I did it! I did it! Oooooooowww

Today I woke up at 6 am and drove to Harrisburg on the coldest day of the year wearing a pair of shorts, carefully selected thin layers of shirts, and my running shoes.

It was 26 degrees when I left the car.

I then ran the Harrisburg Marathon, finishing the 26.2 mile course in 3 hours 58 minutes and 37 seconds.

This was my fourth marathon and through the previous three it has been my stated goal to break four hours. I didn’t give myself much chance this morning of doing it since I was just getting over a cold.

I encounted what I encountered on previous marathons. While I still felt like I had fuel in the tank and a revving engine, my wheels came off. This time it didn’t happen until mile 23.

Then my legs just stopped working. I used the fact that I was sinking in the ground from the sudden inability to straighten my legs as an excuse to sit down. I gave myself one minute, and figured that while I was there I might as well attend to something else that was bothering. I removed my shoe and a bloody sock. Loose in my sock, bouncing around and irritating the wound on my pinkie toe was my pinkie toenal. I discarded this, put my sock and shoe on and continued running on willpower alone. My legs truly did not want to function.

But it was only 3 miles, then 2, then 1, and then I was done.

Broke four hours. Yaaay for me!

This may not seem like a big goal for you, but breaking 4 hours in a marathon has been a goal of mine four 3 years, and a goal that has consumed at least an hour of my day every day for this time period.

I find something transcendant in running a marathon. At some point in those four hours of exhausting painful effort, you find yourself staring into the abyss. The abyss stares into you, and the question is whether you are going to blink or persevere.

While I’m proud, I’m also a little melancholy about having reached my goal.

I’m sure I’m going to continue running. It’s good for me, and I’ll probably do more marathons. But it will be recreation, a personal goal. Just fun.
BTW: I am very sore right now.

Awesome, simply awesome.

One thing I would change - keeping the pinkie toenail as a keepsake, for you or your offspring.

Otherwise, I salute you.

And a big 'ol Texas HELL YEAH to you, Scylla! Congratulations! Now pick your next goal and conquer it as well.

My personal goal is to make it out of this weekend without putting my 6 & 8 yr old sons and my husband into permanent timeout. A marathon, hmm - that sounds good…

Ow. Owowowowowowow. GAH.

Congratulations.

Good to hear, Scylla. It’s been a while since you ran one, hasn’t it?

I biked to work last week, but that was only 6 miles.

TERRIFIC!!! Don’t worry about the lack of motivation,thats normal after reaching a big goal. Just focus on recovery and it will all come back. Next stop,Boston!!!

I’m kind of surprised about how deeply the soreness has set in. After last years’ marathon I ran five miles the next day.

Today I have that real deep muscle soreness in my upper legs, and they still feel like rubber.

Worse though is my left ankle. It felt fine yesterday, but all through today it’s been growing more painful. It hurts about an inch lower from the outside point of the ankle and just a hair towards the front. Rather than a soreness, it’s a real sharp jagged pain that only comes when I put weight on it, but when I do it feels like piece of broken glass grinding in there.

It’s got me a little worried.

Let’s see, what else? The muscle soreness is probably partially due to having gotten over a cold a few days before the race. My nipples are pretty chafed and sore from my shirt rubbing, but that’s it.

Um, I believe you’re supposed to put band-aids over your nipples before running a marathon (how’s that for TMI?)

You should get the ankle checked out ASAP, and while you’re at the doc ask for some pain meds.

You the man!

Congrats, and FWIW-I agree with Blonde. Your description could be crepitation, if indeed you’ve suffered a stress fracture. Get thee to a Doctor, man.

Congratulations on achieving your goal! Now, off to a doctor for a checkup. Couldn’t hurt.

YES!!! In your honor I will now go and have a little carbohydrate festival. :smiley:

That’s terrific, really!