17 mile diary

It was below sixty degrees outside when I woke up this morning. This is the kind of running weather I've been waiting for! And, Celia slept all the way through the night from 7:30 to 6:30! The stage was set for a great long run. My route today consisted of a 6 mile loop and an 11 mile loop. I stopped at my car in between them to load up on Gatorade and water. The short story is that I didn't feel as fresh and fantastic as I could have, but I did run 17 miles without stopping and without walking breaks (except for about a minute at the car). I ran nice and slow, and this was definitely the key. I made sure to slow my pace even more than I usually do for a long run because this was such a long distance.

I'm often asked how I can possibly run such long distances and for such long periods of time, and what it feels like to run that far. First of all, I am not a fast runner right now. My goal is simply to build enough endurance to complete my first marathon, and enough speed to complete it without being the last person across the finish line. Actually, I do have a goal range in mind for a finishing time but probably won't discuss it until closer to the race. Anyway, the point I always make is that marathon training (or training for any distance) is all about gradually building endurance by gradually increasing mileage. If I'm smart about pacing, a long run doesn't get challenging until the very end. I always tell people that I'm amazed at what I've been able to do, and that now I can see how just about anyone who sets her mind to it can complete a marathon. This is the point at which the person I'm talking to starts blowing me off and insists that a marathon is an impossible feat for a normal person. This drives me nuts. Maybe some people feel uncomfortable or guilty because they don't exercise, and they make these comments to make themselves feel better? Are they expecting me to disclose some sort of "get fit quick" secret that makes it easy? It's almost as if people don't realize how amazing their bodies are, and don't care enough to find out. It takes mind games and a lot of brain power to get the body to do these amazing things, though. And to demonstrate that, I thought I'd take you through the highlights of today's run and show how it all went down.

2 miles: Just getting started, and I encounter my first barking dog of the day. No big deal. He goes completely crazy barking at me, but stays in his yard. I'm focusing on keeping my pace slow, which is tough when you know you have so many miles ahead of you. The slower I start off the faster I'll finish, because I won't kill myself running too fast and then crash.

3-6 miles: Seriously? More dogs? In short, I had five run-ins with unfriendly dogs by the time I'd completed the first 6 mile loop. I really, really try to like dogs, I do. It's just so difficult when there are so many owners who don't train their dogs (or maybe they do train them to bark at literally anything that goes by?), and subsequently, dogs that make my runs unpleasant. For the third time in so many weeks, I consider contacting the postal workers' union to establish an anti-dog alliance.

6.2 miles: At the car to fill my water bottles. Don't have tons of energy, but good to go for the next 11 miles as long as I keep up the steady pace.

7-13 miles: Smooth sailing through beautiful back roads. Nice and shady under the trees, sun shining, pretty houses and farms to look at. I pass a mother horse with a foal, and two cute little donkeys. At some point I start a countdown of miles to go. This is one of the mental games I play with myself to keep motivated. Passing the halfway point on a run is big. Then it's just a matter of ticking off the rest of the miles.

13.1 miles: Um, have I gone the wrong way? Seems like I've been on this road for a really long time. I pull out my directions (yes, when I take a new route on a run this long I need directions to remember where I'm going!), calculate how far it should be 'till the next turn, and luckily I'm right on track.

13.4 miles: I have another mile or so to go before hooking up with a familiar road to head back toward the car. Until then I'm still in uncharted territory. My legs are starting to feel a little stiff and tired, and I see an enormously steep hill rising up ahead of me. I do what I always do when encountering a challenge on a run: just keep running. I hate to use a well-known footwear company's slogan, but it's true. I just do it. I don't spend time worrying about whether I can, or thinking about how hard it is. I just run up that hill and before I know it, I'm at the top. It wasn't a big deal at all, because I didn't let myself think negatively about it.

13.7 miles: A dog greets me at the top of the hill, standing in his yard with his tail wagging. I'm pretty sure he smiled at me too. I consider approaching his owner to thank him for raising such a nice doggie. My lukewarm affection for dogs is restored as I remember that dog owners are the problem, not the dogs themselves. Then again, if I could just rid this part of the country of dogs...

14 miles: Things are going downhill now. Unfortunately, I'm still running a lot of uphill. My legs are really getting tired and my pace slows. I was hoping to finish the run at marathon pace, but I can't keep that up consistently. I settle for maintaining a reasonable long run pace. I remind myself that there are only three miles to go. I entertain myself by communicating my annoyance to passing drivers who don't slow down or give me space on the road. Won't go into any more detail on that one...

14.3 miles: The toilet brush I saw at the side of the road two weeks ago is still there. Oddly (well, not odd for me because I am odd), this is a small comfort. Something familiar, I suppose.

15 miles: I enter a world of hurt. Okay, it really wasn't that bad but I thought that would sound dramatic. My legs are just feeling stiff and sore, and I feel like I'm shuffling rather than running. Pace is still okay though. I try to improve my form a little, but it's tough to do because I'm getting fatigued. Only two miles to go! Each mile mark gives me a big mental boost at this point.

15.4 miles: About to head up another hill, and for the first time I consider walking. It would feel so good to just stop running. I know though, that walking will actually feel worse. Plus, why the heck would I stop and walk when I've just run over 15 miles? That would be crazy. What am I, a spineless wimp? Less than 2 miles to go! I can run 2 miles any time.

16 miles: Wow! Now I know for sure that I can do this. I may cover the last mile looking more like a shuffling hunchback than a marathoner, but I will run 17 miles today.

17 miles: Done, and it feels so good. I'm still a ways from the car, so I hobble down the street for a while longing for a drink of cold water. I don't even think about how far I've just run. Just happy to be finished.


Now after a shower and some food I'm feelin' good. My legs are stiff and sore, but nothing a little rest and stretching shouldn't take care of. And, now that I'm all cleaned up and rested I can think about how crazy it is that I just ran seventeen freaking miles!! Now I can start worrying about the 18 scheduled for next weekend...