Is there an Alligator chasing me?

Yesterday went well for many of us, and I'm finally getting Mark's point about the mental challenges as well as the physical. I was thinking along these lines for the past 24 hours when coincidentally, the newbalanceconnections.com email sent out a note about positive mantras you should have in mind when the marathon going gets tough.

Now I have nothing against the Chicagoans who came up with these suggestions but their idea of positive mantras was: "you are feeling great, you are accomplishing something most people only dream of, because you started slowly you will finish strong, etc."

Maybe it's cause I'm from the Big Three: the South, the state of Mississippi and the Mississippi Delta, but I gotta have something a little more folksy and visual to tell myself, like:
"Get the lead out sister, you're falling behind."
"You can do it. You can do anything. You been married to the same person for over 30 years. You can do it."
(or if positive mantras don't work -- saying this to the person in front of me)"Hey, I think you dropped something. You keep looking for it. I'll go ahead and sent help back."

But, my all time FAVORITE (and it works) is the visualization of one of those legendary 15 foot alligators crawling out of the Rez and hustling down the trail after me. I'll throw him a bag of jelly beans or maybe a gel or two but he keeps on coming! Now this really works well when I still have a little ice left in those saddle bags with bottles (hydration belt) cause I keep hearing the rattle and thinking something or somebody is coming up behind me. It's an Alligator, Debra -- RUN FORREST, RUN!!!!


Debra

We all scream for Ice Cream!

So what does a tired marathoner do for entertainment? Go to an Ice Cream Eating Contest!
I even saw Calvin and his son there. My son was "coaching." And, one of his two buddies won! Yes, folks, Juan, the one in blue ate 2 plus quarts of ice cream in 10 minutes. Kyle, the one in white, suffered from extreme brain freeze during the 2nd quart. But guess it was all worth it. Juan won the whole thing, which means he gets free ice cream for a year. But, I don't think he'll want any this week.

I think this is sort of what we look like on longrun days!

Debra

Slacker Blogger

OK, Carol, this blog is for you!
I don't have much to say, but you're right. We all seem to be slacking off of the blog routine.

So we got the Fleet Feet run done this morning and the sun never beat down on us! However, that humidity was another story. I don't know how this is affecting the rest of you but I am feeling the mental challenge as well as the physical. I'm trying to pace myself during the week without obsessing over training. I actually felt better this past week, and I did more walking to train than I did running. I'll be on the road working in the Delta and in Memphis Tuesday thru Thursday, so I hope to get some running time in on Monday, and that may be all I get in before next week's 16miler.

And, I have another item to share. I promise I won't keep doing this but I want everyone to know how helpful the newbalance website is even if the video of the Chicago course makes you woozy. I registered for the free training and nutrition tips, and they bonus is that they also throw in helpful hints about how the marathon will work. This one arrived in my emailbox yesterday:

If you’re not already doing it, start training with a sport drink. As you increase your miles, you’ll benefit from the carbs and the electrolytes. Use the sport drink that will be on course in Chicago (Gatorade® Endurance). On low-mileage days you might want to switch off between a water bottle with plain water and a water bottle with your sport drink. For longer training runs, rely more on the sport drink. Keep monitoring your pre- and post-exercise body weight to make sure you remain in your hydration zone. Remember, staying in your zone means not losing anymore than 2% of your body weight due to fluid loss during exercise. If you’re falling below you zone, bump up your fluid intake. To increase your access to fluids while training, run in a loop past your car or home, run a route where you have access to water fountains, or consider investing in a fanny pack with a hydration bladder.
Good Luck with your training, remember to log on to New Balance Connections for more training tips.


Debra

Watch the video, if you dare!

I've been needing some inspiration to pull me out of the fear and doldrums territory. And, I found something that at least put me on a higher level of fear and/or excitement.

Maybe I'm the only one who hasn't seen this but you can actually watch a video of the whole Chicago course. I was poking around the chicagomarathon.com site when I found a link to training info sponsored by New Balance. Go to:
http://newbalanceconnections.com/default.aspx

Once you have registered for the free training program, then click on the word multimedia in the bar at the top, then click video/commentary and the page comes up with the click to play video.

See ya Saturday.

Debra

Splish, Splash...

What a rolling party we had on Saturday!!
A chorus line of marathoners danced to our own beat through 15 miles of rain, wind and smiles. Yeah, the aches and pains were there but have you ever felt so good about finishing something that looked completely impossible a few short weeks or months ago?

I know the phrase is getting over used, but Life is Good.

Debra

Humid or Humiliation?

Suzanne and I ran the Watermelon Classic on July 4. It was a very humid event. Have you ever noticed how similar the word humid and humiliation are? Yeah, the humidity slowed us down but we got it done with a minimal amount of humiliation! (there's a lot of i's in that word) And, most importantly we both came home with t-shirts! There were several of us marathoners getting in our training time. Saw Chuck in the crowd taking photos of his family as they ran. He had the right idea.

And, I still had time to clean up and put on my newly won t-shirt and join the 30th annual Mill Creek Place (our subdivision) 4th of July Parade. As you see in the image, our float was rather minimal. I was the designated driver for my son and his buddies. They call themselves the "Mill Creek Mafia" -- apologies to the Italian Americans in the audience! Suzanne, please don't call Tony Soprano...

Debra

Luck

I've been spending plenty of time at St. Dominic's lately. My nephew was injured in a 4-wheeler accident on June 23, and he was brought to Jackson last Monday. Fortunately, it wasn't a head injury (I know that's what I was thinking.) but his right foot required extensive plastic surgery yesterday. He turned 13 while laying in a hospital bed last week. It's been tough on everyone.

Sitting in a hospital certainly gave me time to think about luck. You make your own or you share in someone else's. And, then there are days you just don't have it or get it. I want everyone to know that the day I signed up to join the marathoners was a really lucky day for me. Gaining the gift of new friends, who I look forward to seeing and/or reading their blogs, has been wonderful. Like Carol said, reading the blogs is a daily ritual. I'm self-employed and eventually the dogs run out of things to tell me, and my husband is taking care of interview business most of the day. We don't get much "water cooler" visiting done around here.

Suzanne and I will be at the Watermelon Run to get our training done in the morning. Wish they started earlier than 7:30 a.m. Hopefully, it will be cool late into the morning.Then our neighborhood, Mill Creek Place, will host it's 30th annual 4th of July parade at 10 a.m. And,I might just lounge in front of the tv with the a/c blasting for the rest of the day.

Hope everyone has a wonderful 4th of July. And, Carol, you be careful in that Dallas heat on Saturday! We'll be thinking about you.

Life is short, but it is deep.


Debra

Ms. Business Journal

Today's Ms. Business Journal link to brief about the Blues Marathon on January 5:

http://www.msbusiness.com/article.cfm?ID=4909