Finishing my first Boston Marathon
It’s been two weeks since I ran my first Boston Marathon. When I think back it still seems surreal to me that I crossed the finish line. Since then when asked how it was my answer is consistent. It was the best and hardest thing, and I get goose bumps on this part, there is nothing like taking the right on Hereford and left on Boylston with all the people cheering for you like you are a rockstar. A lot happened on the way to the finish line and I wouldn’t change any of it. Even the hard parts. Each part was meant to be a part of my first Boston. Yes, it was hot. Yes, I cried when I saw the Citgo sign. Yes, there was some walking in the final 10k. Yes, there were moments where I was going down and then the crowd picked me back up. No, I didn’t go out too fast (I took this advice to heart). And the one thing that never crossed my mind, with each step I took, was not finishing. I knew even in the hard moments that I would finish that race. Since that day I have thought a lot about the following quote:
The only bad race is one you don’t learn something from. – Mark Allen, six-time Ironman Triathlon World Champion
One thing I know for sure, I definitely learned something from this marathon. I learned from the entire journey, from each day of training all the way to the finish and the recovery period after. Here are some of my top learning moments from Marathon Monday:
- I couldn’t have done it alone. My family supporting me through my training on the long days, the good days, the bad days and the days where there was napping. My coaches Bj and Jess of Yogitriathlete for both mental and physical guidance in training and life. My Crossfit Woodshed trainers and friends. My awesome running community which includes the Squannies, Oiselle Volée, Heartbreak Hill Run Co (for the supported long runs on the marathon course), everyone on the course cheering, high fiving, hugging, handing out water, ice, orange slices. Also add in my PT Emily, my chiropractors Dr. Deb and Dr. Barry, massage therapist Shirley, and InsideTracker for helping me get to that start line.
- Be flexible. Plans change. This was my first marathon in 22 years. My goal. Finish. My second goal. Qualify. When it was hotter than expected and I was unable to crank it up the second half of the course, I took a moment to breathe and then continued taking each step, staying present, taking high fives from as many people as I could. I smiled. And I stopped looking at my watch (thanks coach). I told Bj on the phone a couple days before the marathon that I didn’t want the goal of trying to qualify to take away from the fact that I was running the Boston Marathon. I didn’t want to finish and realize I had been so caught up in my race time that I missed all the greatest parts of the experience. Plus it takes energy to get frustrated and pissed and I needed everything to get to that finish line.
- Fueling for the long run is an art form. I believe this for running too but especially for fueling. I still have work to do on this. If I could, I would run with nothing. No gels, no water bottles. NOTHING. This is one of my biggest lessons I am still working on, what the heck works for me. Overall, my fueling went pretty well. Luckily nothing made me sick or gave me any GI issues. So that’s the good thing. It’s the time it takes. I know I need to take in calories and electrolytes to replace what my body is using and so I don’t crash and burn. I’m going to be honest though. I hate it. It takes energy which is funny because I need the fuel for energy. It takes the simple out of running for me. I love running distance, therefore I need to take in fuel. What took me time was opening the zipper of my Spibelt to get my gels and NUUN tablets. Also, opening my water bottles to refill and add the NUUN. So this was my long way of saying, for me, fueling still needs some practice.
- It’s ok to walk. In the last 10k, my right knee started locking up. I took a few 30 second walking breaks. This really helped me not only physically but mentally as well. This was definitely a place where the cheering crowd got me through. I smiled and said thank you to every single person that told me I could do this.
- Look around and stay in the moment. This race I really worked on this one. One of my goals, as I mentioned above, was to take it all in and remember as many of the details that I could. Otherwise I would have missed the Sweet Caroline sing alongs just when you needed it, my friends and family at various miles on the course, my fellow Oiselle Volée birds yelling my name, my friend Kelly I haven’t seen for a few years, Brogan Graham, co-founder of November Project, giving me a high five around mile 18, Dave and his wife yelling my name on Beacon Street, a co-worker of my husband John who gave me the most awesome tasting ice pop, all the college students giving me high fives and giving me their energy to take with me, looking up ahead and seeing the Citgo sign, the moment of quiet when you run under the underpass on Comm Ave., the amount of people still cheering all those hours later as you take the right on Hereford and left on Boylston, the way my body and legs took over on Boylston to take me to the finish, the moment my foot landed over the finish line, and as I walked through the finish line area and heard my husband John yell my name from the other side of the fencing where I could walk over and get my first congratulatory hug and finally just have a good cry.
Right on Hereford
- Everything feels better after a good nights sleep. After I finished, I got my medal (I cried) and I slowly made my way through the finish area. Luckily, the Squannies (my local running group) gets a hotel room where we can take a shower, change, get a massage, eat and rehydrate (read ice cold beer). So awesome, thank you Squannies. Was so happy when I made it there. It didn’t take long for the full magnitude of the day to hit me. After I cleaned myself up, had my massage and pictures were taken I was ready for bed. I was sore, right knee not doing well and my body both physically and mentally was DONE! I was so happy when John was finally able to get the car to the hotel to pick me up. Yay, John. We drove home (so glad I already took a shower), John grilled me a veggie burger and I went to bed. I remember thinking that I was a little nervous about how I was going to feel the next morning. Especially with John going out of town and me needing to run errands and pack for my trip to Seattle. Fast forward through 10 hours of sleep. The next morning, I got up and slowly stood up. I actually felt pretty good. Was able to walk down the stairs (backwards of course) and make that first awesome tasting cup of coffee. I was able to do everything I needed throughout the day and it was good for my body to move around to get that lactic acid moving. Oh glorious sleep, thank you!
- Recovery and rest as important as training. The first couple days after Boston it was pretty easy to take some much needed time off. As I started to feel better, I thought ok lets get back to it. My thoughts, not my coaches. I traveled to Seattle (planned prior to knowing I would run Boston) two days after and ran a 10k (The Tenacious 10) five days after. I felt great and pushed it a little during that race. Boy did my body let me know after that it needed REST. It takes time for muscles (about 2-4 weeks) to recover after running a marathon. I’m taking rest and my recovery miles seriously. There are good days and days where my body is still fatigued. That’s ok. I know this is part of the journey and my body will be back to my normal level of training soon to go after my next goal. My family will definitely be happy when I’m back at it too. There may be moments during this rest time where I may be a little cranky.
I’m sure there were a few more things I’ll remember as time goes on, but these are definitely at the top of my list.
My official time for the marathon was 4:51:22. By April 19th I had signed up for a September marathon to continue reaching for my goal of qualifying for Boston. My first marathon in years didn’t knock me down. My first goal was accomplished. I took in the entire experience from number pick up all the way through the finish line. Now it’s time to go after that second goal.