Double digit day!

Yep! I did it! Ten miles. TEN MILES!!!!! I was real anxious this morning about it - about attempting it. I was talking to Jodi before I left "Should I stick with the walkers? Should I not even try? Should I run? Should I just walk and not even try to run? I don't know what to do!!!!!" He said - in his calm way - "You can't have a plan. Just go do it and it will work out. Goodbye Turtle." So I did it. I just did it and it all worked out.

It was, hands down, the prettiest day we've had in all of our training. Sunny and 'warm' (mid-40's)

Miles 1-3.5
We took off and I immediately fell to the back of the pack. I'm used to that, so it's ok. George hung back with me because he had to take it easy today since he's running the Little Rock Marathon tomorrow. (Yeah, an easy 10 miles today before 26 tomorrow....)

Leg felt moderately ok. There was some ouchiness. But nothing that made me scream and turn around. I walked. And I ran. And I walked. And I ran.

Not only did my feet run, but my mouth did too. At about mile 3, I realized that I had been talking non-stop. Poor George. He'll wear his iPod next week...

Soon, we were on the path along Germantown Road and the Shell station (aka Pit Stop) was in view. Julie the Mentor had left a cooler of water, Gatorade and goo at the little path heading off the road. So I dig in to find some water. When I looked up, Jodi and the kids were pulling in to the lot! I was so surprised and excited to see them!! What timing that was too! We chatted just a bit. They watched me suck down the Gu (strawberry banana - decent and tolerable) then said bye while we trotted across the street to use the potty at the Shell station. Seeing them was a boost that beats any Gu any day! How sweet was that?!?!

Miles 3.5-6.5
Back out and down the road. This time we headed DOWN Germantown Road (major traffic) and I said that now I was one of the idiots that I see running down the Germantown Road. Good grief. There's a cut through in front of a little strip shopping center that takes us down the path to the trail. This little trail was really pretty. There were bridges and a little wishing well and benches. Just a real nice area.

Somewhere along this path, we meet Julie, Nicole & Wes (the other Rock 'n Rollers). They are headed back. About this time, my toes start hurting really bad too. I stopped once to rub them and it helped a little bit, but didn't totally fix the problem. (I'm wondering if this area may flare up as we increase the distance. I had some foot surgery about 20 years ago on that same spot. Oh well. Can't borrow trouble.)

We hit the magic 5 mile mark and turned around. I'm feeling ok. Seemed like my legs would hurt a little and then quit. It was definitely manageable. Especially since I was just stopping to walk whenever they flared up. So, back up the path and back to Germantown Road. It was at this point that Jodi and the kids drive by again (they had been to Sonic) and he says to me across 6 lanes of traffic with his police radio as they drive by"Pick 'em up and put 'em down Mama!".

George veered over to pit at the Shell again and I went back down the awaiting cooler. I saw Jodi and the kids waiting too. There were three 'serious runners' hanging there also. I saw the guy talk to Jodi and then everybody started cheering "C'mon Angie!!!" Yea for me! Jodi said that the guy asked if they should do the wave and he said "No, Angie HATES the wave." One quick bottle of water and good bye to my #1 fan club and we're off again.

Miles 6.5-10.0
This is where I kind of quit talking. This is where my shins weren't hurting so bad. Or maybe I didn't notice it because my feet were hurting. And my knee. And my hips. Oowwie! But I trudged on. Running and walking and walking and running. The last two miles were tough. Man, everything was just hurting.

Once we got to the lake, there was a lot of activity. There was a three-legged dog coming toward me with his owner who was pushing a stroller. I decided that if the three-legged dog passed me, I would end my marathon quest then and there. But the dog ended up stopping and I pressed on.

George had gone on ahead a bit and Julie, Nicole and her husband Jim were waiting at the finish point. They all cheered for me. That was super sweet because I think they finished at least thirty minutes ahead of me - maybe more. And they waited just for me. (Thanks guys!). I was EXCITED!!! I DID IT!!! Ten miles. Total time was 2:30. So, even coming off the DL I still managed a consistent and 'normal' pace. I am really proud of how I did today and pleasantly surprised!

I told you that Jodi is following the training schedule too. So when I got home, he headed out for his ten miles. The afternoon was slow moving for both of us. He is fighting some bad blisters on his feet and I was so sore I could hardly move. But we recovered while we watched the Tigers chalk up another win. GO TIGERS!!

The encouragement I got today was so great. From my wonderful family. From my Coach. From my Team in Training. And from some total strangers. It felt so good. It's what got me through the ten miles.

"Slow and Steady continued on and on. She never, ever quit until she came to the finish line. The animals who were watching cheered loudly for Tortoise."

Progress made:
I ran TEN MILES today!!!
My fundraising total is now $2366!

Lesson learned:
I can't have a plan. I should "just go do it and it will work out."