Double Digits!!!

Week 11

Total Miles:  23 Miles

Long Run:  10 Miles!!!

This week was bittersweet.  I started off with a horrible case of the "I don't wanna's," which is never a good mindset to have.  I had a bit of a childish tantrum on Tuesday morning, so we didn't run.  Poor Tim.  I know he could not anticipate the monster that came out of me at 5 o'clock in the morning and I am so grateful that he forgives easily.  Despite being a brat, I managed to pull myself together and get my miles in, but they were slow and mentally hard for me.  I like to say that I love running all the time, but sometimes I think I just love running when I am done with it!  I'm not sure if that makes sense or not.  I mean, after I run my required miles I feel awesome, but sometimes those few minutes before I start the run, I hate it with a passion!  I do notice now that it's really just the first and last mile that I remember during certain runs.  The first mile I'm just trying to will myself to get through it, the last mile I am soaring with the anticipation of being done.  I love that last mile. 

On top of the high-speed come apart I had early in the week, the blister monster decided to rear it's ugly head.  I had the gnarliest blister on the side of my left foot.  At first, it just looked bad, but the night before the long run, it was also hurting a bit.  So, I struggled with that for a bit.  Should I run on it?  Should I try doing something with?  Grr.  In the end, I thought it would be best to just run on it and fix it afterwards.  That seemed to work fine, because it's not hurting anymore and it no longer looks terrible.  My feet are far from pretty though! 

The long run this week was 10 miles.  Not gonna lie, 10 was the scariest number because it's the first double digit mile run and after getting through 10 miles of a half, all that is left is a 5k.  So, 10 miles was a big deal.  I felt good the morning of the run.  I slept well, the air was a bit cooler and I knew I would be running with Leah and Jaime (seriously, running with those ladies just helps so much!).  When I got to Leah's, I was happily surprised to see that Jaime's sister, Tracy, would be joining us as well.  She has ran a few half marathons, so having her along just felt like an extra boost of motivation!  So we started our run (along with Tim running ahead of us and once again, running circles around us!) and in the end we rocked it!  Our pace was faster than the last time we ran the 9 miles together and I think in the end, we were all feeling pretty good.  I had a few moments of struggle, but I think at some point, maybe we al had that "just not feeling it" moment.  Well, maybe not Tim and Tracy.  Tim just glided along and Tracy was always in front looking pretty comfortable.  The last mile was torture on my foot, but I managed to get through it with a little encouragement from Tim and watching Jaime's happiness of running 10 miles the last couple of minutes of running. 

So, double digit miles accomplished.  The week may have started out bitter, but running 10 miles made it pretty darn sweet in the end!  I cannot believe that I can run 10 miles!  Squee!

Side Note:

I just have to say that it is pretty darn cool to be a part of a family that is so inspiring and motivating.  It's great to be able to share this journey with Leah and Jaime.  They are rockin' the training with me and it's gonna be awesome to do the race with them!  Also, I know Tracy can break her PR during this half, she has the fire in her and I only wish we could be there to cheer her on at the end-- we are hoping to be no more than 30 minutes behind!  I give Tim a lot of props, but he is the best, so there are never enough words to describe how motivating he is to me. 

Quotes and Inspiration:

The perfect run- The wind at your back, the sun in front of you, and your friends by your side.  -Aaron Douglas Trimble