Cold hard reality

Ok, just to set the record straight, in case you haven't guessed already. I'm no speedster. I'm hoping to break 4 hours in my fourth marathon - in the month I turn 40! I've had some interesting marathon experiences so far and maybe I'll tell you all about those one day, but today...well, today was heart rate test day. Yuck! So having a coach turns out to be hard work. Who would have thought? :) I got up at 5 friggering 30 this morning to eat in time to have THREE hours before I ran. I NEVER wait that long, but that's what the coach wanted, so that's what the coach got. I admit that after I ate and took the dog out for a walk in the dark, I came back and took a nap before my run. Hey, I was tired! It's Saturday and I don't even get up that early during the week.

Anyway, I went to the gym, did my warm up of 20 minutes, then my 20 minute test, then a 5 minute cooldown. Now let me just say, I don't normally warm up for 20 minutes. That's another new thing the coach is trying to teach me. I just have one speed, slow. So we're working on that. I did my 20 minute warm up - very slowly even for me - and I have to say I was tired just doing that. Shouldn't have been cause I had a rest day yesterday, but who knows? Maybe it's brownie hang over. Then I set the incline at 1% (supposed to simulate outside, don'tcha know?) and the speed at 6.6 (or 9 mph) which is about how fast I'll have to average in order to finish a marathon in 4 hours. By around 12 minutes, I was looking for a way off the treadmill. At 14:30, I had to slow it down to 6.5 and that was enough of a mental win to get me to the end of my 20 minutes! But jeez! If I can't even go 2 miles, how am I going to make 26.2 at that pace?

Positive attitude.... like the little engine that could.... I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...