Monday, November 18, 2013

Philadelphia Marathon Finisher

My alarm went off at 3:30 am on Sunday, November 17th, 2013. When it went off, my first thought was, "why in the world did I decide to do this?" I got out of bed, sleepily scrambled to get things together, and grumpily made my way to the car in my trash bag to stay warm. My sister was excited, and my husband was more than kind and supportive considering what he was doing and about to do just to be there for us. He even walked us all the way up to the corrals and watched us go in just to make sure we got where we were supposed to be without a hitch up to that point.

It was cold. Don't get me wrong, I know it could have been FAR worse for late November in Philadelphia, but it was what I had to deal with at the time, and it didn't feel great while it was happening. I asked Grace if would be a big deal if I just went back to the car to wait with Matt while she ran. I was only mostly serious... I was so scared standing around in the cold knowing that there were hours and miles standing between me and a warm shower. We wandered around looking for a warm place to wait, and we ended up running into two customers from the running store that I work at, and we talked to them for a bit, which took my mind off my impending doom.


As we waited around in a starting corral to run, I was both nervous and excited. We had agreed that we would each run at our own pace since neither of us was really trained and ready. As we passed the starting line, Grace turned around, tapped my bib, and said, "remember why." And we were off. I decided at that moment that I would need to just settle into a slow, barely-jogging 12 minute pace. I said to myself, "I can do this all day if I just stay at this pace." Then within the first 3 miles, I managed to pause my Garmin without realizing it, and break my headphones. Yep. That's Michelle Style. I didn't let it get to me though. I just turned my watch back on, stuck the earbud that I managed to fix in my ear, and I just tried to run at my own slow pace.

The first 8 miles were gravy. I felt great the whole way. Between 8 an 13, things got a little rougher because the lines for the porta-potties were so long, and I didn't want to wait for them to open up. I was straight up walking by the time I got to mile 14. I stopped for a bathroom break again once I found some without a line that weren't overflowing...which yes, some of them that I stopped to check were. And I walked the next two miles, and caught up with Matt during that time who walked with me for a bit. Around mile 19, I started crying as I saw my sister on the opposite side of the out-and-back portion of the course. We stopped to hug and congratulate each other on making it as far as we had and that point and reassure each other that we were going to finish.

When I hit mile 22, everything went downhill for me. I thought, I only have 4 miles left. That's nothing. But the pain in my legs was intense. My hips were aching so much that I wasn't sure I could put the force of attempting to jog on them anymore. Two things went through my mind at that point: 1) I can never have children because this is pain is probably my physical threshold. 2) I can't even imagine how much pain my grandma was in, and I felt for her more than I ever had before. My brother Joe called me just as I passed the 25 mile marker, that gave me the push to pick up speed slightly as Matt joined me to jog the next half mile before he sent me on my way to finish.

As I entered the finishing area, the announcer asked me what my bib was about, and I told him I was running in memory of my Grandma. He made an announcement about my grandma and reminded people that all of us have someone in our lives who inspire us, and it is great to remember those people. Just before I crossed the finish line, Mayor Nutter high-fived me and gave me a big hug as the tears were pouring out, and told me great job, your grandma is thankful and proud. Grace was waiting for me in the finishing area, and with tears in our eyes, we hugged and laughed, and cried a little bit more, and then hobbled our way down to take pictures and get food.

We made it. It was hard. I wasn't sure if I was going to make it at some points, but I finished. It took me FOREVER, but I made it. I am not sure yet if I will attempt another one in the future, but I know that I was nowhere near ready for this distance when I stepped out on the course, but I raised money with the help of several very generous friends and family members, and I made it to the finish line of a marathon before my 26th birthday and one year marking of my grandma's passing. In the end, the time doesn't matter. I accomplished all of the important goals. Thank you so much to every person who has supported me during the last 6 months as I trained, complained, quit training, complained some more, and went through a roller coaster that leads up to a marathon. I appreciate every single one of you!


5 comments:

  1. So proud of you!!!!!! I knew you could do it! :) I bet you're feeling SO wonderful! :)

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    1. Thanks! Though I'd probably go with sore rather than wonderful! Hahaha

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    2. PS Get ready cause you're next!!

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  2. So proud of you! This is awesome! (I may have cried reading this...) Whether you do it again, know that this is something most people can't say they have done! You are awesome girl!

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    1. Thanks for all your encouragement throughout this time! I know I haven't always found the time to write back, but I SERIOUSLY appreciate it!

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