Q&A with a First-time Marathoner

Hours after finishing my first marathon (Space Coast Marathon in Cocoa Beach, FL), I buried my head in my phone at a Carrabba’s somewhere in Central Florida, typing with fervor everything I had just experienced. I opted to interview myself. I’d like to think a lot of these questions were texted to me (some probably were…), but after 26.2 miles I had no idea what was going on.

Here's how it went...

Q: How do you feel? A: Like a BAMF Q: I meant your body. A: Well…not great. But certainly not as bad as I expected to feel! My feet hurt the most, but I’m currently wearing very cushy socks and recovery shoes which is helping a little. My hamstrings and knees hurt when I bend my knees. And my right hand stings from my face plant right before mile 9. One hour later Just drove an hour back to Disney World. Getting up out of the car was definitely not pleasant. Climbing the two stairs to the parking lot shuttle was also pretty tough.  Next day I didn’t sleep very well. Kept waking up with sore muscles. Ultimately got 7.5 hours of sleep…but especially considering I hadn’t slept well the last few days I had expected to be out for 10.

Getting up was hard but not impossible. It’s hard to twist my back at all. I popped some ibuprofen and took a hot bath with Epsom salt. Both helped. But also, not sitting down for like 2 hours after waking up helped loosen up my body. I’m writing this from breakfast and getting up from a seated position absolutely hurts for the first minute, but then it’s fine. 

Q: How do you think it went? A: Honestly? As expected. I figured I’d run the first half and then walk quite a bit the second half. I only trained up to 17 miles (6 weeks ago), and my 20 mile run went MISERABLY and I bailed at 16. In my training plan for my Goofy Challenge in Jan (half + full on consecutive days), I was supposed to do 23 miles of walk/run today. So I always planned to treat this like a training run.

I think what was the most surprising was going from feeling AWESOME at 13, and literally as the half marathoners finished at 13.1 it’s like I lost all my wind. I struggled running until about mile 15 and then I just started walking until the next pace group caught up. I only ran with them a few minutes before thinking “maybe I’ll wait for the next pace group.” They caught up to me at mile 19 and the pacer Sheila was AWESOME! She kept me going until mile 23 when my feet just hurt so much I had to adjust my shoes.

Biiiig mistake. My shoe had been pressing into my ankle…one of the reasons I wanted to adjust it. Plus, always during longer runs I stop at least once to rub the balls of my feet. But I’d tripped at mile 9 and twisted my ankle but kept going (it wasn’t comfortable but after a mile it was totally manageable). As soon as I untied the shoe the ankle pain came rushing back. I limped most of Mile 23. For 24-26.2 I was able to add a very small amount of running (like when I saw a course photographer), but mostly just walked it. 

Q: Wait, you did a marathon as a training run? A: Yes. I’m doing the Goofy challenge in January, which is a half and a full on consecutive days. A lot of previous Goofy and Dopey (5K, 10K, half and full on consecutive days) finishers recommend your first marathon NOT be a part of a challenge. My training schedule had a 23 mile run scheduled for Dec 1 and a 26 mile run the weekend before Christmas. I searched for marathons to do during these weekends with a plan to run at training pace (which should be at least 1 min slower per mile than your anticipated race pace. My half marathon pace is 11:45 min miles, btw). 

So this race was for me to learn what happens to my body and what it needs for a marathon!

Q: What did you learn? A: I definitely want to alter my race nutrition. I take Gu every 3 miles. I want to wean myself to every 4. I felt like I had a lump of sugar in my stomach and when it’s already tough to run, a queasy stomach doesn’t make it easier. I found myself wanting bread (I know, that’s just sugar too), so I’m going to try and figure out a way to bring some sort of “real food” carby snack. Maybe Chex mix or something else salty (Gu = pure sweetness!)

I’ll also carry a little more of a pharmacy—bandaids, an anti-septic wipe, and extra strips of KT tape. When I tripped, my hands ended up getting pretty scrapped up and bled the rest of the race. I had to wrap them in my arm sleeves to keep from bleeding everywhere. It honestly hurt quite a bit and looks pretty gnarly right now so cleaning and dressing it properly (without an extended stop at an aid station) would have been nice.

I think I’ll also try to have more fun. No regrets not indulging in the tequila shots and champagne along the course for my first go around, but 100% getting the mile 25 margarita at the Disney Marathon!!

As for training, going to try and make my shorter 2-3x a week runs in the realm of 5-8 miles between now and the Goofy challenge (I had been doing around 3-4). I’ll stick to the schedule for the weekend runs, with the exception of the 26 mile run I’m supposed to do the weekend before Christmas. I’ll probably cap that out at 20 miles because honestly most race plans only train to 20 max anyway, and training more than 4 hours has diminishing returns according to ~science. 20 miles at my normal pace should be about 4 hours.

I also need to eat healthier…tough for the holidays! Every pound lost equals 2 seconds less per mile, without even trying. Plus my feet hurt so much yesterday that I know dropping some weight will make the runs easier!

I’m also going to experiment with different socks and maybe a different insole to see if I can find anything that makes my feet feel better!

Q: Would you do it again? A: Since I’ve already signed up for a very expensive second marathon, I’ve taken that choice away from myself.

If I hadn’t done that…honestly, probably not. I know I can do a marathon better and faster, but I just don’t really care? Finishing a marathon no matter what your time is a huge thing (only .5% of the US population has done one). I’d be perfectly happy to focus my efforts on improving my time with the half distance…which most people think it’s super impressive anyway (bragging rights on Instagram are why we do this, right?) 

That all said, I would not be surprised if I do this again (maybe even soon). 15 months ago I had not run a mile as an adult. So anything can happen!

Q: I could never run a marathon. A: Honestly, you probably could. I am not a natural athlete at all. But if you:

1. Accept that you probably won’t “win” and you might not get a “good” time

2. Are willing to put the miles in training (and there are training programs that will allow you to have a life if crossing the finish line is your only goal)

3. Are of average or better health

You can probably make it happen.

I literally didn’t run a mile without walking until probably October 2018 (my first day of a Couch to 5K was September 3, 2018). I’m not special in anyway except that I am incredibly stubborn and I’ve turned that into mental endurance. 

So I truly believe if you really want to do it (and you’re reasonably healthy) you can do it. But it’s perfectly okay to NOT want to do it. Unless you’re an exceptional athlete, the “want” to do it is pretty important. 

Note: I’m posting this in October 2020, though this was all written in the hours/days after completing the marathon.