Saturday, November 06, 2010

The Road to 26.2

It's just a few hours til we toe the line at tomorrow's marathon and I can't believe I'm almost there. It seems like a lifetime ago when I first sat down with my buddy Mike and told him I wanted to run a marathon for my 30 Before 30 Project. When he told me that I should prepare by running a 10K and then a half marathon, all those distances seemed unfathomable. But I got through each little hurdle and now I'm thisclose to the big one.

I don't quite look like the super fit runner I thought I'd be by this time. I guess I should've realized it probably took Paula Radcliffe more than six months to develop those abs of steel. But I'll post my wincing race pics anyway with pride because each of them shows me accomplishing something I couldn't even imagine I was capable of a year ago.

The last few months gave me some challenging and yes, even torturous moments, from trucking on through a 10K after a night of far too much wine and too little sleep to persevering through my first few half marathons during the summer's merciless heat waves. But with those challenges came many moments of bliss. My sunset runs brought me a lot of peace and sheer gratitude for being alive, well and healthy. My training began with runs underneath canopies of cherry blossoms in Central Park's Reservoir during the spring.
With my summer travels, running was limited but inspired. I only got in a few quick sprints while on the road trip with Kate ...
... but I did tackle some hilly roads in Ibiza, which were made a tad less painful with these stunning views.
The biggest blessing was living in the city of New York, which has some truly gorgeous settings for a runner. I will always treasure my beautiful runs by the Reservoir.
And I will continue to be grateful for the stunning views of the Statue of Liberty that I have the pleasure of enjoying when I run in my new neighborhood.
It's been a truly amazing training season, and I hope that there will be more of them in my future.

But for now, it's time to hit the sack and wake up to run one of the most amazing marathons in the world. Bibs and D-tags are attached, and I'm ready to run!
To tomorrow's runners, Godspeed! And to all the supporters, God bless you!



5 comments:

  1. Hey Cel! How'd it go? The first time my friend ran the NY Marathon, she got teary-eyed and goosebump-y at the starting line. (I hear they play Frank Sinatra's classic "New York, New York.")

    I'll be in town beginning Saturday, mostly for work. You free for lunch by any chance on Monday (Nov 15)? Or maybe an early dinner on Tuesday (Nov 16)? Let me know.:)

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  2. cheering you from this side of the world. go go go!!!!

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  3. Wooooot!!! You inspire all of us aspiring runners in Manila! Go go go! :D

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  4. Thank you everyone!! Marathon post is up so you'll know just exactly what the experience was like for me :-)

    Tish - let's definitely do lunch on Monday! Send me a message on FB on how I can get in touch with you? Would love to catch up, it's been too long!

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