Whew, I don't suck

This week it started to hit me. It's two weeks before the race...capital T-H-E, race. This is the culmination of my training since I began way back in November and I can't believe where I am. Thinking back, I didn't know how much hard work was before me. As they say, sometimes ignorance is bliss. It's like today...I really didn't think my bum knee would ever make it past a 10K, but lo and behold I did 10 miles! I'm not going to lie, there were times over the last few months when I thought - "Way to go, Karen, what have you gotten yourself into?" But I must say the mental, and not to mention, physical pay-off has been beyond great. Being goal-driven helps. I'm much more likely to stick to something once I have it in my sight...that, and a dose of huge motivation to help Eve and so many others kick cancer in the arse certainly helps.

So here I am today, sitting on my arse and resting after a hard run - the longest I've ever run, in fact. Today all the Atlanta-area TNT teams met at Chastain Park for a massive group run/training. It was energizing seeing the sea of purple power out there early this morning - friends and strangers high-fiving each other in solidarity, giving pats of encouragement and running their hearts out.

I'll be totally honest, though, I actually was pretty nervous about getting through 10 miles today. Did I mention I had never run that far -- ever? I only got up to 8 miles and I really needed this under my belt to feel I could do this half-marathon. I've struggled with knee pain for so long, that I had been having little twinges of panic -- what if I fail and don't/can't finish? How incredibly disappointed would I be if, after all this time and effort, let Eve and all my supporters down? I didn't sleep well last night and my stomach was turning on the drive to the park this morning. When I got there, it was cold but the sun was shining like crazy (very unusual lately) and we were on a beautifully scenic route. Because this was not our usual training location, we had turn-by-turn directions with no indication of the miles at each turn. This ended up being a god-send because I wasn't obsessing about how miles left to go. Luckily I was with three other awesome teammates which made the time pass easily. (Shout outs to Kristen, Jessie and Dale...woo-hoo! Here's a pic)

Don't get me wrong, I'll crawl across the finish line on March 21st if I have to, but I've learned that running is almost just as much a mental feat as it is a physical one. Needless to say - doing 10 was hard, but it feels so good to put it past me. All I can say is: I don't suck, and I can really do this.

Now, off to my reward -- a pedicure. I think I'll choose purple.