April 21,2014...where will you be? I will be making my way to the start of the Boston Marathon. Why would I decide to run for 26.2 miles?...because I can. I can wake up every morning knowing that I am healthy and happy. People with cancer do not always have that luxury.
For this week's training, I have scaled back a LOT! I am trusting my training schedule, but I constantly feel like I'm not doing enough! I have a tendency to over-train, so I'm putting my trust in my coaches, and backing off. I hope that it pays off on race day!!
Fundraising Update:
I am humbled every day, as the donations continue to come in. At this time, we are almost at $8500 for cancer care and research! That is far beyond my original goal of $5390, and close to our team goal of $8700 per person! At the beginning of the season, I thought the team goal was honestly a little unreasonable, but after hearing from all of you, I realize that this is a cause that has touched everyone's lives. Thank you all for being a part of my Boston Marathon experience, and donating to find a cure.
As an important reminder for why I am running, here is a follow-up on one of my teammates (Greg Kelley) that I blogged just a few weeks ago.
I am really excited for the Race Expo on Saturday. This is the place where I will pick up my number, official t-shirt, and additional swag. In addition to the hundreds of booths with the latest running gear, Katherine Switzer will be making an appearance, along with several of the women from the 1972 Boston Marathon - the first official year they allowed women to run. This year marks the 40th anniversary of women in the Boston Marathon. With any luck, I will get the opportunity to meet these amazing women. Stay tuned!!
Sunday: Pasta Party:
The day before the marathon, Dana-Farber hosts a pasta party for all of the athletes and their families. There is a pasta buffet, Dana-Farber speakers, and a presentation by the kids from the Jimmy Fund and their patient partners. It should be an amazing experience and one that I am glad I'm not going to miss.
In addition to the pasta party on Sunday, there will be stretching, foam rolling, and lots of marathon talk. I am lucky that I will be able to spend some time with my sister and some good friends to relieve some stress and prepare for the big day!
Monday: Race Day!
DFMC team photo 2008
So race day means rise and shine bright and early, even though I will not be running until late morning. DFMC has its own refuge at St. John's parish hall, just a stone's throw away from the starting line. The hall is open to DFMC runners from 7-10am. I'm going to have Will drive me into Hopkinton around 7 (before the roads close,) and spend some time with my fellow DFMCers stretching and getting ready. They will provide race day snacks, water, and gatorade, which will be good to get me pumped up for the race. At 9am we have our official team photo, and then we load our official swag bags onto the bus, and head to the starting line. It should be an amazing experience...I can't wait!!
Guess who I'm running with?? Well, I'm sure we won't be running at the same pace, but American legend and native New Englander Joan Benoit Samuelson will be running this year's Boston Marathon. She won the Boston Marathon in 1979 and 1983, and was the winner of the first women's Olympic Marathon in 1984! I wrote about Joan in an earlier blog post. Here is her Nike commercial from 1983:
Where will you be??
Where will you be on Marathon Monday?? Here are a few places where I will be spotting my friends and family...feel free to join, or let me know where to look for you. My sister, Mary, will be joining me at the top of heartbreak hill for the final four miles! Don't forget to wear your shirts!!
After the marathon, be sure to stop by my sister's house for some food, drink, and merriment!! Please email me for directions and details!! It should be a hot one!! Or a rainy one!! Or both!! Weather.com Stay hydrated while watching the race...I'll try to stay hydrated out there on the course!
Race Day Nutrition:
I have given my race day nutrition a lot of thought, and have been working out foods that I can and cannot eat while running. Gatorade really seems to help me, and so I will stop at each of the water stops for Gatorade (they are every mile,) and the occasional water. Water stops are every mile, which is great news with the heat!
I also know that runners need to intake calories for any run longer than two hours. Although I cannot eat the goos (they upset my stomach), I can eat the Goo Chomps and peanut m+ms. I plan to start popping the occasional chomp or m+m after the 10 mile mark.
Lastly, I need to think about salt intake. I am a salty sweater on a cool day, and so my sodium levels could reach dangerously low with a hot marathon. This week I need to try out some different ways to increase my salt intake while I'm running. Our coach recommended to pop a sodium tablet or bouillon cube every hour to keep our salt levels up. I have put practicing this strategy off for obvious reasons, but it should be especially important in the heat. I will test it out before the big day, so we'll see how it goes.
Race Day Attire:
We are looking at some extreme weather for race day, so my race day attire is more important than ever. One thing that is not debatable is my Dana-Farber singlet. It has my name on the front, which I have heard is important, so that all of the spectators will cheer for you. I'm sure I will be able to use that motivation! It also has the name of all of the people I am honoring on the back.
In addition to my singlet, I need to wear my compression socks. They direct blood flow to the heart, and they also aid in calf and ankle support. The ankle support is of particular importance because I am still battling the remnants of achilles tendonitis. I plan on wearing my white Nike hat because it is the most breathable, it keeps the hair out of my face, and it is good for the rain and the sun. I'm finishing the outfit with black fitted shorts, to reduce chaffing, and body glide - EVERYWHERE!! It is a long race, and I don't want to be battling rashes!!
I am a member of a social networking site called Daily Mile. It is a place where I can post my workouts, (times, distances, comments,) and my "friends" can comment on them. I have become part of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge group on Daily Mile, and my teammates can motivate me from all over the country. They understood my triumphs and my struggles because they were going through the exact same thing. I have met several of my cyber teammates in person, at races and group runs, and the rest I will meet at the pasta party on Sunday! It has been an amazing experience, and my Daily Mile teammates have been a big part of it!
Final Thoughts Leading Up to the Big Race:
I am glad that we have been warned about tapering, because it has been the most stressful part of my training. I feel as though I'm losing my training because we have cut way back on the distance. In my head, I know that my runs have been faster in the past two weeks as a result of the rest I have been giving my legs, but I'm so afraid that I won't be able to handle the distance. Our coaches and past marathoners have warned us about this feeling, and have insisted that we trust the training and we will be fine. As we get closer and closer to the marathon, I am getting more and more excited, but I'm starting to get more and more nervous!! I can't wait for Marathon Monday! I'll see you all there:)
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