The Road To St. George

I have had this post in my head for quite a while and actually, I spent forever typing it out a week ago only to lose the entire thing before I could publish it. It has taken me a week to get over the frustration of that and I’m hoping I can replicate what I said before.

This may be really boring to some of you and you might just want to skip over this post. I really just want to document my thoughts and feelings over the last 10 months since I started this crazy chapter in my life—training for a marathon. Maybe this will motivate somebody to start running or maybe it will confirm to some of you that it is definitely something you never want to do. Either way…

It all started about a month after Tait was born (Oct 08). I was eager to get rid of the extra baby weight and I knew that in the past, running was what worked for me. It was the best way for me to get a full body work-out and an intense cardio work-out at the same time. Let me clarify that I have NEVER considered myself a runner. I ran track when I was in Junior High and had some mad hurdling skills, but as far as long distance went, I was not good. Actually, I hated it. It was probably a mix of the donuts that my dad fed us every morning and the fact that I was a bit of a lazy kid, but I remember thinking I was going to die when we would run the mile in P.E.

When I started trying to run after Tait was born I was sure that something was seriously wrong with me. I couldn’t run a block without feeling like I was going to pass out. I was SO out of shape. I muscled through those runs in the beginning and slowly they got easier. I remember there were times where I felt like I was running in place and my legs felt like they weighed a ton. I convinced Rob to go along with me a few times and that was fun (not). He had the guts to tell me that he could walk faster than I was running. Probably true, but whatever.

During this time I was casually talking to my friend Cherise about how her running was going. She had a baby about 6 weeks before me. I was really wanting a running partner but wasn’t sure I wanted to go with anybody in fear that I would just slow them down. Cherise was such an awesome friend and motivator. She stuck with me during some of the most horrible and painful work-outs of my life. She pushed me when I needed to be pushed and laid off when she knew I needed a break. She talked to me and kept my mind off the pain and listened to me when I needed to vent about something. We really bonded and I’m certain we will be life-long friends as a result of our time together out on the pavement. I love her.

During this time another huge inspiration and motivator was my friend Jen (Trainer Jen). She would call and check up on me and give me training and diet tips. She put up with my whining and complaining. She came over once after a really terrible run and brought me visual motivational cut-outs of words to hang on my fridge. She showed me pictures of her from when she did Iron Man Hawaii which she finished with flying colors. She has been there every step of the way and has gone above and beyond to make sure I’ve been successful. I’m super grateful and love and appreciate Jen for more than her training help but also her friendship. She has unselfishly helped so inspire and motivate so many people. She's amazing.

Back in January (or so) Cherise and I decided we would train for a half-marathon. Jen wrote up a schedule for us and we were well on our way to being ready for it. I was on schedule and looking forward to it until I came down with Pneumonia in March. That set me back big time. I was so frustrated because I went from being able to run 10 miles fairly effortlessly to not being able to run at all. It was a real low-point in my training. Cherise went on to complete the half-marathon (along with Jen) and did awesome. I was in Utah at the time and when I read her post about it and saw pictures I bawled. I felt like a piece of me was there too. We had worked so hard and trained together and to see her successfully achieve her goal was so gratifying to see. I was so proud of her.

In April, Jen somehow convinced Cherise and I to sign up for the St. George Marathon with her. I figured if Cherise was going to do it, I would too. I needed some motivation to keep up with my training and I knew that it wasn’t even a guarantee that we would be selected. I was banking on my bad luck, but didn’t realize at the time that Jen has really good luck with these kinds of things. Since I entered under her name, our chances were much better of getting in.

I found out in early May, while Rob and I were in Japan that our group was selected. Shoot! It was official. I was going to be running a marathon.

Our official training began in mid May and it was rough. I was still not recovered fully from being sick and it was starting to warm up quick here in So. AZ. Training through the summer was really tricky too because we were traveling a lot. I managed to stick with my training schedule even while we were away from home. It wasn’t until 5 months into my training that I could say I actually LOVED running. I enjoyed it. I loved the rush I got afterwards when I was dripping in sweat and knew that I had burned 500 calories or more. I loved that I could eat whatever I wanted to without a second thought of the calories it contained. I just loved everything about it.

Sadly, Cherise moved out to the boonies this summer and she wasn’t always able to run with me as much. I miss our regular runs and chats. We still get together on the weekends and do our long runs together, so it’s all good.

Another person who has played a role in my success is my friend Tracy. What an inspiration she is! I don’t know anybody with more tenacity and drive than her. She had a baby in March and she is already ready for a half-marathon. She never really ran before but she made up her mind that she was going to do it and she did. She has lost 50+ pounds and looks amazing! She has stepped in when Cherise wasn’t able and has run with me. She has gotten up at the crack of dawn to run distances that she didn’t enjoy because she wanted to support me. She never complained. She keeps me company and keeps me at a good pace. She might say that I have helped her, but really, it’s the other way around. I have really grown to love and respect her more than she knows.

A week and a half ago was our last long run before the marathon. It was going to be the indicator as to whether or not I was ready for the marathon.

20 miles.

I was nervous. I was having some serious doubts and regrets . This would either make or break me and I wasn’t sure I was ready to find out. Cherise and I mapped out our course and psyched ourselves up for it for days. I was as prepared as I could possibly be. To my surprise, it went really well. Tracy came along for the first part of it for support. The weather couldn’t have been better for Tucson at this time of year. We finished it in a decent amount of time and felt surprisingly good. I knew after I finished that I COULD do 26.2 miles. I knew that I was at least capable of finishing.

The marathon is officially 10 days away and I’m getting anxious and excited. I want so badly for everything to go well. I’m mentally preparing and trying hard to stay positive. I’m really worried about getting sick or injured right before, so I’m taking extra precautions. I actually had a weird dream last night about GermX hand sanitizer and I’m thinking I’m going to go pick some more up at the store today. Along with some Airborne too. If I get sick, I’m done. Finished. It’s over.

I'm excited that along with Jen and Cherise (and her husband), this person and this person and this person's husband are all going to be running it too. We need to have a party when it's all over!

I will be running this race for two people. I’ll write more about that later. Right now, I need to go stretch…