it's all in your mind

I'm so used to racing on Saturdays, not Sundays, and I think that's why I woke up early today. In my daze I stared at my watch wondering what I was supposed to do, then I realized I was a day early!

So this post will be about my half marathon tomorrow. My running has been a bit wacky the past two weeks so I wasn't sure if the trend would continue through the weekend, though my run yesterday was really nice and if it's any indication I should be all set. I'm thinking I just lost steam and needed more than a few down days to fully recover, I don't really know, but I seem more energized as of late. I've also been getting psyched up and it's a rather cool feeling, as I generally try to maintain an even temperament for races. I wonder if this has a negative effect in the sense that come race time, I don't really think of it as any different than a regular run (and I still do maintain an element of that, which helps with nerves, i.e., "I've run this before, I can go the distance...").

Anyway. I've decided that my pre-race (today) meal will consist of waffles, and I'll freeze a few waffles for tomorrow to eat for breakfast a couple hours before the race. I also have an FRS energy drink. Readers will know from the past that my game day meal consist of whatever plus an energy drink, even a few cups of coffee thrown in. The energy drink is because I get a blast of energy as well as extra calories. The problem is that the bottles are so large and carbonated that I end up feeling fuller than I want. I switched to FRS because it's smaller and not carbonated, and the orange flavor is practically like drinking a tricked out glass of orange juice, but not because I don't normally drink OJ for breakfast.

My goal for this half is to sub 2, or I'll retire.

Just kidding.

But I feel my goal time is relative to what I'm capable of right now, not just a benchmark I've set for this particular distance. The weather looks to be good, a tad on the warm side at 50 degrees at the start, but sunny and lovely. The course has two loops around the Notre Dame campus, each measuring out to 6.5 plus I'm sure the extra (dreaded) .1 is thrown in at the end. We go around the stadium that's as old as Rockne and has the stadium seats to prove it. We go around the campus lake that apparently has killer swans. (Might make for a tasty mid-race snack!) I think this might be the funnest race I've ever run, but that remains to be seen. The course should be pretty flat since it's on campus and there aren't many hills.

Let's see... I'm rambling, but I had something else I wanted to say that I can't remember. I still need to get my running clothes and stuff ready for tomorrow. Packet pickup is the same day as the race so I have nothing to show you guys until probably Monday, when I'll recap the day before and the day of the race.

And with that I think I'm done for now. Wish me luck!