Every number you could ever possibly be curious about when it comes to the New York City Marathon:

RUNNERS:

- 43,660 finishers in 2009; 45,000 expected in 2010

QUIRKY STATS:

- 2,328 portable toilets (1,694 at the start area)

- 16,000 lbs of discarded clothing collected

- 18.5 tons of cups recycled

- 132 bands play the course

- 48 timing locations, 106 clocks

- 52,000 PowerBars distributed at mile 18

- 72 UPS trucks to transport runner baggage

- 18,000 runners transported to the start via Staten Island ferry

- 500 buses used to drive runners to the start

- More than 500,000 photos taken of runners by Brightroom Photography

MARATHON EVE DINNER:

- 6,725 lbs of pasta

- 1,800 lbs of mixed green salad

- 15,000 New York MacIntosh apples

- 18,000 cans of Coors Light beer

- 21,600 bottles of Poland Spring water

RACE DAY FLUIDS:

Amount of Poland Spring Water used (cups):

- 1.6 million on the Course

- 90,000 bottles at the Start

- 45,000 bottles at the Finish

Amount of Gatorade used (cups)

- 687,500 on the Course

- 43,200 at the Start

- 45,000 bottles at the Finish

Number of fluid stations:

- 24 fluid stations, approximately 50 8-foot tables per station

- 4 fluid stations at start (one per start village; one in common area)

AWESOMENESS AT THE STATEN ISLAND START VILLAGE:

- 40,000 cups of Dunkin Donuts coffee

- 20,000 cups of tea

- 42,000 PowerBars

- 33,000 bagels

- 40,000 garbage bags

- 600 plastic table clothes

- Looped instructional CDs in 6 languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Italian

Tags: new york city marathon statistics, training for the New York City Marathon

I have two weeks left until I run the New York Marathon.

Yesterday Katie and I ran our final 20 mile training run. Energy wise, I was fine. Which is thrilling. I could have actually  kept running. But  an old injury reared it’s ugly head around mile 17.  My freakin’ left IT band flared up and boy did it hurt. I was pretty ticked.

I didn’t stop, though. Instead I repeated Katie’s mantra, “I am not a wimp” a thousand times in my brain until we finished.

You can guess what this in jury is doing to my psyche, can’t you?

My last IT injury (same dang place) took me off of the running circuit for months.

That is unacceptable. NOT. AN. OPTION. That is why I have named this post “It is all mental from here on out.”

Because it is.  Obviously I have trained. I have woken up at four in the morning for months. I have sacrificed my time, my money and my sanity to achieve this goal.  It is so very, very close that I can taste it.

I am not going to let it beat me. I’m going to nurse my leg. I’m going to continue to lift weights and work in some yoga and stretching. I am going to ditch the speedwork.

But most importantly, I am going to keep a positive attitude. I am going to tackle this problem in two ways. First, by focusing on the following quotes:

• “Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe.”
• “Mental tenacity — and the ability to manage and even thrive on and push through pain — is a key segregator between the mortals and immortals in running.”

And second… by bringing a bottle of Advil.

Tags: new york city marathon 2010, training for the New York City Marathon

As I have mentioned before, I am in training to run the ING New York City Marathon with Katie (@rjmommy) this November.  I’m a charity running working towards raising $2,500 for the Run for Something Better (@orangelaces) charity.

As I mentioned in my first post, there are so many reasons why I SHOULDN’T be tackling this.  Of course, I’ve ignored every one of them. I’m stubborn that way.

From here forward I plan on documenting my training for the marathon each week: the good, the bad and the ridiculous. I welcome your advice or support.  Comment away!

17 Weeks Out:

My running schedule is pretty basic.  I generally run three times a week and cross-train on off days.  This past week I ran four times, keeping my mileage pretty low for the majority of the runs.  We’re talking 3-4 milers at a very slow pace.  I’m afraid of starting speed work because of my IT Band injury last year.   My physical therapist said that speed work was a definite no-no.  (If you are wondering what speed work is, let me fill you in: you run in intervals at stupid crazy speeds. If you can’t breathe then you are on the right track.  Sounds like fun, no? Honestly, I’m not in a hurry to begin that.)

Our long run this week was 12 miles.  Yeah.  We ran 12 miles IN THE POURING RAIN.  If you ask me, the whole thing was debacle to begin with.  Problem #1 – I couldn’t find my Body Glide.  Problem #2 – I was out of GU.  (I am addicted to GU, a subject I will no doubt discuss in a later training update.) Problem #3 – I was exhausted.  Not a good combination.

Let’s talk about the beauty that is Body Glide for a moment, shall we?  You put on this handy product where clothing irritates so that you don’t chafe.  CHAFING HAPPENS (especially for women) when you run long distances.  When you don’t have it, well, you can only imagine. Rain only exacerbates the problem.  I’ll spare you the details and just say that my body looks like I’ve been the victim of torture at this moment.  My husband is none to thrilled because it has affected one of his favorite parts of me.  Ahem.

Despite the rain, the run was kind of symbolic.  It was the benchmark.  Running is officially no longer recreational. From here out our runs will be no shorter than a half marathon distance.  (Holy crap!) They will be an investment in time, planning and sheer will.

For the record: my husband thinks I am crazy.  I’m inclined to agree.

BY THE WAY: Interested in supporting me and my charity in the NYC Marathon? 

If you are an individual who thinks I am bonkers and would like to donate to help support the craziness and to erradicate childhood obesity, then please do so here. I need to raise $2,190 before October 1st!  However, if you are a business who would like to sponsor me monetarily or otherwise, please email me directly at jlgerlock@comcast.net and we can chat.

Tags: 2010, ING Run For Something Better, marathon, New York City Marathon, Running, training for the New York City Marathon