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Comments: Wasn't nervous at ALL just excited. I had run this last year so I knew what to expect. I knew I had to just look ahead at the ground rather than the crowds and the signs. Last year I was tired by mile 11 because I tried to take in everything. Kept a 10:30 pace for a long time. Maybe could have gone faster, but I was playing it safe and it was wall to wall runners. Saw Todd at mile 4 and 9 when I had my GU's -- didn't see him again till it was over. I texted Carson at halfway to see where he was -- was expecting him at mile 16. But by the time I figured out he was at mile 13, it was too late..... Had a bonk breaker then and was sad I missed my kids. They said they saw EVERYONE except me!!! (Well, that's because they told me mile 16...I wasn't looking!!) Went to the bathroom at mile 15, had to pee the whole time but lines were too long, and then felt much better. A very quick no wait stop there. Saw Kim at mile 16 I think -- I was tired and sad about my kids then -- and she was so awesome and prayed for me when I told her I was hurting. She was faster than me otherwise I would have prayed for her too -- but I needed to slow down. Miles 15-20 were hard. At some point I stopped to check my blood sugar. It was 117 -- perfect. I don't remember how many Gu's I had after 18 or what I did. At one point I had an unplanned GU just for the caffeine and I was hungry. I also had the chomps they gave out on the course -- because of the caffeine and I was hungry. But my stomach was good through the race. I really just listened to my body for the food part. After 20 I started to do a 4 minute run, 1 minute walk thing. I was hurting and tired (and HOT at one point when there was no breeze -- got sunburned a little). It was all a mental game. Mile 20-the end weren't as bad as 15-20. It was amazing seeing all of the people -- I did take it all in at the end. 23-26 was amazing -- I was running with a big smile on my face. I stopped to take a photo of the one mile to go sign as well as the finish sign. I ran all the way up the hill at the end to cross. As soon as I crossed I looked at my phone and saw Todd had finished just 1:29 before me. Much relief there. What would you do differently?: Preferably not get injured 6 weeks before the race. I wish I wouldn't worry about it so much.  Post race
Warm down: Met Todd right after the finish. Got a bit woozy, but not bad. Kept walking through the lanes to get food, water, medal, photos. Got our gear check and checked my blood sugar. 148. perfect. Then I ate a snickers bar in line for the finishers photos. Felt MUCH better after that. We met the kids at the Oasis meeting spot and it was SO fun to see everyone. Ended up sitting on the grass with ice on my feet for a while. I didn't bother to change clothes because I felt fine. Stayed there until about 3pm and then went home. What limited your ability to perform faster: My stupid foot injury that made me have a 6 week taper. I could really tell I didn't "peak" at the right time. Live and learn. Goal is to finish under 5 hours. But I'm pretty happy finishing 20 minutes faster this year than last year. Event comments: I don't know if Todd will ever do a marathon again, but I just love it. I especially love the training process and Oasis. As sore as I am today, it's very likely I will sign up again next year. Profile Album Last updated: 2013-01-05 12:00 AM
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United States
Chicago Marathon
55F / 13C
Sunny
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Since I had basically a 6 week taper because of my foot injury on 8/31, I was a mess the week before the race. Just a bundle of nerves and had to take advil pm for several nights in a row because I was so worked up. Plus Todd had gotten news on Wednesday that the dr was concerned about some last minute blood work he just did that week. Todd's had elevated muscle enzymes his whole life and has spent this entire last year going through every test possible that just comes back normal. But this last he got back Wednesday was the first one he's ever got back that was abnormal (in the 15 years of tests he's had, what timing). He basically said that Todd has a higher chance than a normal person of renal failure after the race, so he needs to drink a lot of water and go to the hospital if his pee turns black. Ummmm, that's scary. But both Todd and the dr agreed on a plan -- I was comfortable with him running the race, but it's still nerve wracking. And Todd's glad he has a direction to go with on this blood test to figure out what's wrong with his muscle enzymes after so many tests that have come back normal.
Lisa got to our house around 10pm Friday and I ended up sleeping terrible (just bc I was so worked up), so I was really jittery and tired Saturday. Went to the expo in the morning. Had a good time, but it was super crowded, hot and loud. The packet pickup process was very streamlined and efficient. Found lots of food to eat.
Got home and had nothing planned to do, so I got worked up even more. Went out to Noodles for dinner. Ordered GF mac and cheese and they brought it out to me and said that the sauce had gluten. Glad I asked.....Crisis averted. Had a huge pad thai dish, and came home and decided to take 2 advil pm at 7pm because I didn't think I'd sleep. It was a risk to take it before the race, but I'm SO glad I did. I was fast asleep before 9pm and slept straight through until my alarm went off at 4. I woke up and felt amazing. Very rested and I knew my body was ready to run. So thankful.
Had oatmeal and berries at 4am with insulin. Blood sugar was 250 when I woke up, but took insulin for it. Left the house by 5, easy drive downtown. Bathroom stop at McDonalds, met Oasis for prayer and photos, so great to see our team, then left for corrals. Another potty stop and gear check. At that point my blood sugar was 138 which was perfect. Then we split with Lisa and went to our H corral. Had my Peanut butter and honey sandwich in the corral around 7:40am
We waited in the corrals about 30 minutes before the race. It was chilly, but I was dressed really well. Had old warm up pants I shed as we started moving, then right before the start line I shed a really old jacket. Sun was up by then. Crowd was amazing, so much excitement.