A recap for myself (and for those who are still following our road to the marathon)…

– We’ve been running for two months now.

– When I started in March, my fastest mile time was just over twelve minutes. I was only able to run 1.5 miles before I had to stop and walk.

– This morning, I ran 4.5 miles in 45 minutes. Last weekend, I ran seven miles without stopping or walking.

– Apart from my self-inflicted shoe wound (darn you, carnivorous shoes!), I’ve been injury free.

– I’ve kept up with Wes and his very, very ambitious running schedule.

– Today, I actually ran faster than Wes. Woo-hoo! (Don’t get too impressed. This is only the first and likely the last time I’ll be able to claim this victory.)

I recap all this to reassure myself. These past two months have been great, but I have literally come in crying some days wondering what in the world I was thinking when I told Wes that we would run a marathon together. When I finished the seven mile run last weekend, I was feeling good and was pretty sure I could have kept running… but I know there was no way I could have run anywhere near a half marathon, much less a full marathon. What was I thinking when I agreed to this?! Why am I still pretending that I can actually do this?! Why shouldn’t I give up now and save myself all the trouble and shoe padding?!

In times of serious doubt like this…

– I have to remember that two months ago, the thought of 7 miles was just as ludicrous as 26.2 miles is right now. In another two months, who knows what will have moved from “insanity” to “so totally possible”? (We will have just completed a half marathon, so I’m hoping that 13.1 miles will be in the latter category.)

– I have to remember, as Wes has said, that we’re not training for a marathon right now… we’re training for a 10K. Bite-sized goals, one race at a time, keeping the thought of the full marathon on the back burner but not obsessing about it when there are still so many races to run between now and then.

– I have to remember that it’s not about being fast or even about finishing at the top… it’s about getting out there every day and doing what most definitely doesn’t come naturally to me.

And with that, I’ve reassured myself enough that the thought of running eight miles next week will no longer reduce me to tears. At least not right this minute.

Keep running, Mommy!