Anxiously Awaiting...

The nerves are really kicking it into high gear. My half marathon is less than 24 hours away and I can feel myself working up to a full fledged panic attack if I don't reign myself in. I guess it's a combination of excitement and anxiety. I just want it to go well and be a great experience.

My From fat To Finish Line captain, Rik, gave  me a call yesterday morning to walk me through all of my concerns. He went through all of the aspects of race preparedness with me, from what I am going to wear, to hydration, training history and goals. I would REALLY like to finish this half in under 2:30, but my realistic goal is to finish strong and enjoy it. Since it's my first half marathon, whatever time I come in, it's my personal best! Knowing that I have 11 miles under my belt last Sunday does help, but there's that voice in my head that says, "Ok, you did 11 miles, but you still have to run another 2.1!" So Rik asked me how I felt after the 11 miler, and I can honestly say that I had enough "in the tank" to run full out (what MY full out would be considered after 10+ miles) for the last 10th of a mile. I wasn't about to collapse or get jelly legs and need to be carried home. I also have the advantage of having trained on a course other than what would be considered flat, as well as running on unforgiving concrete sidewalks, which should make this course seem a bit "easier." So Rik has convinced me (kind of/sort of) that since I didn't die at the end of that run that I will finish 13.1.

Rik also gave me advice on what I should do before the race, meaning REST, REST and more REST. I did a little cleaning yesterday and then we went to the race expo last night. The drive was a little stressful, since it's about an hour away and we've never been to this sports complex before. I picked up my race bib, Diva t-shirt and found a great tye-dyed '13.1' magnet to put on my car after I finish the race tomorrow. I could've spent SO much more money there! I picked up a hand-held water bottle at Sports Authority as well as a Power Bar energy gel on the way to the expo. (Would you believe I spent $1 MORE at S.A. than the expo?!?) Even though Rik said that the 8 water/Gatorade stations on the course will probably be enough without having to bring my own, I want to be fully prepared. Races have run out of Gatorade and even water, so I don't want to take any chances.

 

This will be on my From Fat To Finish Line t-shirt. You could write whatever you wanted on your bib- I was less than creative!

There was a table at the expo set up with all of the pink feather boas, tiaras and the race medal for this year's Diva Half Series. I am  beyond excited to get this medal! It's FANTASTIC!!!

That's my 14 year old daughter's hand holding it! And the spot with the pink crystal? It spins and the other side has a spot for my picture!!! The crown is all sparkly... and a firefighter will be handing me a red rose, a flute of champagne and putting that around my neck in about 21 hours!

So the rest of the day I'll be spending on the couch reading Carole Radziwell's book 'What Remains.' She is now a housewife on RHONY and I think she is probably the most sane, level-headed woman on the show. I hope it doesn't twist her like it did the other cast members. If you don't know the show, she was a successful  producer for ABC news and was married to Anthony Radziwell, a fellow ABC producer and nephew to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. The memoir is about her childhood, career, marriage and the loss of her husband to cancer. She also talks about losing her best friends, Anthony's cousin, JFK Jr. and his wife Carolyn, in the horrible plane crash just a month before her husband's death. I can't wait to make myself a huge cup of coffee and delve deep into the story. It really makes you realize money CAN NOT buy happiness and in the end, LIFE IS SHORT. This will be what pulls me through every step of those 13.1 miles tomorrow.