Well this week is a good week! As I prepare to head north to the Niagara Falls Marathon my training seems to take a bit of a slow and low focus. Trying not to spend to much energy running and trashing my legs my workouts are just easy ones. I had a 45 minute easy run on Monday, Tuesday a 50 minute run with a 15 minute warmup and then a 3 mile tempo run (basically just picking up the pace for 3 miles to get the heart pumping and legs a bit more loose and to also give the body the ability to speed up and slow down more easily) and then a 10 minute cool down. I will be traveling to Canada on Wednesday so I won't get any running in and then I'll do a 30 minute run on Thursday. This run is key for me to get a feel for the temperatures that I will be facing on Sunday. I will be able to understand what layers if any I will need for race day! Friday will be a total rest day, sipping my water and doing my best to eat the nutritionally energizing foods that will help me maintain a good pace. Saturday will be an even easier day, just a simple 25 minute run to again test the temps, loosen the legs a bit and to relax!! THEN SUNDAY IS RACE DAY!!
I am feeling very good about this race. I feel I have trained better than years past and should be able to stay strong throughout the entire 26.2 miles! Fueling is important as usual, however the main thing I think for me will be the temps. I am told 50-60 degrees is the perfect temps to run and that is just what the weather is showing for sunday!! I am excited and as long as I can stay warm enough I should have a great race! For me time doesn't always mean everything. Of course I love the fact that I can go out and do well and get a Personal Best and it really shouldn't be that hard this time. My training has me doing good times and as long as I allow God's wisdom to guide me I will be great! I am excited to see what God has for me in this race. I know the last marathon I ran turned into a great opportunity to pray alongside people as we ran and encourage them to keep going. It was incredible and I honestly didn't want to finish! It was the longest marathon time that i've had but honestly I wouldn't trade it for anything because I was doing just what God wanted me to be doing that day! It was where I really felt the desire and even experienced the great ministry opportunity that I had in the endurance sports world!
So this marathon is no different, I am looking to see what God has for me. It has been a great training period and even though the marathon is on sunday training will continue on so that I can run the St. Croix marathon on Dec. 2nd! Its a big year and God's doing great things and each race He has something special in it so I am looking forward to sunday's time of worshiping for 26.2 miles!!
