Athletes for Real Medicine, LA Marathon

Last week's Sunday run was very challenging-especially for me. It was our second longest run, coming in at 18 miles, but we kept the course fairly flat to make the run more tolerable.

Four of us met bright and early, on a warm Santa Monica morning. We ran as a pack for the first 4 miles, up San Vicente towards Brentwood. Then our newest member, who we were delighted to have joining us, sped up his pace. Our foursome became a threesome, and we remained together as we ran along the beach. At mile ten, our group got one person smaller, as another one of us picked up his pace. So, we were two and as much as I told my buddy to go ahead, he stayed back with me, dragging me along at a decent pace.

Luckily, the weather was beautiful, the ocean like a painting. I spent most of the run tricking my mind into moving my legs, despite the fatigue.

When we saw the others running towards us, we knew that our last "u-turn" was up ahead. And we were excited. This meant that we only had 5 miles to go!

The last four miles were brutally exhausting (for me), but in the end we all survived and with the endorphins kicked in, it felt like we could run another few miles...but, we were happy to sit in the grass and stretch.

We've got one more long run before the big day, but no time to lose focus. I, for one, need to keep disciplined with my weekly speed workouts to build my aerobic capacity. Otherwise the boys will keep But, I must admit that one of the benefits of being the "caboose" is the onlookers always ask me "what is Real Medicine", after seeing other shirts pass by ahead. I love having the honor of explaining what Real Medicine is contributing, and after a brief, breathless explanation, I proudly jog off.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• Real Medicine foundation
• LA Marathon