"In 6 miles, I'll blow by ya like a Kenyan." - Coach Rick, talking about the people jumping around, hootin and hollerin while in the corral before the race
Miles Ran: 477.09 (I'm going to break 500 after the marathon!) Dollars Raised: $3,245.60
Wow, what an amazing day. Let me start from the beginning.
For some reason I didn't set my alarm correctly last night and luckily woke up only 20 minutes later than planned (of course I always over-estimate the time it will take me to get ready). I was running around gathering everything I could possibly need for out LAST (tear) long, group run. The conditions outside seemed pretty good from inside my apartment, and luckily I wasn't surprised when I stepped outside: fairly sunny, mid-40's, no crazy wind.
When I arrived early at Revolution Fitness I was chatting with some other runners in the locker room before we made our way to the studio. Seriously, it's like we're all going to church to listen to our preacher (Rick) give us an inspiring, motivational and informative sermon. First we started out by recognizing top fundraisers--and although I haven't raised the most money for my team, I have hosted lots of events and have had a very large number of donors (every little bit counts!) and was awarded with TWO VIP TICKETS TO THE FINISH LINE!!! I'm so excited because this will enable my family to be a little less stressed in such a crazy area downtown, nevermind that hopefully it will give them a better chance to see me!
Speaking of family members, one of the things Rick had to say to us today, that is very true, is NOT to let yourself get disappointed if you miss seeing someone. If you're SOOO looking forward to seeing that one person at mile "x" and you don't, it can be devastating and really ruin your mental focus. I was also very happy that he talked about nutrition. He suggested to deprive yourself of carbs for days 6-4 away from the Marathon, and then when you're 3 days out, CARBO LOAD. He also recommended when you're eating pasta the night before, NOT to butter your bread or put dressing on your salad. You don't want to take any chances with oils or fats your body may not be used to. He also talked about how to break up the race...don't use up all of your energy trying to get pumped up beforehand, or getting swept up with the group. Be very conservative for the first 6 miles, then make up for lost time and pound pavement where it's flat until about mile 16, then climb Heartbreak Hill, and then you're almost home-free :) I thought it was also interesting that he said your most important night of sleep is Saturday night, because Sunday, we probably won't get much sleep at all. I'm trying to be really calm lately, brush off stress, and haven't been feeling the anxiety that I was before. I'm hoping that will help me get at least a few uninterrupted hours in Sunday night.
I started to get teary-eyed when he was saying how proud he is of us, and that he hopes we learned something about running from him, as well as life, which I have. He will not be running this year, but I'm happy that he will be with us in Athlete's Village, hopefully seeing us along the route, and plans to be at the Big Turn (right on Hereford, left on Boylston!) to hopefully run us in to the finish. I can't imagine what I will be like if I see him there. As if my emotions won't be exploding already--god, I'm tearing up thinking about it--seeing him would just make everything seem perfect and complete. And then, it will all be over. Just like that.
So Katharine, myself, and the rest of the group took the T out to Woodland and hopped right on the course, just before Heartbreak Hill. It's definitely easier to attack when it's only miles 1-4, but I also just feel so prepared having run that hill 4 times in 4 weeks, and once before that. It's definitely a home-team advantage being able to train on it. I feel like for a lot of the run Katharine and I didn't talk that much, and when we did we were just in awe of how close the Marathon is, wondering what the streets will be like, wondering how our pace will be, how the spectators will act... We, or at least I, were so caught up in our heads about what we could possibly experiencing in one week.
We were running at a great pace, the weather felt perfect, and according to the 10-day forecast (which EVERYONE at the run had checked this morning) April 19th looks like it has the potential to be perfect. I'll be checking it every day from now until then, obviously.
One of my favorite parts of the run today had to be the end. As we made our way down Beacon Street to Mass. Ave., we were on the finally leg. We MADE that right onto Hereford, and decided to run in the street as we MADE that left onto Boylston. There were a few close calls with buses being about 3 feet from us, so we went up on the sidewalk. I said to Katharine, "Wanna sprint?" And we took off. We were zipping through people left and right going about a 7:00 pace, just flying, and then!...had to stop. Stupid traffic. We were only half a block away from the finish line, so when the coast was clear we went into the street and sprinted our hearts out to the finish line, and to the cheering of some of our teammates who were already there. It felt amazing.
Then we came back to my apartment and did some arts and crafts!
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