And What Did YOU Do With Your Sunday??

Well I'll tell you--I ran 20 miles! Yes that's right, today was our longest training run. We met at Boston College and donned stylish neon green safety vests (pictures hopefully to come soon) and headed west on the marathon course. We went as far as the far west side of the Wellesley College campus before turning around and heading back to BC.

I was a bit nervous upon starting this run as previously I had only done 14 miles. A six mile jump seemed pretty big and I wasn't sure I'd be able to handle it. But it actually went alright. Well, let me rephrase, it went alright until about mile 18 when I no longer wanted to run up the hills anymore. Then it was less than alright. Bascially, the course that we did ended with Heartbreak Hill. Remember when I said earlier that running Heartbreak Hill isn't that bad? Well it turns out after running 18 miles, it's a lot worse. Those Newton hills will certainly be a challenge on Marathon Day!!

One of the things (well really the only thing) that got me through that tough part was my wonderful running partner Sarah. At one point between the first and second hills we took a quick walk/stretch break. When we started up again, I told her I didn't want to walk again and she shouldn't let me. She agreed to do this....and so a few minutes later as we were running up the second hill the following conversation ensued:

Me: I can't do this (PS, this is like the absolute worst thing you can say as a runner. We ALWAYS can do it)
Sarah: Yes you can. And you know what, you have no choice, you have to.
Me: Maybe I need to walk for a few minutes
Sarah: No, you're not allowed to. You have to keep running, you have no choice. C'mon, lets go.
Me: You know, I don't like you very much right now. You're mean.

Yes, I know she was doing exactly what I had asked, but at that moment, I didn't care :) I ended up walking for maybe 100 feet, enough time to take a few drinks of water, before pushing through it to the end of the run.We finished the 20 miles in just about four hours, which puts us in great position for a good run on Marathon Day!!

One of the fun things about today is that there were so many people out there running on the marathon course. This weekend is the traditional last long run of training so lots of people were out doing various permutations of 20 or so miles. It was nice to be surrounded with so many other runners!

So after today, I feel much more confident heading into Marathon Day--just 3 weeks away! Getting through this 20 mile hurdle was huge and also helped me solidify a few things for race day. Things like what to eat before (peanut butter and jelly sandwhich), what to eat/drink during the run (water/Gatorade mix mostly with maybe 1 or 2 GUs--have we discussed GU yet?) and what parts of the course are my most/least favorite. And now begins the taper period. Basically we don't do any more long runs. Just shorter runs (of no more than 8-10 miles) until Marathon Day!

Remember, it's not too late to sponsor me for the Boston Marathon--go to: http://www.tuftsmarathonchallenge.com/runners/miriamst to donate online! Your gift of even just $10 will go a long way to helping me acheive my goal!

Finally, to my fellow Jews--Happy Passover! Enjoy your matzo!