One Week Away to Chicago Marathon

In seven days, I'll be running the Chicago Marathon for my first time.  I'm super excited to have qualified for this and grateful that NYC Marathon 2014 for getting me there.  I have so many mixed emotions going on.  Nervous, excited, scared and a lot of anxiety as to the unknown of what is to come.  It's different this time because I have never trained for two marathons back to back.  Chicago Marathon is October 11, 2015 and then 3 weeks later on November 1st. I'm running NYC Marathon.  What?!  It's still hard to believe I'm doing this, but I'm up for the challenge.  I worry about how my body is going to react, but thank the Lord for being healthy and injury free to do this.  You never know what you are capable of until you try and that's all I can do is try and do my best.  I see people do this all the time so why not me?  I'm not an elite runner by no means, but just a woman who is self taught in running marathons with a bucket list and goals to reach.  I read a lot about running, listen to podcasts, and look up training guides like Hal Higdons and make it my own to train.  I have a full time job, part-time cycle instructor, I'm a mom and wife and finding time to juggle it all in isn't easy.  However, if you have a goal you want to reach, you make the time and enjoy every minute of it.  Running is my meditation and it keeps me sane.  I hope to get a new PR in Chicago and hope for the best in New York City Marathon.  I"m just going to listen to my body and hope for the best.  

Yesterday, I ran my last long run of the weekend.  I ran 12 miles and worked in some hills with a strong finish.  I took it easy on the hills and had a tempo run to finish it off.  Let me introduce you to what I call the "Killer Keller Hills"  I run to.  These are the hills that have gotten me through some tough marathons like San Francisco and Boston.  I run each of them up and down twice.  Ever since I found them, I always include them as part of my marathon training to work on strength building.

According to my Garmin, I had an average pace of 8:11 per mile and had a great run.  My legs feel good and and so far I feel pretty good about reaching my goal of 3:30 for Chicago Marathon.  We shall see though.  You never know with these marathons.  You can be ready, but the one thing you can't control is Mother Nature.  I'm hoping for good cool weather and no rain.  Chicago, here I come!  To be continued.....