Final Race Prep

We're in the final days leading up to the race and I've learned there's quite a bit of preparation that goes into this stage of training.

1. Tapering Off- the closer to race day, the less you run. Prior to this experience, if you had asked me, I would have felt the opposite was true. I've learned that it's important to taper off the amount of running in the week leading up to the race so that your muscles can rest and you can be as strong as possible.

2. Wardrobe Selection- Make sure you know what you are going to wear on race day and the various logistics that go with that outfit. Never race with new clothing or accessories that you haven't trained with before. I've heard horror stories about chaffing and other discomfort that new clothing can cause.

Due to the expected rise in temperature, I purchased my first pair of calf-length running tights for the race. (Up until now, all of my pants have been long.) Today, on my lunch break, I ran 2 miles in them to ensure that they feel good and do not rub me. As an extra preventative measure on race day, I'll use Body Glide on my toes, thighs and sides. This nifty product protects your skin from friction.

Lifetime Record

I am 31 years old and yesterday I ran the longest distance that I have ever run in my life. EVER. It was the most amazing feeling, but before we delve into that I want to tell about the week.

If you want to test your dedication for running (or any hobby for that matter) see how well you fare in a polar vortex. Yes, we've now had two of them this winter. Days and days of freezing cold, ice, snow, repeat. There were days that I longed to run, days that I was willing to run if I had to and then days when asked if I was going to run my response was "No Way!"

After three weeks of continuously increasing my distance with each run I had been feeling great but the past week was just rough in more ways than one.

54 Days to Go - The weather was so nice. Temperatures were in the mid-50's and after publishing my friend Juan's guest post that morning, I was really pumped to run. In fact, I thought about it all day long and could not wait to get home for an afternoon run. An impromptu afternoon meeting kept me at work a little longer than I had planned to be there but it was OK, I'd still have time to do something.

When I arrived home I set out on my run, dressed for 50 degrees, and realized that the temperature was dropping rapidly as the polar vortex set in. My fingers, nose and ears all burned. I decided to pick up the pace and make the most of this one-mile route. I finished one lap at a pace of 9:21 per mile. This was a new personal record for that distance.

Life Hacks for Runners

Since today is a rest day, I wanted to share a new (to me) discovery. After my first two runs, I got very frustrated with the cords to my ear-buds flopping around. I've seen several products in stores and on TV before that are designed to solve this particular problem but I hate buying gimmicky products that are really good for only one purpose.