Mind if I chime in here?
:
One of the hardest things to deal with in running (and all aspects of life really) is the "what if" scenario. "what if I would have trained harder", "what if the course would have been flat", "what if I hadn't broken my toe the week prior", "what if I would have done more cardio"...perhaps the biggest one is "what if I would have ran that full marathon"...and you don't want to be asking yourself that question come mid-January.
To me, the full marathon separates itself from all other races. It is the ultimate running accomplishment. It's not only a test of endurance, but a complete experience...things will happen out there...aches and pains may pop up...you'll see others battling with their own issues and struggles...you do your best to get there with solid training under your belt, and hope to be feeling 100% on race day.
There is reward in completing your 1st 5k, 1st 10k, 1st half marathon...everyone is at different levels in their own training...but none of them are as sweet as the reward of completing your 1st marathon. As mentioned prior to my post, it no longer becomes about time but about achievement. When you're wearing your Mickey medal around WDW in the days after the race, no one says "how fast did you do it?"...they offer up a sincere "congratulations" or maybe even a "wow! you did the FULL?"...and suddenly all of the aches and pains are worth it, all of the training in the heat and cold, the struggle over those final 26.2 miles...it's a moment to cherish for a lifetime, something to be proud of forever.
With that said, in my opinion you kicked a tough course in the butt last weekend. Your time was awesome and I think you should be very proud of yourself. We'll always set high expectations for ourselves, but don't let that take away from the accomplishment. The course was a grueling test over those last 6-7 miles. That one hill was no joke and can easily zap the strength out of anyone. You still came through with an awesome time. Also keep in mind that it was a fast race overall...they clearly explained on their website that it is not a race for walkers, and is described as a challenging but rewarding course. Those statements alone keep a significant amount of people from signing up for it, and in my opinion make it all the more rewarding.
So I'm rambling a bit here...but the bottom line is you should feel GOOD about the race last weekend. You should take a couple days to recover and then set your sights on crossing that finish line in January. You CAN do it, I know that for sure. Set up a solid training plan, stick to it and add "marathoner" to your list of lifetime achievements.
Scott
