Good news

I made it! I actually made it. I was worried and filled with self doubt last night, but I pulled it off. I can't explain what a high it was to complete it. (Edit: This was my long run for this week's training that I was worried about.)

Marathon....here I come!!!

OK, so the long runs are meant to be an experiment for what clothes to wear, what snack to eat, how everything is going to go during the big race.

Issues:

• Vaseline. I read somewhere to invest in some Vaseline to combat blistering in certain areas. I discovered after this morning's run that around my chest I experienced some blistering. Ouch. Apparently, the Ipod rubbed me raw and then so did my sports bra on the under side.
• Better socks. I discovered that my toes need extra padding. Actually, I discovered that before this long run. I just recently had a toe nail fall off one of my right toes. It didn't really hurt ahead of time, didn't hurt coming off and it doesn't hurt now. I've started wearing two pairs of socks that have extra padding around the toes. It seemed to have helped this morning.
• Safety glasses. It might have been a one time fluke thing, but a car passed by me, kicked up a tiny pebble and it hit me on my cheek about an inch from my right eye. I was wearing sunglasses and that would have hurt like.....if it had gone in my eye.
  
• Hair. At yesterday's 5k race I tried running with my hair down, changed my mind midcourse, pulled it back with a hair dohickey and then lost the dohickey. I can't stand running with hair in my face and always have flyaways even if its pulled back. This morning, I used a headband and a pony tail holder. It was perfect.
• A baggie. I carried, my phone, a couple of dollars and my handwritten map in a ziplock baggie in the back of my sports bra. I stopped two different places to buy water. I don't like carrying a bottle of water. I need a....maybe a belt? I think I've seen those before.

I think that's all the issues so far. Next week is an easier run. All the hard runs will be on Sundays. For the next 17 Sundays, I will be getting up at five am and conquering a long run. Next week's is only six miles followed with an easier week. Piece of cake. The runs gradually increase each week except every third or fourth week it backs off and throws in an easier run.

Breaks:

• I walked around mile five to eat my snack bar going up an incredibly steep hill. I stopped at McDonald's about a mile later to tinkle and buy a water.
• I stopped at mile 7 to do a map check and compare with the spedometer (that stopped working at that moment.)
• I stopped at mile 9 for another bottle of water buy and walked up another hard uphill.
• Last stop was a block away from the finish where I had instructions to walk it out for the next quarter mile for a cool down, followed by stretching.
• I jogged across my imaginary finish tape with arms outstretched with a huge smile on my face.

Time: 3:46.

I did it!! YEA!