I feel weird saying this. But, I'm not as upset as you may think. Clearly, that is not the race I had trained for. While I am bummed I didn't go sub 2:55, I'm more bummed that we had horrible race conditions. That, I can't control. If we had 40 degrees and a tailwind and I ran the same time I would be sick to my stomach!
I can't say thank you enough for your support. Every mat I crossed I thought of all of you. I knew Pete in Japan had set his alarm clock to see my finish. I knew my Mom was my social media director. I knew Joey was biting his lip after my 15k split and crossing his fingers. I knew the teachers at my kid's school had the tracking projected on the board. My sister did the same in her own classroom. I am and was beyond honored that you care.
But SHIT it was miserable. It came down to logical reasoning for me. The rain, wind and cold took me out mentally before they did physically. I knew when it was pouring sideways at 9am with a 20+mph headwind it was going to be tough. I have never even tempo'd 6 miles with any degree of success in wind half as strong. So, I approached the start with a slightly defeated but optimistic attitude. I would will the conditions away. Draft. Focus.
That technique lasted about 10 miles. I was screwing my head into the wind at times. Trying to fight it. I took other measures to conserve energy. I kept my arm swing minimal and tight. I didn't hammer any of the uphills. When the wind would break I tried to stride my split time down. This wasn't working. At the half I knew I was done. I couldn't push any harder. I'm 100 pounds. The wind was strong. My clothes and shoes were soaked. I couldn't even see at times because the rain was so blinding.
I tried to run the rest of the race as best I could. I wanted to stay strong and kept hope that the conditions would change. That is a tough agenda when you know every footstep is off goal. Then, on top of that the weather became worse as I approached Boston. I was laughing at times in disbelief. Was this really happening?!
The pace felt moderate. But the effort was sub marathon pace. It was a messed up feeling. How could I be running so slow but giving so much?
I stopped looking at my watch after 2 hours. It was depressing. But it's BOSTON! I mean, there was no boohoo'ing. The fans were out in full force. I was running the race most runner's dream about. I wasn't going to be a little bitch because I was wrecking my Sub-3 streak. I really enjoyed the race despite not running as fast as I wanted. I finished with a smile on my face in 3:02. I'm not defeated. Success is not always linear. I'm probably a little too eager to redeem myself but that's ok.
My plan is to babysit my fitness for a few weeks and do it again! I worked hard for the shape I'm in. I'm not shutting it down and waking up in 5k land in a month. I'm going to recover and try again. I know I can do it.
The Good:
*I feel fine. Not even a blister.
*I'm confident in my training and fitness level.
*Brooks T7 Racers are great marathon shoes.
*I didn't get the hypothermic shakes until the finish line.
* I had loving family standing at the finish line.
*I found the best hairstyle for marathoning! See below.
*I will never stop doing this marathon!
The Bad:
*I'm sitting here and I can't think of anything. I refuse to feel sorry for myself. I'm still healthy, alive and happy! There is no bad. I ran the Boston Marathon for a 3rd time. I am elated to have the privilege.
The Immediate Plan:
Recover this week. Do some easy runs. I'll KNOW what I have. Considering I feel nearly flawless I am planning on another marathon soon. Within the next month. I'm still in the planning stage.
Here are some pics from the weekend. Thanks again guys!! I love you all! XO
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| A joke. I was lost again in Boston... |
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| Pre race wind... |
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| A Boston Sunrise |
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| I saw this in a running magazine. I highly recommend! |
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| The light was right. The kids, not so much! |
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| Every race, forever... |
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| Kathy! |
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| Pre race 5am. |
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| Post race lunch with my finish line dream team |
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| My BFF at the hotel. She helped with train tickets and hair stylists. |
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| 10 seconds post race.10 seconds pre hypothermia |
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| My babies tracking me in school. |
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| Joey and stretching on Tuesday morning. |
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| Can you tell what I did on Monday? If not, I'll tell YOU! |
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| Heading down to the start. |
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| My ONE race photo is sucking air on Heartbreak Hill. The bib is starting to fold... |
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| Finish |
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| Finish |
Thanks for reading! I will keep you posted on plan B. You know I'm not done yet!
Laura
