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?

The training run for this week was 18 miles.

18 miles!

And I rocked it. Which shocked me. This week I only managed to get in one measly training run. No cross-training. Pathetic.

Exactly why my run this week was so shocking. I should not have been as strong as a I was. I should have needed a huge nap. The only thing I can attribute it to is my new friend the chia seed.

I know, I know. Seems every week I am talking about chia. But folks, truly….The more I read about and the more I use it,  the more of a convert I become.

An excerpt from Born to Run (which, YAY, I am finally reading)…

“In terms of nutritional content, a tablespoon of chia is like a smoothie made from salmon, spinach and human growth hormone. As tiny as those seeds are, they’re superpacked with omega-3s, omega-6s, protein, calcium, iron, zinc, fiber and antioxidents. If you had to pick just one desert-island food, you couldn’t do much better than chia, at least if you were interested in building muscle, lowering cholesterol, and reducing your risk of heart disease; after a few months on the chia diet, you could probably swim home.”

In my own personal experience it is kicking my energy levels up so far that I barely need coffee any longer. (A good thing because I drink way too much for my own good.) I’m also staying hydrated better and have am not nearly as hungry. If you are trying your hand at any type of running program, be it a 5k, 10k, 1/2 marathon or full, I really recommend you give chia a try. (Frederick folks can find it in bulk at the Common Market.)

Some recipes to start you out:

Coconut Lime Chia Fresca

Ingredients

• 2 Tbs chia seeds
• 2 cups coconut water
• 1 1/2 Tbsp lime juice
  

Combine all ingredients in a glass and stir to combine. Let rest for ten minutes. Stir once more and set aside for ten minutes longer. Serve chilled. (Serves 1-2)

Vanilla Almond Chia Delight

• 1 1/2 cups of vanilla almond milk
• 4 1/2 Tbs chia seeds
• 2 Tsp cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine. Let rest for five minutes. Stir again to separate clumping. Let rest for 1o minutes. Stir a final time and  set aside for fifteen minutes longer. Mixture should thicken to a resemble a slightly runnier version of tapioca pudding. Serve chilled. (Serves 2)

My new favorite running shirt!

Have I convinced you yet? GOOD.

Sadly, my old friend the IT BAND started messing with me at mile 17.8 (or something ridiculous like that) so I am trying to take it easy and STRETCH like a mad woman. That is pretty much all I have to report. (Check out my running pal Lori’s column this week to read her perspective.)

BIG SHOUT OUT to my friend Michele who finished her first 1/2 marathon today! I am so proud of her dedication!

I’m so excited! Big changes were just announced to the marathon course this year.

Guess what?

We’re running through the Maryland zoo!

Who thinks it is fun to run alongside penguins and polar bears? ME!

Plus another cool location just announced on the course is the campus of Under Armour’s corporate world headquarters in Tide Point. I’m totally stoked about that as well. (After all, I buy a ton of Under Armour for my family so I’m geeky like that.) If you are a running this year’s marathon or just plain curious, feel free to take a gander at the 2011 Baltimore Marathon course map.

Fun fact – 25,000 total runners are expected to participate in this year’s festival. Wow!

So this week the gang had to split up for the long run because I had a soccer tournament. (Yes, we were attending a soccer tournament the same day that Hurricane Irene hit the area. Soccer people are nuts. And by people I mean the crazies running it.) So I ended up running the 10 miles alone on a treadmill in my basement the next day. It wasn’t as bad as I anticipated, probably because I watched Julie & Julia at the same time. (One of my most favorite movies in the world.)

Oh! Completely forgot to update you on the chia experiment! I’ve been using chia for the past week and a half and I’ve noticed a few things:

• I’m fuller longer.
• I have more energy.
• On a run, my water is lasting longer and I am not as parched.

You may want to give it a try yourself. See how it works for you.

And finally, to prove to people that I am not the only crazy runner in the world, I give you this:

Still think *I* am the crazy one?

There is something spectacular about being able to claim that you’ve run 15 miles before the majority of the world has even stirred from their beds.

Not that I love the fact that I have to get up at 4:00am to do it or anything. (Totally beside the point.) It is sometimes worth it just for the Facebook update and resulting insults and gasps from friends. Bonus: totally missed the rain!

Today’s run was pretty intense though. I’ve been on vacation so I only ran twice this week with walking (as in on the boardwalk and on the streets of New York) as my only cross training. I was pretty much exhausted. Plus, genius that I am, I didn’t eat well prior to going. (No, a half of a muffin will not fuel you for very long. Just in case you were wondering.) I brought two GUs with me but a couple of times I found myself shaky. I should have brought Sport Beans as a back up. (Face palm!)

And to further demonstrate my brilliance, or lack thereof, I figured out mid run that we are only 63 days away from the Baltimore Marathon. NINE.WEEKS. I am nowhere near where I want to be and I have only nine measly weeks to turn it around. I’m not strong enough! I’m not serious enough! I’m not mentally focused enough!

((Sigh))

So the big nutrition discussion this run was about chia seeds. (Yes, THAT chia. Go ahead, sing the jingle. I can’t resist it either.) This whole chia discussion came from Lori & Katie having read Born To Run and learning about the Tarahumara. (Now, I’ve not read Born To Run yet so bare with me…) The Tarahumara are “the running people” on which most of the book is based. They are  a Mexican tribe of superathletes who run 50 or 100 miles at a time for pure enjoyment, without effort. They rely on chia to help them run these incredible distances. The girls are embarking on a little chia experiment. Turns out there are a ton of benefits to adding Chia seeds to your diet. Who knew? I’m ordering myself some this week. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

So anyway, that is the update so far. I still can’t believe the marathon is so close. Slightly panicked now….

Training for the Baltimore Marathon Officially Begins!

Okay, friends, there is no turning back. This weekend marks the formal and official no-turning-back-now start of  training for the Baltimore Marathon. I’m really excited about this race because it is my pal Lori’s first marathon (whee!) and the first time I’ve ever run the full course in Baltimore. I’ve run the 1/2 four separate times so this is an exciting step for me. (Of course, Katie will also be joining us as well. She is a warrior, that one.)

Below is the plan that will be guiding our training team for the next four months. You can keep track of the actual mileage via my Daily Mile account. (Also located on the right sidebar of this blog)

Date / Mileage

July 2 / 9
July 9 / 10
July 16 / 7
July 23 / 12
July 30 / 13
August 6 / 10
August 13 / 15
August 20 / 16
August 27 / 12
September 3 / 18
September 10 / 14
September 17 / 20
September 24 / 12
October 1 / 20
October 8 / 4
October 15 / Race

(BTW – This training schedule is courtesy of Hal Higdon. And ever-so-slightly modified by me. Natch.)

Interested in running but don’t know where to start? CHECK OUT MY VIDEO on the subject.

On another note…

DC METRO FOLKS, DO NOT MISS THIS. Gotta give props to my friend Sunday of Extreme Parenthood who found this fabulous gem of a race -the Run For Your Lives Zombie Obstacle Course 5K.

Brilliant.

Will I be there? Are you kidding? I MUST be there. Running with zombies? Hellz yeah! (Even though technically is is the weekend AFTER Baltimore. So, the zombies might have the advantage on me that day.)

If you are in the area, you should really hope over to the website and check it out.