Its terrible when you don’t have time to blog .. maybe i’m spending too much time on Twitter (its addicting)… I would have thought I would have more time to do what I wanted while I start my taper for the Ocean Drive marathon, but its just not working that way so far, but I still have over another week to go …

The weather has been amazing for mid-March in the northeast, with temperatures during the day in the 60’s but morning temperatures still in the 30’s. I consider myself “training for the weather” right now .. I’ve done the miles and the hard workouts and all, but am dedicated to going out in shorts and just 2 layers on top in the mornings to prepare for the marathon. Every year its always cold for this race .. regardless of what the daytime temperature will be because you always get that ocean breeze, which makes it cold. This is my way of preparing for it I guess.

I never really taper the way I should though .. I find myself doing some extra miles just because I can’t let go of running, especially now that the weather is better. It might also be because once I cut the miles, I can’t eat whatever I want (tons of breakfast cereal) .. not sure. So far the taper is going good, i’m getting some rest, but i’m missing the miles. I’m feeling tuned and running subconsciously, which is really my goal. Being able to knock of 10-12 miles without making an effort is quite a goal for this early in the year. I took a look back to 2007 when I ran the Ocean Drive marathon last time (and did terrible) and was somehow proud of myself for getting a 20 miler and a 22 miler in as my max runs .. I know that was about ALL I was getting in at that time because I just wasn’t getting the runs in during the week like I should have. This time I guarantee it will be better.

Its funny but i’m already checking the weather for next weekend … can you tell i’m nervous? Its only been 3 months since my last marathon, and this is number 14 for me, so you think i’d know better.

I’m still hoping to be selected in the lottery for the New York City marathon this year .. supposedly the lottery is happening on April 7th, so we’ll hope to hear something around then so we can finish out the fall season. Other than that, my schedule looks pretty well set .. a challenging year, but I’m up for it.