You need those 3 miles, it’s all about cumulative fatigue!
Body: Well, what if I just add them to Friday and run 6 miles?
Brain: It doesn’t really work that way, get your butt up off the couch!

Fortunately, my brain won, and Bucky and I headed out for an easy 3 miles around the neighborhood. I somehow managed to totally lose track of my route on the streets I run pretty much every single day. I reached the 2 mile mark and headed further away from my house, even though I was pretty much a mile away from my house at that point. Silly brain… Several minutes later, my app alerted me I only had a half mile to go. That’s when I finally realized I needed to turn around and head home. Luckily, it was a really nice evening so Bucky and I enjoyed a bit of a cooldown walk once the 3 miles was completed. I just hope my brain gets it together before this happens on a longer run and I end up further than a half mile from my house.

Friday - Easy 3 + Strength
Friday was another easy run around the neighborhood with Bucky. This time we didn’t get lost! I skipped the strength workout. It’s been easy to skip because I neglected to put a plan together for Friday. Initially, I thought having flexibility would be a great asset so that I could just do what I wanted. Turns out, I usually just want to sit on the couch .

Saturday - Easy 5 (Surprise 5K)
When I went to bed on Friday, I had found a local 5K scheduled for the morning. I knew I needed to get out of the house and decided that if I happened to wake up in time to go register, that’s what I would do. Lo and behold, I woke up at 6:30a, plenty of time for a 9:30a race. I’ll put together a full recap later, but when counting my warm up, I hit my 5 mile goal.

Sunday - Easy 5
Sunday was another early wake up. I’ve never been good about sleeping in. I’m excellent at napping, but I can’t seem to sleep very late at all. Anyway, I just kind of wandered around the house for a few hours before finally driving to a nearby park I wanted to run. The park only has about a mile trail so I had to find somewhere else to pad on the miles. I honestly had no idea what my plan was until I reached the end of that trail and had to make a decision. Overall, it was a good run. I could feel the race in my legs a bit early on in the run but I was able to settle into an easy pace rather quickly.

Total miles: 21
Total time: 3:39:21

This week’s schedule:
M – Strength
Tu - Easy 5
W - Strength
Th - Easy 4
F - Easy 6 + Strength
Sa - Easy 4
Su – 5K Race!

 

[ZellyB]

Oh my gosh! I'm so glad that your husband is safe and on his way home!! It's a terrible tragedy and I feel horrible for the victims.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Thankful to hear your husband is safe and headed home. What an extremely nerve wracking situation.

 

[roxymama]

Hearts pounding thinking about what you must be thinking. So thankful as well that your husband is ok. Mine would have been in Vegas last night but his annual conference is being held in Dallas this year instead. I just can't imagine. Hug him tight when you can!!!

 

[Sailormoon2]

That is way too much stress. I would not be sleeping at all either.

 

[GollyGadget]

Oh my gosh! I'm so glad that your husband is safe and on his way home!! It's a terrible tragedy and I feel horrible for the victims.

Thanks. I'm so grateful we were some of the lucky ones!

Thankful to hear your husband is safe and headed home. What an extremely nerve wracking situation.

Thanks. I've never been so thankful in my life.

Hearts pounding thinking about what you must be thinking. So thankful as well that your husband is ok. Mine would have been in Vegas last night but his annual conference is being held in Dallas this year instead. I just can't imagine. Hug him tight when you can!!!

Thanks. I've never been so happy to see an airplane in my entire life.

That is way too much stress. I would not be sleeping at all either.

We both managed to finally get some napping in once we returned home from the airport. My body honestly wasn't even tired until it knew we were safely back together.

 

[xjillianpaige]

I can't imagine what the past two days must have been like for you! Sending positive vibes your way! Glad you two are back together.

 

[GollyGadget]

I can't imagine what the past two days must have been like for you! Sending positive vibes your way! Glad you two are back together.

Thanks for the vibes!

Things are slowly getting back to normal. We spent the day together yesterday working from home and are both back in the office today.

I'll never be able to put into words how fortunate, grateful, lucky, thankful, blessed we are. My thoughts are with those that weren't and I am hopeful that we will do better to prevent this sort of tragedy in the future.

 

[GollyGadget]

Lederhosen 5K Race Review

Weather:
Awesome weather. We’ve had a few unseasonably warm days this fall, but with the cool fall morning air the race felt perfect. It did eventually get above 70 but that’s much improved to the near 90 degrees we had just a few weeks ago.

Course:
The course started in a local park and was run on the bike path that goes along the river. My husband and I got married at the park 3 years ago so it’s always a delight to have a reason to visit. Starting at the park also meant plumbing. I was actually really surprised by this because usually all the park fountains and restrooms close after Labor Day but I guess not this park, or they turned everything back on? Whatever the case, it was a real benefit.

The course was an out and back that was really flat except for a couple of hills to get on/off the levee. I’ve ran this trail many times but the course went the opposite direction so most of it was new to me. Near the turnaround I realized I had run this area during my half marathon this past May. It didn’t exactly bring back good memories because by this time in the half it was hot, sunny, and no shade to be found, in short, I was miserable. I decided to use that as motivation to make this a better memory and kept pushing.

Results:
Going into the race I didn’t have any goals besides enjoying myself. My ultimate goal for a 5K is to sub 23 but I had been in recovery mode and all my runs in the last few weeks were easy; I didn’t really think that was feasible this time so I decided to take it “slow.” Since it was a small race (~100 participants), I knew it was likely I would get an AG award, but I wasn’t really pushing for it.

All of the above is true until about half a mile into the race. I was 3rd overall female and another woman had just flew past me at a pace that I didn’t think I could keep. Despite this, I could still see the 2nd place female and she appeared to be slowing down. That’s when I realized, if I kept going I could finish top 3. I decided to pick it up a tad and try to close the gap. Just after the 1st mile, I was officially back in 3rd. I could see the new woman in 2nd but she was still quite a ways ahead so I made a goal to just keep her in my sights. At the turn around point, I could see I had made some distance between myself and 4th place but I’d have to keep pushing if I wanted to hold on. After this, the crowd really thinned out and it was a mental battle to remind myself I was racing for glory. I was slowly closing the gap on 2nd but it was too big to close before the finish.

Time: 23:26 – Fastest 5K this year
Age Group Rank: 2/12
Gender Rank: 3/74
Overall Rank: 11/108

Random Ramblings:
Organization – I was really impressed with the race organization for such a small race. They were able to register me on the spot, had plenty of water, and the course was easy to follow.

Swag - I like to tell myself that I don’t run for the swag, but it sure doesn’t hurt. Just look at this awesome Lederhosen tshirt.

Plus, not only did I earn a medal for finishing 3rd, I also won a jar of mustard! These quirky things are what makes the local races stand out.


Speed – Wow! When did I get so fast? Back in March my 5K goal was to break 25 minutes. I also remember just a couple of years ago when I finally broke the 25 minute barrier and how tough of a race that was. This race never felt tough, I was pushing myself but not necessarily to my limits, especially early on. Definitely a confidence boosting race.

Overall Impression:
For a race that I decided to run that morning, I couldn’t be happier. The weather was awesome, the course was nice, and the after party was legit, even if it meant I was drinking alone in a park before 11 am. All participants received tickets for free Oktoberfest beer and German lunch. There was also the traditional banana and water, but if given the option, I’m going for the brat, kraut, and beer every time.


I never would have heard of this race if not for specifically searching for a 5K for that day. They could definitely use some help in their marketing, but as long as I’m in town next year I plan to add it to my calendar and maybe I’ll invite some friends.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Well done!

Speed – Wow! When did I get so fast? Back in March my 5K goal was to break 25 minutes. I also remember just a couple of years ago when I finally broke the 25 minute barrier and how tough of a race that was. This race never felt tough, I was pushing myself but not necessarily to my limits, especially early on. Definitely a confidence boosting race.

#Daniels Training!

 

[ZellyB]

WOW!!! So fast and awesome job on that run. I have serious shirt envy for that lederhosen shirt!!

 

[Sailormoon2]

What an adorable shirt!! And that is an awesome 5K time, congrats on the new PR.

 

[sourire]

Late to your journal, but wanted to say hi, and congratulations on your 5k!!! You are so fast!!!!

And also, so glad that your husband is alright. How scary. I can't imagine.

 

[GollyGadget]

Well done!



#Daniels Training!

WOW!!! So fast and awesome job on that run. I have serious shirt envy for that lederhosen shirt!!

What an adorable shirt!! And that is an awesome 5K time, congrats on the new PR.

Late to your journal, but wanted to say hi, and congratulations on your 5k!!! You are so fast!!!!

And also, so glad that your husband is alright. How scary. I can't imagine.

Thanks everyone! I have a scheduled 5K on Sunday and I'm anxious to see what I can do. The course features two big hills so it'll be a tougher race. My plan is to go all out and my goal is to break last week's time. I'd also like to win my AG. I won last year but this year I'm in a new division.

Life in general is getting back to normal. Still a bit shaken but we'll be fine.

 

[KSellers88]

Late to the party, as usual! But I am all caught up and excited to follow you on your WDW Marathon journey!

 

[GollyGadget]

Late to the party, as usual! But I am all caught up and excited to follow you on your WDW Marathon journey!

Glad to have you along!

 

[GollyGadget]

Gooooooooooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllll!

I’ve recently made some verbal commitments that are very scary but in order to hold myself accountable I’m writing them out here. Plus, @DopeyBadger tells me I’m 50% more likely to achieve my goals if I write them down….deep breath… I’ve set a goal to run Boston in 2020. As of today, this means I have to run a qualifying marathon in less than 3:35:00 by September 2019, 23 months from now. I’ve set an internal goal of sub 3:30:00 because round numbers and I’ll likely need a buffer (for Boston 2018, I would have had to run under 3:31:37)

Ahh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My current marathon PR is 5:33:48. How am I going to cut 2 hours off my time?

1. Practice
2. Prepare
3. Plan
4. Pixie Dust

The good news is that based on my recent 10 mile race, my current fitness already indicates a 3:37-39 marathon finish time. After having run one other marathon and swearing them off “forever,” I understand the marathon is a different beast and I’ve definitely learned a few things the hard way. Especially, the importance of proper training and fueling. I need a ~2% improvement to squeak in under 3:35 with perfect conditions. A 5% improvement would mean a 3:28. This goal definitely seems attainable, but still very scary.

My exact plan is still very much up in the air. The upcoming WDW Marathon is my first chance but I’m not totally committed to racing that race. I registered to try out the marathon thing again and as a test to see if I wanted to try for a BQ. Well, I’ve barely started training and I’m already setting my sights on that BQ. My goal at WDW will be entirely dependent on how training goes, the weather, how I’m feeling, and if I decide to go bananas on photo ops….it will be a game time decision.

I’m still undecided if I go for another marathon in the spring or wait until fall. I’ve made a life decision to not run any more important races in May because the risk of warm temperatures is too much so that leaves April which is only 13-16 weeks to recover and train. If I wait until fall, that’s one less chance I have before Sept 2019, but maybe it would be better to work on speed again anyway? Whatever I decide, I’ll likely be looking at races in/near Milwaukee, Chicago, or St. Louis since those are the locations in driving distance where I have a free place to stay, puppy sitters, and fans. Any suggestions?

 

[DopeyBadger]

I’ve set a goal to run Boston in 2020. As of today, this means I have to run a qualifying marathon in less than 3:35:00 by September 2019, 23 months from now. I’ve set an internal goal of sub 3:30:00 because round numbers and I’ll likely need a buffer (for Boston 2018, I would have had to run under 3:31:37)

I think you can do a sub 3:30 in the Spring 2018 if you continue to improve at a normal rate and continue to put in good training cycles.

The question then is, do you really want to run Boston 2020 for a reason and not Boston 2019? Because the window for qualification is only one year. Which means to run in Boston 2020 you have to run a 3:30 or better between September 2018 to September 2019. So a BQ any sooner would move you to Boston 2019.

Whatever I decide, I’ll likely be looking at races in/near Milwaukee, Chicago, or St. Louis since those are the locations in driving distance where I have a free place to stay, puppy sitters, and fans. Any suggestions?

So I think that gives us the following (Chicago and Milwaukee):

Spring BQ.2 Marathon - Geneva, IL
Bloop - Milwaukee, WI (1 mile loops)
Wisconsin Marathon - Kenosha, WI (near Milwaukee)
Last Chance BQ.2 Marathon - Geneva, IL
Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon - Milwaukee, WI
Chicago Marathon
Milwaukee Marathon
Madison Marathon

Madison is likely the coldest (Nov) but it also has quite a few hills. Chicago is certainly the most flat. Lakefront is nice because it's reasonably sized (2000 people), net downhill, weather is usually decent, and reasonably spectator attended. Wisconsin Marathon is alright (May) but much less attended both runners and spectators (about 500-800). Haven't done any of the others.