26.2 Days and counting!

I got an email today from the Boston marathon reminding me that there's only 26.2 days until the race! Well, I guess the email wasn't really "reminding" me of anything. Let's be honest, I visit their website almost every day just to see the countdown they have posted on the homepage. I just thought it was clever that they added a .2 to it. I'm so excited I can barely stand it!

Here's a video that I find hilarious because it's so true. You may have already seen it because I posted it on my facebook profile, but it makes me laugh every time. I'll admit, it describes my life pretty dang accurately at this time as I train for the Boston marathon. OK... it describes the last 5 years of my life pretty accurately. The last part is my favorite.

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Anyway, training is going really well so far! I can honestly say I am thoroughly enjoying training for this race. I've found a new love for running this time around that I didn't know was even possible for someone already as obsessed with running as myself. Some days I feel like a puppy dog waiting by the door for Scott to get home so I can go run. In the past it's definitely been more of a love/hate relationship, but now it feels like a love/love/love relationship.

How did this happen? I'm not really sure, but there are a few things I can think of....

1. After figuring out that I was gluten intolerant I changed my diet and started eating much healthier. It's not so fun to run when you have tons of pain in your stomach and you're tired all the time. It's so unbelievably nice to feel normal again! Welcoming Gu back in to my life has also helped a lot. Turns out it's easier to run if you give your body some energy to do it. :) I could write a book about all the stupid things I've done while running and training for marathons. It's quite comical. Maybe I'll do a post about a few someday. But hey, I learn a little each time. I should have it down by #100 I think.

2. More speed work, tempo runs, and awesome people to run with. I've always been so blessed with awesome people to run with, and here I was all nervous that I wouldn't be able to find running buddies or nice places to run when we moved to Texas. I was so sad to say goodbye to the Provo Canyon running trail, and I still love and miss that place, but I've found some pretty awesome places to run here too! Now that I've incorporated speed work and tempo running in to my training, I can't believe I've never done it before! Changing up my training like that has given me measurable results and it's been really fun to see myself hitting times I never ever thought I could hit.

3. Gorgeous winter weather. Every time I'm at the track doing intervals in 70 degree weather, I think about all the people training for the Boston marathon in other parts of the country running through the bitter cold and snow, and I feel sooooo blessed that I'm not! :) Winter running here makes up for the smoldering hot summers. Ask me again in a few months though, and I'm not sure if I'll still be saying that. It's already getting toasty here. I even got sunburned last Saturday on my run! However, for the most part, the weather has been ideal for marathon training, and I love it!

While my training has been going really well, it for sure hasn't been easy. It's been really stressful making sure I get a good run in every day when my two options are 5:00 a.m., or wait until Scott gets home. I've had to be a little creative somedays to squeeze one in, like the night I ran back and forth from Lowes to Target and around the parking lots of the shopping complex near our house so I wouldn't be running alone after dark. Yay for daylight savings though! I now have an extra hour after Scott gets home before I resort to people giving me weird looks down the sidewalks of the shopping complex.

Plus, did I mention that getting up at 5:00 just sucks? It's not so bad when you're getting up at 5:00 for something really cool like Christmas morning, but when I'm doing it to meet the lame treadmill and absolutely nothing good on TV, I seriously don't know how it gets done somedays, but I'm always glad I did it. It's taken many of pep talks inside my head in that bathroom of mine as I drag myself in there to brush my teeth and throw my clothes on. I've grudgingly learned to become friends with the treadmill. Yuck. Oh how I wish safety weren't an issue and I could run outside at all hours of the day without a worry in the world.

I'm not complaining. I feel so lucky, and blessed, and happy that I get to train, I'm just saying it's not all hunky dory all the time. Training has had many ups and downs, but all I can say is that in 26.2 days I will be ready to run! I've never been this excited to run a marathon in my life. It's usually a mixture of dread and excitement, but this one is pure excitement. As I count down the days to April 18, I can't help but think of this song...

There, now I don't have to look at those yucky pictures below anymore when I come to my blog page. Needless to say, I wasn't enjoying the poop streak down Boston's door as my scenery while I checked other's blogs.