Journal Entry Mon. April. 11, 2011

Okay, so I am not sure if this would apply to everyone that has run marathons, but this last week before the race is always the hardest for me.  It doesn't have to do with the difficulty of any runs, or speed work.  By now all of that has been taken care of.  This for me is a real test of my mental toughness.  If I go back and think about when I started training for this race, it was October of last year, six months ago.  And, for the most part the workouts were pretty consistent in regards to mileage, hill workouts and swimming.  Now, I have to taper. Run less miles and rest.  So if you try and tell a marathoner that they need to rest, you might be on the receiving end of some very strange looks.  Most of my days begin at 4:30 in the morning and end at 10:00 p.m.  I try to jump in bed sooner, it just doesn't aways work out.  Or, I get caught up in some photography or video productions and my creative mind starts cranking out ideas and special effects and then it is really difficult to fall asleep.

Yesterday I tried to tire myself out as much as possible.  From early mass, to playing basketball to chasing fly balls with my son on the ball field, I was bound and determined to climb into bed and drift off into dream land.  Once again, the best laid plans.  As I was in bed, I started thinking about the last few days of running I had before the race.  Then I started reminiscing about the course at Boston.  Thinking about the bus ride to Athlete's Village, the famous "Welcome To Hopkinton" sign everyone stops at to have their picture taken, the starting coral, the Harley bikers at mile 2, and the Hills of Newton, students at Welsey College screaming their heads off, Heartbreak Hill, the students at mile 22 from Boston College that I chugged a beer with, running by Fenway Park and the big Citgo sign as you approach the downtown area.  So much excitement,  so much to think about, I couldn't fall asleep.

The runs for the rest of the week will be easy, trying to rest for the big race will be hard.  I stopped in and saw Fr. Matt today to get a blessing before I head out.  I pray that I am able to clear my head of all these anxieties and run a strong and safe race.

And right now its 10:20 p.m. and I'm still awake, so...