Week #10 – Focusing on the Positive

Every runner’s training has its ups and downs. With less than two weeks to go, the girls of Team Arnicare are working hard to focus more on the ups and forget about the downs.

13 days until the 13th…Am I ready? I was going strong on Plan A until about four weeks ago when I went on vacation and returned sick and was forced to modify my plan. I turned to Plan B (B for bronchitis.) Plan B was rest and more rest. Not a very good plan for the homestretch of training, but it was what my body needed. Now I am in the midst of Plan C (C for change it up.) I started out slow by walking, but I finished a 10-mile run this morning! It looks like my weeks of training early on really have paid off and giving my body the rest it needed seems to have done the trick. So to answer my own question – YES, I am ready! Come race day, no matter what plan I’m on, I can’t wait to cross that finish line with Team Arnicare and the thousands of other strong women out there!  – Nancy

“The hardest thing when doing a race is getting to the starting line.” Wait. How many times have I said that now? Three times? More? I know–too many times. I’m sticking to my training as much as possible. I’ve put myself in “race mode” by trying to clean my diet as much as I can, which is pretty hard for someone like me with a sweet tooth and an addiction to bread. Cutting out alcohol is easy for me, so at least I’m doing that. Adding more veggies with my new juicer/blender is fun too! Now running-wise, I painfully pushed through nine miles last weekend. And I really mean “painfully!” I was literally talking to myself during the last mile. And then my social life took over, and I went straight to brunch without stretching. Let me tell you, that was the worst decision I could have made, because it resulted in a shooting pain in my foot every time I put weight on it. Oh well! Lots of stretching and lots of Arnicare for the next few days and I should be okay. Anyway, we’re almost there! (Holy cow, I’m starting to freak out…)  – Nathalie

I skipped my long run this weekend. There, I said it. It’s out in the open.  Two weeks before the big day, I was incredibly lazy, and now I hate myself for it. I could probably blame it on jet lag (after a four-day trip to California), exhaustion, three straight days of rain, and an ankle the size of a softball, but I won’t. Yes, those excuses are all true, but they’re not good enough, and I’m not going to hide behind them. Laziness is really why I skipped it (11 miles!), and that’s pathetic. But I’m not going to wallow in it. I have two weeks left–two strong weeks of training, eating well, and drinking more water than my body can hold–and I’m going to focus on that. Slap my hand for making a stupid decision, but it’s time to get over it and move on. (But if anyone wants to make me feel better by sharing a similar stupid decision you made so close to race day, my anxious mind would greatly appreciate it.)  – Heather