I ran my first marathon on Sunday, November 13. It was at the Outer Banks and went from Kitty Hawk to Kill Devil Hills to Nags Head to Manteo. The weather was on the warm side, but absolutely gorgeous. I've enjoyed great weather during each of my races there. I tried to distance myself mentally to keep from being nervous. It worked. My plan, which I stuck to, involved using a beeping timer. I alternated one minute walking to one minute running. This method did a great job of conserving my energy level. I saw Jockey's Ridge, Kitty Hawk and Nags Head Woods and the Wright Brothers memorial. My knee started hurting pretty early, but I kept pushing on. I am now dealing with a slighly swollen knee, but it was worth it. Go ahead, think that I'm crazy. All runners are. I did stop at several medic tents. I dealt with it for a little while before getting it taken care of. I got it wrapped and used Biofreeze gel several times. Although the one/one pattern of running and walking wasn't fast, it worked wonderfully. In the future, I can increase the number of minutes spent running. I was surprised at how fast the race seemed to go. All of the supporters, friends and strangers, were a welcome sight. There was a person in a shark suit. Last year, I hugged whomever that was. One of the most welcome sights was a fellow runner from Oakmont Runners for Bo. I saw Craig not long before mile 26. He hung with me until the last mile marker. When I saw the finishing arch, I booked it. My knee just didn't matter anymore. Right before I saw Craig, I chatted a bit with a lady from Raleigh. I mentioned that I just wanted to say some really bad things...long races and knee pain, well, I had some choice language in mind. I definitely plan on running another one. Right now, I want to run the OBX marathon next year. If you think that you could never do it, think again. Before I considered running, I would've never imagined conquering the things that I have. Here's a touch of irony...maybe that's the right word. Yesterday, I saw a number of people running on the way home. I thought, darn it, I would love to be one of them right now. Then I saw a movie; two of the characters ran in a 5k. I've never said that I love running, but knowing that I can't just makes me want to. Ready or not, I'm competing in an 8k on Thanksgiving...try and stop me. ;) On December 4, I am running in a local 10-miler. Other than that, I'm going to take it easy on the running and exercise. I plan to do some swimming and pool running to keep my endurance up.
Sounds like you had a similar problem as I did in my first half with the knee pain. Mine started around mile 8. For the full marathon, I had to run a mile, walk a half and it took FOREVER. Sometimes I could run a little more and walk a little less but the knee pain was insane. So glad you finished it! When I crossed the finish line I think the first thing I said was "I would TOTALLY do that again!!" Sounds like you had the same experience!
ReplyDelete