Growth!

Logged: 7 miles
Race Countdown: 8 days

Wow, the countdown is down to the single digits! March 29 seemed like a distant goal when I started out back in January. Now it is a mere week away. This whole process has opened my eyes to just how amazing our bodies can be. The first week of training my long run was 6 miles. This monday I did twice that distance (12 miles eek). Gosh, I still remember back in high school when even running a mile for the fitness test was a challenge.

9 weeks is not a very long time, but 60 days of diligent training has still been a testament of willpower. To be honest I've always been prone to hiding and rationalizing, and not just when it came to workouts. It was always easier to cancel prior engagements or skip going to the gym on a bad day. When I started training in January, I made the decision to stick to the schedule no matter what. The fact that I stayed true to that promise is remarkable and also greatly rewarding. I ran through everything -- stomach flus, broken hearts, sub-zero temperatures, bouts of depression, and simple laziness or fatigue. No excuses; no flaking.

I have grown a lot, not just in physical strength but maybe more importantly in mental strength.

This was the last hard week before the race. Now it's all about tapering. Lots of sleeping and eating and stretching and preparing in the final days!

Long-ing

Logged: 9 miles
Race Countdown: 26 days

Well spring break is over. Did it even happen? Things have been pretty monotonous lately. The most exciting news to report are my 9-mile run this morning (9:03min/mile pace including warm-up & cool down) and then the amazingly delicious smoked salmon and melted cheese on whole wheat toast sandwich that I made myself for lunch.

Good food and good runs are the highlights of my days.