It feels like I'm taking all week to get ready for this race. I had a plan all mapped out to do a little something every day while Sky was napping. Since Mark was going to be gone all week I knew I would only have so much "Sky free time" each day to get race stuff and "normal life" stuff done.
Even though Mark is back early I'm still sticking to my plan and doing a little each day to get myself and my stuff ready.
Daily Tasks:
-Practicing French braiding my bangs. Even though I have a short cut, the front is really long (think Pink (the artist not the color) style hair) and I don't want it in my face or bouncing around while I run. I can't stand the feeling of my hair moving around while I run, so this is the look I'm rocking every day.
I had to find a video on line to show how to do it, and have been braiding my hair every morning in the hopes that by Sunday I will have it somewhat perfected. I probably look funny in my daily life with my hair like this, but I really don't care. I want to eliminate as many irritants as possible for the race. I know all to well that after mile 7 the dumbest things crop up and start irritating the hell out of me.
-Trigger Pointing/Foam Rolling/Using the Foot Ball - Just normal maintenance and a little bit of trouble shooting the knee pain. I can't tell you how nice it is to call Dad tell him what hurts and he is able to tell me exactly what to target to fix it. I had zero knee pain on the Stroller Group run today, and we were a little over a minute faster than normal. So I feel pretty great about how I'm feeling going into Sunday.
Such basic tools, but they work wonders!
-Water - Really it means zero alcohol. My least favorite thing about the week(s) leading up to a race is no wine. I don't need it, but it sure is nice to have a nice red wine with dinner, or drink a chilled white on the deck in the sun.
I pretty much despise plain water. So, to help get down the 4 to 5 glasses I'm aiming for each day I make it pretty and yummy by adding whatever fruit I feel like. This batch is basil, orange and peach. The fruit makes it a bit sweet and the basil makes it earthy which is how I like my wine. I put a whole orange, two peaches, and a few stems of basil in a pitcher and fill it with water. The nice thing is I can refill the pitcher a few days in a row without changing the produce and it still taste great!
Monday- I packed my race day outfit. I figure if I pack early it gives me time to triple check to make sure I have what I need. Something about traveling for a race makes me worry. I just know I'm going to forget a key item!
Tuesday - Foot/Nail care. I had some pretty bad rough spots and old remnants of blisters to tend to. So I did a foot soak and took the nail polish off to inspect the nails. A few of them were ingrown and needed to be cut and few had soft spots that sloughed off with the acetone polish remover. (Which BTW - for those that suggested it the acetone does not take off the Tuf-Skin. But, the apricot face scrub stuff works pretty good.)
You can sort of see the red/pink on both sides of the big toenail on the Left foot. That nail had grown into the skin on both sides so I trimmed it up. The skin is a little tender, but it didn't bother me running today, so I'm not worried about it for Sunday.
Wednesday - Packed up all the gear. I really don't want to forget the GPS watch, my music, or the GU.
I'm pretty sure I can get GU at the expo though if I did forget it. I'm brining the Nuun hydration for Saturday mostly. I won't run with a water bottle, but do know that Saturday I want to hydrate and get electrolytes into my body. I'm brining the Spi belt in case I decide I need it at the last minute, but have no intentions of running with it at this point. I really don't like running with anything around my waist or in my hands, but if I can't fit the GU, car key, ID, and chap stick in my skirt pocket then I will go with the belt.
Thursday - I will print my registration confirmation (there was a huge issue with this and it literally took me 2 months of back and forth emails etc for them to find my registration) so that if there are any issues at packet pickup I have proof, and will print the address of the expo and race start line.
Friday - I will pack the limited toiletries that I will need, I don't do makeup for races since it just sweats off, but will need sun block as it's going to be sunny and in the 80's. Will also pack my breakfast. That's the nice part about staying with friends who live in Seattle...we have a kitchen and can eat our normal pre-race food!
Saturday - Race Expo and packet pickup. Michelle and I also decided manicures are in order. We have a free day in Seattle with no kids, but also know we should not be walking around a ton, so manicures will keep us off our feet for a bit. We may shop a little depending on what we do or don't find at the expo.
Sunday - Lace up and get it done!
The whole plan and all the tasks sort of makes me look like a high maintenance runner. Funny because I'm not a high maintenance person at all!
Anyone else have pre-race prep that they go through?
1 comment:
I love pleated skirts. I am so excited for you.
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