The heat is on!

Before I begin: Found this very cool interactive map of the marathon course- complete with photos! Check it out here.

What do you know? The Chicago Marathon organizers have upgraded their Event Alert System warning level to "Yellow/Moderate" which indicates "Less-than-ideal" conditions for runners the day of the marathon. With temps already near 80, the game changes.

I've dropped down my expectations a bit from finishing in four hours to just... finishing. Fortunately, I've trained in some ridiculously warm weather this summer, so I know what to expect. I don't expect holding a 9 minute-per-mile pace the whole way, rather I'm going to set an easy pace early, take my fluids, and go on feel the latter half of the race.

I'm digging out my winter running gear for my two runs today and Friday, and I am going to run with a couple of layers on in the middle of the day to simulate running in the heat for Sunday. This means thermal running tights (my butt looks good in them too), and my thermal shirt with another long sleeve or jacket above that and some gloves.

For now, I'm enjoying a couple of days off before the weekend, and then hoping for two days to recover after!

...and probably more blogging because this taper is killing me slowly :-)