15

ran 15 this morning w/my friend amy rollerblading next to me the whole time.
it was pretty humid and i was drenched when i was done, but my legs felt pretty good the whole time.
week 10 is done! woo hoo!

thankful

ran 4 miles on the treadmill this morning - a perfect alternative to a hot day and no babysitter.

thought about how thankful i am for a healthy body and a healthy family. so easy to take that for granted.

(thanks tina for the treadmill pace conversion chart!, it was very helpful.)

8

ran 8 today instead of 7, just to make it a 30 mile week. amanda and i also used the extra mile to pray for each other and for the upcoming marathon. it was another tough run today, but much better than the 3 on monday.

week 10 is here in full force! only 8 weeks left and i will run the streets of chicago w/45,000 runners.

2007

thought i'd share my little recap of my last marathon from 2007:

Sunday the weather was beautiful - high of 65-70 for the day. I woke up at 4:30 a.m., ate a bagel and drank lots of water and a little Gatorade. I got all my stuff ready the night before. I had my gels, glide, gum, ipod, timing chip attached to my shoe, number pinned on my shirt, my favorite socks, and the shorts I trained in that I knew would be good to run in.

When we got to the starting line, I stood by some chatty 10-minute milers, lots of nervous energy around. I walked up to the front once to see the elite runners. It was cool at the start and absolutely perfect. The gun went off at 8:00 a.m. and we were off (almost 6,000 runners - what a sight!). I spent the night before praying about my knees and legs because I had some pain earlier that week. Once I started running that morning, I felt fine. Although, it took me about 4 - 5 miles to get warmed up and feel comfortable, but that's normal for me. Miles 3-7 were pretty hilly, but the route was so beautiful w/changing trees everywhere that I didn't mind much.

I saw my family several times along the route and that helped so much! They gave me high fives, drinks and took pictures. They were wonderful.
(Here I am at the half way point. This is where I decided to start using my ipod).


I felt pretty good up until mile 22. I slowed down quite a bit during those last miles and the last two miles I alternated between running and walking. This was about the time I realized I wasn't going to make my time goal of finishing in 4:30-4:45, so I just tried to enjoy it and do my best. It was never an option for me not to finish. I knew I would get to the finish line eventually, no matter how that had to happen.

I was really impressed with the course. It was really well organized. There was lots of water/Gatorade stops and first aid people on bikes everywhere. Everything about this marathon was better than my last one, except my time (it was almost exactly the same), but I'm attributing that to the hills. :)
4 hours 58 min. later, there it was...the beautiful finish line! Finishing is one of the best feelings in the world and I always get a little emotional at the end.

3

week 10 - 3,7,4,15
today was supposed to be a rest day, but it's going to be such a busy week i am mixing things around to get it all in.

how can 3 miles be hard right now?
ugh - i felt totally drained today. my legs were tightening up and felt
like lead.

these short runs always seem to be harder for me. it just doesn't give me time
to find a rhythm, i guess.

in other news:
* i am thankful that my sister and nephew are visiting from california this week.
*excited to see a friend from wisconsin.
*looking forward to jeremy camp/steven curtis chapman concert this week.
*and, so glad it's still summer. i am slowly getting things ready for our school year. i will have a 3rd grader, 1st grader, and pre-k this year. i'm thankful to have them home with me another year.

10

it was a tough one today. it was super hot and humid (i've gotten spoiled with the last month being so nice). amy couldn't come with me today and i think i have gotten so used to her being there on my long runs that i really had a hard time mentally. it really makes such a difference in what you say to yourself!

even though the running wasn't the best, it was precious alone time with God. one thing that i've been asking myself lately is am i thirsting for God's word in my life. is that as much of a priority as running and getting my miles in?...

i think what it really comes down to for me, and what God has been teaching me recently, is that i need to find my full joy and satisfaction in God alone. i need to be so fully satisfied in him that i can look at everything else in this world and say, like Paul, that i count it as loss, as rubbish compared to the surpassing value of knowing Jesus (Philippians 3:7-8).


“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. "
Psalm 42:1

34

years, that is.
i wish that was miles.

thanks so much for all the birthday wishes!
i woke up this morning to an inbox full of sweet emails and facebook
messages. a friend that delivered candy and balloons. another friend that watched the kids
while i ran. a mailbox full of cards. phone calls. kids that tried all day to get along and were great helpers today...made their beds without me asking, among other things. a husband that came home with flowers and ordered my favorite pizza. soon we will devour my favorite heath ice cream.
i feel loved ♥ it was a beautiful day. i have so much to be thankful for in this life. most of all, i am thankful for my Lord and Savior.

*i ran 4 miles tonight. it was a great run and my fastest in awhile (8:42 pace). not too bad for an
old lady. :)

while i was running, this song came on:

i love it.