This week was a 'cut back' week for me, meaning less mileage than usual for my Long Run and the week overall. Cut back weeks are important because they give the body the chance to rebuild muscle and recover and get stronger. These help to avoid injuries from over-training and the stresses from running and cross-training activities. Rest is as important to a training plan as any other activity. To 'short change' yourself on rest days and good sleeping habits often leads to poorer performance, an increased risk for injury, and burnout.
Well, my cut back week meant that instead of the 26.78 miles I ran the week before, I ran 21.8 miles -- basically the difference in last week's 16-mile Long Run and this week's 12.42-mile run and 4.5 hours of additional 'foot time'. This week I finally surpassed the 200-mile training 'milestone', clocking in with a total of 216.2 miles. WooHoo! And I only need 3 more miles to reach 100 miles for the month of August. Just "Wow!"
With just six weeks remaining before the Chicago Marathon, and two weeks before the Chicago Half Marathon and the Fox Valley 20 Miler, it is still kinda bizarre to think myself as this 'runner' athlete; much less an athlete who is about to tackle 26.2 miles again. Every time I finish a training run or a race, I almost feel like it couldn't be true (of course, my legs and feet quickly convince me otherwise!).
God didn't give me diabetes (I did that on my own), but He did give me the strength to overcome it and this 'second chance' to live a better, healthier lifestyle. It has been 10 months since my doctor took me off all medication for diabetes because my blood sugar was levels were good and stable. I am still at that good level. I have more weight to lose but I am still more than 100lbs lighter than I was at the start of my journey.
So the journey continues. And I honor this 'second chance' with every good eating choice, every hour of exercise, every medal earned, every pound lost.