Marine Corps Marathon

Leading up to race day, I was spending my time trying not to think about the race & it worked!  I wasn't stressed or nervous at all. I was hydrating & food choices had been okay (for the most part).  Dinner the night before the marathon was not the greatest - ice cream with friends followed up with a PB&J sandwich after getting my things ready for the race. I need to plan better & have a smart meal the night before a race. Saturday night I was somewhat hungry when I went to bed which probably wasn't the smartest idea, but it was late & I needed to go to sleep.

I woke up before the alarm clocks & had my standard pre-race food - banana & peanut butter. I had a little extra time, so I used the foam roller  and mixed up my UCAN to drink on the way. As I was gathering my things, everything went to hell in my head.  I was suddenly shaking & nervous about the marathon - full blown anxiety attack. I could barely get myself out the door & on my way to pick everyone up. So much for not worrying. I didn't really calm down until we were leaving the parking garage to head to the start line. I knew I was going to be fine - a little worried about my right knee/quad which had been bothering me since September, but I had done the training & knew that I was going to cross the finish line with a personal best.  Before I knew it we were on 110 at the start line. Time for one last bathroom break & a little warm up run. Dave was there to keep me from freaking out & he saw some friends from the gym and they joined me in the starting corral. It was great to have people there at the start.  Catherine & I were able to run together for the first 5 miles and then she was off & I needed to pull back my pace

otherwise I was going to burn out sooner rather than later. I saw Dave at 5-1/2 miles just like we planned & I headed up Rock Creek Parkway. On the way back, I was able to get water & salt caps from him (thanks Kathryn for sharing!) I was ahead of pace & hoped that I would be able to continue along without problems. I headed off along the river to Haines Point - supposed to be the loniest part of the race. I would say the only worse place is the 14th Street Bridge.  Haines Point was also the halfway point.  My split for 13.1 miles was 2:22:05 (the overall winner of the marathon finished in 2:22:11 - at least I was halfway done in less time than him!)  Once we turned back towards the mall, I started to feel the full effects of the wind.  Kind of hard to miss it when you are running into it! Saw Dave again at mile 15 and my quad was starting to tighten up. Of course, as I type this, I realize that I should have focused on lengthening my stride as I did on training runs to help loosen it up, but I completely forgot about that! Mile 16 brought some familiar faces - Diane & Deb were there cheering & it was great to see them because I was out of water & got a quick shot of tea which gave me a boost. At 17, I got some more salt from Dave & water.  Turned out this would be the last time I saw him since we missed each other at 19.5 - there were so many people on the way out to the bridge, it was tough to find anyone.  I was finally at the 14th Street Bridge.  2 weeks earlier, I was able to run the entire thing & I was determined to make it across.  The wind was whipping & I nearly lost my sunglasses & visor.  I finally made it over the bridge and did a little walking as I approached the exit ramp.  I was hurting - I had no fluids & needed something to pick me up.  Around the corner, there was water & gatorade, so I filled up.  Then oranges - best thing ever!  I had them at two spots along the course along with beer.  I passed up the donut holes & most of the candy, but the oranges & beer did the trick.  The last four miles of the marathon were tough - there was
walking, there was running, there was praying, but at no point did I let myself feel sorry or think about quitting. I would surge for a little bit and then pull back the pace.  I would step off to the side to stretch the quad, but I would keep running (not fast mind you!) Once I turned off 110 and had only the hill to climb, I gave it my all, there was no way I was going to walk up that hill. I probably looked miserable and it hurt like hell to lift my legs, but I did it.  I finished with a time of 5:10:16. It was an improvement over my previous marathon by one hour & forty-four minutes. I didn't want to wait for an official finisher's pic, so I had someone snap one on my phone.  Maybe one day soon I will head back to the Iwo Jima memorial to do another picture. 

When I did my first marathon 15 years ago, it was not fun.  I didn't know anyone other than my teammates. Yesterday was awesome - I enjoyed every minute even when my body was yelling at me to stop, I was having fun. So proud that I stuck with my training & saw this through to completion.  Mel 2.0 is such an improvement. My body is tired, but my heart is happy.  Now off to recover my legs for the Richmond Half Marathon on Nov 15th!

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Notes/things to work on:

Need to follow the plan - going out too fast will lead to problems later in the race - conserve energy
Nutrition - need to find stuff that works for me since I don't handle gels well - need to try more types during training; maybe try UCAN during the run?
Once you start to walk it is really hard to stop yourself from doing it again. 
Good music can make all the difference in the world (this tune helped me through the last few miles)
Need to drop weight in the off season - running at my current weight is putting too much pressure on my knees
Knowing people are there for you makes it more fun & gives you something to look forward to throughout the race