Can't believe it's almost here - 2 days 22h 09m 14s to go!

Wow, so the marathon is just a few days away, and also just a few days from being over. :-)

Deposits = Returns. No deposits = No returns. And I didn't make many deposits this training season. I just want to get this over with. I'm disappointed in myself already and will cross the finish line feeling the same way.

When I'm mentally ready to do the hard work again, I'll think about another marathon. Until then, running for the sake of running. Working up a sweat. Getting the legs moving. My overall health. Being able to eat without worry. The cameraderie of races. and of course, the free t-shirt with race. :-)

Nice sunrise this a.m. and brrrr, it's cold out there! 24F at the moment. Mount Mansfield is now white on top, as is Camel's Hump (Camel's Hump is the mountain pictured on the VT state quarter, fyi ).

My right calf is still killing me, so I'm still stretching, still using the stick, etc. I'm going to try one of those icy/hot patches today to see if that helps. I tried running last night with no luck, so ended up on the exercise bike at the gym just to get some cardio. Anyways, I'll try running again at lunch today.

I had the funniest dream last night. DBF bought a house on my Mom's street without realizing. Within 2 days of his closing date, she put him to work on her yard like nobody's business. By coincidence, the same day, the Vermont City Marathon also finished in my Mom's backyard. but I could see the NYC skyline at the back of the yard. The mind works in very strange ways...

hmmmmph.

My right calf was tight all day yesterday, and by the time I left work, it was bad enough that I was limping. It also cramped up most of the night. No idea what's going on there, but I've been using the Stick and will get out for a walk at lunch to see if I can loosen things up. If so, will run tonight.

This is the LAST thing I need right now, with NYC just over a week away.

Heaven knows my training has been crappy. And I was planning to get another quality run in this weekend (12-15 miles) for a bit more confidence.

Busy busy weekend! The forecast was best for Saturday and Sunday, and not quite as nice for Monday (which I also had off, thanks to my paesano Christopher Columbus). So, we went hiking on Saturday and Sunday.

Although I can run until the cows come home, I was sucking wind within about 5 minutes of starting - from the incline. I should run more hills, apparently. :-)

Did 15 miles yesterday. SRD today.

By the way, I'm offering up a huge thanks to the finance gods that the MS/Mitsubishi deal got done and that MS has a new infusion of capital. Otherwise, I'd be crying in my (insert beverage of choice here).

Now that they've got a bit of stability, I'm going to move the shares of out the ESOP plan administrator and into a brokerage account where I can sell a little at a time and DIVERSIFY my retirement.

The stupid stock market is giving me agita

Good grief, I'm going to have a coronary soon. The stock market is out of control. It's completely irrational and completely driven by fear, nothing to do with fundementals of individual stocks.

The overall economic picture, lack of liquidity, etc. is CRUSHING stocks that are perfectly profitable.

I'm going to be working until I'm 90 at this rate. Way too much of my retirement savings is in financial services stocks, a result of working 10 years on Wall Street. Yes, I know I should have diversified, stupid me, but I have/had great faith in the business models and more importantly, the leadership of the stocks I own.

Anyways, enough of my non-running-related (NRR) rantings. Only running thing to say for myself is that I have 5 miles on tap for tonight.

yesterday/today

So, I got in a 40 minute progression run last night, from "super duper slow" progressing to "still pretty darn slow." It's a little discouraging, where I am right now with regards to speed, compared to where I was in the spring. Guess I shouldn't be surprised, given the lack of consistency in my training this summer/fall. Oh well, it'll come back with some work, no doubt there...

Tonight, I have 6 miles on tap, maybe 7. TM at the gym of course. It's now getting dark early enough that I can only fit in 3-4 miles outside before it's dark out. So, gym it is.

Oh, speaking of the gym, I quit the gym near my house. I love the convenience of it, but I have free access to the fitness center at work, and also a free membership to an older gym that's near my office. Given the state of the economy (and of my retirement plan), it's best if I save that $50/month. I'm paid up through 31 October, so that gets me through marathon season. After that, I'll figure it out and also maybe work in some classes and some resistance training, something I haven't had time for with the running.

I was awake from midnight until well after 4 a.m. last night. Very annoying, I must say, but I made a HUGE dent in the book I'm reading at the moment. :-)

I'll be stopping by Dunkin Donuts on my way to work for the Big One, or whatever they call the x-large coffee. and of course, a cinnamon-swirly coffee roll thingamajig.

Anyways, I have 5 miles on tap tonight. Then out with the BF.

change of plans

I've decided to cancel my trip to NYC this coming weekend (was going down to do the Staten Island Half).

I'm sick with either head+chest cold or a whopping case of allergies, but it's really kicking my pants. Work is crazy right now. And lastly, I just got back from a trip (Austin, TX), and don't feel like travelling again so soon.

It's a 3-day weekend due to Columbus Day, and it'll be nice to just stay put, enjoy a little downtime, and get my run in. This will also give me a little more flexibility to go longer than the half-marathon distance I was going to race on Sunday. And heaven knows, at this point in my training, I need to go longer. (rolling my eyes at myself here).

ok, here's the plan

So, my training has NOT been what it should have been. I've been on the road way too much this summer and fall, and worked way too many weekends. Too much time away, and not enough time running. As well, I have had a mental block this whole training season, and now, 4 weeks out from my marathon, I still haven't gone further than 15 miles.

So, here's the plan for the next 4 weeks including today:
today: 15 miles
this coming week: rest/5/7/5/5/rest/half-marathon race
week after that: rest/5/7/5/5/rest/18
week after that: rest/5/7/5/5/rest/15
week after that: rest/5/3/5/3 rest/marathon

In other words, little to no taper, because frankly I haven't been taxing my body enough to need one. I'm going to have to count on good general cardio fitness, and only moderate long runs/endurance to get me through the race.

So, 4 weeks from today, the torture will be over, and I can go back to actually enjoying my runs. Basic 5/7/5/10-14 long run, 4 days a week, no schedule and no pressure. Just the joy of running again.

I won't be doing another marathon anytime soon, if ever again, after this one. It really just gets in the way of my running, however counterintuitive that may sound.