Like a Freight Train

Today was race day.  I had committed to run on a marathon relay team in Toledo at the Glass City Marathon.  My leg was going to be 4.5 miles.  I agreed to do this back at xmas, so I figured plenty of time to train.  But I never did, and up until the end of March, I really had done nothing since July.  Earlier this week I ran for 20 min. which was almost 2 miles.  Now I had to 4.5 miles?  No way in hell am I going to make it.  I told myself that it would take me about an hour to run, maybe a little longer if I had a 12 min. pace.  I had other people relying on me, so I had no choice but to go.  I got up at 4 am and made the drive to Toledo for the 7 am start.  I found out that I was the second leg of the race, so I had about 45 min. til it was my turn.

Here comes my buddy Joe to the exchange point.  He hands me the bracelet and it's off I go.  I get about a half mile in and I'm doing alright, only 4 more miles.  About 1.5 miles into the run, my feet and shins hurt and I am thinking to myself that there is no way I am going to make it 3 more miles.  Then I thought that I could walk for a bit, then start running again.  No way.  I knew that if I stopped, starting back up would not happen and I would walk the rest.  I was moving like a slow freight train, but I kept chugging along and didn't stop.  I just kept telling myself one foot in front of the other, keep going.  I came around the last corner and I saw the exchange point.  I had made it without stopping.  I handed off the bracelet to the next runner and looked at my watch.  51 minutes!  Flippin awesome for me.  Just over an 11 minute mile pace.  And to think that earlier in the week I could only run 20 min.  Crossfit has helped to show me that a lot of limitations are only in your mind.  Once I was able to convince myself that I wasn't going to stop, it became easier.  I do know though that had I not been eating a good diet and doing Crossfit, I never would have made the 4.5 miles.  Like a freight train, I blasted through my mental wall and proved to myself that I am capable of so much more than I thought.