FOUR DAYS

I just ran my second to last training run. EEP!

Let me back up...

18-MILER - 5 weeks ago
In short, my parents are amazing. P and I drove down there to stay with them for two nights before we headed out to D.C. and Pennsylvania for a vacay and the JJ wedding. We got to their house late Saturday night. Ate some leftover narsty Chinese food. I mentioned to Mom that I should probably run 18 miles the next day, but I think I'd just put it off till Monday morning before we left on our road trip because it was so late already. She convinced me it'd be a much better idea to run the next morning, and volunteered to bike with me at a nearby lake/forest preserve!

Well, needless to say, the next morning I hit snooze when my alarm went off at 6 a.m. I groaned that my shins hurt, I was too tired, I'd just run tomorrow, etc. (the usual). Mom forced me out of bed. I groggily got ready, like a robot, and learned that Dad would be joining us. How lovely!

They stuck with me the whole way, on a lovely run through forest, bog and horse training areas. Mom dropped out with 6 miles to go and Dad got off the bike and ran the last 6 miles with me. Talk about great, supportive parents.

I finished pretty strong, and due to route miscalculations walked/jogged another 1.75 miles to the car. My knee did hurt, and I had some painful chafing in some unmentionable areas, but I had done it. My pace was slow, but I was going for distance, not speed.

20-MILER - 3 weeks ago
Was it really almost 3 weeks ago? Wow.

This run was pain.ful. It was a fairly warm day. I begged P to ride his bike with me, or at least meet me on the way back and bring me water. He finally said he "might."

The first 10 miles were great. I made it all the way out to Waukesha, couldn't find the Glacial Drumlin Trail, so just ran around downtown Waukesha and along the riverwalk. I actually went out 11 miles because I planned on running 22 if I could, and if not then I'd walk the last 2 hilly miles.

The way back started to get a little tougher. I kept anticipating that P would show up on the horizon at any moment. I started to get low on water and Gatorade... then I ran out of water. Around mile 14 or 15 I realized P was not coming. I started to hyperventilate because of the lack of liquids. Then I started to imagine P laying dead on the side of the road and not wearing a helmet. I wondered how I would find out if they took him to the hospital before I got to that part of the route. I pictured my mangled bike laying bloody at an intersection. I hyperventilated even more and seriously almost started balling.

I was going insane.

Seriously, I lost control of my emotions. I was going batty from too much exertion. Eventually I got a grip, but my pace suffered. I had to walk quite a bit. I savored every last drop of Gatorade and finally finished my 20 miles. Then came the torturous, hilly, dry walk for the last 2 miles. I got home, and P was nowhere to be found. Again, I nearly flipped out and started crying as I chugged cold water.

Turns out he had gotten a flat bike tire and RODE the broken bike 2 miles home. He was so exhausted from the heat and exertion of riding a friggin broken bike (smart!) he puked in someone's front lawn. I'm sure you can guess how sympathetic I was to his little tale after I had just run TWENTY miles. Oy.

That run was the hardest physical thing I've ever done. I can't believe in four short days I'll be running that PLUS 6.2 miles. Yikes.

THIS WEEK
This is it. Taper week, I suppose. I have been focusing more on speed for the past couple weeks, and honestly, I can notice a difference. I feel faster and more confident. I hope this will pay off on Sunday.

Saturday I ran 10 miles at a 9:46 pace. My somewhat lofty goal pace for the race is 10:00 miles. The 10-miler seemed pretty moderate at 9:46 so hopefully that's a good sign for my marathon intentions.

People keep asking me if I'm ready for the race, and I'm not really sure if I am. My runs for the past week have felt awesome and strong, so going by that alone I'd say yes. But those runs have been short. Based on my 20-miler, I'd say heck to the no. But that was 3 weeks ago.

I honestly don't know if a 10-minute pace is realistic for me. My 15+ mile runs have been slower than that by at least 30 seconds for the most part. I would love love love to run it in less than 4:30:00 though, and staying with the 10-minute pace group might help me stay motivated to do that.

Essentially, I'm just rambling. I have no idea what to expect, and as this is my first marathon I think my goal should be to finish and do my best. I REALLY want to stay mentally strong and not give up. I want to push it and give it my all. This is it. Who knows if I'll ever do this again (although I secretly am already planning my next one). So my goal is to just run my heart out.