The Taper

I’ve been meaning to post an update. Really, I have. I started a coupletimes but never finished. After the 20 mile run and meeting my fundraising goal, I took some long breaths and started getting some real sleep. But I’ll regret not keeping up so, here goes.

First and foremost, I would like to thank my knees. I could not have made it here without them. Though at times challenging, our relationship really did make me grow as a person. More specifically, a runner. I can’t tell you what or how or why, but they are now in this. Knees on deck.

Last Saturday, I ran 11 miles — Over the Brooklyn Bridge and back to the park. It was a good run. There’s that 9th Street hill, of course, but it was a run that makes you feel like a runner because you enjoyed it. Because it was exactly what you needed on a Saturday morning, even if it’s at 7:30 am.

On Tuesday, teammates that ran the Hampton’s and Twin Cities Marathons were back to tell their tale, flash their beautiful finisher medals. All I could think was, I want to run a marathon! My turn! Let’s go! Right now! I’m ready! I know I don’t have to do much waiting but I got such a buzz listening to their stories.

Wednesday brought only more intense feelings about the marathon when I attended our event send-off. Coaches gave a lot of tips and we got our plane tickets and itinerary. We heard horror stories of lost luggage and two left sneakers. Overall, it left me with some anxiety. Mostly about sleep. Since our flight is so early on Friday, I don’t think I will get much sleep on Thursday night. And then once in San Francisco, I have no idea how much shut-eye I’ll get. I asked the coaches if taking something like NyQuil would be a terrible idea. It was as if I asked if I could take something crazy and ridiculous. Now, I’m pretty sure they think I’m a mess. But really, who doesn’t take a little bit of a helping hand from NyQuil or a sleeping aid every now and then? I won’t take any the night before, but I’m thinking I might need something Friday night otherwise I’ll be a zombie. Maybe not even NyQuil, but something that has ingredients for sleep.

One of the best tips we got at the send off was to think about 10 miles. We’ve all had a good 10 mile run at this point. Think about a 10 miles run, another 10 mile run, and then a 10K.

Oh! Now, that’s something I can do! 10 miles, sure! A 10K, that’s nothing! I know it’s not that easy but it’s a way to put my mind at ease about it.

This morning, my mentor and I ran our last long run before the big day. A week from tomorrow, we’ll be in San Francisco, running our sneakers thin. It was another good run.  It was just what I needed before the marathon. We had great lap paces and nothing hurt.

When we got to the benches, there was a new teammate who will be training this winter for her first marathon. She listened to me talk about our taper runs. Just 11 miles last week and only 8 this week. She laughed. JUST 11 miles. Ha. It is kind of funny. We told her she’ll get there, too. She’ll taper and feel like (almost) a pro.

It was an interesting feeling standing beside her, knowing what she’s about to start. Knowing that no matter what I say, she’s going to have to figure a lot out on her own. A bit jealous that my training is coming to an end while her’s is just beginning.

I’m super excited to finally run the marathon, but I’m getting sad for it to be over. It’s been about 4 months since all this began and it’s become a pretty huge part of my life — in case you hadn’t noticed. I’ve met some of the greatest people, reached a ton of goals of varying difficulty, built a new set of priorities, and learned a lot about myself. Sounds like summer camp, right? But really. How can I say this? How can I tell you what this training has been? I can’t. I really can’t.

When I was in college — both undergrad and grad — I would have writers block or just be really tired of words, mostly my words. I would finger paint, draw with crayons, make collages from magazine cutouts. The things I made then said something my writing never could. That’s kind of how I feel about this. My running, it’s doing something I can’t do in writing.

A week from tomorrow, I’ll be thousands of miles away doing something I was never entirely sure I could do while surrounded by people who want nothing but for me to finish what I started.

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