Well, it is official. My marathon training has begun again – 17 weeks until I run Marine Corps Marathon. For the last six months or so I have been keeping my distances pretty low and doing a lot more cross-training type activities. I’ve done a couple of races, but nothing too serious.  The 10km tempo run I did last night was most definitely one of the tougher workouts I have recently done.

Part of me is excited to get training again and part of me just wants to keep running shorter distances. I think one of the main reasons that I am finding it tough to get back into the swing of things is that I know I have to be prepared to push myself to get back up to speed. Running can be a cruel sport – you get out of it what you put into it. In my case I haven’t really been putting a lot into my running these days and it’s not giving a lot back to me. I don’t know if that makes sense, but for the first time in a long time running is a struggle for me. Physically and mentally.

One of my goals for the coming weeks is to change my attitude going into my training runs. I need to get rid of that voice that is trying to tell me “You can’t do this”.  Essentially I need to start believing in myself again. Does anyone else struggle with this kind of thing?

Sorry for the rather down Canada Day post! I hope you are all having a great day! Sadly I need to work tomorrow, so I am feeling I can’t really take advantage of the day as much as I would like to. That said I need to rid myself of this rather negative attitude and go out to enjoy the day!

I couldn’t resist. The 35th Marine Corps Marathon officially opened for registration yesterday. Knowing that this race sells out fast I knew I couldn’t procrastinate if I wanted to do it again. So, I signed up pretty much as soon as it opened (around 3,000 people registered faster than me).

Of the three marathons I have done this has been my favourite – the city, the atmosphere, the marines, the support…I can’t wait to do it again and already two of my friends are joining me!

B, on the other hand, is not too impressed. I told him last night that this time will be different. I’ll be full of energy after the race and will even go to the aerospace museum with him. He’s not really believing this scenario. So, I told him he could throw me in an ice cold bath afterwards…that perked him up.

I have now officially run the ‘People’s marathon’ (a.k.a. the 34th Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C.). This was my third marathon and by the far the best race I have run to date. There were tough parts, but as a lot of signs said “pain is temporary, pride is forever”. It was not a personal best race for me and I did not beat Oprah’s marathon time (although I kicked Al Gore’s ass) yet none of this seems to matter right now.

Running a marathon has always been an emotional experience for me, but this race was particularly so. There were a lot of individuals running in memory of US military who have died in combat and no matter what your thoughts are on the US’ presence in the Middle East it is still sad to see.

The overall highlight of race was as usual the renewed belief in me and what I can achieve (yes this is the cheesy part of the entry). Running a marathon means you have a lot of time to think things over and by the time you reach the 35 km mark the main thing you are probably thinking is “why did I sign up for this?”. But a strange thing happens when you cross that finish line – you realize that you have accomplished something pretty remarkable which in turn makes you realize that you have the potential to achieve what you put your mind toward. At least this is what I feel.

Other Race highlights:

Running with friends - I have to admit I am a bit of a coward when it comes to running alone. 42.2 km is a long way to go completely alone, so I really enjoyed running the majority of the race with four of my running buddies.

Atmosphere - I have never witnessed that level of support and cheering before. The majority of the course was filled with people yelling and clapping. It was truly an amazing thing to be a part of. Definitely helped numb the pain of being on your feet 4 hours +. Is sad to admit, but I have never seen that level of enthusiasm at any Canadian running event.

Scenery - The Marine Corps Marathon is a beautiful course (apart from that ‘bridge’ at mile 20). You get to run through Georgetown, by the water, the Pentagon, the National Mall.

The Marines - hot marines in uniform handing out water. Enough said.

Working out some personal frustrations between 35km-41km. Was a bit of painful point in the race, but this is when I dig into my pot of things that make my angry and frustrated…Kind of like my own personal punching bag time.

Main Lesson learned:

Name on shirt = a lot of people yelling your name, so next time I’m putting my name on my shirt!

A special shout goes to Booty Camp Fitness for helping me be a lot stronger in this race. I actually think all those lunges and exercises I have done prior to this race has helped me be a better runner!

Every now and then I get my bee in a bonnet about something. This week it is Toronto’s response to having two marathons so close to one another. This morning’s Globe and Mail article about how the City wants the organizers of the two races to separate the events or merge them was one of many recent articles that was published about the situation. While I understand the reasoning and sympathize with Toronto drivers trying to get from point A to point B I do feel irritated by this news on a number of different levels, so I wrote the following letter to the editor:

Reading the number of news stories about the Toronto marathons causing road chaos has made me appreciate the fact that I have chosen to run my fall marathon in the United States where marathoners are celebrated and cheered on throughout the 26.2 miles they run by runners and non-runners alike. Guaranteed if those Torontonians inconvenienced by road closures put in the time and effort to run a marathon they would want Yonge Street closed down as well.

In a time when individuals are constantly encouraged to lead healthier lifestyles and to also be environmentally responsible (a.k.a. take public transportation Toronto drivers) it is shocking that Torontonian runners are being critiqued for causing people inconvenience.

Tiffany charm for me

This week was not a great week for me. I just haven’t felt like myself and having a cold/flu has definitely not helped – just feeling really blah. I also realized today as I was cheering friends on at the Toronto marathon that this time next week I will be running in one myself. Agh! I remember when I first signed up for Marine Corps marathon it seemed like so far away and now here it is. 

I still am flipping-flopping about my race time. On one hand it is a huge race (30,000 people), so my “play it safe self” is telling me to take it easy and just focus on finishing and enjoying the experience. Yet my type-A competitive self is telling me to really go for it and try to beat Oprah’s time and for that matter my own previous marathon times. I think I am scared to try as crazy as that sounds. Finishing a marathon is a great accomplishment no matter what the time, but I want something more now.

I need to stop being scared to try, but I do now that no matter what when I finish I’m getting another charm for my Tiffany bracelet. I buy a charm for each marathon. Have my eye on the key charm for this race. 

PS: My rant of the week: Dear Toronto drivers, Each year Toronto has two marathons and yes roads are closed. Why don’t you get out of your car next year and spend some time cheering people on instead of yelling at police about the road being closed? Who knows you might actually be inspired to do some exercise yourselves and cheering on runners guarantees you some good karma.