Almost There – Gabe

It feels so close to race day, and I know these next two weeks are going to creep by.  After I finished my last 20-mile run, I was thrilled. No more high mileage jogs, no more sore knees, just easy sailing until race day. Like many things in my life, I was so wrong. I thought I was on the road to tapering, my training schedule would be a few 3 or 4 mile “light” jogs and I would ease into April 20^th – unfortunately, I did not look ahead.

This past weekend, I ended up doing 15 miles. I was visiting family in NH for the holiday, so it was nice to get away from the course for a change of scenery again, but the hills were killer. Getting out on some of the more remote roads, my GPS watch failed, as did the timer on it, so I had no clue how far I had gone. When I got back to the house, I realized I was a few miles short; I headed back out to complete my last three miles. It ended up being one of those runs where I got it done, but didn’t feel like I really pushed myself. I had a hard time finding my pace on the run. I also think because I was off on my schedule last week (did my long run from the weekend on Wednesday, sprint day on Thursday and no tempo run), that coming back Saturday and putting in 15 miles was a poor decision.

In these next two weeks leading up to the race, I want to make sure I have everything straight. Eat clean, run on the scheduled days, the correct distance and pace, and focus on getting my mind straight for the big race. I am so excited about the last part of the challenge. These past few months have been really wonderful, and I am excited to see how my hard work as paid off.