Pages

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

second time around

It's good to be back, training for my second marathon--the ING NYC marathon, on November 1. Well, sorta. Let me explain.

The Great Part:
*Seeing teammates from Rome at practice, like my buddy Van, and Coach Ramon.
*Getting excited to accomplish something big again.
*The familiarity of running in the park, and even the training sessions.
*Telling people I'm running a marathon (never, ever gets old).
*Looking forward to the Saturday afternoon long-run high.
*Running in warmer weather than I'm used to.
*Getting to eat anything and everything again.

The Scary Part:
*Realizing four miles feels more difficult than the last 20-miler before Rome.
*Feeling the familiar itch to skip practice, and finding myself actually skipping--eek!
*Worrying the training sessions will feel too familiar, lack newness.
*Telling people I'm running NYC and knowing they will be watching.
*Giving up summertime Friday night happy hours with friends.
*Running in the dead heat of summer.
*Worrying that my body's some how acclimated and slowed down my metabolism.

Yes, I have doubts, but like I learned the last time around, running a marathon is about seeing the positive. I can't wait to slow jog through all five boroughs, slapping friend's and stranger's hands, hearing "go Meg," feeling the strange/amazing yin/yang of the runner's high and sheer exhaustion, and of course, crossing the finish line and the after-party that awaits.

Think it's too early to book the back room at the Parlour (86th and Broadway!) See you all there!

xoxo, Meg

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

back in the saddle

In the months after you've just run 26 miles and completed your first-ever marathon, there are two ways things could go:

A) You stick with the long-run Saturdays, sign up for a bunch of races and make sure to get out there at least a few weekday mornings to keep up your speed and endurance. You find yourself clocking your best times yet!

B) You email every last friend you missed over the past four months, start scheduling regular happy-hours, and generally sit on the couch, catching up on DVR'd Gossip Girls and How I Met Your Mothers. You discover your best takeout pad thai restaurant yet!

Guess which one I chose?

Aw, that was too easy. Yup, pathway B, which, made it all the more fun to get back to my very first Saturday practice this past week, since I've now, gulp, signed up for the ING NYC marathon this fall. Not only have I promised to again beg all my friends for money for charity, but they'll actually be there cheering me on this time, making sure that I actually go through with it!

So as you'd expect with my strict adherence to plan b these past coupla months, this past Saturday was kinda funny (see, I'm even getting lazy in my grammar!) Though the four-mile run was surprisingly hard, the air felt great (so fun now that it's not minus seven!), and my stress levels about actually completing it were pretty much non-existant.

They say sophomores are wise fools, and I'm guessing that this time for my second effort, I can see myself being overly confident in what I can accomplish, but that's all part of the fun of practicing something til you get it just right, right?

So watch me as I take on Unlikeliest Marathon II: Sex in the City...hee hee.

xoxo, Meg
 
BLOG TEMPLATE BY DESIGNER BLOGS