Less Than a Week to Go...

It seems like I've been training FOR-E-VER (said in the voice of the kid from "The Sandlot") for the Tacoma City Marathon...well, maybe not forever, but at least since January...

...but seeing as how I have some of the worst luck ever, it would figure that after working so hard for so long, and training my little heart out, I would need to have emergency gallbladder surgery less than 4 weeks before the race!  And it would also figure that my doctor would tell me last week that, while I am cleared for physical activity, I am NOT cleared to run a full marathon less than 4 weeks after surgery.  I'm not ashamed to tell you that I almost cried in the doctor's office right then and there.  Seeing my frustration at being told that I couldn't do something that I'd been working toward for so long, the doctor did tell me that I WAS allowed to still participate in the half marathon...so long as I promised to walk when I got tired and didn't pressure myself to run the entire 13.1 miles if I wasn't up to it.  So back to training I went...and realized that it only took 2.5 weeks to feel like I'd lost all my fitness and aged about 40 years.  Not even during my 18 miler 4 weeks ago did I huff and puff and sweat so much as I did on my first run back after surgery...which, I might add, was only 2 miles!

I was feeling extremely discouraged, until multiple people took the time to remind me that I did just have major surgery (which hadn't been easy on my body) and the fact that I was out running less than 3 weeks afterwards was a true credit to just how good of shape I was actually in. I realize that we are all our own worst critics, so I often need others to remind me that it IS okay to not be perfect.  Sometimes life throws a curve ball your way, things don't go according to plan, and what you thought was going to happen has to change.  We need to let ourselves know that this isn't always a bad thing, and sometimes rolling with the punches can bring just as good of an outcome as we were expecting in the first place.  The doctor could have easily said that I wasn't allowed to do physical activity at all, but she didn't.  Instead, she recognized in me the physical ability to be able to go out and complete a half marathon less than one month after a surgery that I wasn't expecting to have.  And so I have slowly, but surely, gotten back into my training plan, and will hopefully have a couple more runs under my belt before the race on Sunday.

HMTP (Half Marathon Training Program) Resumes...

Tuesday: Doctor's Appointment...cleared for physical activity and told I could start out with 2 miles and slowly build from there, so long as I listened to my body and didn't push myself to the point of exhaustion.

Wednesday: 2.1 miles in 19:05...okay, so I was so excited to get back out and run that I probably pushed myself a little too hard, but other than wanting to collapse at the end (just kidding, it wasn't THAT bad, though I was pretty exhausted afterward) it felt AMAZING to get back out and run!

Thursday: Stretch/Rest...First day back to work and first track meet back to coach...super long day and very tired at the end of it, so no run for me.

Friday: Stretch/Rest...It's amazing how two full days of work will take it out of you! After track practice that afternoon, I was unfortunately just too tired to run, so I decided to rest up so that I was ready for my first training run back with the group the next morning.

Saturday: 5.5 miles in 55:20...I was able to run the entire time, which felt great, but I was definitely tired at the end since my body wasn't used to that much physical activity, so I kind of, sort of took a 4 HOUR NAP later that day! Oops!!!

Sunday: Stretch/Rest...No run scheduled for the day, so I rested and relaxed after my activity from the previous day.

Monday: 3.0 miles in 28:27...yesterday's run was nice.  I keep feeling better with each day, which is definitely encouraging.

I have two more training runs this week, a tempo run tomorrow and our last group run on Saturday morning, the day before the race.  With any luck, I'll feel great on Sunday morning and go out there and kick some half marathon butt!  Because, after all...

Anyone else running a half or full marathon this weekend?