Getting Back to Normal

I've been to the gym every day this week enjoying all my old favorite classes that I haven't been to since a month before Boston.  I took Body Pump on Monday, Yoga on Tuesday, Body Step and Body Pump on Wednesday and Body Step again this morning.  Tomorrow I'll head to Body Pump followed by Body Attack.  Notice anything missing?  Yup.  Haven't run a single mile yet.  I have no idea what the hold up is other than that I just don't feel like it.  I had every intention of running before Yoga on Tuesday....didn't happen.  Then I thought for sure I'd run today after Step.  Nope.  Not today either.  I have zero desire to run!  I think it's because running is something that I had to do for so long - had to keep to the schedule - didn't dare miss a single mile no matter how I was feeling.  It's so nice to have the freedom to not run and not feel guilty because I didn't. 

It's been a lot of fun this week.   Seeing all my gym friends that I don't otherwise see and being able to really push myself in classes without having to worry how it will effect my long run on Sunday.

Maybe I'll run this weekend.  Maybe.

Gluten Free Pizza!

In my never ending quest to find good gluten free pizza, I was recently down right giddy to find a pre-made pizza crust by Sami's Bakery.

You may remember I went on and on (and on!) about their millet and flax bread....love it!  I was at For Goodness Sake, a natural food store in Leesburg and where I am weekly to stock up on the bread, when the pizza crust caught my eye.  I snatched it up and started jumping up and down.  Yes, I miss pizza that much.  Last night was the big taste test.  I was a little worried because I had incredibly high hopes for the crust simply because I love the bread so much.  I decided to keep it simple with the toppings and went with Muir Glenn pizza sauce (which is fantastic, by the way), red pepper flakes (duh), a small bit of mozzarella cheese, fresh spinach and mushrooms. 

Pizza ready to cook!

After about 20 minutes, it was finally time to give it a try.  Holy.  Cow.  Holy, holy, holy cow!!!  PIZZA!  I finally can have my favorite food again!  This crust is fantastic!  Really, really good.  It got nice and crunchy but the center was still a bit soft, perfect for me.  It didn't have that fake bread taste to it at all, just excellent flavor.  If I had to come up with a complaint it would only be that I prefer really thin style pizza and this is a bit thick but in no way did the thickness of the crust sacrifice the taste.

This was just perfect.  I ate way too much of it because I was so excited to have pizza back in my life!  Thank you Sami whoever you are!!

Boston is Over...Now What?

The last year of my life (actually more if you count all the training for the Delaware Marathon I did just to get into Boston!) has been nothing but eat, sleep, breath Boston.  When you spend basically all of your waking hours focusing on one goal, once that goal is achieved, it kind of puts you in a daze. 

For the last six months, I've been talking about how the Boston Marathon was going to be my last hurrah in the marathon world.  I was going to achieve my goal, go home and sleep.  That hasn't changed, I still have no desire to run another marathon but I'm certainly not going to quit running.

In my opinion, in order to run a marathon, you not only have to train your body but, and I think this part is just as big if not bigger, you have to have the desire.  Marathon training is hard.  And time consuming.  And if you are a mom, you have to have a really great support system at home to allow for all those long Sunday runs not to mention weekly training.  Desire is the portion I just don't have anymore.  I need a break from it all.  Need to explore other outlets and not have to carry a training spreadsheet around with me 24/7.  Of course, never say never.  I may get that desire back and if I do, I'll happily get back into it but for now, I'm happy to focus on other things.

First up, tennis!  Yes!  Tennis!  For as long as I can remember, I've wanted to learn how to play tennis.  We get the course booklet from the local rec center in the mail and every single time, I'd look up the tennis lessons, think about it for about 45 seconds then decide against it because of marathon training.  Well!  When I got the booklet about a month before Boston, found the 'Adult Beginner Tennis' class started exactly one month post-Boston and that the last lesson was the last day of school for my kids, I got down right giddy and signed up immediately.  I'm really, really excited to try something new.  I have a feeling I'll be a pretty crappy tennis player but it should provide for many good laughs.  Lessons start at Ida Lee Rec Center in Leesburg (in the indoor bubble....SO professional like!) on May 19th.

Next, half marathon training.  My half marathon PR is a 1:45:16.  I ran that last year (Suntrust National Half in D.C.) when I was training for the Delaware Marathon.  Bill and I ran it together and it was all about pacing/simulating the first half of Delaware.  I'd like to work on that time and see what I could do if I focus solely on the half marathon.  I'd love to get it down to a 1:35.  I've shared that goal with my trainer/friend who helped me achieve my BQ and he is totally on board.  Yes, it's going to take a lot of training but it will involve more speed and less distance which works great for me right now.  I miss Sunday's with my family.  Crap.  And I just said it out loud here so that means I better get my ass moving!

And last, I'd really love to give trail running a try.  Any time I've done cross country races, I've loved them so I feel like trail running is the next step.  I'm completely ignorant when it comes to trail running and I don't know anyone who does it - we are all pavement pounders - so this one is going to take some time but I'm excited to give it a shot.  There is a race this summer that I think I'm going to sign up for.  It's called Running Rocks in the Summer and it's local, only 3.5 miles north of Leesburg.  There are two distances, a 4 mile or a 9+ mile run.  I'd love to go for the 9+ (they are saying it is approximately 9.2 miles).  Here is a short description of the course: "The course is made up of rolling hills with plenty of semi-technical challenges in the form of rocks, roots, log piles, and small ledges."  Awesome!!!  Sounds perfect, sign me up!

So there it is.  Next chapter.  I'm excited for new things, excited that I don't have to run 18+ miles this Sunday and excited to run just because I feel like running, not because I have a marathon in a month!

Boston Recap

I don't even know where to begin.  What an incredible experience!  I'm still walking around in a post-marathon daze.  It always happens.  After a race, I always have that deer in headlights/'now what' look and feeling but this time, even more so.  Which shouldn't come as a surprise.  It was Boston after all.  The last two years of my life between training for a BQ in Delaware to then training non-stop for Monday finally culminated in one day.  Four hours.  No more run schedule.  No more panicking if I miss a run or feel a twinge in a muscle or body part.  This will probably last for the rest of the week then I'll be antsy for the next thing, the next race.  But nothing will be like Boston, that's for sure!

We arrived on Saturday to a windy, chilly Boston but with promises of a "perfect" Monday.  After dropping our bags at the hotel, we headed over to the Expo.

Banner in the lobby of our hotel - LOVE it!

One thing that made for a very smooth weekend was that we stayed at the Mariott Copley Place...blocks from the finish.  Yes, it's crazy expensive but we used my husband's points for the entire weekend.  Anyway, we were able to walk to the Expo and my husband was able to get to the finish line without any problems.  Oh, and the fact that we didn't have to walk for long after the marathon to get to the hotel was pretty sweet too!

View from my hotel room - that blue banner on the sidewalk is where the finish line is....a few more steps to the right!

I've heard a lot about how great the Expo at Boston is but to be honest, I didn't love it.  It was SO crowded.  People were pushing like mad to grab shirts and jackets.  I was over the entire thing 5 minutes after we got there.  I didn't buy the official jacket which had my running partners shocked.  They kept saying, "You HAVE to get the jacket!!!" I didn't love the jacket and I really don't think I would wear it...certainly not enough to warrant the $80 price tag.  Instead, I got the pull over which I love!  It was "only" $60 but that wasn't the reason.

Yup.  Didn't get the same jacket as everyone else but I love my choice!

I love pull overs and wear them way more than jackets.  Also, it has a really warm fleece like lining.  It's thick, warm and just perfect for me.  I also got a beer glass - I collect beer glasses at marathons.  Oh, and a t-shirt.  Had to get a t-shirt!  I could have dropped a ton of money, it's easy to get swept up in the moment but really, how much Boston gear does a girl need??

After the expo, we went back to the hotel to check in and chill for awhile.  We met my friends out for an early dinner then called it a night.

On Sunday, I woke up feeling worse than I had the day before which I didn't think was possible.  I was coughing even more and felt totally drained.  My doctor had warned me that I may develop bronchitis with the flu and gave me a Z-Pack for the trip just in case.  I have a feeling that was what was happening so I took the first dose and tried not to worry.   After breakfast, we walked over to the finish line for photos. 

It was a lot of fun!  By that point, I was coughing so much and felt so crappy that I decided to just try and enjoy the experience as much as possible because the run itself wasn't looking possible.  I'm glad we went to the finish and I'm glad I made an attitude adjustment (before that, I was in serious "why me!?" mode) because it really helped.

After the finish line, we went over to Nike Town.  They had official pace bracelets that were course specific.  Very cool!

They also had a cheesy photo booth that we took full advantage of.  We posed for a million photos and laughed our asses off.

Getting cheesy at NIKETOWN Boston

After Nike Town, we headed over to Feneuil Hall for lunch.  The weather was all over the place - sunny and warm one minute, windy and drizzling the next.  We kept hear that Monday was going to be beautiful though so we pretended not to notice Boston's fickle ways!  After lunch, I decided it was time to lay down for a while and let the antibiotics do their thing.

I actually slept pretty good Sunday night.  I woke up once at 12:30 but was able to got right back to sleep.  I got up on Marathon Monday at 5:45.  I was feeling bad health wise but I was super excited.  I had nervous energy and was bouncing around way too much!  We arranged for a car service to Hopkinton rather than take the shuttles so we were able to leave a little later (car picked us up at 8:00).  He got right to the state park with no problems where we jumped on the school bus and headed for the athletes village.  We got there in time to watch the elite women start.  Watching Kara Goucher gave me major goosebumps.  Imagine, little 'ol me running on the same course on the same day as her!  Pretty exciting stuff.  After that we found the Hopkinton sign and took a million photos.

At this point, I didn't care that I was sick, didn't care that my running partners would be way out ahead of me going for the 3:30 goal, didn't care that I'd be alone just trying not to walk....at that point I was full of adrenaline and happiness.

My bus! Clearly I had enough fluids and food for a 100 mile race!

When the race got underway, I tried to reign in some of that excitement and go out nice and slow.  The first mile was packed.  Elbow to elbow.  Makes it easy to stay slow.  A lot of people were sprinting while weaving in and out just trying to get out of the crowd but seriously...what an energy waster!  I managed to stay pretty consistent throughout the first half which was a much more rolling than I expected, arriving at the 13.1 mile marker at 1:58 which is exactly where I wanted to be for a 4:00 marathon.  The hills were nutty, but they were not any harder than the hills we spent so many hours training on.  I managed to stay on pace and had to stop thinking about how much better I could be doing if it weren't for the coughing and energy issues.  I tried to stay positive and appreciate the fact that I was still running at all!  The crowds were incredible.  They kept me going and kept my mind off how I felt.

Official sick girl stats

Garmin Stats

When I crossed the finish line, I was so happy!  I did the shuffle to the water and I must have really been hacking up a lung because the volunteer kept asking if I needed medical help and made me take a few waters.  It was pretty funny because at that point, I didn't even notice my lungs anymore!  I thought I was doing great!  When I finally found my husband, he told me about my running partners' times.  They got a 3:29, a 3:31 and a 3:39.  At that point, the tears started.  I've been training with them for a year.  I could have been in that chunk of time.  Why the flu?  Why bronchitis?  WHY the week of Boston did I get so sick??  My husband quickly talked me off the edge by reminding me that just the day before, I didn't think I'd be able to run it at all.  So.  I slapped a smile on my face and found my friends to give them their much deserved congratulations!

Me and and my fast friends

So.  To sum it all up, Boston was amazing.  A once in a lifetime experience and one that I will treasure forever.  Was it all it's hyped up to be?  Yes, and even more.  The entire city was bursting with excitement.  Never have I spent an entire weekend around so many runners....so many happy people.  I loved every second of it.  And, despite a few pitty parties, I'm pretty proud that I was able to not only get there, but to tackle the race and finish!

Boston Marathon...Check

Just got home last night.  My body is in full on shut down mode.  Every available ounce of energy I had is out on the streets of Boston. 
Running a marathon is hard.  Running a marathon with the flu is really, really hard.  But I did it! Race report to follow....just as soon as I don't have to walk down steps backwards.

Packing Has Begun!

I've finally started packing.  And by packing I mean pulling out every possible outfit configuration I can think of.  This is my closet floor as of 10 minutes ago....in other words, will probably have more crap on it within the next 10 minutes:

Nice, eh?  And that's only Monday stuff.  Doesn't even account for the fact that I arrive in Boston Saturday morning and need to pack clothes for Sunday and Tuesday.  I have an outfit for every possible weather event known to man.  With the exception of an extreme blizzard.  Part of the problem with being sick right now is that I have little to no energy to do anything beyond lay on the couch with my laptop.  And you know what that means....weather watching.  Yup.  Non-stop weather watching/obsessing.  Not a good idea.  Have you seen the string on the Runner's World message board called "The Official 2011 Boston Marathon Obsession Weather Thread"?  Well I have.  That sucker is 12 pages long and growing.  Every time someone throws their two cents in, I throw another outfit on my closet floor. 

Along with packing and weather obsessing, I've been trying to eat.  I have zero appetite right now with this flu so it's actually been a real challenge.  I'm coughing a lot, have a sore throat and generally feel like a disaster so I've found smoothies are the only thing that brings me any real comfort.  I've been trying to load them up and include protein powder.  Yesterday, I had this fantastic concoction (please don't mind the chicken....it followed me home from Home Goods one day.  Just the kind of thing that makes my husband shake his head and mumble to himself):

1 cup of unsweetened vanilla almond milk, 1 banana, 1 scoop of vanilla protein powder, 1 tablespoon of cacao powder (I use Navitas) and 2 tablespoons of peanut butter.  Yum yum yum.  Crazy good and soothing on a sore throat.  I was hoping by now I'd have an appetite back and I'd notice a difference in my energy level but I haven't.  I'm trying not to to let it bring me down.  I'm trying to accept the fact that I'll be doing a bit of walking on Monday but it's hard.  Real hard.  So instead, I shall concentrate on the weather!  Speaking of which, I don't think I have a raincoat in the pile!

Pitty Party Done

Now that I've got my flu diagnosis and have cried, I'm ready to move on.  Accept it.  Get over it.  I refuse to let this bug ruin my one and only Boston experience!

So.  Lets move on, shall we?

I've been drinking water like a crazy person.  I will spare you the details of how many times I got up last night to pee.  Which I am taking as a good sign.  Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate....it's the advice I keep hearing and I am listening!  I'm starting to get my appetite back which is very good news because I need to start fueling.  One of the (many) things I did wrong before the Outer Banks Marathon was carb loading.  I don't normally eat a ton of carbs.  Instead of just slowly increasing the amount I do eat, I waited until 2 days before the marathon and then stuffed my face with a ton of processed (ie: pretzels, bars, crap crap crap) carbs.  By marathon morning, I felt like I had a bowling ball in my stomach.  Not pleasant.  But, lesson learned. 

I'm also starting to think about packing.  Yeah.  Haven't started.  Which is crazy odd for me because I'm very anal organized and like to have my bag packed well in advanced of leaving for a race.  I've got all my important documents (official bib pick up number card thingy, travel docs) ready but that's it.  I still need to get to the running store and pick up race day fuel.  Thought I'd wait on that for a few days on accounta it'd be rude to bring my fluy ass in a running store right now.  I also need to figure out what the heck I'm going to wear.  I over dress all the time.  On our Sunday morning group runs, I always wear tights, then, and this is because I don't like my butt on display, I wear another pair of baggier pants over top.  Then I typically wear a tank, long sleeve thick UA shirt over top then a fleece jacket.  I don't like to be cold.  Obviously.  This is most likely a bad plan for Boston.  Everyone keeps telling me to wear shorts and a tank (with a throw away jacket over top).  But here is my issue with that.  If I normally wear a ton of layers and am comfortable, wont I be uncomfortable in too little clothes?  So I'm thinking capri pants, short sleeve top and a throw away jacket.  Thoughts? 

I also need to think about what to bring with me to the start on Monday morning.  I know we are going to be waiting around for a long time so I'm thinking a Lara Bar, a banana, water and Gatorade.  Also, because it is supposed to rain the day before and as a result, will probably be muddy, I'm bringing a big trash bag to sit on. 

What am I forgetting??

Holy crap......it's almost here!!!!!!!

It's Officially Time to Cry

My "cold" just wasn't getting any better so I hauled my ass out of bed and went to see the doctor today.  I assumed I caught strep from my boys.  I had attempted to make up my last missed long run from Sunday yesterday but after a mile, I knew it wasn't going to happen.  My 10 mile long run turned into 5.5 miles and I honestly have no idea how I even got that much done.

Back to today.  When the nurse came in, she asked if I thought I had strep which I said, "No, I don't think, I know so can I please have some antibiotics because I have a marathon to run on Monday."  She tested me for strep then did a flu swab "just in case".  Ten minutes later, the doctor walked in with a mask on and another mask in his hand.  Not a good sign.  "You don't have strep." he said.  "But?" I asked.  "You have the flu.  I'm sorry."  So I decided to argue with him.  "No.  I can't have the flu.  I have to run a marathon on Monday.  The BOSTON MARATHON!!!"  Yeah, I'm pretty sure I got all hysterical on him.  He just shook his head and said, "I know.  I'm sorry but I think you are going to be doing more walking then running in Boston."

Even though it's been more than 48 hours since I started getting temps (that fun started Saturday night), he gave me a prescription for Tamiflu anyway.  He also gave me a prescription for a Z-Pack because, and these are his words, "You'll most likely develop either strep or bronchitis along with this because you are basically like an open wound to all kinds of bacteria."  So. Not. Helping.  How I didn't start crying right there in his office is beyond me.  I do recall saying, "This can't be happening." more than once.

Obviously none of my last minute schedule runs are going to happen this week.  My plan is to take the tamiflu, drink as many fluids as I can and stay in bed to try and reserve as much non-existent energy as I possibly can.  Hopefully by Monday, I'll not only feel better but I'll have enough energy to at least not walk the entire stinking marathon.  My 4 hour goal just changed to a 4:30.

Back Off Bug!

On Friday, I had a crazy long lunch with a good friend of mine for my birthday.  We went to my favorite restaurant at noon and ordered a pitcher of sangria.  Oh the sangria.  It was incredible.  We were laughing and talking and having a pretty fantastic time and one pitcher of sangria turned into a pitcher of wine and before you know it, we had to call my husband to come pick us up.  Hilarious and fun and a perfect birthday. 

Saturday morning, I woke up with a nice little reminder of our afternoon out - a throbbing headache.  Well, the headache didn't go away and eventually I started coughing and now, Sunday, I'm 3 doses in on my NyQuil and Tylenol and praying to the sick Gods to leave me alone.  Seriously.  I can't take it.  I knew it was possible that I'd get sick since both of my kids were sick but I was also thinking that I had made it through.  It's mostly in my head as in massive throbbing just want to close your eyes kind of headache but I've also got the cough and that's the part that worries me.  I need my lungs to be in tip top shape!!  I was supposed to do 10 miles today which obviously isn't happening.  I'm still holding out hope that this will be a quick 48 hour thing and I'll be able to get out there tomorrow.

I've been drinking crazy amounts of water to try and ward it off but that is getting boring so I decided to make a smoothie.  About a month ago, I bought a bag of frozen berries from Costco that I have yet to break into but today, frozen cold fruity berries on my sore throat sound just perfect. 

I used 1/2 cup of unsweetened vanilla almond milk, 1 small banana and a cup of the berries.  Holy yummy goodness.  Look at that color!

It's a thing of beauty.  And, I'm convinced, a miracle drink.  I will undoubtedly be cured by tomorrow.

Achilies Issues

I was so overly pleased about my lack of back/hip pain during and after my 21 miler on last Monday that I chose to ignore the fact that my right Achilles has been acting up.  About three weeks ago, I felt a bit of a soreness during a run.  At the time, I thought my shoe was rubbing weird because I was wearing shorter socks than I normally do.  The next day, it was still bothering me, but not in a way that concerned me.  That day, I ran again and after the run, it got very puffy.  And red.  Like a dark almost bruised red.  Since then, it's been bugging me and after every run, it's the puffy, red nastiness for a day after.  Also, and this is really hard to explain, but it's tight.  Really, really tight.  Like if I move my foot up and down, I can actually feel a pulling.  It's pretty creepy actually.  I kicked around the idea of going back to the podiatrist but honestly, what's he going to say?  Rest it for a month.  Yeah.  Not an option.  Fortunately, I'm tapering so it has more time to heal and I'm hoping it will make a big difference.  On Monday, it hurt from step one during my 12-miler and I was hobbling around pretty good after.  Then on Wednesday, I went to a Yoga class - I know, I swore I wasn't going to do anything but run until after Boston but I honestly thought a good stretch out would do my mind and body some good - and holy crap did it make things worse!  I called the podiatrist and made an appointment for Monday.  Crap crap crap crap.  Hopefully, he will say it's tendinitis and with some down time AFTER the marathon, it will clear up.  I'm concerned he is going to tell me it's a partial tear or something crazy dramatic like that. 

In order to keep my mind off my Achilles, hips and sciatica, I have chosen to bake.  I found a really good gluten free brownie mix that is so incredibly fantastic, even my kids are eating it up. I know I should be working with gluten free flours and getting comfortable with baking with them but sometimes, you just want a brownie, like, now.  Pamela's Brownie Mix to the rescue!

I found this at Target and baked up a batch that very day.  Holy moly mother crap balls is it good!  Chewy, crazy chocolaty, with random chocolate chunks included good!  I can't rave about it enough.

Excuse the dark photo...I couldn't be bothered to take a proper photo apparently!

I really, really wish I had taken the time to take some decent pictures instead of stuffing my face because you really should see the moist, chocolate goodness that are these brownies.

There are several different prep options on the back of the package.  I chose the no egg, only oil (I used canola) and water method.  Also, the directions "1/2 cup chocolate chips optional"...um...ok!  I added mini chocolate chips and didn't regret it.  This will be a regular purchase for me!  Thank goodness for brownies or I'd be a big mess right about now.

Sick Kiddos....a Common Pre-Marathon Occurance

Last week, my oldest son was home from school on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with a hacking cough, slight congestion and on Tuesday, a low grade fever.  He seemed much better on Wednesday so I sent him back to school on Thursday.  He was, however, still coughing quite a bit.  On Friday, I pulled him out of school early to take him to the dr.  He has asthma so whenever he gets a bug that doesn't seem to leave his lungs, I get a bit worried.  I expected the dr. to give him a steroid for the cough and send us on our way.  On a whim, she decided to do a strep test.  And how surprised do you think I was when it came back positive?  He spent most of the weekend laying around coughing and fatigued - fortunately Monday was a day off for them so he was able to take it easy for even longer without worrying about school.  Tuesday I sent them both off to school happy that the bug was behind us and that I didn't get it (selfish, yes. But I have a bit of a race coming up people!)  On Wednesday, I went to a yoga class (more on that later...big mistake) then headed to the grocery store.  In the middle of shopping, I get a call from the school that my younger son is in the clinic with a temp of 102 and complaining of nausea.  What. The. Hell.  I run out - leaving a cart full of groceries - and get him from school.  He went straight to bed and when he woke up, his stomach was better but his throat hurt.  Awesome.  Back to the dr. yesterday for a strep test.  Sure enough, it was positive.  My fridge is just bursting with antibiotics.  He is home again today and while he doesn't have a fever anymore (knock wood), I'll keep him home again tomorrow just to be safe.

Before every marathon I've run, there has been some sort of major bug in my house.  And by major, I mean, missing school, needing antibiotics kind of bug.  Before my first marathon (Shamrock in VA Beach), my youngest got the flu.  I was in the doctor's office 4 days before leaving for Virginia Beach nearly in tears when we got the test result.  I was already so nervous about running the marathon but at that moment, all I could think about was the fact that this sick kid had been laying on me on the couch for several days coughing, sneezing and generally sharing oozy stuff with me.  The doctor (a runner herself) clearly saw that I was about to have a major meltdown so she gave me Tamiflu.  I took all of it and fortunately for me, made it through Shamrock without getting the flu although I did have a head cold and my right ear was so inflamed and sore that I couldn't hear out of it.  A visit to my doctor the day after the marathon proved I had a major ear infection that ended up taking two rounds of antibiotics to fully clear.

My older son was home from school for several days and on antibiotics and a nebulizer for a chest cold the week before I ran (I use the word run lightly since I pretty much fell apart and walked quite a bit) the Outer Banks Marathon.

One of them, I honestly can't remember which, was sick 2 weeks before I ran the Delaware Marathon.  That was particularly stressful because that was the race I was running with the one goal of qualifying for Boston.

And now here we are.  Days away from Boston and both kids are on antibiotics.  I have used more antibacterial wipes in the last 10 days than I have in years.  I have gone through an entire can of Lysol spray.  I am in full on panic mode.  Which, if I'm not careful, will be enough in it's self to get me sick.  I am begging my body to hang on.  Just hang on and I promise I wont run another marathon EVER.  

Oh, and please don't tell my body that my fingers were crossed when I made that promise.....