I did it! In an effort to prove to myself that I am in fact ready for this Marathon, I raced the Staten Island Half this past weekend. This race felt really good. I made sure to really take it easy during the week, and the night before reviewed the course, and mapped out hopeful split times. Although the course was relatively flat, I had never actually ran the route, and was told that there was at least one major hill. So not only did this help to get me familiar with the course, I was also able to make sure I had some breathing room to pace myself on the hills. Once the race started I ended up running slightly faster then my predetermined split times, and at times thought that I might pay the cost at the end of the race, but luckily that didn’t happen, and I was able to finish strong and make the qualifying time for the competitive start time in the Marathon. (only 400 people actually get in from the several hundred who qualify, so it is still up for grabs)
This race was definitely a confidence booster. Half marathons are somewhat deceptive because I never really feel completely wiped out, but I always have to remind myself that they still require some rest afterwards. This week has already proven to be a tough one for me. After taking a day off on Monday, Tuesday’s “easy run” ended with a torturous stomach cramp, resulting in a taxi ride to the closest subway stop, and me bent over in pain for about 1.5 hours post run. During last nights speed workout, I saw one of our top girls, running easy for the second half of the run, and it reminded me that we all need to slow it down at times and just let our body rest. For the rest of my week, I have decided to focus more on just getting miles in, rather then running to fast and exhausting my body.
With only 3 1/2 weeks left in training, Coach Kevin started last night’s workout with three important tips in making sure we dont “fuck up” our training in this last final stretch . . .
