Joggling Jitters – The Eve of Marathon Eve

Joggling Hazards. The picture is what happened to me when I tripped while running in Vegas. I was 5 miles into a 10 mile run. It was hot. I was bleeding. But I ran back and kept joggling. If I can do that, the Mad City Marathon should be no problem.

You’d think after 18 marathons you wouldn’t get anxious anymore but I do. It’s a different kind of anxious however. In the past I would worry about finishing. Fretting about whether I could juggle the whole distance. I don’t worry about that any longer.

Now, I toss and turn about finishing with a personal best. I’ve trained hard this time running nearly 700 miles during the last 18 weeks. I have no serious injuries, just a minor case of of achilles tendonitis. And I did jam my right hand, middle finger the other day playing softball. It’s swelled up pretty big and at the tip it has turned purple. I tried joggling and it was fine but you never know how it will behave in the marathon. I’m sure it will be just fine.

We are leaving tomorrow for Madison Wisconsin so this may be my last post before the race.

My plan is to find the 3:10 pace group and just stay with them. If I’m able, I’ll try to pick up the pace in the final 10K but we’ll see. I will really be happy with any time I get but I’d really like to be able to come in at 3:10. Or at least qualify for Boston (3:15). Or at least set a personal best (3:22). Ok, maybe I’ll just be happy to finish. It’s 26.2 miles for chrissake!

When you decide to run a marathon, this is the kind of stuff you think about a couple of days before. It happens to me before every single marathon. It will likely happen to you too. But fret not. You know how much you trained (you kept a log right?) You’ll do the best you can because as one of my favorite teachers of all time once wrote to me…

“A person is always doing the very best they can at any given moment”…Sonia Kallick