Run, Jill! Run!

I am ready for summer. Saturday was the first day I have been able to run wearing shorts and short sleeves. It was amazing. Yesterday and today also brought the world a peek of my albino legs. Running in 50-degree weather is much better than the 20s, 30s, and even 40s. I actually preferred the super cold mornings of January-March to mornings when it is in the 40s. It was so much easier to know what I needed to wear when it was below freezing; when the temperature is in the 40s, it is almost certain that I end up too hot or too cold.

Aside from my winter running wardrobe being boxed up, here's the update on the marathoners: Mark is running a lot faster and further than I do.

Before I go on, I must tell you that Mark is very encouraging and supportive of my running. He is always telling me how great it is that I can go an put down 6 miles every morning like it's nothing, or run 10 miles on a Saturday. He really is incredible and proud of me.

Sometimes I have to kick myself when I start thinking about how wimpy I am that my longest run thus far is 10 and he can run 20. It takes all I have to keep a 10-minute-per-mile pace, and he is down in the 7's. He was made to run, and he has a lot of willpower to really push himself.

But I must remember not to compare. He has been running for years--sure, only 3-5 miles a day, but his body was used to running. I only really started in January. I've gone from 0 miles to 10-at-a-time, and I must say I am proud of that. I never thought I would be able to run even 5 miles! The other fact I keep reminding myself when I start to compare my running to Mark's is this: he was born with a natural ability to perform physical activity without looking like a freak or using all the wrong muscles. I was not. I have never been able to do anything sports-related.

To illustrate this point, I will tell you all a sad story about 11-year-old Jill. She was on a soccer team, and her dad was the coach. Jill's parents tried for years to give Jill every opportunity for physical activities that might help her lack of coordiation. Dance lessons were a complete waste of time, money, and hideous costume making. Soccer was a more useful investment, but Jill was still the worst player on the team. It seemed that Jill always ended up as goalie. She tried the other positions, but she never scored a goal, or assisted a goal. But goalie was a pretty safe place for her to not mess things up too bad. One day, when Jill's team was playing their arch-rival team (whom everyone knew cheated and they hated us as much as we hated them), Jill was once again the goalie. She did a pretty fair job that day. Until she caught a ball and drop-kicked it right over her head and into the goal, scoring the winning point for the other team. She never played soccer again.

Anyway, I'm way over that.

Mark is whittling his projected marathon finish time down to around 3:30. I'm hoping to finish my half-marathon in about 2:15. I'm really excited for my sister to come run with me. She is doing the full marathon, but at least I'll have her to run with and keep me going. Then she's on her own once I duck out of the race.

Some very good news is that at this point I am able to run without IT band pain. I believe it is partially thanks to my sweet new Saucony shoes, and partially to the strengthening exercises from physical therapy. I have also figured out that on long runs, if I stop after 3 miles to stretch out my.......gluteal muscles.....it also helps prevent IT band pain. So far so good. We'll see how 11 miles goes this Saturday.