Race Week

5 More Days

I made it. 16 weeks of religiously following a training plan. Only 2 runs left until the marathon. 

Marathon Training - Day 1 (7/25/16)

I've trained in both the hot and cold. I had my first medical emergency back in September (X-2 Hemlock Half). I crushed a Ragnar Relay. I ran at the beach. In the rain (hurricane).I completed my first (and second) sprint triathlons. I've completed a run at nearly every hour of the 24 hour day cycle.

As crazy as it sounds...even now... I don't feel ready. I'm panicking that I will fail - or that I'll even cross the finish line. 

Sub 4 hours might not be a realistic goal. The more I look at my training log, ponder/stress about the shooting pains in my feet, and look at sub freezing temps predicted for Saturday, the more I doubt my abilities. 

At this point all I can do is rest and pray. Stress isn't going to help anything. But I also want to remind myself that it doesn't matter; I am a real runner. We all have good and bad days, and when I look back on this all I can hope to say is I gave it my best effort. 

Goals

1. Don't die (seriously, this is big)

2. Finish the race (don't get hauled off on a stretcher or end up in a medic tent)

3. Have fun/feel good. Might sound counter-intuitive to running 26.2 miles, but I think it' s a reasonable goal.

4. PR (under 4:08:53). Realistically I won't. I haven't been as fast as I was with previous marathon training. I'm potentially ignoring an impending injury in my foot... but I'll leave this up here.

5. Sub 4 hour marathon (see above for why this might not happen). This would make my race/year, though.

6. BQ!! (and win the lottery while we are at it). A Boston qualifier time for me is under 3:35, so this is the equivalent of being struck by lightening twice while holding a winning lottery ticket.

I am excited to go back to Richmond. I'm not thrilled about the 30* temps in the forecast... but I will make do. I'm excited to see the town, run a beautiful course, and celebrate with my husband, mom, and 20,000 new runner friends afterwards ;-) I'll take lots of pictures, so be prepared for a very thorough Richmond recap. I'm ready - no matter what conditions and final outcome(s) I face on race day.

#richmondready #richmondmarathon #26.2orbust