Sunday 9 May 2010

London Marathon is over!!!!!

After four months of training; 5am wake-ups getting to the gym; those horrific long run weekends; and living, breathing and talking about everything having to do with running, my London Marathon experience came and went without too many hitches.

Well, that is if you don't include the numerous injuries suffered amongst my group of friends and fellow training partners.  Swollen bones, dodgy knees, calf muscle tear and lower back issues are some ailments, to name a few, which were suffered during the race and continue to effect us all!  My running guru (you know who you are) said recovery should be one day for every mile ran in the marathon - so we have a month of chillin' ahead of us.  In Joe's case, a month of crutches followed by a longer period of rest.  Yep, the poor guy had to hobble a good 10 miles with a bad ankle, thus exasperating the problem which has led to an MRI scan to which we don't have the results just yet.  I managed an injury free race but the body started cracking the Thursday after - a day I walked a bit more than the usual in heels.  Now I have a bum leg and back which a hope a few sessions of physio are going to fix.

Enough of the pain though, because the pleasure of the marathon is just as intense! 

It is difficult to describe just how crazy London gets on marathon day.  It is as if everyone stops what they are doing and comes to support the runners.  The scream your name, handout candy and fruit (Joe managed a 1/2 pint!) and just keep you moving.  I'd say it is one day in the year that you are definitely proud to be a Londoner - what a feeling!  Once into central London, they are lined up 5-7 rows deep just yelling and cheering.  It really is something quite remarkable.

With 37,000 odd people running, you see it all - everyone has their own reason for taking up this incredible challenge and their stories are inspiring.  While running, I got choked up everytime I saw a runner get noticed by his/her friends and family - the screams of support and the happiness on the runner's face was just so great to witness.  I, myself, was motivated by the prospect of meeting up with my amazing cheering section just after mile 13, and boy they did NOT dissappoint!  I also had a smaller crew at mile 23 which was great to see at such a painful part of the race. 

Looking back now, it seems as though it didn't happen.  There is definitely a void in my life - a good 2-3 hours of 5 days a week are now free which feels odd to me.  I didn't think this was possible, but there is such a thing a post-marathon blues and I have been feeling it. During the race, I tried to soak up as much of the atmosphere as possible so I could remember it clearly in my mind.  But, to be honest, my mental focus in just trying to run through the pain and get over the finish line meant that much of the excitement of the event was in the peripheral of my eyes and mind.  So much so that when I think back on the race, much of it seems like a blur.  So, I just pinch and remind myself once in a while that I did do it and that's when a big beaming smile lights up my face!

Here is a slideshow of pixs taken by our great support team and a few from me too.  Enjoy!

1 comment:

  1. Hey you two!

    I am in awe...only Jaim could run a marathon and then eat a hot dog! You never disappoint or slow down!

    Love you lots and congrats to you guys again!
    J&B Gangsta

    ReplyDelete