Welcome to week 7! This week’s reason is one of my favorites: for the music! While I couldn’t run until I was 30, most people who know me are aware that my first love has always been music, especially singing. While others grew up perfecting their pace, swing and stride, I was busy practicing scales and range. I never went into music professionally, largely because I don’t think I’m cut for the type of lifestyle it requires – I really like knowing where my next paycheck will come from – but it’s still something I really enjoy doing on the side, and I have a great appreciation for listening to music as much as possible. What does this have to do with training for a marathon, you ask? Simple: music is what gets me through runs. Whether it’s a great beat, a catchy tune or amazing vocals, music helps me remove myself mentally from the pain and exhaustion of pushing my body through training.
When I first started running, I liked listening to radio stations on Pandora that would play the cheesiest pop imaginable; nothing but Britney, Kanye, Ke$ha and Miley. However as my runs increased, I found a few problems: those stations start to repeat themselves after the first hour, you can only skip terrible songs so many times, the commercials get on my nerves, and worst of all, when I hit a dead spot with my phone, there is NO MUSIC AT ALL. Not okay for this girl!! As much as I zone out and occasionally miss entire songs without paying attention, as soon as silence encroaches I immediately am jolted and HATE IT. I decided to fix this problem once and for all by creating an epic Running playlist that I can access anytime (without internet), with no commercials and way more variety. As you can see from the screen shot, of course all my friends Britney, Kanye, Ke$ha and Miley are represented, but so are some of my edgier friends like Airborne Toxic Event, Muse and Mumford & Sons… and some of my singer/songwriter friends like Adele, Sara Bareilles and Tristan Prettyman. The truth is, my tastes in music are all over the map, but that’s actually okay with a running playlist! When I press shuffle, I literally have no idea what might come next – it keeps things exciting. Certain songs also bring back vivid memories that take my brain to all kinds of places. So here is my challenge, friends and family – send me your #1 favorite running song of all time, and I’ll add it to the list! That way when I’m struggling on April 21, I’ll hear you cheering me on just at the right time. J
Now for a training update: another solid week! Weather was once again an issue this week, but the mid-week runs I was able to squeeze in went well, and my long run this week seemed like a breeze at only 10 miles. The only issue was the fact that there is ICE. EVERYWHERE. I felt like I was tiptoeing instead of running half the time, significantly slowing down my time, but whatever – I got the miles in. We got yet another storm last night, but warmer weather is predicted during the week – MELT, for the love of God, MELT!!
Fundraising update: feeling pretty solid at 33% towards my goal. This is great considering the fact that I haven’t even started with my personal outreach to people yet; to those who have already given, you’re ahead of the game, and THANK YOU!
Until next week,
Meg