NYCM: Two Weeks Yesterday

With two weeks to go, I am feeling a little nervous, but very excited nonetheless. I know that when you live so far away, you don’t get to see New York that often, never mind run in the marathon there; so my plan is to not over-think any of it, aim to go out there and have fun, see the sights, take some pictures and finish in a healthy time (without worrying about what that time is!).

I ran a couple of times a week since my last post, plus two weekend long runs. Last Saturday it was HOT. Really hot. I set out thinking I would do 32km but the heat go the better of me and I was starting to cramp after 15km. It was  likely 34 degrees the whole way and really humid. I consumed more than 3 and a half liters of fluid which obviously helped with the cramping, but slowed me down no end. My legs felt pretty good afterwards and I was glad I stopped at 26km rather than over do it.

This weekend, I set off on Sunday morning with plenty of fluid and nutrition, knowing that I had to have a good run to give me the psychological boost I needed. I felt great for the first couple of hours until the day started to warm up. The heat has been a big (negative) factor in my training the last couple of months, but as NY is likely to be pretty chilly, I am not that concerned. Irrespective of the weather, all I was really thinking as I was running was “two weeks today!”

I hit 20km in 2:02 and felt like I had a lot left in the tank and (critically) in the legs. I deliberately took a route that gave me a couple of long slow uphills (like NY bridges) and downhills (like NY bridges) and one steep uphill to test my legs.  Around 23km my route took me back to the park near home where I was very pleased (and lucky) to see Lauren out for her morning run. She doesn’t really like to run with me that much but she could see that the heat was starting to take its toll on me and that I was not going that fast. She ran with me for 4km which was a huge mental boost. I left her as she headed for home and I set off for the last 5km with a full water bottle, heavy legs, and a real sense that I was ready enough for the race.

I planned the route pretty well and was 250m from home when I hit 32km. I stopped, stretched a little and walked home assessing my body, the run, the route, the hydration, the nutrition, the shoes, the… until I realized that I was really over-thinking it all again and all that mattered was that I did the distance, the time was ok, I was hurting, but not enough to have to stop and that I was ready for NY!

Wednesday is a public oliday here and I am looking forward to taking my mountain bike out on the trails for the first time in ages. I will run a couple of 10-12km’s this week and then I will be packing for my trip! BOOM.