Ellane

Hello, it’s Ellane. Week 15 is done. Between running, meetings, crazy weather, and Villainous Vixens Fundraisers, it has been one busy week!

I woke up with a headache that quickly turned into a migraine. This migraine lasted all day which made my long run a no go. My body decided that it had enough by the end of the of the week...and that was before I still needed to get my long run in. Luckily I have been consistent and trust my training—I know my body is ready.

The following day I had to work. During work I decided to get as much done outside as possible as the weather was nice in my area of Vermont. We can call this cross-training as I spent hours cleaning up from the crazy storm we had gotten. This was definitely and unconventional way to get in a workout. I'll tell you though, dragging broken branches, shoveling, fixing a small bridge was hard work. Through all this work not only did I do these things but I put in miles. I was surprised when my step count was going off telling me I surpassed the goals.

Do I think that running my long run instead of doing all these odd things would have benefited me, sure, but sometimes life has other plans for us. That being said I also believe that it was good for me to do this during my training because it gave me perspective on what I can accomplish when put to the task. Remember, we have all worked really hard and it’s three weeks until the big day!

Kimber

Greetings fellow runners! Months ago when I signed up for this race I did not have much going on in my life. This allowed the perfect opportunity to focus on the training and preparation for my first marathon. The biggest thing I have learned along this journey is that life happens on life’s terms. It is necessary to keep the balance on everything and still maintaining the training.

My first challenge came fairly early in the training. I sustained a back injury that almost rendered me out of the race completely. I stopped running for a couple of weeks and after heavy consideration I got back into the race; doing the half and half relay with my niece instead. 

Once I was back into the groove of it I was sent to Afghanistan for several weeks. That was the perfect training opportunity, however, getting long runs in was hard based on time and the secure areas locations. The altitude was 4900 feet and the air quality was terrible. When I got back to the US I was tossed into the throws of moving into a new house, trying to find a new area to run in my new neighborhood, and having the energy to get those runs in while moving. A week after moving in (I’m still in boxes all over the house and can only find one pair of running shoes) I was sent to Florida for several days.

Here we are with the last three training weeks upon us. I do not feel that I am in my best condition, but I am determined to run this race! Constantly, people on the Facebook page post about caring for ill relatives, job challenges, and injuries, but battle through it. I will proudly stand at the starting line with these fine individuals, and more importantly, standing beside the incredible women in my family that will run this race with me. It will not be my best run time, but this run will be one of the best times of my life because of the people in it. I am truly blessed.