Countdown to the Marathon - IT'S THIS SUNDAY!

This is it - the Disney Marathon I've been training for the last 22 weeks is this Sunday, January 13!

I was supposed to be in the midst of my tapering this past week, you know just running 2-3 miles here and there. But of course, I completely disregarded that.

Miles ran: 31 (3.5mi, 6.3mi, 7.8mi, 9.9mi, 3.1mi) Most of those were during the Ragnar Key West Relay race I participated in this past weekend.

Miles scheduled: 15 (Um...oooops)

Total miles run since training began: 520

Cross training: Does 8 hours of dancing on Duval Street in Key West count?

General notes: So this is it! I'm done with training. The only thing I can do to help myself now is make sure I remember to pack all my stuff as I head to Florida.

I'll definitely do a summary of the marathon, but for now I leave you with, all true stories:

THE TOP FIVE REASONS YOU SHOULD NEVER TRAIN FOR A MARATHON:

5) Your 80-something-year-old grandmother will post publicly on your Facebook wall that running is all fine and good but that "the Marathon was named after a Greek runner that dropped dead from running" and perhaps that should be a sign to you that it's not such a great idea...

4) At some point you will be 18 miles into a 20 mile run, going straight into a 22 mph headwind, with a Ke$ha song blaring in your ears. And you will make peace with the fact that this is a fitting metaphor for your life.
 
3) Someone -- you know, that someone who knows everything and is deeply enlightened, who you generally try to avoid talking to at all costs -- will corner you in the hallway or at Starbucks or in the parking lot. This person will come up to you, put their hands on your shoulders, look you in the eyes and say, "No one runs as many miles as you do for no reason. Tell me, my friend, what are you really running from?" And it will take all your willpower not to respond, "Dumb ass questions like that."

2) You'll hear your kids giggling outside the bathroom door as you release a blood-curdling scream in the shower because of the chafing you just discovered after your 20+ mile run.

1) Because no matter how much you run, this is always going to be true:

So yeah, there are lots of reasons not to train for and run a marathon. But ultimately I latched on to the one reason why I should:  

"You're never gonna know, if you never even try."

26.2 miles. Possibly the hardest thing I've ever done. 

Bring it.