Counting down the days

What a chilly morning to start my 8 mile run today. My guess is that this is what it's going to feel like eight days from now. Friends around me and on Twitter have been keeping me up to date on the weather forecast for Oct. 12. It's been somewhat of a mixed bag. Whatever it winds up to be, I think I'm going to have a great time.

Fifteen months.

Has it been that long since the thought of running this thing crossed my mind?

Fifteen months. Wow.

Fifteen months of grueling work to condition my body to run 26.2 miles. My bones have ached, my muscles are sore, and my body is tired. Fifteen months ago I was feeling crummy- physically and emotionally. I hadn't run in over 25 years and my body was screaming to get out of that damn computer chair and DO something. So I ran... I didn't get very far on the first try, but it was a step.

It's a lifestyle now. I've thought a lot about what I'm going to do come October 13. I know I won't run big miles for two to three weeks after. I definitely want to more races. And I'm surely not ruling out another marathon should this one go well.

We'll see. Every bit of this experience is so new to me that I'm just enjoying taking it all in.