Last week during the Hartford marathon pre-events, there was a girls night out meet up at the Hartford club with Dimity McDowell from Another Mother Runner. Before the event I went to the XL Center to pick up my bib and race shirts. On my way there I saw on my new sponsor Ron from Mintz + Hoke. As I was talking to Ron I saw Dimity and Denise leaving the XL Center to go to the Hartford Club. I said hi to them and goodbye to Ron and hurried down to the expo to get my race items. At the expo I met up with Kimberlee D. and her husband. I picked up my race shirts and then we visited some of the booth at the expo. It is definitely a small expo compared to some of the others that I have been too. But it was good to sample some of the items from local shops and spend a little time with Kimberlee and her husband.
I stayed there for about a half an hour and then walked over to the Hartford Club. It is a nice location to have a meet up like we did. They had finger sandwiches and a cash bar and we all received a raffle ticket when we entered. I sat down with a group of people that I did not know but I recognize one of the girls at the table. When I introduce myself she told me I looked familiar to her also. Then I realized she was Alison Overholt who was at the another mother meet up at Fleet Feet in west Hartford earlier in the Spring. She is one of the essayists in the latest Mother Runner book Tales From Another Mother Runner. She also read her essay at the last meet up at Fleet Feet. We talked for a bit about the races in the Connecticut area, since she recently moved here, and I recommended to her to do the Manchester Road race for Thanksgiving.
Ali was there that night to introduce Dimity and interview her for the meet up. I felt like I was at church for runners. Everything Dimity was talking about was exactly what I needed to hear at the time. Ali did a 20 questions interview with her which had some great questions.
The first thing Dimity said was to remember that good is good enough. Before kids when we used to train for our races we would train and follow the training plan to the letter. Now with kids and life we need to give ourselves a break. Sometimes if the training plan calls for 6 miles and we were only able to get in 4 miles, 4 is good enough. We made the effort and we should take pride in what we were able to do.
Another thing she talked about which stood out for me was to enjoy the moment. Dimity said that we need to enjoy the now and not look at the end of the race or how many miles we have left, or how much work is ahead of us; but to actually enjoy the moment we are in. Running shouldn’t bring us stress. Running is our playtime. If we are worrying about how much is ahead of us, or the hills up in front of us, then we are not enjoying the now and having fun with it. I really needed to hear that.
She also talked about some of the basics that I needed to hear all over again. The essentials like taking on fuel at miles 4, 8 and 11. Those will keep us hydrated and sufficiently fueled so that we can finish the race strong. In doing so, we will keep our brain happy and will push away the mental monkeys. I used to be diligent about my fueling and hydration during races; but lately have been running half marathons with little fuel, just enough to get by. When you fuel properly you will have a stronger finish. Especially at the time when you need it. She also reminded us to start of slower so we can finish strong. It’s so easy for me/us to go out fast because of the crowd pushing us along and when we do that we run out of gas too fast and then struggle at the end. You have to make a very conscious effort to be slower the first half. Especially in the beginning when everyone else is surging forward.
Keep a mantra in your head repeat that mantra to yourself so that you are taking your mind away from the bad thoughts and making a conscious effort to speak to yourself positively. She made an excellent point that struck a chord with me. She said don’t ever say something to yourself that you wouldn’t say to a friend. Would you tell your friend she looked fat? Would you tell your friend she’s too slow? So why is it that we can talk to ourselves that way?
I had been struggling with the upcoming Hartford half marathon coming up that week. I was afraid of arriving to the city on time., finding a place to park, and actually running the race. I had been having prerace anxiety with the last few races lately. I don’t know what has been causing it, but hearing what Dimity had to say has been very very helpful to me. Especially the part about enjoying the moment. That is my playtime, that is my time to be with friends who enjoy the same thing that I enjoy.
After the interview was over there was a raffle for some great prizes and then Beth, the Race Director for the Hartford Marathon presented Dimity with the Wonder Woman award. 
It was a fun night and afterwards I visited with Dimity’s travelling partner Denise Dollar. I met Denise at the Philadelphia Marathon and also at the Fleet Feet meet up.
I had Dimity sign my bib for the race and took pictures with her and Ali. It was a lot of fun and as always. Thank you Hartford Marathon Foundation for another great event! 