Mental Workout

friends @ 100 Days Champagne Celebration

Distance: 12.07 miles
Time: 1:49:09
Pace: 9:03

Friday marked 100 Days until I graduate from Tufts University. There was a classy champagne reception (held in the Dining Hall...yesss....) that President Bacow spoke at. We got bookmarks as a little gift. The event was very nice, and who can pass up a free glass of champagne? It mostly made me realize how soon I will be launched into the real world. And how even sooner than that horrifying prospect, something almost as scary - running the Marathon!

Saturday early afternoon, Jen and I set out on a long run. We searched mapmyrun.com for long runs in our area, and found an 8-miler that looked promising. It was basically the run that the team does on Wednesday mornings, but in loop form instead of out and back.

It was gorgeous out. Well, it was in the mid-40s, a welcome change from the previous weekend!! We along the Mystic Lakes, which is part of the Middlesex Fells Reservation. When I was in high school I hated "ghetto runs" (running in the city by my high school), and loved running in the rural area around my house or in the Lehigh Parkway. My freshman year at Tufts I had an incredibly hard time adjusting to running in the city, but now I (mostly) love it, or at least am used to it. Regardless, it is nice to get away from the monotony of city blocks and run along roads with wide shoulders that wind through a Wilderness reservation.

I felt like I had settled into my pace around 2 miles in, but after an uphill about 3.33 miles in I had to take my inhaler, which bothered me. I have two inhalers that I use twice a day, but I like it better when I can make it through my runs without them. After that brief break we ran through a residential area. The houses were gorgeous - all unique and colorful mini-mansions on the Upper Mystic Lake...tres beautiful.

We turned onto Route 3A, which was probably the worst part of the run. Cars whizzed by us, and we had to run single file which hinders conversation. We ate some Sharkies at a stoplight and pushed on. I felt really good the rest of the way - strong. I had no idea where the mile markers were, so I wasn't too sure about our pace. After an hour of running we doubled back up the lakes where we had already run. I was feeling slow at this point, and about ready to turn back.

We got back to our street at 90 minutes of running, and I decided that I felt like crap, but I would feel the same if I kept running, so I might as well keep on running. I'd like to call this part of my run the mental workout. During the Boston Marathon there are going to be times that I don't feel like running anymore. I anticipate some serious questioning about why I continue to put one foot in front of the other. I will probably feel crappy while I think this. Soo...I decided to push throiugh it.

I ran for an extra 20 minutes around campus, which wasn't so bad at all, except for the hills. Tufts is on a hill. It is barely noticeable unless you are trying to run up it.

I mapped my run, and was pretty excited about my distance/pace time. Wooo.