Awhile back Julie Jedi mind tricked me by mentioning the marathon relay in Champaign. Usually she runs the half marathon, but she suggested we do the relay this year. A team of 4 people complete a marathon (26.2 miles) in a relay fashion. The legs are 6.7, 6.9, 6.9, and 5.7. Prior to training the farthest I had ever run was 3.1. I felt like I needed to set an attainable goal and something to devote my time to, so I decided we would do it. Julie snagged 2 of her friends and we have a team!
Because I've only run half the distance of any of those, you're probably assuming that I'm hoping for the last leg. Actually, I'm not. I've been training for nearly 2 months (running 3 days a week, cross training 1, resting 3) and I'm pushing myself to do be able to do any leg but the last one. I've even expressed to others that I don't want to "get stuck with" or "settle for" the last leg. In response I get, "who are you?" Recently I've been realizing that I set a lot of goals, most of them small and daily. Some on a bigger scale, like my page goal each year -- which I have yet to meet. And most of those goals, like the page goal, are never achieved. So I'm striving for the 6.9, and I guess I'll take the 6.7 if necessary.
I'm confident that this won't be an issue because I've been fairly dedicated. In my 2 months of training (34 actual workout days), I've missed one. It was the day before the 8K. I didn't manage my time adequately and I would have had to bike with only 12 hours to rest my legs. I'm willing to cut myself that slack...but that's the last time! Here is the progress I've made so far.
Prior to training here are some official race times.
Fat Ass 5K Springfield, IL May 11 36:30
Gingerbread Run (5K) Belleville, IL Dec 1 37:44
Official race times since beginning training.
Top of the Morning Run (5K) Shiloh, IL March 10 29:50
St. Paddy's Day Run (8K) Chicago, IL March 16 50:13
Ramble into Spring (10K) Lebanon, IL March 23 1:03:00
Although these aren't record speeds, I'm happy with them. Especially when taking into account all of the elements I've encountered in these various races. Wind, frigid temps, snow and hills! I'm much prouder of my treadmill times where I can boast 2 miles in 18:20 or 2.5 in 23:13. We'll see how this last month of training goes before I set my goal time for the big day!
