no soreness & less fear...

There are four things that will speed recovery after a run.

1.  Stretching/Yoga
2. Massage
3. Ibuprophen (AFTER the run not before or during)
4. Ice bath

I've consistently done all four through out the last 6-8 months...all the way back to early last summer before Chicago...
You better believe ALL four of them have helped me.

I have zero soreness from this past weekend's flat 15 miles at well below marathon pace.  The little tensor muscle issue is almost nonexistent so this is making me pretty happy.  I've got less than two weeks until I push my body to finish the fastest marathon I've ever run.  My goal is to arrive at the start line with nothing on my mind but the weather & "knock on wood" so far so good with my body issues.  I am fully aware that anything can happen & I've been the queen of injuries but most of those injuries happened with inadequate training.  Nothing in the last 6-8 months has been inadequate, except for the glute issues.  I plan to fix that when this marathon is behind me.  I will have no choice but to fix it if I don't get the job done on my 1st try at Boston '14.  I told Joe to be prepared for me to stop for 10-15 seconds to stretch something out IF needed.  I trust him to keep me on pace if that happens.  I have faith he won't let me fail.  My race report will not have much course description because I know I'll zone out after we break off from Lauren.  We will be watching for road issues (NOLA roads aren't the best), eating, & calculating the pace.  ALL BUSINESS!  ;-P

We are going to practice the first 11 miles this coming Saturday.  It's going to be super cold here on Saturday morning so that means I've only got one long run with "nawlin's type" weather under my belt. Thank God it was that morning it was 66 degrees at 6:15am with tons of rain on that somewhat hilly 20 miler. It will be totally up to me to push my limits.

I did 5.25 recovery miles yesterday at a 9:27 pace, weight machines, the bike for 30 minutes, & Erin's yoga class.  At the end of yoga yesterday, she recited these words below & they hit home to me.  I guess I needed to hear it to put things into perspective.  Sometimes you need to think & act outside the box in order to get to your goal.  Be fearless!

Isaiah 41:13 - "For I am The Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand, and says to you, Do not fear, for I will help you."
Live fearlessly! Be strong and courageous. You can do amazing and inspiring things if you just take a chance!