Over the bridge!

This Saturday, Megan and I reached the top of our training, the 21 miler! The best part is... we felt great! We traveled over to my parents in Satellite Beach, to celebrate Megan's upcoming birthday with a little sand and sun. We ran our 21 miler on Saturday morning, 1/2 on the beachside 1/2 on the mainland. We crossed two bridges, the Pineda and Eau Gallie (pictured at right) Causeways, trying to put a couple hills into our flat coastal run.

We decided to stop more frequently to hydrate and take gels, drinking more Gatorade than usual at each stop because of the heat. We think the extra fluids really helped us feel GREAT throughout the run. What an encouraging 3 1/2 hours! No injuries to report and we both are in marathon shape!

Now, we begin what is called the Taper portion of the training. This weekend we go back down to 16 miles for our long run and then the week before the marathon we go down to 10 miles for the long run. This is a critical part of marathon training, giving your body time to rest and have a chance to heal itself of any injuries that might be waiting in the wings. So the most intense part of training has come to a close as we are within 3 weeks of the BIG DAY!

It is very exciting, especially for Megan, who has gotten to say "this is the farthest I've ever run in my life", and feel good at the end.