It’s race weekend, and I’m PUMPED!

Well, it’s a bit more than two days to the start of my very first marathon!!!!

Right now, it’s Friday and I run at 07:00 AM on Sunday – that makes it about 60 hrs before the race!!! Can you tell that I am VERY excited?? Also, to confess, very terrified and nervous too!! I know what to expect during the race and I know that I am well prepared and I know that I can for sure finish it but what I doubt is my time (doesn’t everybody?).

I know that I will finish in a good time but the big question is : will I manage to qualify for Boston in 2012 ? That is the million dollar question.
I have been watching the weather forecast for Ottawa and it seems to be promising hot weather on race day – that’s not good BUT I have to say, the heat does not bother me nearly as much as other runners as I actually really love the heat.

What are my thoughts about this experience? First and foremost, I want to profusely thank iRun Magazine, Adidas Canada and Tania Jones of Goalspeed Coaching for the opportunity to be on this wonderful journey to my first marathon.

I COULD NOT HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT YOU!!!

Adidas was very generous all throughout the process with my running gear and iRun Magazine has been very supportive with their suggestions of help and their advice.
However, the very best is Tania Jones ! What a dedicated, supportive, insightful, intelligent, warm, talented runner and woman!!!

I was very blessed to have her train me for the last four months. This woman knows her stuff – running is her passion and her obsession, I think. Even though I was difficult to train (by my own admission !) she persisted and found a way to effectively communicate with me to help me along during the training process. She probably thought “who is this woman ?!” LOL ….who doesn’t have a cell phone, who doesn’t have a computer at home, who can’t use the Adidas miCoach because her work computer cannot be used for non-work related uses….well, you get the idea …a definite challenge. But – this is the best part – I trained and I ran (a lot) and I got really strong and fast with Tania’s coaching and if I can do it, anybody can do it !! That is for sure !! There is only one aspect of the goal that is a non-negotiable and that is putting in the time. You gotta run and you gotta run a lot for many months to get to the point at which you can break some fitness boundaries.

I am no different from anyone else – I was reasonably fit to begin with (only about two years of running under my belt), I am 47 years old and I am a woman. How many other women are out there in the general population that fit into this statistical group? Hundreds of thousands …..and my message to them all would be that they can do it too!!!

IF you want something bad enough, you can get it if you work hard enough for it. I believe that and that is why I am going to run the race of my life on Sunday!!
Now is my time and your time could be next!
So, are you still sitting on the couch?? Are you going to bike/ swim/ run this weekend?
It’s up to you to do.