Countdown to Bermuda and Adding Up The Miles

Less than 75 days now until we toe the line at the Bermuda Half Marathon.

I have the course map on my refrigerator, as my cover photo on Facebook and as the wallpaper on my computer:



Yesterday was the first nine mile training run that Team McManus had done together since 2009:


I had done a solo 9 miler 3 weeks ago and knew it was a milestone but not as much as a milestone as yesterday's training run. Now Team McManus steadily builds miles until we taper two weeks before Bermuda.

It was a slow and steady pace for Team McManus on a glorious Fall day in New England. Tom kept reminding me that we were going for distance, not time and to let go of setting some arbitrary time constraint on myself. I let go and enjoyed the glorious sunshine, the beautiful foliage, the blue sky and the ripples in the water at the Reservoir.

The miles seemed to fly by and we both know I am ready to go the distance.

One of my friend's on Facebook asked me what was my breaking point at which I was able to return to running and experience a sense of well being after she saw my post about our 9 mile training run.

I felt warm and wonderful inside to be able to reflect on and share the journey with her.

It all began...well actually it was all set into motion through my pen, my divining rod for healing, as I imagined myself running unencumbered and reclaiming my life from a history of paralytic polio and trauma but it came into being beginning in January of this year when I first met Dr. Ryan aka Ryan J. Means, DC - a chiropractor who asked me why I was setting limits on how far I was going to run. As he used kinesiotaping, spinal adjustments and Graston technique, he was encouraging my body to fully heal and re-ignited the flame of endurance running within me. I read, "You Are the Placebo," by Dr. Joe Dispenza and could feel transformation happening within me. I went on to read Candace Pert's book, 'Everything You Need to Know To Feel Go(o)d" and watched "What the Bleep Do We Know..." and "Down The Rabbit Hole."

Yes everything is possible as I knew when I took on the running of the 2009 Boston Marathon never having run a day in my life.

Team McManus has decided that half marathons are just right for us.

It's still going the distance ... and it's so much farther than I imagined one year ago at this time.

And so here I am counting down to the Bermuda Half Marathon and adding up the miles feeling incredibly grateful and blessed.