Once again I find myself on the doorstep of a marathon, and it looks like an awful big step from here. I was at the beach this weekend so I delayed my last long run until Monday… this after skipping a run last week… and I got sick during the run and had to drop out after 6.5 miles. WONDERFUL.
So instead of sprinting to the starting line… I will be limping to it. I am still sick, but I need to try to get some kind of run in tonight. A few weeks ago just under 8 minutes per mile seemed like a possibility. Now even that has probably slipped away. Regardless… I will run another marathon. This will actually be the 3rd I have completed… there was an ugly stepchild marathon back in 2001 that I ran half and walked half. I was going to walk the whole thing… but I started in the wrong line and was too embarrassed to walk. I ran 13 miles without having ever run one for training. Good lord that was dumb. I damaged a nerve in my foot that didn’t fully recover for a year! Never again.
Anyway… flash forward to 2007. I have the Eugene marathon under my belt already, and was hoping to make a push for BQ at Portland. While I didn’t make that… I realize what an effort that would have been. I *could* have made it, but it would have taken a devotion that my work and family schedule just don’t support. I still trained long and hard. Got out on the track which was a first for me… sprinting! At first I hated it… then it was much better. Training for a marathon feels a bit like climbing a mountain. One small slip and you slide back down. The closer and steeper you get to the top, the more costly any kind of slip is.
My work schedule will make running a bit interesting over the winter. I work 8:30 to 5:30. Getting up early is fine in the summer… but it is cold and rainy (and dark) in the winter. I am not looking forward to that. I am thinking about running at lunch, but I am not sure yet. Somehow… someway.
I sure have enjoyed reading everyone’s blogs. As a rather solitary runner… I rely on them for tips and motivation, and really… I doubt I could have kept up with my training without feeling a bit like I was on a train with other dedicated runners out there. Everyone seems to have a different reason to run (or race walk). Mine is not different… no more special. Every step I take is on a trail that has been blazed before, but in their own way, each marathon is a gem… full of pain, sweat, tears, and joy. In just over a week… I get to make another memory.
1 comment:
I hope you recover before the marathon. If you're weak going into the race it could get ugly. Else you should be just fine given that your training has gone well.
Don't forget to drink your fluids. You can get dehydraded pretty quickly when you are sick.
Good luck!
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