So what are you doing to get ready?

Someone asked me the question today, “So, what are you doing to get ready for your 50-miler on Saturday?”.  I don’t think I had a great answer.  In an ideal world, I would have run several 30 mile training runs in the past 6 weeks and have piled on the mileage while staying healthy.  But in this alternative universe; work, travel and other commitments would not have taken up as much time away as they did.

But on the other hand, if I look on the positive side.  I did run the Napa Marathon on March 1st, did the Whitney climb shortly thereafter and the traveling that came next was probably good to let the body heal and get some rest.  Since returning, I’ve done several long runs and at this point it’s too late to get much mileage in without tiring my legs.

So … what am I going to do to get ready:

1. Stay healthy and eat well this week.

2. Do “maintenance” runs and upper body workouts.

3. On Thursday night, make sure I get plenty of sleep and lots of hydration.

4. Make a new music playlist that will last the 12-13 hours of running.

5. Show up on Saturday morning for 0600 start.

6. Start slowly and make sure I eat what I need and take in lots of liquids.

7. Wear the right clothing for 50 miles and have change of clothes ready.

8. Bring stuff I need (blister packs, food, water etc in camelbak).

9. Stay mentally strong, and enjoy the run (and walk-breaks).

10. And finally, to finish and to have fun.

As usual, it’s self-doubt fighting self-confidence and since it’s almost 20 miles farther than I previously ran (50k = 31.1 miles), I’m not sure how the body will respond.  But if I’m able to finish, this will be a very big deal to me and I can then redirect my focus towards some other yearly goals.

Entry fee for the American River 50 Mile Race = $125.

Finishing = Priceless!