Where did these miles come from?

I feel like my marathon training has snuck up on me.  Nevermind that I ran 15 miles two weeks ago.  (On the treadmill.  Yes, I’m going to continue to talk about that.)

This weekend, I’ve got 16, then a “stepback” week of a half marathon, then it’s up to 18 miles.  Already?

I admit that my 20 miler is peaking at a time that some would consider early when it comes to the marathon date, but I had to make it fit in my holiday travel schedule.  I know myself and I know how things go and I know that if I tried to make it happen while home at my parents’ house, I wouldn’t get it in.   Their treadmill would kill me and I think I would have to circle the town four times to get in 20 miles.  Not that it wouldn’t be doable, but I just know how things work in my life.

So I’ll get in 20 miles 3 weeks before the marathon, and then I’ll be ready to go.

Again, my only time goals are to do better than last year and to be able to ride Expedition Everest in the middle of the marathon.

No, I’m probably not what you’re going to call a serious marathoner at this point.  But I’m doing it for fun.  If it’s not fun, it’s not worth my time.

For now, though, I just have to focus on getting through 16 miles on Saturday.  8 miles out, 8 back.  Totally doable.

Do Something That Scares You

I have read about people who believe in doing something that scares them every day.

I do not have time for that.  Also, it sounds super stressful.  That is a lot of things to be scared of.

But I do believe in doing something that scares me from time to time.  Heck, it’s half the reason I got into triathlons.  They still scare me a little bit, but they’re also fun. Sort of like rollercoasters, I guess.

I’ve mentioned it before, but I sing in a choir.  And usually, our soloists are paid professionals, but for the Christmas concert series, we have little solo opportunities.  I have never auditioned before because let’s be honest, I’m not good enough, comparatively speaking.  My choir has a number of members who are trained musicians.  And I have studied voice, but not as extensively as some of these people.

But I’m also not bad.  And it wasn’t the idea of standing up and performing in front of a group that scared me.  It was the idea of standing up and being compared to these other musicians that made me nervous.  I like to be good at things, and when I’m not good, I don’t really have the desire to put that out there and make it obvious.

So I wasn’t going to do it.  Then I decided, what the heck.  Why not.  Worst case, I don’t get the solo.  No big deal.

I don’t actually know how this story ends.  I won’t know til next week (probably) who got the various solos, but I’m not holding my breath.  Either way, I got up there and did it and held my own.  And that was the point.  Taking to a friend after the auditions,  she was there for the same reason – just to force herself to do it.  She didn’t care about the result, she was just happy with how the evening had gone.

So regardless of the outcome, sometimes sucking it up and doing something scary is worth it just the same.

Stepback = Step Off

This weekend was a scheduled stepback weekend.

Instead of running, I spent twenty hours in the car on a whirlwind trip to Toronto.  Totally worth every second of the drive.  Except maybe some of the traffic.  That was less fun.

But it was awesome to be able to take a weekend off and spend it with friends.  I ate too much and none of the right things and spent zero time thinking about the upcoming marathon and it was glorious.

I definitely avoided the scale this morning though!

I noticed this morning that my knee feels a million times better as well.  Clearly, taking what ultimately amounted to a week off was exactly what I needed to do.  I’m excited to get back to it, slightly dreading the fact that I have to run a crazy number of miles next weekend, but then after that, it’s time for Space Coast!

Do I have a PR in me?  Only time will tell.

Best laid plans

So last night’s treadmill run?

Didn’t happen.

But not because I didn’t try.  I ended up on a conference call yesterday evening.  I spent part of it walking on the treadmill and got in 2 miles, but then I had to get off and focus on the files on my computer to finish the conversation.

Two miles is better than nothing though. And it was a stressful call, so if I wasn’t on the treadmill, I probably would have been stress snacking.  Walking was definitely a better option.

And now I’m headed into a rest weekend of fun with friends.  Back to the grind on Tuesday!

Making the time

My running schedule calls for a 7 mile run tonight.

I worked a 13 hour day yesterday and slept quite poorly last night.  So of course, all I want to do is go to bed early tonight.

I keep making up excuses.  I’m tired.  I have chores to get done before I leave town on Friday morning.  I have to pack.  I have to do laundry.  The house is a mess.  I’m tired.  (Yes, I said it already.)

But I can’t let the excuses get to me.  The chores will be there tomorrow, and worst case, they will be there when I get back from my trip.  I can do laundry and run on the treadmill at the same time.  And there will be plenty of time to pack after work tomorrow as well.

So no matter what, tonight I have to stick to my schedule.  I know I will feel amazing once the run is complete. It’s just getting started that’s the hard part.