My Race is Only Hours Away....

I am so nervous about tomorrow. I always get nervous about my races but I usually don't get too worked up until the day of the race...this time I have been nervous all week! I can barely eat today (and I know I need to) because I am sick to my stomach :)

I have been trying to figure out why I am so nervous and I think I have narrowed it down to these 5 reasons.

1. I have never run this course before, in fact I have never even seen it. This can be both a blessing and a curse. I do have a map and I plan to study it hard tonight.

2. Z has been sick with the worst cold all week. S got it the other night...that leaves me. I am congested right now but I am so afraid that I am going to wake up tomorrow sick! To prevent this I have been downing the OJ and apples :)

3. We have hardly slept this week! Z has been having such trouble sleeping because of his cold and so we all have been up! I know I am not going to sleep tonight because of the nerves and so I will be running for 2+ hours on very little sleep.

4. I have never run 13.1 miles before in my life, let alone in a race setting! The longest was a little over 12 (the other day)....I hope I can do it and I am not super slow! I also hope that I don't go out too fast. My plan is be in the back for the start.

5. What if I have to pee???? This is my biggest fear. When I did the 12 miles the other day, I stopped to go to the bathroom half way through at the hospital. They do have porta potties on the course but what if there is a long line? My time will be awful and I can't stand porta potties!!!!

So those are the worries "racing" through my head. I keep telling myself that I chose to run this race and that it is going to be FUN! However, no matter how many times I tell myself that, I still have the same sick feeling that I had the week before I gave birth. I was so scared of labor and giving birth (as I am sure most first time moms are) that if they had given me a choice to go through with it or just leave him in his nice, cozy condo....Z would still be inside of me right now!

My new approach to this race is to focus on how good I will feel after completing this long time goal. That is how I got through labor (not that I had much choice), I focused on the prize...the beautiful baby that I was going to be allowed to take home. My prize for running this race will be pride in my accomplishment, a nice shiny medal to show off and a massage appointment waiting for me on Monday....I think it will all be worth it ;)