With a total of 40 miles and a long run of 20 miles, this was it – my most intense week of training before the marathon. It feels surreal to be here, more than 400 miles into training, feeling strong and injury free and about to run a race longer than I ever thought I could attempt. My inner Mean Girl is trying to minimize the accomplishment (that's a lot of miles but look at how slow you run; it can't be that hard if you could do it) but I am doing my best to ignore her. The fact is I put in the time every day for months, I worked very hard for this, and most importantly, I did not let injuries deter me from my goal. I'm not quite at the starting line yet so I don't want to count any chickens, but I am letting out a little sigh of relief that I'm now in the tapering phase. As my coach instructs: "Keep a focus on mobility, sleep and hydration. With the extra time do some extra recovery too, it will feel good and keep muscles loose. Massage, rolling, whatever you can do!" Sleeping and massage, now there's some orders I will happily follow.
For the long run this week, my coach wanted me to practice on the marathon course itself, specifically the 2+ mile tunnel at the start. The boys spent the night with their grandparents on Saturday so that my husband and I could get up early and head into the Cascades on Sunday.
The course begins at Hyak Trailhead in Snoqualmie Pass. It was a gorgeous morning and not crowded at all when we arrived around 7:45 am.
I have test-driven a few mantras over the past three months, and this is the one that I found helps me the most. I borrowed it from advice that Andrew Kastor gives his wife Deena Kastor during her training (per his
book on running your first marathon). Improving my form has been the key to this process for me, and I find that when I relax my body, my mind automatically relaxes along with it. The sharpie did not hold up to my sunscreen (or sweating!), so I ordered some custom temporary tattoos from Etsy to try.
I was incredibly nervous to get started. Why are those first few steps the hardest?
The trail was formerly a railroad, and the tunnel begins almost immediately after the trailhead. I was using the
UltrAspire Lumen 600 waist light while my husband rode slightly ahead with a light on his bike.
While most of the marathon course is slightly downhill, the tunnel section is completely flat. As soon as you enter it, you can quite literally see the light at the end of the tunnel. It appears deceptively close, yet it's 2.3 miles away. My husband and I were the only ones in the tunnel save one biker we passed going the opposite direction, and we both found it to be quite creepy! It was cold, damp, and full of graffiti. Water dripped from the ceiling and pooled in ruts and dips on the packed ground. It's a neat feature and it won't be nearly as disconcerting when filled with other runners, but I'm certainly glad my coach recommended that I check it out before the big day.
Made it out alive!
The scenery on the trail is absolutely gorgeous. It's been nearly 14 years since my husband and I moved to the PNW from the Midwest, and we still can't believe we live in a place this beautiful.
My final steps!
One of my favorite things about running is how good everything feels when you stop. Freeing my toes from the confines of my shoes... taking a shower... collapsing on the couch. Even my post-long-run Jamba Juice tasted especially delicious. Today, which is the day after the 20 miler, I am still quite sore and tired. I'm fortunate my husband is off work today, as he'll be taking the dog to get her vaccines and then doing the grocery shopping later while I've hardly gotten out of bed. I'm going to milk this as long as I can – it's a rare treat for a mom!
Mileage for week 17: 40 miles
Total mileage: 425.7 miles
Days until marathon: 20 days
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