Oh, the pain

Well, the marathon is over. The pain, however, will be around for quite some time to come. Besides the standard leg pain and stiffness, I also have abrasions on my ankle, armpit and breastbone. Minor ones, but a little shocking in the shower. I currently feel a bit ill, but this is familar from previous long runs in which I pushed my body too far. It should pass soon.

The race itself was cool. Hairy bunny boy got on my nerves, but it's no big deal. I just don't understand why someone would deliberately push their way in front of me and then invade my personal space. It's not like we were going anywhere quickly...took over a minute before the crowd thinned enough to even start jogging.

The first 13 miles went really well. I felt good, I was putting in 8:15-8:30 splits every mile. The weather was beautiful. Sunny, with a light breeze and 60-70 degrees. The breeze was just enough to feel good without hindering the run.

I started to slow down after the halfway point. Miles 13-20 were okay. I was probably doing a 9:00 pace, but it was tough to tell because the course got a little hilly. Not bad hills, but long inclines. I took advantage of all the water stations, although I skipped the gel. If you had seen the gel, you too would have skipped it. Maybe it's okay in little packages, but I have issues with scooping it off a tray. I did skip the little package station and the hard candy, but I'm still leary of running and eating.

Miles 20-26.2 were torture. God, I have never hurt that bad in a race. EVER. Not even when I split open my knee on that trail run. My legs felt really heavy and stiff. My pace dropped way down and I just suffered through the rest of it. Even when I started stopping and walking at the water stations, my legs still hurt. I never just gave up and walked, but it was tempting. I finished in 3 hours 57 minutes flat, which isn't bad. My goal was to finish under 4 hours, so I'm content.

Afterwards, I got my medal (big clunking Heavy thing. That thing has some heft. I was a little worried it was going to tip over my lap) and my "blanket" which is actually a large silverly piece of mylar. I was going to ditch it, but brought it home for the cat. If he doesn't like it, I'll drag it home on Wednesday and give it to Oz, who I know will like it. It crinkles and glitters, afterall.

The food spread was very decent. I got a cinnamon bagel, many, many cookies, string cheese, two bottles of water, a package of fig newtons, a granola bar and a package of pretzels. I also got a fallafl, feta, hummas wrap, but it wasn't very good. I don't think I like feta. Then I collapsed, instantly stiffened and got back up to walk it off. I signed up for the free massage, which I eventually got, although I had to wait over an hour for it. It felt wonderful though.

And now, I am debating what to do with the rest of the day. I need to finish reading Cell Bio. And read those articles on frog physiology. I should probably read the latest Endo too. So, basically I'm not moving. Ever again.