Breakdown: Week 19 & I'm back on my feet

Here's hoping it's not as bad as it looks.

Monday: Columbus Day. I'd just spent the previous week completely & utterly sick with some sort of ebola virus that made its way around our community. So I have no idea why I thought I'd be able to run, but I gave it a shot since I had the day off & I thought I was doing better then I actually was. I made it about 1.3 miles (15 minutes of running) & turned around at my walk break to head home. All told, I rand 1.69 miles before I had to walk the rest of the way. My nose was running, I coughed up a lung, & my chest hurt... either from sucking cold air or actual illness. I made it home, quite a bit worse for wear, showered, & fell asleep on the couch. So much for Monday.

Tuesday: Still impressively sick, I started a new job. Doesn't have anything to do with running, but it was an important day. And I was still under the weather, so it was a very rough day. Obviously, I did NO running. Quite a bit of walking, though, to get all my employee paperwork filed.

Wednesday: The most challenging day of the week. I felt better... much better. I coughed only slightly & slept through the entirety of Tuesday night. In fact, I felt quite like I did on Monday. So what did I do? I bought some hair dye (Feria Chocolate Cherry)& STAYED HOME! That's right. I purposely dyed my hair after work to force me to stay home & continue to heal. Sounds a little crazy, but I knew if I had nothing to do after work, I'd end up trying to run & set myself back again. Good news: the color is lovely!

Thursday: Moment of truth. I felt good, so I hit the road after work. I don't like being out after work with all the cars, but it's my only option. I was determined to keep my running pace at 12 minutes, but I didn't succeed. In fact, my average running pace was 11:31, 4.5 miles in 52 minutes... not at all far off my normal. I was very happy, though I confess to huffing-&-puffing at the very end. It was a good run, to be sure. Again, my chest hurt, but I think that was from sucking in cold air... I need to get used to that again.

Friday: Day off of running. I didn't want to push my luck, especially considering I woke up with no soreness whatsoever (which made me feel much better about my marathon prospects). Plus, BigDog had chemo. I spent my evening at the vet with him.

Monty thinks RW is a pillow

Saturday: What a strange day! I did no running, deciding it was better to be safe than sorry.

1. Got my nails done.
2. Bought groceries.
3. Broke a nail (yes, after I'd gotten them done).
4. Bought skis for Mr. X & I... & a car roof rack so we can fit extra people/gear in the car for day trips to the mountain.
5. Made carb-friendly lunch.
6. Updated my iPhone to iOS5 (which took a ridonkulus amount of time).
7. Got a call to race back to the nail shop to get the broken nail fixed.
8. Continued to work on updating all the iOS5 info... because Holy Crap it's a long process! 

And I was laughing the entire time. The broken nail thing really sent me into a giggle fit. I have no explanation why, but I thought it was hysterical; I think I needed a nap, but I didn't get to take one. And I packed my Camelbak for my planned Sunday run.

Sunday: Goal was at least 8 miles, according to my training plan. I wanted to hit 10 miles, even though that's "more" than taper suggests. But I figured I'd been out of the running game so long, a few extra miles couldn't hurt. I was also determined to sleep in, so I didn't set an alarm. 

I woke up at 0730; it was 39 degrees out. Way too cold for a running skirt...  since I don't have anything else to wear, I decided to wait a couple of hours before heading out. When I left the house, it was 0930 & still a bit chilly in the shade w/a bitter cold wind. I took my time & forced myself to run slow. To accomplish this, I took the "scenic route." Which really means I got a bit lost on the back roads. And this is what I found:

About 2 miles from our house, just behind the city!

Moments like these, I love living in Italy... it's always easy to find accidental picturesque areas.


My mid-way point was the Army base (which is why we're in Italy). Thanks to my little detour, it was just over 4 miles when I got there. Did a little "woot" & turned around to head home. And saw this:

Next task: learn to ride horseback!

How did I miss this on the way out? I soooo want to go horseback riding.


I kept running, right past the turn to my house. I really wanted to log 10 miles. But at about 8.5 miles, my right knee started to feel a bit wonky. So I called it at 9.5 miles, which took be right to my house. I can live with missing half a mile. Had my favorite Gatorade G2 Fruit Punch, a super hot shower (turned my skin red), had lunch, & took my post-run nap.


All in all, Week 19 started off badly & ended okay. The marathon is 7 days away. I'll be posting a lot of photos from the expo & the race. And by this time next week, I should already be done with the race. I think I'm going to make it, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. I'm going to keep running this week to keep the nerves in order. I'll keep you all posted!