Chicago Marathon: Reflections

I really wanted to spend some time writing about how much the marathon meant to me, comparing Chicago to Flying Pig, etc. It's just not going to happen for awhile, though. Work has gone from 0 to 100mph, and I only have four days in the office this week before leaving for International Contest for my chorus and quartet (a full week trip). 

So, here's the unedited, unrevised mind ramblings version:

CROSSING THE FINISH LINE

I'm really, really proud of myself. Not just for my finish time, but my dedication to my training this cycle and, more than that, my ability to keep my eyes on the prize during the race. There were so many times I wanted to stop and walk, and the thought that this was my one shot at the marathon, that I'd put in too much effort and spend too much time training to not give it my absolute all was able to keep me going. That right there is the best thing I've gotten from distance running: the ability to recgonize when I truly can't do something, and when I'm just letting my mind get the best of me... and overcoming it.

I did four "new things on race day" (major no-no), but they all, fortunately, worked out for me:

1) wore arm-sleeves, and they were PERFECT. I had all the freedom and coolness of my typical singlet, but some defense from Chicago's wicked winds during the skyscraper parts of the course
2) ate Starbucks banana bread for breakfast: was too lazy to get milk and a spoon for my Cheerios, but my stomach agreed with me
3) tried the Gatorade Endurance lemon-line stuff on-course: it was disgusting, so I did half and half with water, just for the electrolytes
4) ate a salt packet during the race: after giving myself hyponatremia at my first marathon, I decided to be extra cautious on this one and literally pour salt into my mouth while I ran; not sure it did anything, but it gave me a little piece of mind

It took all the energy I had to smile for this picture.

After I finished the race (sprinting across the finish line at a 7:22/mi), I was done. I was almost as done as I'd been after my PR at the Braves 5K. Unlike Braves, though, I didn't have any support at the finish line of Chicago. Instead, I had tons of volunteers telling us to keep moving. I didn't want to walk one more step. I wanted to stop and stretch, or at least have someone's arm to grab and lean on, but no one was there. Everyone was down at the family meeting spot, which, I didn't know at the time, was almost two miles away. OOF. 

the difference between marathons, both photos taken around m20

I spent a lot of time on the ground once I made it to the meeting spot. The mylar finisher blankets were perfect for spreading on the grass and sitting down for a good stretch and ice. Chi had apples, bananas, a bag of carb-ish stuff, and bags of ice for all the finishers after passing the traditional medals and water bottle handout. They also had beer, but I really didn't want the stress of having to walk with an open container that needed to be held upright (yeah, even THAT was too much work).

small reunion of a few ATC MARATHONERS

It was hard for me to stand up immediately after the marathon, but I was able to walk back to the train without any trouble, shower, and then get back out and walk to dinner, to the hotel, up stairs to the bathroom, and even out to the Bean for some pictures and back. I'm so amazed by this. After Flying Pig, I was driven back to our condo, and spent the next eight hours throwing up, sleeping, licking salt out of Jerry's hand, or, when things improved, sitting up in bed staring at a wall thinking about how sore everything was. HUGE improvement.

marathoner brunch... at 3pm lol

While I was starving at lunch and devoured everything on my plate (and some others'), I had a hard time eating dinner. Jerry and I bought Panera on our way back from the Bean, but I was only able to eat about half of my mac and cheese. Fortunately, we had the foresight to buy some chocolate milk at the CVS near our hotel, and I was able to drink most of my replinishment calories without much trouble. 

to the bean!

As soon as I closed my eyes for the night, my body and mind felt like we were right back on the course, running again, desperately searching for that blue tangent line, to minimize the distance we had to cover before the finish line. I guess when you do something for over four hours straight, you're kind of programmed for it, because I remember the exact same sensation when I finished Flying Pig, too. Haha. 

Despite being exhausted, I slept poorly after the marathon. I remember dreaming about walking through the grass of the finish area with Brandi, Jerry, and her boyfriend, and, as they effortlessly scaled a small grassy knoll, I decided I'd had enough and crumpled to the ground in a pile of oof. I woke up a lot and had trouble getting back to sleep. I even wound up getting out of bed around 4am to go get some ice for my pelvic area/lower abs (same area that gave me trouble during pregnant running and into postpartum as well). 

On Monday, getting up and down from a seated position was a little rough, but I was totally fine for walking. My calves were a little sore on stair descents, but, apart from that, I felt totally fine. 

What's next? Who cares! I'm really loving this not running thing right now. I did a super easy 5K run (and 5K walk) to get #10KTuesday done (#itsathing), but, other than that, it's been great to just chill. My main focus right now is trying to reset my eating habits since I'm no longer running 40+ miles a week, and really don't want to gain back any weight (I somehow managed to lose a few pounds during marathon training-- also WAY different than Flying Pig, where I gained about 8). I've been eating like crap this week so far, and think the "I just ran a marathon" excuse probably expired on Tuesday. :P