I got behind in my training schedule so I HAD to fit in 20 miles. Saturday we had a birthday party for one of Simon's friends that I just did not want to miss. It was at a bounce place and it was a ton of fun. I didn't think much of carrying my 43lb, non-walking son up the unstable bouncey stairs to the big slide. In fact I was pretty proud of myself for doing it without losing my breath. Next I took him with his friend Brogan, also a non-walker to a bouncey thingy that was unoccupied by any of the other kids. Brogan's mom and I had to stablize it so our sons would not knock heads, and then a bunch of kids came running and bouncing over and that gave us a more difficult and interesting variable to keep our kids safe. I felt no fatigue in my legs, it was a fun day.
Sunday morning began my 20 miler. I decided on two 6 mile loops to my house and then a final 8 to the canyon. The first 3 miles hurt, but then they always hurt. At the end of it I had to use the bathroom so bad I ended up walking home most of the 3 home. Took care of business then headed back out for my second 6 mile loop. It went better but I was still hurting despite careful fueling. I was frustrated, perplexed and annoyed. I finished that second loop, and plain wanted to quit. My mind started telling me this was good enough. Luckily another part of me kicked in and said no, you only have 8 more miles. They are beautiful miles and even if you drag yourself there, you're going to do this. So off I went. It felt good, then it felt better. About mile 17, my heels were really hurting so I tried to stay on my tip toes and continued. At about 19 miles, my feet were swollen and hurt so I ran/walked a lot, but I saw my destination ahead and just moved forward. I decided despite it being the sabbath I was going to get a mormon muffin. Afterall, that can't be too bad right, it is a MORMON muffin, so its got to be perfectly acceptable to purchase for a Sunday ; )
I went outside, took off my shoes and waited for Joseph to come get me. I ate that muffin sitting outside on a concrete wall with a sense of pride and accomplishment. Its all down hill from here. 3 weeks of taper and then the marathon. I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Tonight my "run" will have to be barefoot in my bedroom to give my heels a rest. I've gotten some excellent advice on how to prevent that in the future and I will be heeding that advice.
This Marathon has become about so much. I've always had a sizeable strength of mind, but I can see it getting stronger. It's helped me solidify that what needs to be done, can be done. I've realized that despite my critizism of some of my runs, there is no doubting that I have gotten stronger with each one. This started out as a quest to be stronger for my son. Its ended with a quest to show myself what I am capable of. Its also become an accomplishment I need to acheive for both myself and my father who loves to run but has been stopped by arthritis in his knee and now with the return of his cancer. I will do this. There is no option of not doing this. I will do it for Simon, for my dad and for myself.
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