God Save the Queen

Before I begin, let me again stress that I am quite possibly a lunatic. 26.2 miles. MILES. I decided to do a bit of research on why it is this exact amount. Think you know the answer? Think again!

Many people can cite that the legend behind this ridiculous sport's origination was that some dude ran from Athens to a place called Marathon to warn of battle or something, which is 26-ish miles away. Then he died. Hooray.... [Sound of awkward applause in the background]

But the original marathons in the Olympics were NOT 26.2. Oh, no, they were actually 40 Ki (or about 25 miles) in the first few Games and Boston Marathons. And even that was somewhat questionable and non-standardized.

But in 1908 that changed for the Olympics held in London. Evidently, the organizers of the event (planned for 26 miles this time...upping the ante I guess?) wanted the runners to end directly in front of Queen Alexandra's royal box. Meaning they would have to run an extra half lap around the track inside the stadium to finish there. This distance was 385 years -- or -- 0.2 miles.

And it stuck.

The reason I bring up this history lesson is two-fold.

First fold: I now blame Queen Alexandra of England for everything that goes remotely wrong with my training.

Second fold: This is a prime example of my nerdiness.

For training, they recommend that you put together a schedule and keep diligent records of your mileage, times, etc. Not a problem! Running the mileage? Potentially an issue. Tracking it in an MS Office-based format? Absolutely not an issue.

I have created -- nay -- crafted a chart for myself that has become a bible. Tabs for proposed schedules from experts are included with one main worksheet tracking - by day -- color-coded planned workouts that get actualized several times a week, including training obstacles (i.e. weddings, bachelorettes, showers, and other drinking bonanzas) and major milestones and holidays. Oh yeah. This ain't no disco, my friends.

I have made a diagram to make this simpler for you:

I'm a nerd, and I love it. I'm not sure it actually makes me faster. But gosh darnit, I think it definitely makes me sexier.

No? Not that either? Just more organized?

I'll take it.