Into another dimension

Oh boy...

5Ks on the track, triathlons, and now marathons - 2009 certainly is a year of me pushing the boundaries and seeing what I can do. So here it goes - there were only 79 spots left, and if it was going to happen, it was going to happen now. I am officially registered for the Baystate Marathon on October 19, 2009. I'm scared as hell, but I ran 16 miles yesterday and it was absolutely incredible, so I think - no, I KNOW - that in 11 weeks I will be ready to toe that marathon line.

But first, the tale of my first 16 miler, longest run ever, etc, etc, etc, as told through the songs I was listening to during it...I made a sweet long run playlist and was absolutely loving it the entire time...so enjoy my ridiculous and random music selections. :)

Dimension - Wolfmother
After an incredibly hectic shift at work complete with a dog stealing my bagel out of my bag and wolfing it down in 2 bites (so much for a pre-run snack!) and getting off late, I finally headed out with one thought in mind - SLOW AND EASY. The first mile was around 8:45 pace - exactly what I was going for. Sweet.
Drumming - Florence And The Machine
Caves - Jack's Mannequin
Prince - Vanessa Carlton
Somewhere around mile 3, a nice downhill. "Willing and able to run, I am..." Yes indeed, yes I am. Only a half marathon to go, no sweat, right?
The Internet Is For Porn - Avenue Q Soundtrack
The Climb - Miley Cyrus (shhh...you can't deny its inspirational...)
In The Summertime - Mungo Jerry
Headed onto the bike path, feeling a bit of fatigue already since I had been running around after dogs all day, but this song put me in a good mood and since it has a little slower, but bouncy beat, made me concentrate on noooot speeding up.
What Would Brian Boitano Do? - South Park Movie Soundtrack
Oh, hell. How can you not speed up when listening to this song?
Transatlanticism - Death Cab For Cutie
Slowing things down a bit, and it's an 8 minute song...so practically a mile had gone by by the time it was over! Nice.
I Am Free - Newsboys
"I am free to run..." I'm not really religious but this song has a fantastic beat and you can't beat those lyrics!
Laughing With - Regina Spektor
(Just Like We) Breakdown - Hot Chip
Starting into the Arboretum. I love this song to run to, the beat is perfect, its kind of weird, and you get into a good groove.
Baba O'Riley
Annnnd cue speeding up again. Duh.
Untouched - The Veronicas
Around 7 miles, still feeling awesome. This is going to be no sweat!
Purpose - Avenue Q Soundtrack
Swim - Jack's Mannequin
My absolute favorite pump up/running/inspirational song. If you've never heard it...do. It's incredible.
Blues Run The Game - Counting Crows
Doctor Jones - Aqua
Coming out of the Arb, around mile 8.5ish...still feeling great, and yeah. It's Aqua. Don't even worry about it.
Here It Goes Again - OK Go
Absolute - The Fray
If You Were Gay - Avenue Q Soundtrack
Avenue Q really brings some much needed humor into my runs...and I was getting really excited for...
Take Me On The Floor - The Veronicas
9.75 miles, I arrived at the beach with a bubbler. I was really excited for a bunch of reasons - WATER, I got to take my gel (and get my gel out of my sports bra, where it had been driving me nuts for the past hour and 20 minutes), and I love this song! Oh, and only a little more than 6 miles left..that's nothing, right?
Death And All His Friends - Coldplay
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner - Iron Maiden
I really kind of can't believe this song exists, but it does and its completely awesome.
I Know You Want Me - Pitbull
On the bike path by Lake Monona, headed towards the Capitol...finally headed home! I also saw a houseboat on the lake that literally looked like someone had put their sun porch on a raft and thrown it into the lake...hilarious.
Peace Of Mind - Boston
Mount Gagazet - Final Fantasy X Soundtrack
This is so embarassing and I don't even care. It's the most calming song I can think of, and you can thank the BF for why I know it exists :P
Nom Nom Nom Nom Nom Nom Nom - Parry Gripp
This one just makes me laugh, I had to put it on the mix. Here it is if you've never heard it...

Yeeeeah.
Ease On Down The Road - The Wiz Soundtrack
Usually this is the song that picks me up when I feel like I'm about to die, but on this run, I was still feeling amazing...what the hell is going on??
On The Radio - Regina Spektor
Headlock - Imogen Heap
Unsung - Vanessa Carlton
Still Fighting It - Ben Folds
How Far We've Come - Matchbox 20
At this point, I had about a mile to go, and if anything, I was picking it up. I still felt incredible and I think, at this moment, I felt the fabled "runner's high" for the first time in my life. I was honestly grinning as I cruised down the bike path towards home.
Konstantine - Something Corporate
The perfect song to bring me home :)

16.25 miles - 2:12:59 (8:12 pace) :) :)

And now, because this post isn't long or boring enough, I'll just add on my week in review. 55.4 miles...a new weekly PR by over 5 miles!!
Monday: off
Tuesday: Yasso 800s @ 3:20-3:40 with about 3:40 recovery...total miles ended up at 9.7
Wednesday: 6.25 easy (7:49 pace)
Thursday: 8:15 easy w/ last 10 minutes hard (7:29 pace) This run really sucked, a lot, but I made it through somehow.
Friday: 10.9 easy (7:53 pace) Found some bike trails I'd never been on before!
Saturday: 4.2 easy (no watch) Felt soooo good to do a short run
Sunday: 16.25 long (8:12 pace) YAY!!
Total miles: 55.4
Days off: 1
Suckfests: 1 (there's always one....)

This is really quite a big step for me in my training. I really never expected to be able to do 2, almost 3, double digit runs in a week, but I didn't really feel like my legs felt any worse for the wear. I really think as long as I take 1 day off a week, I can handle relatively high mileage. I think pretty much things are going to stay pretty similar to this schedule for the next 10 weeks with the only real increase being at the long run, which I really want to get up to 22 miles before the marathon. It's going to be interesting working things out with moving twice in the next month and all, but I think as long as I make absolutely sure to get in my long runs, if I lose a few miles here and there it won't be the end of the world.

So, here it goes! I'm officially going to do the 26.2. I'm nervous...but man, am I excited. :)