Marathon Weekend Part III

My surprise was when we got to the car, I was sitting in the back seat with my sister and mom when Ryan asked me to reach into the seat pocket to get a CD. I thought that was kind of weird but I did and found a little gift-wrapped box! I opened it up and inside was a white gold 26.2 necklace with the point made out of a diamond! Ryan had gotten it special ordered for me and it couldn't have been more thoughtful! I truly appreciate all the support he has given me throughout the entire training period and I couldn't have done it without him.

We did end up going to Red Robin for burgers. I got a chocolate milkshake which I NEVER get and proceeded to drink the whole thing. I truly wasn't that hungry for my burger when it came which I was very surprised by. We ran into Karrie and her family at Red Robin as well!

Then we headed home. I didn't jump in the shower right away as I thought I would. Instead my family and I sat out on the deck and enjoyed the beautiful day. I wasn't really all that sore right then, just weird things hurt like my joints and my back. My sister Kate highlighted my hair, I showered and then she cut it--a salon right in my own house! I proudly put on my "This little piggy..." t-shirt with my black sweatpants and proceeded to hunker down. My parents had also gotten me a beautiful silver necklace from Silpada, just like the one I had gotten my bridesmaids for my wedding last spring!

We had tentative plans to go to the Montgomery Inn but I couldn't bear to leave the house so Ryan got pizza from Aponte's and we had that along with some leftover apple crisp. I went to bed around 9 and proceeded to have a terrible sleep which I did not expect at all. My legs were restless and sore and I just wasn't feeling tired at all.

I woke up around 7 on Monday morning (I had taken the day off of work!) because I didn't want to miss spending time with my family. We went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast but I just wasn't feeling that hungry. In fact, this is how I pretty much felt for the first three days after the race: lethargic, no appetite, and flu-like. When people asked how I was feeling I replied, "Like I've been in a car wreck and I have the flu." My legs weren't particularly sore themselves and I wasn't having as much trouble with stairs like everyone said I would, I just didn't feel like myself. I felt drained.

I mustered up the energy to play some cornhole with my family to show them a classic Ohio afternoon. Then we drove them to the airport to say goodbye. It was great having them here and I can't thank them enough for all their support.

After they left I began to feel the post-marathon blues that I had read about on some Runner's World magazine discussion boards. I was sad that my time with my parents had passed since I had been looking forward to that for months. I was bummed that this event that had consumed every day of my life for the past four months was now over. I just felt like I had no goal, no purpose...

Luckily for myself and for my readers (if there are any!) I am going to start training for the Chicago marathon soon. I have officially not run at all since the marathon (about 2 1/2 weeks now) and am planning to get out and start either next week or the week after (school will be out in one more week and I will have the cooler mornings to get out). The official Running Spot training group begins in July. I am really looking forward to it and hope that with it being the second time around, being a bit more serious with my training from the start and the fact that it's a flat marathon I can shave some time off and get closer to the 4:30 time.

I now know that I can complete a marathon. I know that I can run 26.2 miles. Oddly, that is not enough. I want to do more. I will never be anything close to an elite runner but I will continue to run. I just felt much more calm and centered during my training. I am looking forward to continuing to run, improving my speed, and being a part of the running community. I mean I can't stop now--I have invested all that money into clothes and a case of Gu and running shoes and registration for Chicago and a hotel for Chicago and my foot pod and hydration belt and fuel belt and Runner's World magazine and several books...
Plus, it just feels good.