This past Saturday, I ran my last 20-miler before the St. George Marathon on October 4th. I have now officially entered the 3-week taper period for the SGM. I wasn't sure how I would fare on this final test considering some of my other long runs but I was anxious to see how prepared I would be for the actual race. I wanted to at least pace around my goal of 9:09 and I'm happy to report that I actually paced 8:55 for the entire run! I felt pretty good after completing the run and my recovery was good.
The weather has slowly begun to cool down which makes running much easier. In fact, one day last week, I actually felt a little cold at the start of my run. I started my Saturday run at 4 am to make sure I missed the heat and I ran along the banks of one of the canals in Mesa. I couldn't see much at all for the first hour or so - I could only make out the bank of the canal. In spite of the darkness however, I thoroughly enjoyed this time because it was so quiet and peaceful. Very little traffic noise and smell and no one around but me and the stars. I ate one Shot Blok every 5k or so and felt strong through the entire run. I have come to realize that what I eat a few hours before the run is the most important thing to my success and how I feel during a long run. I hope that the past several months of training and learning what works and what doesn't will all pay off at St. George.
I'm hopeful that I can lose 5-10 lbs in the next couple weeks before I begin carbo-loading for the race in the last week. Of course, Chase's birthday is today so we celebrated early last night with dinner at Outback Steakhouse followed by the mandatory cake and ice cream. If I could only say no to ice cream...and cookies...and cake...and, well you get the point. Still, its a goal so I'll give it a shot.
4 years ago
3 comments:
Gosh, we're proud of you! You are so committed and have worked hard. I wish our whole family could be there to cheer you across the finish line. Your attitude and success are most inspiring.
I again wish you good luck and admire your stamina
My first cousin's daughter Cherilee, who is in her thirties, just ran her first marathon on Saturday. She wrote a very long post on her blog about what happened and what she thought helped and hindered her. I think you might want to read her comments as they may be very helpful.
Click on this link:
http://onehoneyrunning.blogspot.com/
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