Friday night... I tried the tape yesterday, just the tape not running, and it stayed on for a hour before I removed it. Today I got a call from Pat (the previously mentioned PT) who told me that he had a skin prep and adhesive that in his experience helped with keeping the tape on as well as decreasing skin irritation. So, I drove up to his clinic and picked it up , while I was there he demonstrated for me how best to apply the tape and how to use the skin prep (Prep Protective Skin Barrier by Coloplast). This evening I tried the improved taping method on my last run before the marathon, a 30 minute jog. The run went well and the tape stayed on even though there was a little peeling at the edges (I didn't use the prep because I want to have some Acetone on hand to be sure that I can remove the tape without taking skin with it).

At present I'm nervous about the race...getting downtown to pick up my packet, waking up extra early on Sunday (plans changed and we are leaving at 4:30 from home instead of staying over in Chicago), worry over the weather since it will be in the 80's on Sunday (far from prime marathon weather - I actually got long sleeve DouDry shirt for the race which I won't be using now). All the little details make me worry and I have to keep turning my focus to just finishing the race. The little things can also be a comfort since taking care of them takes my mind off other things. I had some inspiration from a neighbor today - Donna ran a 5k in Plainfield last weekend after a poor nights sleep while having a sinus infection. Pushing through pain to finish is always an inspiration to me (like I've said before I see this as a force of will as much as conditioning).

I'll check in tomorrow night and again on Monday (or at latest, depending on my condition) after the race.