Thoughts on the Run

There are many “rules” in running I don’t mind breaking. Quite often I break the big one and do something completely different on race day. Most of the time it backfires, but yet I still do it.

This past marathon race though, I broke too many rules. Here are a few:

1. Eat a pre-race meal you have tried before
The night before the race we took our kids to Bandimere Speedway. This is a drag-strip style race track where they show off the rocket cars. Yes, basically rockets with wheels strapped onto them. It’s loud. My dinner at the race track? Can of Salt and Vinegar Pringles, large Diet Pepsi, and some Oreos. Calorie loading, not so much carbo loading.

2. Space out races
The day before the marathon, I paced the 3rd leg and ran (hard) the 4th leg of my first half marathon relay. As you can read in the recap, I put the accelerator to the floor and burnt out the tires. Really not a smart thing to do when running 26.2 miles the next day.

3. Rest and stay off your feet
In between running the half marathon relay and spending the night at the car race, we had a Girl Scout banquet to go to. It was at a local park and by this time, the temperature had climbed to the 80’s. That heat just sucks the life out of me. After that, I still have 4 kids so getting to rest is a slim-to-none chance.

4. Get sleep
We got home at 11p from the car race. That equaled 4 hours of sleep. It was one of the few times when I closed my eyes for what felt like a moment, only to hear my alarm go off. I looked at my alarm message that read:
Run simple.
Alright, I guess I can do that.

5. Don’t run long hard miles
Okay, I never follow the taper rule for a marathon. Big picture for me is the Leadville 100 Mile Trail Run in August, so a marathon is a supported long run. Still, good to do a lighter short run a few days before and not risk damage.

So there you have it, 5 things to not do before a marathon that I did all before this past marathon. Guess what? I still finished the marathon. It wasn’t the time I wanted, but my feet still took me 26.2 miles.

And I still enjoyed it!