I should probably write a proper post on what running has been like for the last four (FOUR!) years, but my head is spinning with ideas after my third Boston, and fifth marathon, last week. So here we go!
I didn't realize how spoiled I was with my first marathon (Marine Corps, 10/30/11, 30-45 degrees, after having trained in the summer in 80 degrees.) I hoped to break 4 hours and easily ran a 3:47. I was hooked. I came out thinking that I'd had a plan, did what I was supposed to, and that my effort had paid off. Boy, this could be fun. Easy peasy, right?
I immediately got injured.
It took me 3 months to give in and go see a doctor, and within 3 weeks of an easy-to-fix, you-silly-goose, IT band diagnosis and proper stretching and core strengthening, I was as good as new! - and that much better prepared to take on Boston. (And a bit lighter too, with all the money I'd spent on doctors and equally painful deductibles.)
Then Boston was 87 degrees. I was so sick after that I couldn't eat or drink for 8 hours. I was angry that I'd spent all that money and joined a track club and did TWO MILE REPEATS like it was nobody's business, to then have it be 87. Looking back, I should have been thrilled with my 4:22 in 87 degrees.
The next marathon I ran came post-Zoe. Because when you've moved, changed jobs, and put your kid in daycare for the first time, why not run a marathon 300 miles away as well? Needless to say I didn't have much time to train for Philadelphia (November 2014, 35-45 degrees) and went in with no expectations. At the starting line, I was just glad that it was time to move on with my life. I ran a 3:59, bought a t-shirt, had a cheeseburger and beer, drove home and played with Zoe, and went to school the next day. A 3:59 with little training?! Ok. This might be fun again.
Running is all about the community and I was lucky enough to work with the one and only Mr. Jannetti, who told me all about the marvels of Merrimack Valley Striders. I was eager to get my feet on the ground (HA!) in a new community and get involved with a running club closer to home. I signed up for their winter track session and was offered the opportunity to fundraise for a non-profit private school in Lawrence, via the Striders, in exchange for a Boston bib number. Nervous about fundraising, I accepted the challenge. Because I didn't have time to run in the fall, so clearly things would be different this time, right-- Until you experience your kid's first winter in daycare...
3 stomach bugs x 4 people at our house = 12 stomach bugs, 82385 ear infections, 3 ER visits (2 for Zoe, 1 for me), 2 bouts of croup, and pneumonia for me 2 weeks before the race later, on came Boston 2015. (45 degrees and raining.)
The last thing I wanted was to feel sick again at the end of Boston like I had in 2012, so I took it easy. I didn't care at all what my time was. I sat on the bus in Athlete's Village giggling about how I hadn't slept in days. My dad made comments about understanding if I didn't want to do it, or didn't want to finish. I thought, "Are you kidding?!" I just wanted to have fun. IT. WAS. AWESOME.
I ran a 4:09, hopped back on the MVS bus, drove home to play with Zoe as Jon greeted me by telling me he was coming down with another stomach bug, and went back out to an MVS party to wrap up some fundraising I needed to do. I had faked it again. Boy that was fun. Let's do it again!
Jon had student teaching in the fall so I planned to wait until the spring to do another marathon. I did the Newburyport Half (50 degrees in October) and happily ran a 1:47. Though Newburyport's course is far easier than Boston, a race calculator predicted a marathon time of 3:43. Hm, this could be fun.
I was super fortunate to get another Boston bib through MVS, set a training schedule, and I stuck to it pretty well. I ran about 4 days a week, always around 30 miles, which I know is not really enough to get me into the next tier of running. But I was consistent, ran hard, ran hills and tempos and yassos, and stayed (mostly) injury free. And healthy. Life was so much easier with Zoe not in daycare and actually sleeping through the night. I was hungry to break 4 hours at Boston and secretly hoped to get close to my MCM time of 3:47.
With a forecast of 60-70 degrees on race day, I set out just to break 4 hours (a 9:09 pace, after having trained easily, consistently on long runs at an 8:56 pace in 35 degrees.) In my head, I could hear my coach saying to take it easy at the start of Boston because of the vicious downhill "start" (basically until mile 14) that will otherwise wreck your quads. I ignored it, thinking on my past Boston experiences and how my legs didn't hurt at all, and almost immediately regretted it. My legs were exhausted by mile 5. My legs have never been tired in a marathon before mile 20.
I thought, eh, how bad can it be? And kept pushing, thinking I would just push through the pain and use the crowds to bring me to that sub-4:00 finish. I was on pace until about mile 17 and by the 30K at mile 18.6, I knew it was out of sight. I got a 4:10. I swore off running in a series of 4-letter words. I'd worked so hard all winter and was healthy and sure, the temperature was higher but what the heck? How had I run 45 seconds faster the year before without training?? (I went out too fast. I know this now. But still.)
I hobbled to the bus, choking back nausea, and passed out in my seat. As soon as my WONDERFUL, AMAZING friend Louise got me home, I puked. A lot. Jon patted me on the back as I told him I was not doing any more marathons from now on. This was stupid. "Ok," he said, smirking. "I've heard this before. You'll change your mind tomorrow."
I changed my mind over some pizza a few hours later.
I'd thought marathon running was supposed to have your input equal your output. High input should equal high rewards output. Little input generates low expectations, which conveniently means your performance will likely exceed your expectations. But as I began to itch for a do-over, I realized that input/output is actually not what the marathon is about.
It's about consistent effort over long periods of time. It's about being able to set measurable goals for yourself. It's about discovering challenges- mental, physical, family, job-related- and new ways to overcome them. It's about pushing through when the conditions aren't perfect. It's about exposing yourself to the unpredictable and being ok with that vulnerability. It's about learning to persevere in the face of adversity, in whatever form(s) that may come. I thought I'd faked Philadelphia in 2014 and Boston in 2015, but I see more clearly now after 5 marathons with a wide range of finish lines, that this is all part of the marathon experience.
Training my body and mind to face adversity is something I can get on board with, and I want Zoe to find ANY life experience that lets her do the same. (Her shirt here from the finish line at the 2016 Expo says "Chase Your Dreams".)
So, when's the next one?
Vermont City with Casey on Sunday 5/29!! (Speaking of adversity- Casey is one amazing person, training for a marathon with two little ones under the age of four while her equally amazing husband is deployed overseas. She's incredible.) Wooo #6 for both of us!!! <3
Happy running, people :D
