how i (really haven’t) prepped for my next race

heyyyyy Brooklyn, i’m coming for you, bright and early tomorrow.

so tomorrow morning, i’m waking up before the sun to jaunt on over to Brooklyn and run my second Brooklyn Half Marathon. and i mean earrrrrly. i’m in Wave 1, which has a start time of 7am, which means i need to be there by, like, 6:20. which means i need to get up at an ungodly hour starting with a 5 handle. the things we do for the loves of our lives (running, in my case). not too many other things sound worth waking up for that early. maybe an airplane ride, or snowboarding, or a really great date. but usually if i’m up at this hour, i’m running a race.

good thing i’ve become accustomed to being a morning runner since i moved to NYC. that definitely helps when you have to pair an early start time with a half hour + commute!

the expo this year (hosted by New Balance again, my faves) was quite a trek out to a pier in downtown Brooklyn. pretty sure the 20-minute walk from the subway to the expo (okay, so i got lost a bit on the way there…apparently i need to get out of Manhattan more often?) counted as my warm-up to the race. geesh. i was on a mission to just snag my bib and t-shirt and get out of there, so i didn’t really experience much of it, but i snapped a few pix in passing.

please enjoy some views of downtown Manhattan and the Brooklyn Bridge:

a “recycle your soles” fence, which was pretty sweet (and i wish i’d known so i could have brought some):

and a little hipster humor. ah, Brooklyn. i wish i knew you better, you appeal to me so.

so, how am i feeling about this race? to be honest, i’ve had such a busy life lately that i haven’t given much prep to it at all, mentally or physically. i did two shorter runs (4 and 5 milers) last weekend in San Antonio, and two more 5-milers this week:

seems to be the magic mile number lately, and i’m totally okay with that. even though i haven’t done any much structured training for this half, i’m really looking forward to it and have no jitters at all. i know that i’m perfectly capable of running this distance and enjoying it, and even if i don’t achieve a PR or have to run on legs that are more than a little tired (it’s been a long week!), i’ve reached the point with my running where i am comfortable with half marathons and can really enjoy the experiences.

and that’s good enough for me.

plans tonight, for last-minute prep:

• stretching and foam rolling (so guilty of neglecting to do these as frequently as i should! bad bad bad)
• soaking in the “good lucks” i know will come my way from my fam
• laying on the couch with a healthy meal (probably grilled chicken and salad, i’m not a carbo loader) and some mindless TV
• lots and lots of water
• choosing an outfit for tomorrow — i really want to wear my new shorts, but haven’t run in them yet, so i’m debating
• laying out the necessities: sunglasses, shot blocks, Body Glide, headphones, bib
• making a playlist (i desperately need some new running songs, if you have any suggestions for me!)
• getting cozy with the pink CEPs
• crashing earlyyyyy

and that, my friends, should do it. i might be under prepared, but hey — i’m happy to be running it, and to be stress-free.

let’s just hope i can sleep. a lot. 🙂

enjoy your Friday!

Questions:
How do you prepare for a race?
Any races coming up?

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