So You Think I Can Run a Marathon?

A few people have asked me about my participation in the Einstein Marathon. My training was fairly limited so I wasn’t even certain that I could finish; if I would finish I expected it to take me nearly 5 hours. I expected to not be able to walk, talk, eat, or breath if and when I finished, not to mention the problems with climbing stairs.

I am pleased to report that the run went better than I expected. I started by pacing myself a little bit behind the 4:30 pacesetter but it turned out that this was really slow. Within the first 17 km or so I had caught up to and passed the 4:00 pacesetter. This was nearer to my comfortable pace.

At about 21 km it started to rain hard. There had been some coolness and light rain before, which was fine, but at this part of the race it was raining hard enough that my shoes started “squishing”. The next five kilometres were rather unpleasant because of that.

I remember seeing the 28 km sign and thinking “this is further than I have ever run in my entire life”. That was neat. Some months ago, before the Alpencross, I ran about 27 km (maybe a bit more) and had extreme difficulty beginning at the 23 or 24 km mark. This was part of the reason I was discouraged leading into the marathon. At 28 km I still felt quite fine.

In the early 30s I was beginning to feel the difficulty of running the marathon. I can remember taking note of the km markers a little bit more at this time. But I still continued on, likely at a slower pace, until my ultimate challenge of the day: kilometre 39.

At kilometre 39 I felt like I was going to pass out. It was an overwhelming feeling that had me start walking in order to save myself. I remember thinking that I could probably walk the rest of the way and still finish in under 5 hours; thankfully that wasn’t necessary. I did walk to the next supply station, where I had some cola, banana pieces, a fruit bar, and some water. This seemed to help me recover so that I could run for the remainder of the race.

I finished the marathon in 4:04:46. This was better than the 5 hour time I anticipated, so I was quite pleased. I fuelled up with an isotonic beverage, some GORP, and some apple slices. I wasn’t actually that hungry at the end of the race, nor was I that cold, nor was I feeling dehydrated. In all, I felt pretty good, though my legs were a bit stiff.

I had an amazing support team help me with my things, finding my way around, interacting with race staff, etc. It made things really easy for me–all I had to do was run–and was greatly appreciated. After the race we sat on a rooftop patio and had an excellent meal, with beautiful weather, and a perfect view of the Ulmer Münster. I repeated many times that this was really great, and I really meant it.

Have you ever wondered what it feels like after running a marathon? Well, you have probably lifted weights at least once in your life. When you lift weights you often do so to the point where you cannot lift anymore–your spotter will give you the small help you need to finish the final rep. This final rep feeling is exactly what I had for the first 48 hours after finishing. To sit down I needed to use my arms for help. To stand up, I needed to use my arms for help. I held onto the banister when going up or down stairs. I loathed anything that was placed on the floor that I had to pick up.

Particularly interesting was getting out of bed the day after the marathon. After laying for hours my legs were not used to bearing the weight of my body, and around my bed I have no handles I could grab to help me up. I had to go with an “interesting angular” approach, as my legs were incapable of being bent and bear weight. It was actually kind of hilarious and fun.

Now, at Thursday, I would say I am fully recovered, though even yesterday I was feeling well good enough to run. (Time prevented me from doing so.) The sun is out and shining and the forecast looks good for this weekend. I feel great.