From the title, you could probably already guess the activity that’s dominated my life for the past few months. In April I began training for a marathon, and now we’re only two weeks from race day. I’m currently in the glorious “taper” phase of my running plan, which means I’m easing off distance-wise and allowing more time for my body to recover. Emotionally, I’m feeling so many things: excitement, nerves, pride, a little bit of fear…

Running a marathon has been on my bucket list for a while. This race was actually supposed to happen last year but was pushed back due to COVID. When I was notified of its postponement, I’d been training for about ten weeks. I remember the exact mix of disappointment and relief I felt while reading the email: it sucked to have put in all that work “for nothing,” but I’d also developed tendonitis a few days before and was glad to have an excuse to bail. I didn’t really enjoy running, per se, though I definitely enjoyed seeing the miles rack up. But once the goal posts moved, I dropped running instantly.

This time around, things feel different. Even though I won’t have a race to train for after August 29th, running will stay a pretty consistent part of my lifestyle. I’ve actually grown to *gasp* really like it—the so-called “runner’s high” remains elusive to me, but I can’t deny how great it feels to start my morning with a lap around the Charles. I’ve already got my eyes on a running club I’d like to join post-marathon, and I’m pretty excited for the more exploratory, inner-city runs I’ll be able to do when I’m not running with a specific mileage goal. Physically and mentally, running has made me feel more connected to myself. And most of all, it’s reminded me that yes, I can do hard things!

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Having said all of that, I’m pretty excited to ease up. At the peak of training I was running 40-miler weeks, but I’ll probably do half of that going forward. I’ll be able to pursue other interests with the extra time, like circus arts (I’ve actually already signed up for a tumbling class, starting in September!), reading, language learning (I haven’t had a Vietnamese lesson in months…), and even some CS classes using my company’s tuition reimbursement. Overall, I’m just pretty excited for the next chapter!

For now though, I’ll leave you with a photo dump from the past few weeks: Coconut being a goof, relaxed mornings and evenings, and some darn-good banana bread!

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