26.2 in 22

I cannot believe it. In just 22 hours I will be running a marathon. I am a total mess today. It is all I can think about, and I find myself wanting everyone to know it. I wish I had gotten a t-shirt printed up that says, "Be patient with me, I'm running a marathon tomorrow," just so I can act like a total idiot and not have to try to explain myself. It would also serve the purpose of starting conversations about it, as that is all I want to talk about today, it seems. Is it wrong to send a mass email to everyone you have ever had email communication with, just to let them know you are running 26.2 tomorrow?
Last night I was supposed to get a really good night's sleep. Of course, my boys had other plans for me. They did not go to bed until after 10pm, and woke up all night starting at 2:30am. My two year old woke up for the day at 5am. Thanks, boys. My husband was wonderful. He got home late from a track meet, and still woke up with the boys in the night and tried to let me sleep as much as I could. He is fabulous, and has been very supportive about my training. It is a huge time commitment to log all those miles, and he has always been great about watching the boys or being okay with me getting a sitter for those times he had to be gone for coaching. What a man!
After I run this thing, I plan to really step back on the mileage for a month or two and focus more on cross-training. I just signed up for a summer boot camp, so I will be sweating it out with a bunch of other ladies. I did a boot camp in the winter and loved it, and really saw some great results. I plan to start training for Nike around the end of July.
Wish me luck, blogworld! See you on the other side!

mother's day madness

Happy belated mother's day to all of you mommies out there!  In case you are wondering...no, I didn't get my kettlebells (sob).  But, I did get a very nice Bunn coffeemaker, so I am happy. My coffeemaker has been on its last leg for some time now, and I really wanted a Bunn.  The hubby did well.  I decided that I will just buy myself some kettlebells as a celebration for finishing my marathon, which is in 5 days.  Yikes!
This week I am really trying to take care of myself and eat well and get enough rest.  Fortunately, my school semester is out and I have a lot fewer things on my plate this week.  I plan to stretch a lot, run a few little miles, and carb load.
Since it is May and the weather in the Midwest can be a little tricky, I am really struggling with what I should wear.  I hate to be cold when I am running, but it is just as miserable to be hot. Also, I have been carrying my sports beans in my hydration belt, but don't plan to run with it on Saturday.  I'm not sure where I will put those, either!
I am having anxiety attacks over what time I should finish in.  I have to confess that I have aspirations of running a 3:40 marathon.  I have averaged about 8:30/miles for all of my long runs, and so if I look at that, I should be right in that neighborhood.  But, I have never run the last six miles, and I understand those to be the most difficult.  That means I would have to run 8:15 splits in order to account for my slowing down at the end.  I'm not sure if I can do it.
I know I should just go out and run and not worry so much about it. I guess that's just not how I roll.  I think the best thing for my brain is to feel good about finishing anytime under 4 hours.  I think I would be happy with that.

cinco de mayo deliciosity

I don't know about you, but one of my favorite days is Cinco de Mayo.  It just seems so fun to be able to have a little "fiesta" in the middle of the week.  Plus, I love Mexican food, and any excuse to get down on some yummy tacos or enchiladas...I'm game.

Yesterday I made what is probably the greatest meal ever.  It was amazing.  Delicious.  Yummy. Wow.  I made a rub of ancho chile powder, paprika, cumin, crushed red pepper, sea salt, pepper, and brown sugar and coated pork tenderloin medallions. Then, I put them in the crock pot and added a little chicken broth, lime juice, and a whole lot of garlic and cooked it on low all day long. I ended up with the most flavorful shredded pork on the planet.  Yum. 

Since the pork was rich and spicy, I decided to make a really fresh, easy salsa-ish side to put on top. I put onions, tomatoes, a jalapeno pepper, a ton of cilantro, and some lime juice in the food processer and pulsed it until everything was finely minced.  It smelled delicious and fresh, and was just what the pork needed.

Finally, I whipped up some homemade tortillas. I used to buy tortillas, but it is so easy to make them, and they really taste much better homemade. I combine 3 cups of flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt, about 5 tbsp lard (I know, but it is so yummy), and about 1 1/4 cups of water. I divide the dough up into small pieces and roll them as flat as I can, then cook them in a really hot frying pan for a minute or so on each side.  I know they are ready to be flipped when they start getting brown spots on them.  I also put paper towels between them while they are cooling, so the moisture doesn't make them soggy. 

I always serve my soft tacos with butter and cilantro white rice, black beans, lettuce, cheese, and guacamole (of course).  Whenever I make these I overeat, but it is totally worth it! 

As a side note, I have started eating lots more pork tenderloin lately. It is one of the better meats for runners, and although it can be a little on the pricey side, they are small and so when they go on sale I stock up.  Also, I have found that kids eat better if they can use their hands, so rolling anything up in a tortilla is a good idea for the kiddos.  Plus, you can hide lots of veggies in there!

oh, the places i go...

If you are a runner, then I am sure you have occasionally found yourself in the unfortunate predicament of experiencing a bathroom emergency on your run.  I have often thought about how this would make a Seinfeldian, Kramer-esque coffee-table book. Remember how he made the coffee table book about coffee tables? I'd like to make one dedicated to all the bathrooms I have visited while running.

Just this morning I had to duck into the Emergency Room at the hospital, for a very personal type of emergency.  The nurse at the desk looked at me like I was insane. I can't believe they didn't keep me.  Here I was, running through the ER doors at 6am, sweaty and rocking mis-matched running gear and an ipod, looking for the loo.  But I had to go. And this was the only place open at this hour. What would you have done?

Last Saturday for our 20 miler I had the same thing happen.  Around mile 11 I had to go potty, and the only place was this little, teensy, tiny cafe in the middle of nowhere that farmers and other crusty, old men go to discuss politics.  When I walked in, it was like those old movies where the record skips when someone new walks in.  There they were, all staring at me like I was on fire, and I had to ask where the bathroom was.  Good times. 

One nice thing about racing is that there are tons of port-o-potties, so if the urge hits, there is a place to go. 

Have you had to go potty in a crazy place before?

20 miles. done.

20Well, actually 19, but I think it's close enough to call it 20.  And it went pretty well, actually.  I had finally wrapped my little brain around the fact that we were going to log the big two-zero on a treadmill, but on Saturday morning it ended up being sunny and beautiful, and actually got quite warm during the run. Sorry, though...no pictures. We took some, but I don't have them yet. When I get them, I will post them.

Although I usually figure out where we are going to run, this time my buddy, Jayme, put the course together. I have to say it was kind of nice to not have to worry about that. It can get pretty time consuming sitting on mapmyrun.com and trying to think of running routes, and I simply didn't have time last week.  She chose a 20 mile loop that involved running on some old highways. It was pavement all the way, and the roads were not busy traffic-wise, so we could run out on the road for most of the way instead of off on the side.

The first five miles were a breeze, except that Jayme realized she was overdressed and I realized I didn't have sunscreen on (we both struggled with the "treadmill to road" transition).  And, while she was able to shed a layer, all I kept thinking about was how badly I was going to be burned after the run. Since I am a pale blondie, the sun is not my friend.  Especially not after spending three hours outside sweating. 

Around mile 11, Jayme's leg started bothering her. She had gotten a charlie horse a couple of days earlier, and it was still really tight.  She is a really strong runner, but I could tell she was hurting. What a trooper, though...she just kept at it, logging one mile after another.  Our pace was a little slower than we usually run, but it was probably for the best considering the amount of miles we had to run.

I felt really good until somewhere around mile 16, and then I started to wilt a little. Although I usually run with Sportbeans, I am not loving them as much as I used to, so decided instead to try a powerbar.  I think it is really rough to chew and run at the same time, and I had a difficult time eating it. I washed it down with some water and it did make me feel better.  I guess I just needed some fuel!

We also picked up a springer spaniel somewhere around mile 9, and he stuck with us the whole way.  We finished our run, and there was the pooch, panting and just happy to be with us.  We called the Highway Patrol dispatch, but neither wanted to do anything about the dog.  Their suggestions were that we either left him there or drove him 60 miles to an animal shelter, because the pound wouldn't come get him.  WTH?!?!  I informed them that I had just finished running 20 miles and an hour-long car ride was not in the cards for me right now.  Then, I drove the pooch back where we found him and let him out of the car.   I should explain that the dog did have a collar and looked well-fed; he just didn't have a tag on, so I didn't know for sure which house he belonged to. Once I let him out of the car, he started running down the road, so I feel pretty comfortable that he knew where he was going.  Let that be a lesson to you dog owners; put tags on your pooches! 

The next two weeks I start my taper, so I won't be running nearly as many miles as I was. I have to say, I am looking forward to that.  I do feel, though, that after Saturday's run that we will be able to finish the marathon in about 3 hours and 40 minutes.  The last six miles will be no joke; I most definitely felt that over the weekend.  My legs were very wobbly the last couple of miles, and I had to run up on the road instead of on the side, because the decline was hurting my hip.  My new friend, Mark, who just ran the Boston in 3 hours (yes, 3 hours. wow) told me to just take those last miles one at a  time. That's just what we're going to do.

I'm in.

OMG I just got into the Nike Women's Marathon! I am literally sick to my stomach right now. I totally thought I would be excited once I opened this email, but now I am scared to death at the prospect of running another marathon...especially one with so many hills!

I must start thinking about the Tiffany medal and chocolate mile and awesome swag that I will get.  Also...San Fransisco.  Fun!

Now I just have to tell my husband.  This could be tougher than any hill I will run in the race.

rain, rain, go away. I have to run 20 miles today...

My marathon is in 3 weeks.  Tomorrow is supposed to be my longest run, 20 miles. I have been getting myself mentally ready all week, planning the route, taking care of myself and staying away from those darned margaritas.  I felt ready.  Then yesterday, my running buddy messaged me and asked if we were going to run in the rain.  WTH?!?! 

I checked the forecast, and it is supposed to rain for the next 5 days straight.  I am not sure what to do.  I need to get these miles in, and it is too close to the race to be swapping weeks or anything like that. Next week I start my taper, and I need to stick with that.  I am nervous about running in the rain, because I don't want to be sick for the race.  I also don't love the prospect of logging 20 miles on a treadmill, either.  I'm stumped.  What would you do?

Today I am supposed to find out if I got into the Nike Women's marathon.  I really hope I am chosen, although it is a huge longshot.  It would be an amazing experience.  San Fransisco. Tiffany medal. Fresh seafood. Nike swag.  The list of pros goes on and on. Two of my friends also registered, and it would be so much fun to go to SF on a fun girls trip!  I have been feeling kind of sad about not choosing a large marathon for my first.  I originally thought that I would just want to log the miles the first time and not have all of the hoopla.  Now that it is getting closer, I am kind of wishing there was an expo or premeal or something.  Getting into the nike marathon would make everything better.

Fingers crossed!