In Looking Back

Feelings of nostalgia swept over me as I did my final six-mile run Wednesday evening. I've run the same course every training day for the last 90 days. Some may find that boring, but I prefer it. I like knowing exactly where I've come from, how far I have left to go, and where it is I need to get back to. This last year has been a huge transition and that was a major motivator for me. Had I taken training more seriously (less drinking, more miles), I would be in a better position from a physical standpoint. But I don't regret any of it. The fact remains I haven't enjoyed myself this much since college. If running this marathon meant sacrificing all the fun from my life, it wouldn't have been worth it to me. My goal is simply to finish.

I stuck to my plan of doing 3-4 miles last night, then relaxing 'til Sunday. For the first time since he told me he always sees me running, I saw the bartender from Psycho Suzy's biking last night. I'd stopped looking for him so it was weird that I happened to see him on my last day of training. Hopefully it's some sort of positive sign or something! I'm nervous, anxious, and excited all rolled into one.

Not sure if I'll feel like posting the next few days so just wanted to say thanks to all who have listened to my venting and offered support!

High School Snot Invading My Territory

Thankfully, I'm not old enough to attend my 10 year high school reunion (haha, suckers), but I share md's sentiments about those years of my life -- former classmates are better off left in the past.

At my high school, the cool guys were "jocks" and cool girls were "preps." I can't imagine the term "prep" in that context is still in use today, but what do I know? I'm fucking ancient. In the popularity hierarchy, there were two rungs so to speak, the "really cool" and the "cool." The latter group consisted of the girls who had "really cool" friends, but they weren't part of that inner circle. They were destined to remain an outsider due to one or more of the following: a.) weren't pretty enough b.) didn't have a big enough rack or c.) got good grades

A year ago I was in the elevator of my apartment, about to leave for work, when it stopped on the 4th floor. Much to my horror, the doors opened to reveal UglyHighSchoolSnot. Shocked, I didn't say a word. And neither did she. Who is UHSS? She's one of those lower-rung, not-pretty-enough chicks. In fact, she suffers from a., b., and c. -- all of the above. While we've never spoken, I have this inner hatred toward her. In elementary school, she happened to befriend the right group of girls so by the time high school rolled around, you could tell by the smug look on her face she thought she was better than everyone else.

Out of ALL the apartments in Minneapolis, why must she occupy mine?!? I've been in my apartment four years now -- seniority should count for something. Why can't she respect that and move to the other side of the river? To make matters worse, she switched units a few months back and now she lives right down the hall.

What irks me the most is I see her on a daily basis! Not only do we leave and arrive home at the same time every day, making for awkward elevator rides, but we pass one another going opposite directions while running across the Stone Arch Bridge. Yesterday I doubled my normal run (13 miles, woo hoo) so she ended up passing me and going in front of me as I hit the halfway point. It was disappointing to realize I couldn't keep up with her pace, but it was a valiant effort on my part -- I can be pretty competitive when I want to be. I kept thinking to myself, I bet she's not doing 13 miles!

Maybe she's actually a very nice person and I will never know, but I associate her as a representation of all the popular preps I'd just as soon forget.

Weight. Lift.

Things I would rather do than lift weights:

- Clean up projectile vomit
- Give my grandma a sponge bath
- Offer Deborah a piggyback ride

Weights are sooooo not my thing. Yet somehow I found the motivation to do them twice in the past couple weeks. I only ran three miles yesterday, then dragged my heels to the weight area. My arms are sore today and I suspect it'll be worse tomorrow. Why do toned arms have to come at such a high price? Mine are nowhere near that. One thing that keeps me going is the gorgeous personal trainer/model. I drool. Literally. If I had the extra money right now, I'd hire him. Today.

Now What?

Ho hum, life is so dreadfully boring as of late. I feel totally unprepared for running 26.2 miles come October 7. My workouts have been sporadic -- I've failed to keep up with my training. I managed to squeeze in 4 days last week, running 6 miles each time, so a grand total of 24 for the week. According to my schedule, I should have completed 18-19 miles so maybe I'll be okay. It's the long Sunday runs I've been neglecting that will ultimately screw me over. I was supposed to do 9 on Sunday, the number rising by 1-2 every Sunday. Much to my horror, the humidity returned in full force after a 6-day stretch of relief, so my run yesterday was not a pleasant one.

Today I headed to the gym for the first time since the "re-modeling." They added new machines and granite benches and countertops to the locker rooms, but other than that, I couldn't tell much difference. Within thirty seconds on the treadmill, I stopped and opted for one of the new elliptical machines. Why is it I had to get stuck beside the guy who insisted on blowing his nose directly into his towel?! The same towel he then proceeded to use to wipe the sweat from his forehead. Trust me, there was nothing discreet about several loud honks of a blow that sounded like a Canadian geese mating call!! Snot and sweat...what a combo.

On my way home, guess who I had the privilege of seeing again? BellyBulgeGuy --same green khaki shorts and all. Like a bowl full of jelly!

5 Miles in Hell

Why did I think I could run in this heat?!? Big mistake. My body prefers cold over hot any day of the year. I figured maybe I should try to acclimate my body to the humidity since this is my last week of freedom before marathon training starts.

In fact, I received my official participant of the '07 Twin Cities Marathon card in the mail today. I don't think the training itself will be the difficult part. I'm actually dreading the commitment of following a regimen more than anything. I hate the fact I'll no longer have the freedom to do whatever I want for my workouts.

123 Days 'til Twin Cities Marathon

So I've been averaging 6-6 1/2 mile runs. I don't intend to start training until June 19, which is 18 weeks out from the race (October 7). For the most part, I feel somewhat confident in my ability to run the full 26.2 miles, but that could drastically change once training begins. Granted, I've run nowhere near that distance, but I completed that 12-mile run with minor pain. I know I could've gone further that day, but it was like, what's the point?

As I mentioned before, my goal is simply to finish. If I went all-out in training, I think there'd be a good probability I'd suffer a major case of burn-out before the race. At least I know I'm not the only one taking a half-ass approach. I felt a sigh of relief when my friend sent me this article a couple weeks ago. Check it out.

"Whether covering as little as 15 miles as week or as many as 100, the primary goal of all marathon programs is the same: to build your endurance to the point where you can cover 26.2 miles. Hence, the common denominator of every program is the weekly or every-other-week "long run" — a slow-paced run that starts at whatever distance you can now complete and, over months, grows longer."

I spoke to another runner friend of mine the other day about how I need to find a 5K and 10K to do as part of my training regimen so she suggested the Aquatennial Torchlight Run. It'll be exciting because the race begins at 7:30 pm! I invite any and all to join us!