This is it. 2010 is the year to achieve my goal of a 4:30 marathon. I’m well into my training, completing all the necessary long runs, tempo runs, speed workouts and rest days. Everything is going as planned, maybe even a little bit better (knock on wood). Now I’m just looking for something extra to motivate me on race day. Even with proper training I tend to hit a mental “wall” during marathons. I was the kind of kid that always did really well on the homework and then performed below par on tests. Make sense? That’s me, the once with test anxiety, running a marathon. Ugh. I hoping that using a simple temporary tattoo on my forearm will push me.

I’ve seen PaceTats for sale at many pre-race expos and have always wanted one. Problem is, my goal time always sells out. I guess 4:30 is a pretty typical marathon finishing time. This time I’m planning ahead and just ordered a couple online via their website. I purchased two: a 4:30 for the full marathon and a 4:00 to cut in half for a half marathon. I’m anxious to “get my Tat on” and run like mad on February 21st in the Pasadena Half Marathon. I’ll report back after the race to give you all my two cents

Get all the info and order your own on the PaceTat site.

So we are going on. what feels like, day 10 of rain here in Los Angeles. Back in my high school days I loved running in the cool Southern California rain. I think I’m getting a bit soft in my “old” age, as it’s getting increasing difficult to train in the rain. So far this week I’ve logged a 17 mile LSD run, 5 mile recovery run, and a 7.25 mile tempo run (all indoors). I’m thinking of taking it easy tonight. Planning on hitting the gym for a nice even 10k. I’ll probably do this at about a minute/mile slower than my race pace. Looks like the sun is going to peek out a bit this weekend. I would love to do my 19 mile LSD run this Sunday on the beach. For now, I’m resigning myself to the treadmill.

For those of you that are not stopped by a little water, I found this article from Runner’s World, written by Kristin Armstrong.

In fact, I can say that running in the rain is special. It has a redemptive quality to it, a washing clean of sorts, clearing my head and removing a layer of emotional or spiritual dust. If anything is bothering me when I begin a rain run, I actively imagine it washing off me before I return home. I love feeling the drops fall off the tip of my nose, my anemic, pruny looking fingertips, and my snarled, incorrigible mass of ponytail. I love pulling out of my squeaky shoes on entry rug, stripping off soaking socks, and padding to the shower in bare feet, peeling off soggy clothing and leaving it (splat!) in a dollop on the shower floor.

Read the full article here.