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The One Before The Taper

Well I did it.. the last 20 before the taper.. the run I honestly tried my best to get out of doing. I talked to friends. I tried to get everyone I could to tell me that it wasn't really that necessary.. that I could skip it if I wanted to.. or split it up or modify it or just plain ignore it. But friends and trainers alike pretty much said no, I really needed to get this 20 in. I could wait another week, but it really needed to be done. Sigh, double sigh, stomping my feet a little in frustration sigh, fine then.

I laid out my clothes. I had a friend say she'd meet me at mile 17 and run the last 3 with me (She just ran a great marathon the weekend before and was recovering). So now things were looking up. I'm not doing 20, just 17, and then my friend will be there to chat away the last 3. I got this. Sure I do.

Then it got cold outside. Well cold for me for the first run in the 'colder' weather. It was just 39, but when I started out it felt like sub zero in the dark at the time. I whined. I moaned. I thought of turning back. It was .25 miles into the run. (Yes, you read that right, only a quarter of a mile into the run). Long sigh, it's going to be a long morning. But I told myself it was dark. Once the sun came up it would be better. Keep going. 10 minute rule. You have to run for 10 minutes at least. 15 minutes into the run, it still pretty much was yucky. I was still cold. It was dark. It was just bleh. But I reminded myself that the sun wasn't up yet. It would be different once the sun came up. Around 4ish miles, the darkness was fading and I needed the knuckle lights less and less.  But honestly, I still considered turning back. By this point I could tell that I wasn't 100% over my head cold that I'd been battling. And my lack of proper nutrition had caught up with me. But I kept going.

Finally I made it to mile 10 - the half way point. And I honestly considered having someone just come and pick me up and take me to my car. Really, I was that tired. But I really wanted to get this very long run over with and start the taper for the marathon. So I trudged on.

Knowing my friend was meeting me at mile 17 kept me moving. Around 15ish miles my phone rang. My friend was calling to check on me to make sure I was ok. It was taking me longer than I had anticipated. Here I really wanted to quit. I mean 15 is good enough right? But then I heard myself say, "Get real, you've done 15 with only 5 more to go. Suck it up. Get it done. And while you are at it, stop your moaning". So I trudged on along my way looking forward to seeing my friend at 17 miles.

Finally mile 17. Finally a friendly face to help pass the miles. And the last 3 miles weren't bad. Oh yes, by this point everything was pretty much  hurting, and I think even my face was tired (ha).. but she helped me through the end. 20 miles done. Now time to lower the mileage.

My knees are bothering me after this run. I wore compression knee sleeves on them Saturday afternoon and Sunday. Today is my first day without them. So far no pain. I'm taking another rest day today, and will give running a try tomorrow.

It's hard to believe that I only have a 12 and 8 left for long runs before the marathon.






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Comments

  1. Way to go! That 20 is brutal! Enjoy the taper!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks... yes I'm glad I only have 12 this weekend :)

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  2. Good job getting 20 done! Looking forward to reading about this marathon :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! Fingers crossed I finish and all goes well!

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