So, I am promising myself that this will be a very short post since working on the computer right before bed is (I believe anyway) contributing to the fatigue that has put me in a funk this week. Let me recount the last few days…

Pre-Princess Training

My final days of Princess Half training are quickly coming to a close. As I mentioned in my last post, I needed one last long run to boost my confidence. I took Saturday off to give my body a day of rest and decided Sunday would be one last 11 mile day. With a high of about 56 degrees and lows in the 30’s, it turned out to be the perfect day for a nice long run. I had the luxury of waiting till 1 pm to head out (which is quite a luxury under the Florida sun).

The run went great with an average pace of 9:14 (which is faster than any of my pre-tink LRs and mirrored my speed in my first post-tink LR). In other words, I think this hopefully bodes well for a speedy race. I take this as a sign that both my body and my brain are ready to go to war on the pavement on Sunday.

A Couple of Concerns

A few things are freaking me out in the days leading up to princess:

1. Sickness. Having just been sick, I figured I’ve “done my time” and should be healthy going into Princess. I can’t help being paranoid that I’ve going to be struck down with illness.
2. Weird Symptoms. Further reinforcing my sick paranoia, I had a weird health day on Monday. I had a runny nose and a little huskiness in my voice. I just generally felt off. I felt better as the day went on but decided taking it easy (aka, a rest day) would be the best solution. I tried to get some extra sleep last night and I think it did the trick. I’m still fatigued today but I hope to be cured by another fabulous night’s sleep. I also had a really weird thing happen last night/this morning. I woke up at 6 am from a deep sleep and felt like I was going to throw up. I had a moment of panic thinking “Oh no! I have the flu or a virus!” but got myself together and started trying to mind over matter this extreme nausea into submission. I sat up a little bit in bed, focused on relaxing, and luckily the sensation quickly passed. That’s just totally weird. I never have anything like that happen. Thankfully, I went back to sleep and felt fine when I woke up. Bizarre. I’m going to chalk it up to stress.
3. My Hip. I have had a dull pain/discomfort at the point of my hip during the end of last week and into this week. At first, it was just after a run. I felt it somewhat during my long run and it has continued since. I have (hopefully correctly) self-diagnosed hip bursitis which doesn’t worry me too much. Anyway, this combine with the fatigue and other weird issues have definitely been justification enough for rest days yesterday and today.

What’s Next?

I’m starting to get really excited for the Princess Half! It’s my favorite race of the year and I am so excited to wear my costume and try for another killer time. In the meantime, my main job is to take care of my mind and my body. I need to limit my stress and be smart about my sleep and physical activity.

My plan as of now is to get in 2 more really easy runs and then rest till race day. I plan to do 3.1 on my own tomorrow and join my running group for 4 on Thursday. I need to keep telling myself “go EASY.” I have already had an opportunity to play with speed last week so I need to chill, no matter how much my mind and body want me to push the limits. I have an incredibly fun weekend ahead so I need to keep my eye on the prize and not make stupid decisions that could put my race in jeopardy.

I cannot wait for the race weekend festivities to begin! Look for more on my pre-race expectations and preparations in the coming days!

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Are you running Princess? When are you getting your last runs in? How are you preparing for the race this week?