We learned we needed extra layers during our 11 mile training run.
We took our time getting ready with a nutritious breakfast, meditation and a prayer for the run.
Ruth Anne captured this photo of me while I stretched and put this caption on it for Facebook friends:
#winterwarriormom 3 cheers for Mom for bracing the cold! Like and send messages if you agree!
She suggested it would give us a boost while we were out on our training run. She was right!
We knew we wanted to make this training run count by going to Heartbreak Hill. We ended up improvising the route by going from Newton Center following the Boston Marathon route to Washington Square in Brookline and then coming back to our car.
The last time we ran Heartbreak Hill together was on April 20, 2009.
It was an emotional run to be together with Ruth Anne again on Heartbreak Hill. We talked about our fond memories of our training runs on Heartbreak Hill - from the first time we incorporated Heartbreak Hill into a training run as I wrote about in my blog. We recalled with fondness finding the Helen Keller quarter.
Boston Marathon training season has begun.
"Are you running Boston?" I asked one runner who was obviously doing hill repeats.
"You are brave running in shorts," Tom shouted to another runner. "It sure does help going downhill and having the tailwind," he said with a smile.
We saw Marathon jackets and smiles for miles despite the freezing temperatures.
The sun shining on Heartbreak Hill with no wind quickly warms things up and our memories of training and 2009 Boston Marathon race day warmed our hearts and souls ... as did the anticipation of 70 degree temperatures during Bermuda Marathon Weekend.
We powered through the uphills and the headwind and felt relief on the downhills allowing the tailwind to push us along.
Ruth Anne was talking about having a reunion with our 2009 Spaulding Race for Rehab Team and our beloved Coach Domenick D'Amico. We were at a street crossing and the driver was waiting for us to cross. Without a light and unless someone is a runner, that is an unlikely occurrence even along the Boston Marathon route. We crossed the street and the driver honked and pointed at us. Tom went running over... It was one of our teammates from Spaulding! I love synchronicity. We got a boost of energy after seeing him.
We marveled at how Ruth Anne had just been talking about a reunion and how we improvised our route to go down Comm. Ave. instead of staying on Heartbreak Hill!
Ruth Anne suggested we take a selfie halfway through our run to capture more moments of our taper time for Bermuda.
Back up and over Heartbreak Hill in reverse - a route we'd run so many times during our training for Boston.
As we "came into the finish" we joined hands as we will in Bermuda in just 28 days imagining our triumphant Bermuda Half Marathon finish.
We were overjoyed that our streak of getting outdoors EVERY SATURDAY since May for our training runs for Bermuda continued.
Three more Saturday runs of 6 miles, 4 miles and 3 miles to go.
Team McManus was happy winter warriors on Heartbreak Hill as Boston trains to run again and we are in full on taper mode feeling incredibly satisfied and ready for 1/14/18.
To going the distance with strength and courage
From my heart to yours,
Mary
Be sure to visit my website by following this link.
My books are available on Amazon.
Feel the Heal: An Anthology of Poems to Heal Your Life
Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing Hope and Possibility that chronicles the first 7 years of my healing journey:
And my latest and greatest book - Going the Distance: The Power of Endurance (With a Foreword by Jacqueline Hansen):
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