Chapter 2 page 142 - HMTU 56 hay in the barn

I'm good friends with a local race director and he has said to me these last 2 weeks "The hay is already in the barn." Meaning . . . these last 2 weeks there was nothing more that I could do to add to my training for my first half marathon that at this point (these last 2 weeks) all I could do is screw it up and get hurt. I could do nothing to improve my conditioning, speed, or fitness level these past 2 weeks; however, if I didn't taper properly or did something stupid I could injure myself or fatigue my legs too much. Nothing like hoping and praying that I stored enough hay in the barn for the long haul coming on Saturday. I've been careful and tapered well (I hope) and should be ready to roll out of the gate come 8:00 a.m. Saturday, September 25.

Tonight "C" and I were sans "L" because she was sick - OMG! "L" had chills and a fever - WHAT?!?!?! That is most definitely NOT in the training schedule. She went home to drink plenty of fluids and go to bed - cross all fingers and toes it's just a fluke and she gets healthy and ready to roll on Saturday. Anyway, for our final training session before my very first half marathon, "C" and I walked 1.25 miles, slowly did 2:1 for 2.5 miles, then walked the final 1.25 miles. We did a pretty thorough job stretching and a fabulous job with our jaw exercises (always so much to discuss!). We made final plans for meeting up on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning.

The hay is indeed in the barn!