I feel selfish saying “I ” ran a marathon. I mean physically I did but I feel like I need to do some shout outs because I most certainly did not do it alone. Then I am going to tell you what I learned!
So as most of you have figured out by this far in my blog life journey, I am a SAHM of 3 kids, and while the twins are at school I have bonus kids- I mean technically they belong to my cousin but she lets me keep them during the day so they are my bonus, so with all those little people, how do you train for a marathon you might ask… with lots of help. You can’t fake a marathon. NOPE
Shout out as follows:
the hubs: Thank you for supporting and believing in me and making time for me to run, for picking me up when I trip on my own feet, and insuring I have everything I need to be successful. Thanks for acting like it was no big deal when we had to play hookie from a big date night because I fell, thank you for believing in me more than I believe in myself.
KK: Thanks for believing in me enough to convince me I could do this, for encouraging me when I felt I would most certainly fail, and for being at the finish to hold me while I got all holiday on you. Thank you for giving me the most thoughtful marathon gift and for lighting my fire for running!
Mom and Dad: Thank you for believing in me and watching all the kids so I could make the long runs happen! You are endless support, I can’t tell you how thankful I am for water bottles hidden by telephone poles along the way and the encouragement you sent to my watch so I would know you were watching me along the race!
GG- Thank you for believing in me and making this happen, 9 kids , that is epic super hero material!!! Thank you for all the Sunday afternoon runs you let me squeeze in and staying awake until midnight for us:)
Tiff- thank you for helping me to get in miles by letting 6 kids run wild in your house!
Thor- I would have never made it through without the signs of a familiar face….thanks for keeping the gu coming and for making me laugh…..You and Kristen are seriously the best.
To the man on the course who told me to enjoy my last mile, even though I considered punching you, that was the best advice.
When I signed up for this marathon I had no idea what I was getting myself into and I was certain I would not want to do it again. I found a beautiful quote and put it on my watch but until Sunday I did not truly understand it: “Everything you need to know about yourself you can learn in 26.2 miles.” Let’s face it – we all think we know what we are made of right? I assure you, you do not.
The first half came easy, – although it was raining I was pulling through and hadn’t checked my watch or plugged in my ear buds, smooth sailing, somewhere around mile 15 we went up the hill that never ends…it was seriously hills from there on out, by the time I got to 21 I thought yep I am going to die. Thor is going to have to drag me behind his bike back to the car. That is when it happened, I slowed down, way down I took my eye off the finish and settled for forward motion for 2 miles.. that was my mistake. When I stopped listening to heart and started listening to the people around me I let my goal slide out of focus. You know what happens when you slow down and take your eyes off the target, when you realize you need to get that focus back, it HURTS . I am serious not figurative, to get my rhythm back, my pace, I cried. When I got to mile 25 I did not know if I could keep moving, but this man who was coaching his sister on her first marathon read my name off my bib, and said “come on Kate you earned this, enjoy that last mile.” and I cried some more. I sobbed right into the arms of my SIL after the finish line. Mile 21 I thought over my dead body will I do this again, at the finish line I wanted to do it again.
What did I learn? That my legs could do it, it was my mind that told me I couldn’t. I learned that small strides are good for short distances, but if you are going to cover some ground you need to train your stride to reflect your end goal. I learned I am a beast, and if a little rain and sleet and cold didn’t keep me from paying money to run 26 miles than their isn’t much I have an excuse for.
I prayed over many steps on Sunday for God to show me what I needed to learn from this experience, and today I realize I learned what I am capable of when I keep my focus where it should be. He showed me what I was made of and who I was made by.
I am still crying over this accomplishment because it filled my heart with so much happy…..and trust me I know how weird that sounds-
oh and my toe nail fell off yesterday and I was so proud…..also weird.
Camp Run-A-Muk 