2 more days till race day!

All smiles after finishing my last speed workout of this training cycle at Kezar. It was this past Wednesday, and the rain had just cleared up. I ran 2×800, then 2×1600, and then 2×800 all at 6:00 pace. I’m still feeling a bit sore from that workout, but I hope I’ll be back at 💯 by Sunday morning.

Fast forward to today, and now we’re 2 days away from the CIM! I’ve been training all year for this race. I wasn’t feeling nervous the past few weeks, and now, I’m definitely feeling the butterflies. 🦋

The plan is: my parents will come and pick up my boyfriend and me tomorrow morning, and we’ll all drive to Sacramento. My dad is visiting a few friends in Sac and in Stockton, so we’ll be making a few pit stops along the way.

There are 4 things on my To-Do list tomorrow:

1. visit expo and pick up bib
2. run 3 miles (shakeout run to loosen the legs)
3. meet the 2:45 pacers at the Sheraton
4. eat a pasta dinner

There will be three 2:45 pacers at the race! This is really good news, because they’re there to run at a steady pace and finish just under 2:45. Their goal is to help as many women qualify for the Olympic Trials. Aka women like me!

I’m going to meet them, so I know who to look out for on Sunday, and hopefully become friends with them so I can get some good vibes from them and the ladies who are also going for 2:45.

It’s starting raining again this week, so unfortunately, it’s forecasted to rain on Sunday morning. Hopefully, it clears up or at the very least, is just a light drizzle.

Who is this sexy runner? Oh wait, that’s me! 😇 I’m testing out my outfit and sending a photo to my family so they know what to look for when spectating.

What am I feeling as I head into this race? A whole whirlwind of emotions. I’ve imagined crossing the finish line so many times. Turn left onto 8th St, then left again onto Capitol Mall, and seeing the finish line within reach with a big fat 2:44:xx. Then charge towards that finish line, with everything I’ve got. Tears streaming down my face, I cross through the finish line and I realize – we did it. 😭

Man, it still gets me so emotional every time I think about it. Of course, I’m not counting my chickens before they hatch. The hard work isn’t over yet. But I’m ready to bust ass and work hard on Sunday. I’m ready to embrace the pain. I’m ready to fight for it. I’m not going to give up, because I know firsthand, that the pain of regret is far worse than the pain of pushing harder.

A few things that are different about this race: I’m in the sub-seeded division! That means I’ll be near the front of the start line, right after the elite runners, but before the masses. This will help, because to qualify for the Olympic Trials, they base it on gun time (not chip time). So it’s important to cross that start line as soon as you can after the gun goes off.

Another thing – I won’t be running with music! I always run with music, but it’s not allowed for OTQ times. So bye bye iPod shuffle, and hello to my thoughts for 26.2 miles.

Well, whatever happens on Sunday, I know I had one hell of a journey getting here. The races, the workouts, the (expensive!) running equipment purchases, the massage therapist appointments, the physical therapy appointments, so many Uber rides… so many Whole Foods dinners… meeting other passionate runners, and of course so much more. I’ve learned quite a bit about myself this year. Mostly, how crazy I can be when I’m 100% committed to a goal 🤪. It’s wild to think it’s coming to an end this Sunday. Signing off for the night. It’s gonna be a big weekend!