wanderunner

Back in July, I ran the San Francisco Marathon! This was the first marathon I ever ran and it will definitely not be my last. It was super fun but also one of the HARDEST things I’ve ever done. I remember feeling towards the end like my legs were literal bricks, and I didn’t think I could move anymore but I somehow kept running. Nonetheless, it was an amazing experience and I was so grateful to have Jason and my mom there supporting me. So let’s get into it.

For my training, I followed a plan I found online for about a 4 hour marathon. I started around March (with a 1-2 week pause due to a toe injury because I’m clumsy), and the race was on July 23rd. I didn’t want to punish myself too hard in my training, since I was still working as a full time teacher and track coach and regularly clocking 10-12 hour days on my feet. I picked a plan that was fairly doable for me, and definitely didn’t adhere to it very strictly. I think the plan was wanting me to do a 22 miler at some point, and my longest run ended up being 18. I found those super long runs to be grueeellling, and it made me wish I had someone to run those with (hint hint Jason?! ;))

Anyway… training went well and by the morning of the race I was super excited and definitely felt ready. I knew I was going to finish but I had no idea how long it would take me. I had never run farther than 18 miles in my life at that point (and that 18 miler included many stops lol).

For breakfast I had oatmeal (best pre run food but I never have time to make it) and a banana that I picked up at Whole Foods the night before!

I was planning on giving my shirt to Jason at some point during the beginning of the race (I think I took it off around mile 3 lol) but I was so zoned in I didn’t even see him or my mom until mile 20. He later showed me videos to prove he found multiple points along the course to spectate before that. I honestly didn’t realize how unaware I am of my surroundings when I run. Nonetheless, I finally saw Jason and my mom at mile 20, when I was in the TRENCHES, and to be honest I probably didn’t look too thrilled.

The first half felt like a normal run with breathtaking views (my favorite part had to be going over the Golden Gate bridge at sunrise). Right at that 18 mile mark, however, I thought- ok wow! This is happening. Everything hurts. And I have 8 miles to go. Around this point in the course we entered Golden Gate Park, which is usually my FAVORITE to run through, but I honestly wasn’t admiring the scenery. I was like ok, I’m definitely slowing down, but I can still run and I will still finish.

By mile 22 I had changed my stance. I went from “oh yeah, this sucks but I’ll definitely still finish” to “Oh my God I’m definitely not going to finish” and “what decisions did I make to have led me to this moment and how can I avoid this in the future.” I slowed way down but I was still in motion. For context, here are my splits for the first 22 miles:

The course was pretty hilly overall, unsurprisingly, but the biggest hill was at mile 12-13. I felt pretty good at that point and passed a few people on the way up, which I definitely paid for later.

The last four or five miles I was HURTING, and I felt like I was going so slow that I was walking. I was not sure I was going to finish, let alone make it under 4 hours! Ironically, the majority of these last few miles were also downhill. I was down bad.

I saw Jason (a literal angel) around mile 25, and he started running alongside me, to which I responded “STOP RUNNING WITH ME!” Lol. I also walked for the first time (minus a quick bathroom stop in the beginning) during this last stretch, but somehow found it in me to “sprint” (you can judge the validity of that statement by my final split) to the finish. I came in right where I had planned to- my playlist was also 3 hours and 58 minutes long. Kinda crazy!

Anyway, for my next marathon I will definitely choose an easier course, but it will be hard to top running through one of my favorite cities, for my first marathon, ever.

Stay tuned! 😉