I am a marathon finisher. I have finished a 26.2 mile race, an accomplishment about only 1% of the world can say they have achieved.
I am proud, learned a ton, and ready for another. No one can describe the pain, the endurance challenges, the way your body revolts on a marathon. I heard things like, "You'll hit the wall" or " Mile 22 is known as the worst mile of a marathon" and "Be mindful of how much water you drink, timing your gels right, not eating ANYTHING new on race day" and finally "Be aware of your race outfit...make sure you have completed a long run in it. Don't switch the socks, shoes,or even your hair ties, it may be painful." All of this is great advice and everyone is absolutely true. But for me to describe what TRULY hitting the wall feels like, or how TRULY mental mile 22 was would be impossible. I am not going to describe the marathon pain or challenges...each person has their own story. I can talk about my relationship with running.
I trained like crazy, and I know I am addicted to running. I can say this week off was more painful than the marathon. My body and mind craves the push, pain, mental alone time. There is something freeing in knowing your body is working, HARD and you can do it. People are stronger than they realize. That thought in your head, "I can't run," "I can't breathe," "My legs hurt," is just that, a THOUGHT. When you are thinking those thoughts, you are trying to defeat yourself. You really can breathe, you are doing it the very moment you have that doubt. Your legs are fine, you are running the moment you think they hurt. Focus on your breath. If you focus on things as simple as breathing, it really is possible...and how true is that for life? We focus on complicated issues, and struggle with our thoughts. If we would focus on our breath, today, the moment, we see how truly strong the human race is.
How do you know when you are a runner? The moment you buy your first pair of running shoes. The first second you run. Runners don't judge others. If you are in a gym, or out in the trail running...you are a one of us (we may even wave or nod at you, it is a runner thing, feel free to do it back). It doesn't matter how fast you are, how long you can run, you are pushing yourself and that is what makes you a runner. We put on our shoes and gear when others are asleep, on the couch, the computer,or riding in a car. Runners are willing to try and know that every run is a new one. It doesn't matter if I ran 26.2 miles a week ago, today 1 mile may be painful. That is the joy of running. Everyone is on even ground. We all have good run days and bad run days, but we try.
I am off to focus on my breath, worry about simple things, like one foot in front of the other. May you all find the simple part of running. It is freeing.
