The Final Hours

Hi!
I've been resting all week & icing my muscles in preparation for the race on Sunday. Today I will lay out all my stuff to make sure I have what I need. I may need to make one last trip to REI. I get one last adjustment at the chiro this afternoon. I will pack. I will try to get to bed early.

Tomorrow we drive to the redwoods to check in for the race, find our hotel & get our last load of carbs at the pasta party.

Sunday I'll get up early enough to enjoy a PBJ sandwich & head to the start.

When will my nerves begin to act up? When will the adrenaline kick in? When with this even be over? In just a few hours!

I've spent the last 3 months training my body - I've run about 200 miles. I've received amazing support and reached my fundraising goal! I learned that I was the top fundraiser for 1/2 marathons this season. I couldn't have done this without you!

On Monday I get to follow the "recovery calendar". On Tuesday I guess I'll start my new role as mentor for the next season.

Today's post isn't the end of this blog because I joined the next season as mentor training for the Nike Women's Marathon. This new role will bring new challenges and new stories to share. The new season also bring another opportunity for you to help me raise funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Let's work to find a cure for blood cancers. We can save others from having to go through painful treatments or greive the loss of aloved one. As Coach Al says, "Let's do the damn thing!"

The Countdown

Five days left. On Saturday we'll head up to the redwoods to run The Ave. 13.1 miles through some of the tallest trees in the world.

Want to know what I'll be experiencing:
Read the course description

I'm excited & I guess I'm a bit nervous since I had a horrible time sleeping last night.

Tomorrow night we have a send off party where I'll pick up my race packet & figure out where I'm going this weekend. Saturday night TNT hosts a pasta party to top off our last few days of carb loading. Sunday morning please keep me in mind as I'll be making my way along the beautiful course. Of course I'll have in mind all the honorees who've inspired me during the past few months. With each step I take I'll be thinking of your family & friends who have had to fight a blood cancer.

Stay tuned for a post race report.

Faster Than Lightning

Today our track workout was a learning about how fast we really are. Coach told us we were going to run a mile as fast as we can to test our understanding of our ability. We had to predict how fast we could run four laps of the track, run them & see how well we know ourselves. I guessed that I could run the mile in 12 minutes.

We did 1/2 mile warm up, our usual stretches, shout outs, cheers and a moment of silence then off to the races. The first lap was OK & coach was impressed by my rhythm. The second lap the breathing was harder. The third lap I know I slowed. As I came around the last turn into the home stretch I heard them counting: 9.25, 9.30 I kicked on the power boosters...9.31, 32, 33, 34 & I crossed the line at 9.37.

Whoooo hooo under 10 minutes. I know I couldn't keep that pace up for another lap but I was impressed with my time.

At the end of the cool down laps coached looked at the clipboard where we all predicted out times. "Hey! Where's Sarah? She doesn't know squat!"

I've never run for speed - I run a pace I know I can keep up with for the duration. I expect I'll finish the race next weekend somewhere in the 12-13 min. mile pace. I'm OK with that. A few months ago I couldn't keep going beyond a mile & it took over 15 minutes to do it.

New Commitment

I went to the meeting last night to become a mentor for the summer season marathon team. I'll be assigned a group of 8-12 runners and work with them to achieve their goals (to cross both the race & fundraising finish line).

During this past season my big hurdle was staying healthy & uninjured while running. Raising the money was easy due to the generosity of friends like you. Now that I know I can complete a 1/2 marathon I will have to focus on the challenge of education & fundraising for a second season.

As long as families and friends have to endure the loss of a loved one to blood cancer I will have a commitment to this cause. My season as a participant ends soon and I'll have to shift my focus to help others get through the aches & pains of running and fundraising. If you are interested in joining TNT to train for a marathon let me know. It would be great to have you on my team!

To everyone who has already given so generously, THANK YOU! I may need your help again soon. To all my readers who have yet to give I will count on your support this next season.

It's Time To Taper

Saturday was to be "the longest run" of ten miles. Due to my foot/ankle issue coach suggested I run two short runs over two days. So as the rest of the team struggled to finish their 10 - 20 mile runs I did my shorty & rested at the water stop chatting & passing out gatorade to my friends. Now that the race is two weeks away it is time to taper.

Every good marathon-training plan should "taper" during those final 21 days. That means you run less and rest more. For some people, the idea of backing off on their training just before the big race seems counterintuitive. "So many runners train hard right up to the day of the marathon because they're desperately afraid of losing fitness if they don't," says Patti Finke, who coaches 250 marathoners a year as co-director of the Portland (Oregon) Marathon Clinic. "What they don't realize is that in those last few weeks it's the rest more than the work that makes you strong. And you don't lose fitness in 3 weeks of tapering. In fact, studies show that your aerobic capacity, the best gauge of fitness, doesn't change at all." (Click that link to read the whole article)

Two weeks of short enjoyable runs.

Not Broken!!!

Injury update: The doctor just left a message that my x-ray was clear. I guess the pain is a muscle or ligament problem. According to Dr. Lu my left ankle is less stable than the right. That's what I get for years of rolling & twisting my ankle in softball & soccer.

Other news:I think I am going to accept the offer to be a mentor for the next season. Now I have to decide if I want to run the Maui half in Sept. or Nike Women's half in Oct. A message to all my friends & regular readers who haven't yet made their donation to LLS - I've exceeded my financial goal for The Avenue so please wait until next season because I'll need your help then.

Thanks for checking in. I've got to go ice my foot now.

Maybe... Maybe Not

I went to the doctor today to see if I have a stress fracture on the lateral side of my left foot.

I fell down the stairs at the movie theater a few weeks ago - amazed that I didn't do big damage to myself but thought I felt some tenderness in my left foot. Nothing big came up so I felt lucky. On the Sat run whenever I hit an uneven patch I felt a "zing" in my left foot. I didn't think much of it as I was able to finish the 8 mile run.

Sunday I became aware of the pain. With each step a small but sharp pain sent a message that something isn't quite right. I called the Dr & went in for x-rays today.

I'll let you know what I hear. For now I am using an ice pack & trying not to move around too much. I have three weeks to heal.

Thursday is the celebration of Brenda's Life. She passed away Sat evening.