20 Miles!

It’s crazy to think that my marathon is exactly one month from today. ONE month! I can’t *believe* how fast this spring has flown by… it feels like just yesterday that I officially decided to commit to this thing!

I’m not worried, though. I feel super confident in my ability to run 26.2 miles. In fact, a few days ago, I reached a new milestone!

Over the weekend (yeah, I realize I’m super late in recapping this, but I’ve had a crazy week!) I officially entered into the 20 mile territory! In fact, my marathon training plan maxes out at 20 miles, so the next longest run I’ll do will be the actual marathon itself – craaazy!

Hold on a sec, how many fingers are you holding up there?

Oh, Two-Zero… gotcha

Um… that’s a lot of miles

Running 20 miles, to me, is a pretty big feat… something that I doubt I’d ever be able to accomplish (at least, safely) without a solid training plan. So I figured I’d take a minute to recap my marathon journey so far and reflect on everything I’ve done in my training plan…

January:

10 miles (plan called for 9 miles, but we all know how I feel about the number 9)

11 miles

11 miles

February:

12 miles

14 miles (I split this up into 7 and 7 on Sat/Sun due to my hip feeling off)

15 miles

12 miles (plan called for 11, but I added in another mile just for kicks)

March:

17 miles

18 miles (aka my 5th half marathon + 5 mile warm-up run)

13 miles

20 miles (plan called for 19miles, but again… the whole number 9 thing. Yep, totally irrational, but I’m weird like that).

…And here’s what’s left of it!

April:

This weekend: 12 miles

Next weekend: 20 miles

Weekend after that: 12 miles

Weekend before the marathon: 8 miles

Last weekend in April: THE MARATHON (on Sunday, May 1st!)

26.2 miles? Briiiiiing it!

I can’t believe things are starting to slow down, and my long-runs are beginning to taper off.  It’s funny, Ryan asked me how far my upcoming long-run was for this weekend, and I simply replied, “oh, just 12 miles for this one.”

Yep.  12 miles…

Let’s reflect a bit here, shall we?

Since when did 12 miles become “just 12 miles” … like it ain’t no thang? Seriously, who am I and what happened to that girl from high school whohated running long distance and was convinced her exercise induced asthma would keep her from ever running further than one mile at a time?

All I have to say is, the basis of running is 90% mental. Barring any true physical ailments/serious injury, I’d bet almost anyone can become a runner. All you have to do is give it a shot! Seriously, running is such a mental game. That is probably why I love it so much. I am 100% in control of how far I go. I know my body is capable of going long distances (as long as I’m not feeling any true pain… soreness is one thing, actual pain is a different beast). It’s amazing how you can not “be in the mood” to go on a run, but once you’re actually out the door… you end up having the best run of your life to date. That’s happened to me many times. Sometimes you just gotta shutout the inner chatter in your head, get yourself out the door and do it. In my experience, pounding the pavement almost always turns out to be the right choice.

However, I must add, if you are on the verge of injury, letting your body rest is one of the most important things you could do for yourself! Overtraining is a huge cause of injury… so always make sure to listen to your body and not push through actual, physical pain. Oh, and most importantly? Always, always, ALWAYS make sure you are wearing the correct type of running shoe for your foot!

Do any of you have any races coming right up ? Do you have any tips/quotes to share that help you get your butt in gear when you feel unmotivated to workout? Do you listen to your body and give it rest when it’s tired/on the verge of injury? Have you ever experienced injury from overtraining?

Oh, and a Random Tangent…

Does anyone else have trouble holding up two fingers on one hand? I seriously cannot do it correctly… whenever I throw up the peace sign (or other signs, ahem) my fingers just don’t stand up straight by themselves… they always bring along their neighbors a little bit!

Exhibit A:

Mehhh...

Exihibit B:

Fingers too small? Webbed fingers? All of the above?

At least I embrace it…