Marathon weekend came and went and I’m happy to report that… we conquered!

The Baltimore Marathon was the fourth marathon I have participated in. It is my opinion that each marathon is its own unique experience and will be forever remembered as such. Besides being my pal Lori’s first marathon, the Baltimore Marathon will forever remain ingrained in my mind for its H I L L S. (11 miles of them, to be exact. Or so Lori figured out.)

Obviously, I’m still a little sore. (Not to mention walking down stairs backwards.)

Here’s the rundown:

Although we live close enough to drive, our little group decided it be best to rent a room near to the event to ensure maximum sleepage. (Sleepage is a word, right?) Of course, sleeping was second priority next to food. (Hey, what good is all that running if a girl can’t get a decent meal?) We had the most scrumptious marathon eve meal of burgers and wine at Pratt Street Ale House. Best. Burger. Ever.

Race day was fantastic. The weather was perfectly cool and crisp. Ideal running weather, to be sure.

We had agreed ahead of time that this marathon would be one that we (especially Lori) would enjoy. No time goals. No pressure. We stopped to take pictures along the way, we enjoyed the scenery (well, SOME of the scenery, Baltimore has some less than lovely places that the marathon happens to run through and those place require police protection) and really soaked up the experience.

My nemesis the IT band made a throbbing appearance around mile 16 but luckily there was a medical tent nearby so I got some assistance. Crisis averted. Because 10 miles of throbbing pain would have been less-than-pleasant. Can I say that again? Less. Than. Pleasant.

Do we look happy? Of course we do! By the way, Lori and I earned a second medal called the Maryland Double for completing the combination of Frederick Half-Marathon and Baltimore Full Marathon. It is large and heavy and difficult to wear. I heart it.

A huge shout out to the staff and volunteers of the Baltimore Running Festival who provided the best race support that I have ever experienced on a course. Always enough water. Always enough Gatorade. Plenty of Power Gels, food, bathrooms and medical attention available. It was a well-oiled machine in terms of attention to detail.

As I feared, Lori was instantly addicted and looking towards her second marathon. (Darn Katie totally rubbed off on her.) And as for Katie, she runs the New York Marathon and the JFK 50 in November. She is nuts. (But I love her.)

And now to figure out my next big goal. Hmm… any suggestions?

Well, kids. It is official. Tomorrow is the big day…. the 2011 Baltimore Marathon.

As I have mentioned before, this race is important for SO MANY REASONS. It is not just another marathon. Not just another medal. Not just another one of those “crazy things that people do.” Nope.

IT IS REPRESENTATIVE OF SOMETHING BIGGER.

It is about Lori’s (above) personal journey of weight loss (105 pounds) and personal transformation. It is about one woman’s mind shift from “not being able to walk a mile” to running FREAKING 26.2 miles.

It is big stuff. The kind of stuff that changes your life and inspires strangers to give their dreams a try.

I feel privileged to be a part of it.

My official objective for the race is to GET THE GIRL ACROSS THE FINISH LINE. I am part entertainment committee, part coach and part soul sister. There is no guarantee that our trio (Lori, Katie and I) won’t cry once we cross the finish line. In fact, I think that is a given… I am already so proud of her accomplishments.

Okay, enough of all that serious stuff! We leave later today to head out to Baltimore. We’re staying in town to ensure the maximum amount of uninterrupted-by-children-and-husbands sleep time. We’re bringing ridiculous amounts of GU, Body Glide, chia seeds, Gatorade and peanut butter with us. We’ve got matching Aztec Warrior race shirts. We’re giddy with anticipation… WE ARE READY!

If you want to follow along on the journey, you can track us via this nifty T-Mobile runner tracking option. I am bib 1243. T-Mobile has also set it up so that my Twitter account will automatically tweet my progress. How cool is that?

My husband loves ab work. He can crunch, plank and damage the hell of of his mid-section and not bat an eye. I, well, let’s just say that I whine about it a lot. (Understatement of year, my friends.)

In fact, I would go so far as to say that I would pretty much rather do any other type of exercise than involve myself in core work. As runners go, I realize that I’m not exactly the brightest crayon in the box. Because core work and running go hand in hand.

I know, I know… I was skeptical of the correlation between the two as well. Which is why I asked Kip Jawish, owner of IN-FIT Studio to give me/us some insight on the subject. (BTW – I hestitate to call Kip “my trainer” because that would make our relationship too real and quite frankly, trainers scare the bejeezus out of me. So we’ll just call him Kip-the-great-guy-who-knows-a-thing-or-two-about-fitness. See how less scary that sounds?)

Kip Jawish. See? Told you trainers scare the bejeezus out of me.

Oh my Lord… 1o days until I run the Baltimore Marathon.

This race is completely sneaking up on me.

The girls and I did our last long run this past Saturday. (17 miles) It was extra special for me, not only because it was the last official double digit run before the big event but also because my friend Kim joined in. I haven’t run with her for years. Literally. (She is Marine Corps Marathon bound.)

As I ran with Kim, Lori and Katie this week I felt an overwhelming sense of pride with regards to the company I was keeping. These women all have small children. Jobs. Demanding schedules. (Hell, Kim wakes up at 3:30am some days just to get her run in.) But each of them has a goal. Each has a dream. And I am so thrilled to be a part of that. Because there is nothing… NOTHING… like crossing that finish line and achieving that goal.

In any event…

I’ve got a couple of details to attend to before race day:

• New running hat. This is a must.
• New sports bra. (TMI? Perhaps.)
• Roctane, Body Glide and Chia stock up.
• Sleep. Water. Repeat.

I still can’t believe it is only 10 days away!

The boys and I participated in a one mile charity run together this weekend to benefit a local elementary school. It was the first race we’ve ever done as a family.

I’ll be honest, I had the inside scoop on this race and it was the reason why I pushed them to go with me.  I was told (by a super secret source, naturally) that the race directors would be giving away real finishing medals to the kids who participated. My boys are suckers for medals. (Just like their momma!) I was secretly hoping that it would get them jazzed about running and they would want to try another one.

I needn’t have worried. The minute they hit the field their competitive spirit surfaced.

In fact, my own son looked his mother up and down and brazenly declared, “No offense mom, but I’m probably gonna have to leave you behind.”

And you know what? Both boys smoked me.

I couldn’t be prouder.