Well, it’s 4:40am on Friday and my train is on its way to Richmond! Race-cation here I come! I have never been this nervous for a race before but I know it will happen, in two days I will be a marathon runner.

As Philadelphia fades into the background so do my worries and assignments. I know Sunday night will be rough with how much work I have to do but for now, I focus on me and running. Oh, and seeing my awesome family coming to support me!

So I always read marathoners blogs and thought they were a little crazy around race week when they started talking about all the little aches, pains, sniffles, coughs, etc. It seemed inevitable that each and every runner “got injured” the week before the race.

Now that I have experienced the week-before-the-race, I know the feeling! Marathoners are a superstitious bunch. We create phantom aches and pains and coughs and colds and diseases and injury in this week before the race.

Now I got to wondering and thinking, why is this? Is it because we all run funny the week before a race? Or we all contract colds from not taking care of ourselves?

I think it is because we are hyper aware of our bodies the week leading up to marathon day.

We spend months and months pounding away at the ground preparing our legs and bodies for race day, but it is in that last week you truly prepare your mind for race day. It takes that last week to fully wrap your mind around the task you are about to complete.

It also doesn’t help that your usual diet changes slightly and you become hyper-aware of everything you are consuming, you are running weird schedules to taper off, and you pack and worry about race day.

The phantom pains must be rolled, cold-shortening zinc must be taken, and many many carbs consumed.

Marathoners are crazy people, my friends, and in one day I will be able to count myself as one of them.

My first half marathon ever!