One Week!

Well, here we are. Not a lot to say quite yet. I have a lot of reflections, but none that have yet to form into a cohesive thought. So this will be brief. This is where we stand:

End of Week 18 of 19-week training cycle

1-35 (long run: 12 miler - two weeks after Grandma's Marathon)
2-28 (long run: 14 miler)
3-45 (long run: 16 miler)
4-39 ((long run: 18 miler)
5-28 (12 miler - bailed due to heat)
6-45 (long run: 18 miler)
7-7 (no comment)
8-27 (long run: 15 miler)
9-41 (long run: 17 miler)
10-46 (long run: 18 miler)
11-41 (half marathon PR!)
12-50 (long run: 20 miler)
13-48 (long run: 16)
14-7 (bad hamstring trouble following terrible massage, did some XT)
15-39 (long run: 20) Still recovering, hamstrings not quite right, jogged Army-10 the day after the 20.
16-43 (long run: 22) Massive back pain early in the week - not sure the cause. Eased up by the end of the week.
Taper
17- 34 (long run: 13)
18- 21 (long run: 8)
19- Next week = Race Week!

So many things didn't go as planned - yet so much went well. I grew as a runner both mentally and physically in ways I honestly never imagined. I can't wait for the next cycle...but I am getting ahead of myself.

So, what are we attempting to do here. It seems a bit absurd when I actually write it. I am trying to cut 48 minutes off of my marathon time with 6 months of training. (Woah!) I cut 24 minutes off in June at Grandma's Marathon...we were shooting for a 21-minute PR back then and I exceed it by 3 minutes by executing a conservative race plan. So now, well, 24 more minutes to go! It's neat how the numbers worked out that way...

It's exceptionally ambitious, I might say, and there are moments when I am like: Sara! Take this step by step! That's SO MUCH TIME! As a former 100-meter-dash runner, I used to lay in bed at night dreaming of cutting hundredths of seconds off of my PR. So 48 minutes - or 24 minutes - either way you slice it, it's a big undertaking.

But I 100% believe I am capable. Now, marathons are crazy events and the stars really to have to align to have the perfect day. There is so much that can go wrong, much of it beyond your control. But that's no reason not to give it a go. So I'm goin' for it.

I get my race plan from Wendy tonight. As of right now I have no idea how I am executing this race. I know we are starting slow (something smart to do in any marathon - but particularly in NYC on the bridge) and are going to shoot to negative split. After my success with this sort of plan at Grandma's, I completely believe in this strategy. This one will just be a bit more nuanced as it's a much more complicated course.

Maybe I'll get Wendy to do a blog post about how she developed my plan and I'll link to it here... :) She doesn't have much to do since she just defended her dissertation and become a doctor (PhD!) last week. If you haven't already realized, Wendy = rock star.

OK, that's it for now. But I'll be back this week to discuss some other exciting thing about the race, including my running as a part of Team Up! With Autism Speaks, my excitement that my parents will be in NYC for the race, the theme songs and pump up songs I've chosen for the occasion, and my plan to dedicate the miles I run...

Stay Tuned!