As I mentioned yesterday, I had a pretty solid 20 mile run on Saturday. My left heel was achy as I warmed up, but felt fine after about a mile. I made a hasty decision to purchase some “heel cups” on Friday and pay the crazy over night shipping fee. And then, even hastier still, I ran 20 miles with them without even batting an eye. Yes, I was THAT desperate to get in this last long run. (I got really anxious about the marathon on Friday for some reason. I was trying to play it cool, but that clearly didn’t last long.) 
I know I probably could/should  have skipped it, but I wanted to get it in before I started an early taper. Oddly enough, while this run was tough, and it got hot out, it wound up being my fastest long run to date at 8:55/mile. My heels didn’t bother me for the rest of the day.
Thank you for all of the great tips on dealing with the heel issues. I added in some exercises (found HERE), that I’ve been doing daily, to strengthen my Achilles and calves. I’m a firm believer that if you have an injury no amount of stretching is going to resolve it. To me, it comes down to strength, and yes, rest. (I’m not a doctor, this is just my little theory.) The exercises coupled with stretching and massaging actually seem to be helping! I have taken a few Advil here and there and I don’t love taking the NSAIDs because I want to feel the pain and not mask it. That way, I know if what I’m doing is working. So far, it seems that I’m on the right track. I’m not out of the woods yet, but that 20 miler being out of the way makes me feel better about winding down for a long taper. I’ve only got three weeks to go!
With only three weeks left, I feel relieved and anxious and excited. While I’d love a PR, I haven’t quite put in the same amount of work I have in the past, so we’ll just have to hope for the best and see what happens.