Resolutions

I’m running in my first marathon on May 7, 2011 in Lake Geneva, WI (see link here).  I’ve been training for it since January 17, 2011.  Each week I set out to run a schedule of runs.  Some of which I followed exactly, others, well, not so much.  Having a full time job, two kids and one very loving and understanding wife sometimes doesn’t mean I get to go running when I want/need to.  Family comes first, period.  I’ve skipped many runs to hang out with the family and to be a better dad/husband than a runner.

On the flip side, running has been a great stress reliever for me.  When the kids are arguing or have been renamed “Tease” and “Scream” for the day, there’s nothing like a run to step away and clear the head.

Initially I had a goal of completing the marathon in a 4 hour time frame, which is about a 9:10/minute/mile pace.  After running the marathon route several times during training, I’ve abandoned that time goal.  My new goal is to run the marathon and enjoy myself, not kill myself.  The “enjoy myself” pace doesn’t mean lolly-gagging and sightseeing, rather simply just run it and have fun.  If I don’t hit the initial goal pace, that’s OK.  If I do, that’s OK too.

It’s Monday, May 2, 2011 at the time of this posting and I have 3 more training runs left on the schedule.  Today, 3 slow miles, tomorrow, 4 quick miles, Thursday, 3 slow miles.  Very much looking forward to thesefinal 3 training runs.  It’ll put a 4 month project to rest.

There are a couple unknowns that I wish I had more information about.

1. The race is supposed to start at a bridge that is under construction.  Where’s the “real” starting place now?  Might need to make a couple phone calls to find that out.
2. The extended forecast is calling for “T-Showers”.  I’m game for running in the rain, but will the race be rescheduled if there’s lightening?  Possible bummer.  The weather report is rarely accurate, so I’m not stressing over this at all right now.  It was supposed to rain all weekend (in the evening) and we didn’t get a drop of rain.

During the 4 months of training, I ran a couple 20+ milers and a TON of 10-15 milers, on the marathon course.  If I’m not ready by now, I’ll never be.  My body knows what to expect, though, my brain might need some adjustment mid-run.

Up next is the Rock-n-Roll Seattle Marathon on June 25, 2011 (see link here).

If you’re interested in following my training and marathon times, I use DailyMile.com to track my runs.  See link here.

Here’s to Saturday, good luck to everyone!