Gosh, I have not been a good blogger this week! The good news is that there's not much to report. I did end up getting some insoles for my running shoes. After scouring the internet and coming home with a "burning" sensation in my toes after Thursday's 5-miler, a "diagnosis" of a neuroma was made. The knowledgeable guy at the running store got me fitted for a pair of insoles (with a 60-day money back guarantee). Of course, he advised me to NOT wear them for the 20-miler today, but I have been wearing them around casually and they definitely make a difference. That said, I completed today's 20-miler without much pain at all in my toes. Go figure.
As for the 20-miler today. I was really dreading it. I was anxious and nervous. Turns out it was all for not. Although it was rainy/drizzly/foggy/humid the whole time, it was all in all a great run. With our multiple stops (thank you Tim Hortons and McDonald's) and a couple of doozy-hills, it took us around 3:52. Not too bad for my first 20-miler (remember one year ago I couldn't even run 2 miles)! I stayed on track taking my GUs, carried my water and sipped consistently, and took 800 mg of ibuprofen at about mile 10. The multiple potty and water refill stops were just what my feet needed to keep going and finish the distance. Our poor feet got a bit beat up with the soggy socks and all. I've gotta say though, my SmartWools really did well. I think I'll have a couple of small blisters on the sides of my feet, but nothing bad. Our feet definitely looked like they had been submerged in a bath tub for 4 hours, by the time we got home.
The post-run ice bath was breath-taking as usual! My calves are pretty tight and my bum hurts. Nothing a steady stream of ibuprofen can't help! As much as I would like to do a 22-miler next week to give me more confidence....my mind has been set on 3 weeks of tapering. And as I found out last week, if my mind's not in it....the run will be bad!! So I finish this week with a weekly total of 40 miles. My biggest yet. Perhaps it's not as high as it could be, but according to my training plan/book, it's just enough. That's what I'm looking for. Just enough to get me across that finish line. And based on today's run and our past 3 long runs, I think I'll have enough steam in the engine to go 26.2. Hooray for tapering! Here's a few more pics from the morning.
The family greets us when we return:
Mommy....where have you been?
Our toes....
6 comments:
AWESOME. Love the picture of your little one waiting. That is exactly how my little guy looks...he wants me to play and I want to pass out.
That is a bummer that you get blisters...something has to be rubbing..
Welcome to TAPER..
Great job!!
Congratulations on the 20! Wow, those feet DO look soggy.
My daughter over at Tuffet sent me to your blog! Great job on getting through 20 miles! You're going to do great on your marathon! Do you have a friend that can join you on the last few miles? That's what I did this time, and it was so great to have someone fresh and ready to keep me going. If you don't try running a mile for someone in your life that's having problems, also, think about how long you can endure pain knowing you'll finish soon! These were things that helped me a lot! I also liked knowing they would give me hardware (the medal) when I crossed the finish line! Remember, if you can go through childbirth running a marathon is a piece of cake! Good luck!
Good job on the 20 girl!!!! Don't you just feel absolutely amazing having conquered that?!?!? Congrats!!! You are ready!
Nice job on the 20! Feels good to get loooong ones like that in the bank. Hope the ice bath helped restore the springiness in your legs quickly! Cute pic of the little one "asking" where you've been :)
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