It's about 10:00 on Sunday night and I've just come home from a long weekend centered on my running in my third Philadelphia Marathon. That's me coming into the finish line in the picture above. I'll cut to the chase and say that of all the marathons I've done, not my best time and not my worst. Same for the three marathons. First time I did it, it was my 2nd marathon so my time was up there. Last year I did it and closed in on 5 hours. This year, 5:30. Given that I had two "interruptions" of about 10 minutes each, I was not at all bummed. More on that below
Another cool part of this marathon is that despite the size of it - it seems to be getting bigger every year (especially this one with another 3,000 NYC Marathon Refugees) - it maintains a lot of hometown feel and personality. The Mayor is there to shake hands. The announcer is great as well and as I was coming in, he was kind enough to read my "Teens Run Yonkers" shirt and tell the crowd that it's a great organization. Bonus.
Anyway, I had so many thoughts - and thought I had the makings of such a clever blog post - you can be the judge of that - that I just immediately came home and hit it.
First, as you may recall from last weeks posts, I was almost going to be sitting this one out. Had some injury which fortunately healed itself. But that almost injury and almost miss, kind of changed my attitude about doing this marathon. First, I decided that 1) I wasn't going to stress about time, hitting a big goal etc. Not that there's anything wrong with going for that. I just felt like if I'm going to be lucky enough to do this, I'm just going to enjoy the ride. 2) In connection with that, I decided I was not going to push it in terms of my feet and my heart (the real one with blood and stuff). I was determined to go out with a good but manageable pace. I had been training my long runs Jeff Galloway style - Run Walk Run Intervals. I was happy with my two 20 milers and felt ready.
So that was the attitude I was going in with. As they say, best laid plans...
This blog would get way too long if I describe the two issues I was managing through. Suffice to say - and some may not like this - that I really "became" a runner today in the sense that I was determined that nothing was going to stop me. That's not to say that someone who complete's their first marathon (if you're reading this and that's you) has just as much - if not more - to be incredibly proud of. I just mean that as someone who's now done 11 of these (and a bunch of half marathons, maybe 10), I did the stuff that I used to hear about "those crazy runners" doing.
With that in mind, I'm compiling a quick list of DO's/DONT's that were a part of my learning today. Granted, you may have read this stuff in runners world or all kinds of columns, but I felt like I lived some of this stuff today. So, here goes
1. DO eat and drink what you typically drink before a long training run. DO eat whatever you typically eat the night before. DO consider the effects coffee may have on you. DON'T try any new pre-race food. DON'T drink coffee or caffeinated beverages before if you usually don't. DON'T get experimental with your pre-race meal.
2. DO use the facilities (cleanest ones you can find within radius) as close to race time and locale as possible. DO use the on-site stuff if you have to. DO bring some money just in case you have to bribe a restaurant or deli owner for use of their facilities.DON'T assume that anything you're feeling pre-race is simply going to go away IT DOESN'T!
I'm not going further on the above - I'm sure you know where I'm going with it
3. DO take the time to be sure you're giving your toes and feet adequate attention while you're training. DO be sure that you're giving any toes or feet that are experiencing pain, proper rest rest and relaxation. DO spend the extra money to buy socks that are supportive and protective. DO carry some bandaids or something to wrap stuff, should you need it. DON'T SKIMP ON SOCKS THINKING THAT SHOES WILL TAKE CARE OF THE WHOLE THING
4. DO take the time to learn what kind of running shoe you need i.e. neutral, stability etc. DO spend the extra money - or better yet buy them on ebay - to buy shoes that fit you're running style. DON'T ASSUME that all shoes are equal - they're not.
5. DO take the time to talk to other runners that are around your pace. Enjoy the moment DO take the time to tell another runner if watching their courage has inspired you to continue despite having some challenges DO spend some time with the music off to appreciate the cheers and encouragement of both your fellow runners and especially the folks that are out there to give you gatorade and water - remember, they do this for you so you can have a great race. DON'T get to the start line, stick the headphone in your ear, run 26.2 miles with no human interaction -what's the point of that?
So if you haven't figured out some of what I managed through, feel free to reach out. I felt like some of it was a bit - well lets just say - not for a wide audience. Much happier providing some ideas than sharing that stuff. Anyway, thrilled to have done another and yes, there will be a 12th in my future. Stay tuned - hope you had a great weekend
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