Trained

Here we are, just a few short days away from the Seattle Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, and I'm feeling trained.

Today, my assignment from Coach Hal was to get out there and do an easy four miles, which I completed with no real issues. Thanks to another storm last night, the air was slightly cooler this morning, and I actually managed to get out the door before it heated up.

With each step, I started visualizing the race on Saturday. My current plan is to latch onto a pace group as though my life depends on it and hang with them for as long as humanly possible. This will be my first race in the Rock 'n' Roll series, so I'm looking forward to seeing what effect all the bands will have on my adrenaline. Thus, I'm hoping that if I leave the pacing to someone else, I can let my mind wander and the music will carry me home.

I'll pick up a few energy gels when I'm in Washington, as I'm not sure if they're allowed on planes. I've got my shoes, my hat, my shorts, a couple different shirts (not sure which I'll wear yet) and my stopwatch. Also in the bag are the armband that holds my phone and a packet of that Buzzerk pre-workout energy powder. Anything else that I might need will, I'm sure, be available at the expo. I've already seen a lot of chatter on Twitter from several of the different vendors, so I'm hoping that there are some fun things to be found.

Our aunt who lives there is already planning lots of activities for us, many of which do NOT involve walking around too much, which will be good for the day before the run. After this morning's four, I've only got an easy two to complete on Friday morning. I'm particularly looking forward to these miles, because it will give me a feel - before the race starts - of running in the climate. With highs that are cooler than Texas' lows these days, I'm sure it will take a little bit of adjustment, but I'm hoping that it's an easy one. It's always easier to run on cool days, right?

Because it was pretty easy running this morning. With all these visions of success and joy on Saturday, I hardly noticed what my pace felt like today, and it certainly did not feel like the 15-second per mile too fast pace that I was running. Still, the point of running "easy" today was not to run slow, but rather to run without putting forth too much effort, and I did that. I must just be getting faster.

I guess we'll know for sure in 72 hours.

Wednesday's Run:
79 Degrees / Sunny
4.06 Miles
27 Minutes, 55 Seconds

Current Race Day Forecast:
High - 66 / Low - 51
Partly Cloudy
Humidity - 65%
Precip - 20%