marathoner452

I was supposed to do 8 marathon pace miles yesterday, no breaks, no questions. Hal Higdon, the illustrious author of my training plan, said so, and I was trying to follow his plan to the T. But I just didn't feel like it. I'd rather have been sitting on the couch watching the Olympics. I finally hit the roads around 10, running 4 miles and questioning all the way whether I was up to another couple of months of marathon training. Do I have what it takes to run 26.2 miles 21 minutes faster than I have before? Do 20 mile long runs and 40+ miles a week really appeal to me, or is it the rigidity of a schedule that was holding me back?

I decided that the magic of the marathon is still there, and even more so after watching the women's Olympic marathon this morning. I want to run my best race ever, like I did with the half marathon back in February (see entries from February 1st or so for details). I want to finish feeling strong and pass people in the last 10k. But, more importantly, I'm willing to put in the work to get there. 20 miles doesn't scare me. (Okay, yeah it does. But I see it as a challenge and not impossible). The marathon does scare me, but only as a healthy respect for the distance.

What's unappealing is having someone tell me when and how to run every day. I know myself better than that, and I have decent enough knowledge of marathon training to strike out on my own.

So here I go. 4 miles in a race this morning, as many as 13 tonight, depending on what my legs tell me. Right now reaching 50 miles a week isn't so important as being ready and knowing I can handle marathon day.

Thanks for sticking with me through my rambling thoughts and years of running.

~Bethany