We drove the race route last night -- and I am not going to lie, it is a little bit hilly. But with that said, nothing can be more hilly than Nashville last year. I think it will be incredibly beneficial that I am familiar with the route that we are running, and there is about a 6-7 mile stretch of road that we run on a regular basis, so that will be helpful. I do have to say that the route kind of kicks ass. We are running all through the streets of DC -- and it is going to be absolutely beautiful. The trees are just starting to bud and it should be a great day here in the city, so I am excited to be out there.
The route itself starts at RFK and we run to the Capitol and then down to constitution. We go up toward midtown and run down Connecticut Ave. We run through that area into Adams Morgan -- this section (from about 5-10) is rolling hills, but it will be fun because we run through Dupont... From there we go into an area I am not too familiar with, down by Children's Hospital and then back to RFK. From there we run the route on the Capitol again, to the Nats stadium and then into Anacostia... again, another area which I am not too familiar with. We do get to run through the 9th street tunnel, which sadly, really excited about! :) I guess there is something to be said about running through a tunnel...
With all this said, I am really trying to prepare my body and mind the best I can. I have done all the training, there is nothing more to do there. I am trying to eat well, get a lot of sleep and kick this horrific cold that I somehow caught (I blame Buffalo - wink wink). I am feeling better than I have before and I think two good nights of sleep have really done me well and I have totally cut out booze (I probably should have done that before). I am keeping my regular routine with spinning this week, although I did give up tomorrow morning's class so I could continue to catch up on my sleep and kick this cold.
Mentally, I am trying to get myself as prepared as possible. It is funny - I was talking to Mickey this week and you would think this is the part that I would be best at. I trained for months and months as a swimmer and I would do it all for 2 minutes and 15 seconds (or faster!!! :) ) So you would think that getting mentally prepared would be something I excel at -- I am trying really hard to get in the right mindset and not psych myself out. I think that is one thing that really hurt me last year -- was getting too wrapped up in the "if I can finish" -- I know I can finish. I know I can do this. I am stronger, more prepared then last year. And I have Kristina. She is going to be there EVERY step of the way. When I am mentally not there, she will be. And vice versa.
Today I sent out an email to the team with the "Monday Motivational Quote of the Day" to help get others ready -- it of course was a quote from Rocky (actually the one that is on this blog about going the distance with Creed) -- and it made me think -- this time it isn't about going the distance with Creed. Not that the quote by any means is lost on me, but really it isn't the one that sticks out in my head when I think about this experience.
Yes, it is about going the distance, but really this isn't (the first) Rocky. I've already fought Creed and for all purposes, I will consider it a draw -- just like the movie. And although this is not a rematch of the same fighter, it is another fight. And this time, I will win... (seriously I think I might need to stop watching these movies)
Anyway, at the beginning of the season, when Kristina and I first started running together, she sent me a quote (of course from Rocky!) and this quote has quickly become part of our mantra when we run -- and I think we can all relate to it...
"The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty
place and I don't care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep
you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as
life. But it ain't about how hard ya hit. It's about how hard you can get it and
keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!"
So with that said, my bib number is #2626. If you aren't busy on Saturday, come out and cheer us on. We will be the ones with a smile on our face, singing, dancing, oh and of course, running.
#2626 // #2536
Now with all that said, and not to be rude or offend anyone, but I plan on making the SunTrust National Marathon my bitch on Saturday.
WIN, SAM WIN.
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