AAAaaahhh, the Taper! – Heidi

I was really worried about the last long run this past weekend, but it was successful and I now have no runs longer than eight miles on my training schedule. That is not to say that others aren’t doing longer runs. One of my weekend running companions is part of the L Street Running Club, and she is doing a 14-mile run this weekend and then 12 the following weekend. I’m planning on sticking with what I already have on my calendar!

In terms of the weekend run, I guess if I can’t run with Martha this year, then having her neighbor Jeannie (who is also an anesthesiologist) for a running partner is phenomenally lucky! Jeannie organized a group of four women for our Sunday 20 miler. She used the L Street starting point of the Natick Armory. The other members of our group were Cathy, who I met this fall at the BAA Half Marathon and Anita, whose husband Peter was kind enough to wake up early on Sunday morning and drive us all out to Natick. I had to laugh to myself as Peter asked why we had to start so early in the morning. This is my husband’s number one complaint with marathon training!!!! However, like Peter, he has been incredibly supportive.

We had a gorgeous spring day for our run and fortunately Sunday was far warmer and less windy than Saturday when so many others in training were on the Marathon route. I didn’t sleep well the night before the run as I was worrying about my knees and my overall stamina. However, it made all the difference in the world to have company to talk to over the three plus hours we were running. We all made it to our end point in Boston alive and well, having maintained a solid and steady pace. There were also lots of support tables on the course so we helped ourselves to Gu from the Marathon Sports/Adidas table at the start of the Newton hills (the “Espresso Love” flavor is not too shabby) and Advil and Gatorade at a Children’s Hospital table at about mile 16. Completing the last long run was a huge relief. I’m grateful to the wonderful women I ran with for making it enjoyable.

Just when you think you can sit back and relax with your recent effort, someone comes along to put what you’ve done into perspective and give you a glimpse at other challenges. I certainly see my patients do this on a daily basis with medical issues. On the athletic front, I was in awe of one of my long-term patients who mentioned she had not only done an Iron Man this fall but also had then run another marathon this winter. Congratulations again, Paula.