Fit Fun Mom

Before the REVEL Canyon City Marathon last Saturday, I had a major case of marathon brain. I’ve talked before about how marathon brain is a lot like pregnancy brain — your mind is so full of the big event on the horizon that it blocks out most other rational thinking. I have two good (read: humorous at my expense) examples of how marathon brain made me positively ditzy before the race.

Friday night after I got home from the expo, I set out all my clothes and race gear for the next morning. I also took my driver’s license and one credit card out of my wallet and packed them in my gear bag. No sense in taking my entire wallet with me to the race, but I at least needed my driver’s license to get there. Packing went well and I had no trouble at 3:30 in the morning throwing on my clothes and getting out the door by 3:50. The problem came when I got home from the race on Saturday afternoon and could not find my wallet for the life of me. I searched high and low all over the house. I retraced my steps everywhere. It wasn’t in my purse. It wasn’t where I’d taken my cards out of my wallet in the living room. It wasn’t anywhere I would ever normally put my wallet, emphasis on “normally.” With my marathon brain, I’d taken the cards out of my wallet and then wandered off to get something else, wallet in hand. Then when I found that something, I put down the wallet. Two whole days later I found my wallet on the dining room table, on top of the sewing basket and underneath one of the kids’ pieces of artwork. What the heck?! I think I’d set my Saucony Bullet Shorts on the table to air dry, and when I went to grab those for the race, I traded them for my wallet.

But the worst evidence of marathon brain came at 3:40 in the morning when I went to put on some Glide to prevent chafing in my, shall we say, “nether regions.” I slathered it on and put the cap back on the container, only to realize it wasn’t Glide I’d just applied, it was deodorant! I was extra fresh for the race. 🙂 You’re welcome, fellow runners.

The “extra fresh” me at the REVEL Canyon City Marathon

It’s been four days since the race and I feel pretty good. I haven’t been sleeping well though. I thought I’d sleep like a log after the race on Saturday, but I tossed and turned all night. I read somewhere that not sleeping well is a sign of over-training, and I’m sure for me it was a sign of over-exertion at the race.

I forgot to mention that my ankle (that pesky taper injury) didn’t bother me at all during the race. Darn — I can’t blame my lack of PR on that. I feel really lucky though. No lasting problems from the race. I left alone the big blister I got on the bottom of my foot from the downhill running, and it toughened right up after a hot bath. No need to drain it or remove the skin.

Did you ever get marathon brain? What do you do for blisters?