Marathon Day

Here I am ready to go! I had slept pretty well and most of my nerves were gone, so that was good. There were a lot of people there at the start line. When I walked with Cassie two years ago, we started an hour earlier so it was not the same hype and excitement. There were thousands of people. My parents were there to see me off with a bunch of other people.

Just about mile 13. I was feeling great and I was running ahead of schedule. This was by far my best half marathon time ever. I was so happy about it and thought that if I could keep this up, then I would be able to get a really great time. Around mile 6 or 7, we split from the half marathon runners and it got a lot less busy and crowded. There definitely were not even close to the same amount of people running the marathon as there were on the half. I was happy about that though. However, I think that it might have helped push me along at the beginning to have that many people with me.
I am done! This was not a very easy for me. Not only do I not love running, I have never really pushed myself this hard before. I was really struggling at the end. I was having a hard time breathing and just feeling the ability to keep pushing myself. I wanted to finish though. I still have a lot of improvement that I need to work on. Maybe a few more years of practice and some half marathons, I might be better at being able to do the marathon. I said when I finished never again and no one believed me but even if I don't, I will plan on having some half marathons. I want to keep up trying to get better at running. I just need more practice before I do a marathon again. I did beat my last time by an hour though so that is improvement. I was glad to be done and I ran across the finish line even though there was a part of me that just wanted to end and crawl across, but there is no way I would let that happen! It took everything I had to finish but I will always be happy that I was able to finish. It is a feat that not very people are ever able to accomplish. I am proud of myself and am grateful that I had no blisters and that all of my body parts were still kind of working. I am in a lot of pain but I crossed that finish line with my head held high and still moving. I may not have done it as fast as I had hoped but I guess I can just be happy that I finished.

I received this medal for finishing. It will continue to keep me motivated and let me know that I can accomplish anything I want. It just takes a little hard work and determination and I now that I have that! :)

I had a bunch of family and friends there to congratulate me. I am appreciative of them and thankful that they continue to push and encourage me as I strive to acheive my goals. It is great to have people around me that care about me and happy for me when I do accomplish something that I have worked so hard for.

Day 95

Scheduled: OFF

I get an off day today! Tomorrow is the big day. I feel so ready. I know that my 4 months of training and pushing myself are going to payoff. I am anxious for it all to start and as the hours go by, I am getting a little more nervous but I know that I am going to finish. I might not be the fastest and possibly could be the slowest person but I will cross that finish line. I just hope that I can get over my nervousness and just remember what I am accomplishing and run with confidence and keep the motivation up. No worries while I run!

Day 94

Scheduled: Stretch

I was going to do some pilates but I was sore from yoga so I thought some good stretchs would be good enough. It felt good to just stretch and relax.

Day 93

Scheduled: 15-30 mins

Total 2.5 miles (11 min/mile - 27.5 mins)

This also included a min in a half walk at the beginning. Last run before the big day. It was cold and raining outside so I went to the gym but it was a good run. I feel good and ready for this. I cannot believe it is only a few days away. Hopefully I will get some rest in the next few days.

Day 92

Scheduled: Stretch

I got to do an hour of yoga today. I am not very good at yoga but I was trying. Hopefully now that I have more time, I will be able to get better at it. It felt good to stretch and just relax. It is a great way to start the morning.

Day 91

Scheduled: 15-30 mins

Total 2.1 miles (10.48 min/mile - 22 mins)

My last run outside before race day. We are going to have bad weather the next few days. Thank goodness it is suppose to be nice on Saturday. It was windy yesterday but that was good because I kept running through it anyway, good practice before the big day! My run felt really good. I was having problems with my calves again but I was pushing yesterday. It gave me a lot of confidence. The first few miles are the hardest for me so I know that once I get through that and keep going, I will be doing really well. I am so excited for Saturday. I am looking forward to crossing the finish line.

Day 90

Scheduled: 4-5 miles

Total 4.88 miles (11.27 min/mile - 55 mins)

My last real run before the race. I started out really slow and was having a hard time. My calves were killing me and I was getting frustrated because I just did not want to keep going. Once I got past the 1.5 mile mark though I did not have to stop again! It just takes me time to get in my groove but once I am there it feels good. I hope since I start going down hill, I can make it into my groove a little earlier. I was still happy with the run and how fast I was able to do it! One week, I cann't believe it is almost here.

Day 89

Scheduled: 30-45 min XT

30 min Jilian Michael kickboxing

It was a good workout. I miss doing other stuff and I always feel better after Jilian gets done pushing and yelling at me! It was a great start to my very long day. I had to work both jobs so I needed the energy at the begining.

Day 88

Scheduled: 30-45

Total: 3.00 miles (11.17 min/mile - 33.5 mins)

My goal this morning was to run 3 miles. I really wanted to do it in 33 minutes but I guess 30 more seconds is not too bad. Of course I was running at 6.5 speed the last bit to make it happen. It was good to do that though because I feel like it is good to know that I can push myself to go faster even if it is only for a few minutes ever so often. I might need to get a watch to help me with that motivation while running. I felt good today. My knee is not 100% but it seems to be getting closer. Another good run - helping with my confidence to be able to do this!

Day 87

Scheduled: 30-45 min

Dance Jam 60 mins

Another fabulous class! I cannot do this class because of my training next week and I am going to miss it. It is okay though because I really want to stick with the schedule next week since it is the week of the race and I am getting nervous. I want to be as prepared as possible. Again, I left feeling fabulous and ready to take on the world. :-)

Day 86

Scheduled: 30-45 mins

Total: 3.4 miles (11.47 min/mile - 39 minutes)

I decided to run after work because it was 70 degrees outside and since the weather has not been good, I have not spent much time outside running. I need to practice being outside for race day. It was a little windy but other than that, the weather was fabulous. I was struggling a little bit though. I have such a hard time getting myself started and when I am outside it is easier to start walking then when I am on the treadmill. I need to try a few more runs the next week to get prepared.

Day 85

Scheduled: 30-45 mins

Total: 2.76 miles (10.87 min/mile - 30 mins)

My goal today was 2.5 miles. I knew I only wanted to run for 30 minutes so I could lift weights and take it easy. I was happy with how far I was able to go in that time. I ran my fastest this morning and I was actually feeling pretty good. I was at a 9.22 min mile for 3 minutes and then I was at a 10 min mile for 6 minutes. I got a little tired after all this but I am glad I did it. My knee is hurting more than it has in a little bit and I am thinking it might be because of running faster. I don't know though. I feel so good when I get done running and it makes it easier to get through the day. The weight training was great also.

Day 84

Scheduled: 8-10 miles

Total: 8.05 miles (11.18 min/mile - 1 1/2 hours)

I was happy with my run. This is the last long one before the marathon. I felt pretty good but again, I pushed myself too hard at the beginning. I was needing an extra push at the end. I had to run on the treadmill because it was snowing and I seem to run better outside. I am hoping to get some workouts done outside this week. I don't seem to tire myself out as quickly. I am getting really anxious and excited for the marathon. I cannot believe it is two weeks away. I have been working so hard for this, I just can't believe it is actually going to be here and gone. I have imagined what it is going to feel like to cross the finish line and the accomplishment that I know I can do it. My knee held up really well. It hurt a little during the day but nothing too bad so that is good.

2 weeks and counting!

Day 83

Scheduled: 30-45 min XT

I ended up not getting a chance to do anything today. I did not get out of work early enough and had to go to my other job and ended up working 3 hours longer than I was scheduled too. It sucks. I hate it when I don't get to work out.

Day 82

Scheduled: 30-45 mins

Total: 2.81 miles (11.03 min/mile - 31 mins)

I did a 1 minute warmup and then ran and went up every time a new song came on. I ran at 6.0 with my favorite running song - "Girlfriend". I know that helped make my time faster. It felt really good. I wish I could get to a point that I could run that fast the whole time but it just tires me out. I do feel like I could have run at that speed a little longer but it was at the end of my time and I needed a few minutes to slow down my pace. I knew I wanted to run for 30 mins and I wanted to get to 2.5 miles so I surpased that. Good run this morning.

Day 81

Scheduled: 30-45 min XT

60 mins of Dance Jam

This class again is the best! We did a new routine that I have never done before and it was so much fun. There was some African dancing and all sorts of other fun things. I wish I could take more people to this class with me!

Day 80

Scheduled: 30-45 mins

Total 3.5 miles (11.43 min/mile - 40 mins)

My goal was to run 3.5 miles and I did it! For the most part my knee does not hurt too much. There is always a slight bit of pain but nothing too extreme. It is feeling good to be really running again. I did this run after work rather than before because I am sick. I am not a big fan at night but only because I don't eat enough to fuel myself for the after work runs. I was not planning on running then so I did not have the right foods prepared. I tend to be tired also and my energy is pretty low. I was not sure that I was going to make it through the run but I did and it felt great.