Eep!

Just over 25 days until the race gun is fired. Eep.

I don’t want to alarm you, but according to RunKeeper my first marathon of the year is slightly more than 25 days away.

Eep.

Come close – I’m going to tell you a secret. I’m freaking out just a little bit¹. Whew. Feels better to get that off my chest.

Part of this freak out is that I just don’t feel that I’m ready. A bunch of my longer runs have been – oh, what’s the word? – sucktastic. Mainly this is a function of not fuelling properly – which I will conquer come race day. But there’s also the tricky business of my IT band doing weird things. It doesn’t hurt, but my legs have been very tight, and my left knee feels like it’s tracking wrong.

And yes, before you ask, I stretch. A lot. It’s just really tight in the general area of my legs and glutes – a major problem given that this is the area that I’m going to count on to get me through 42.2 kilometres of running.

Beyond fuelling, and beyond the IT band, there’s also the stress² associated with the other races that are happening prior to the marathon. The first of which is the Run for Retina Research half marathon this coming weekend³. Two weeks later I run the 10 Miler Chocolate Race. And then after that – 42.2 glorious kilometres through the streets of Toronto.

Did I mention eep?

Words of wisdom.

Anyway, I’m sure this is all just pre-race jitters. I will run the marathon, and I will crush it. I will also crush both the half marathon and the 10 Miler as part of my continued training for the marathon. And then I will look back on this post and laugh at myself for being nervous about something that I know I can do.

Or, I’ll laugh because I will have done what the sign to the right suggests that I don’t do before I have even crossed the finish line – thus becoming that guy that everyone is talking about.

Either way, I’m going to come out the other end of this thing laughing. So really, what’s there to be worried about?

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¹ Where the phrase just a little bit means a lot.

² Stress on the body – which makes me worry a bit whether or not I’m over-training⁴, or under-training⁵. Am I hurting or helping when I do this versus that? It’s a nasty string of thoughts that I really try to avoid, but sometimes they creep in.

³ Don’t forget I’m trying to raise money for Retinal Research. Just click the link to the right over there. And thanks to all those who’ve already donated. When I see you, I’ll give you a solid leg-hump-o-joy or a hug as thanks (your choice of course).

⁴ My mind says unlikely.

⁵ My mind says likely.

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