Wow....we are less than 10 days out from the start of the Chicago Marathon. My second marathon in a five month period. I thought the jitters would have gone away after the first one, but honestly I feel just like I did before Cincinnati. Tapering is so tough. You have so much energy. You feel like you should be running 10 plus miles a night....and the plan suggests 4. Its nice having more time in the evening, but I am so ready for this race, at this point I just want to run it.
The training for this marathon has been harder than I have ever imagined. I felt like such a pro after the first one, how could the second one be harder. Oh what an inexperienced runner I truly am! First of all the seasons were completely different. Training for a spring marathon is a lot of inside running. The runs on Saturday mornings might have been in the snow, but at least there was a breeze. It was Jan and Feb, so I rarely had week night plans. Summer running is completely different. You have to get up at 5am on Saturdays to beat the heat and it is still 80's at 7am. Traffic is worse so I have less time at night to get your run in, and you constantly want to go out because its so nice out, but you have to get your runs in. PLUS the heat, my worse enemy.
I also mentally struggled all through this training. I gave up when times got tough. I walked a lot more, not because I physically couldn't run anymore but because I mentally couldn't run anymore (running long distances is so damn mental!). On my 16 miler I ran to McCormick place, only to get frustrated and walk back to Diversey Ave. A ridiculously long way to walk, but I just couldn't run anymore. Luckily I finished the training on the best 20 mile I have ever had, ok I have only done 3 (no including the flying pig race) and the other two were awful. But for all the really bad long runs I had, this one went really well and now I feel assured I can finish this marathon. NOW can I make my 4:15 goal?!?! I guess we will know in 10 days! :)
This weekend is the Bucktown 5k. Two years ago this was my first race. I had diligently been training so hard on my 6 week plan to a 5k. I ran the race in 34:03, 10:58 pace. I remember it being so hard, and at some points I had to stop and walk. At the finish line I was completely out of gas, but I finished hard. I was so excited to have completed my first race! Other than the Flying Pig, I think this is the race I am the most proud of running. I worked so hard to finish it, even if it was only 3 miles. At this point, its hard to believe how far I have come. If anyone ever wants to start running here is the plan I used two years ago:
http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/running/training-schedules/beginner-training-plan-6-weeks-to-a-5k/
If I can do it, I swear anyone can. You just have to be determined to not give up!
I also credit this 5k to turning me on to racing. I think of running as my hobby, but I don't always enjoy it. I am not always thrilled to get up at 6am on Saturdays in run. I don't like having to build my life around a training schedule. But I love racing. Anyone who knows me, knows how ridculously competitive I am (have you have ever played Monolpoly with me? If so you would get this), so racing is what I am passionate about. I am the person that always quietly competes against the girl on the treadmill next to me at the gym (although she never has any idea this is happening). I was the one who was determined to beat Oprah's marathon time on my first marathon. I pick people on the path and make myself run faster than them and will not let myself slow down so they can't pass me again, although I am running way too fast for my physical abilities. Racing allows me to push myself to do things I never thought I could. I finished a sub 2 hour half marathon....this the same person that ran a 34 minute 5k and was proud! Its amazing what you can do with a little sweat, tears, and miles on the lake front path (well over 1000 at this point).
If anyone in Chicago is going to be out watching the marathon, please text me and let me know where you will be! I will make sure to be looking for you. It is so much easier for a runner to find spectators than the other way around.
If you haven't already, you can still support my Girls On the Run cause at:
http://www.active.com/donate/BofABonusSM2011/CheKir
Thank you SOOO much to everyone that has donated to this cause, I can not tell you how much this means to me!
On a side note since this weekend also marks the year anniversary of this random conversation (happy anniversay Dempsters!!!), I have decided this year as a way to continue good deeds, for every Bears player that I see stop and sign the memorbilia for a little kid I will donate one dollar to a homeless person that I see on the street. In order to make this even worth it, I promise to run at least one day a week after work in Lake Forest. (The extra LF running also helps my chances of Julius Peppers notcing me running by, stopping his Land Rover and pulling over to ask me out....it can happen right?) I will however not donate any money to adults that are standing outside waiting for autographs because that is just strange....
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