From the moment I checked in at the race expo, the pressure was on:
The shirts we were given(absolutely amazing shirts I must say) said “Finisher” right on the front before we even started the race. That scared me. I knew if I didn’t finish I could never in good faith where this shirt and it would haunt me from my closet for as long as I kept it. It would be my beating heart beneath a floorboard. I needed to finish for the shirt’s sake.
The course was divided into two parts: The first 13.1 miles and the last 13.1 miles. The first half included marathoners and half-marathoners and was a beautiful path through Constitution Ave and down by Dupont. We experienced just about every famous monument and it was great scenery to run by.
The last half was rougher. As the half-marathoners peeled to the finish line, we looped around the stadium to go back down Constitution Ave. Seeing the marathoners keep going after 3/4 of the field finished was like watching ants march into an ant trap. The scenery also wasn’t as nice but having a good number of people around me going through the same Hellish experience made me feel better. I used the run/walk method for the second half when my legs wanted to give out.
Miles 1-10*: I felt excellent during this time. If this were a 10 mile race I would have rocked it. I knew I was between the 4:00 and 3:50 pacers and running strong. My playlist and the crowd kept me going, especially when I spotted Caitlin(who took this photo) and Emily on the sidelines.
Miles 10-16*: Mile 10 I had to stop to wait and use a restroom, which lost me a lot of time and threw off my sense of location in the crowd. I wasn’t sure what pace I was on anymore when I started running again until I saw a pacer at 13.1 and assumed it was the 4:00 group. For a while I tried to catch them but quickly realized I needed to run my race and start taking walking breaks.
Miles 16-20*: These were the 4 toughest miles of the run. I was constantly fighting to stay with the people around me using the run/walk method. I also stopped to use the bathroom again at mile 19. You never realize just how much time you lose to the clock going to the bathroom until race day; if you can hold it in for 26.2 miles of running, you deserve a whole other medal.
Miles 20-26.2*: These were surprisingly not as hard as I thought they’d be. Yes, my legs wanted to fall off and everything was cramping. But mentally these were easy to push through since there really was no where to go but forward.
*I drank fruit punch Powerade and water gratuitously throughout the race, had half a Pranabar at mile 11 and a GU gel at mile 18. If I could do it again I would probably skip the Pranabar since solid food didn’t digest easily and hydrate more throughout the first 10 miles.
My official time was 4:19:37. After only 3 months of training and a slew of injuries before that, I have to say I’m pretty darn happy. My secret goal way back in October was to beat 4 hours but life happened and I wasn’t that prepared this time around. A question I’ve gotten a lot since is “Any plans for a second marathon?” At this point the answer is no. I want to take time off for my legs to heal fully, build back up my running base, and get into better running shape. Down the road maybe I’ll try again, but for right now I’m happy with my medal(and you can bet your boots I haven’t taken it off since).
Running a marathon is an incredible and inspiring experience. You should be so proud of yourself!! congrats!
Congrats Evan! That is an awesome accomplishment and a great city to do it in! Happy resting and recovery.
You are a ROCKSTAR!!!
I am so proud of you Evan 🙂 Congratulations you hunk of man!
Congrats!!! You did great!
Congrats!!! And agreed on holding it in deserving another medal!
Wooo congrats!! You must feel so awesome- you’re a marathoner now!! You should be proud of yourself 🙂
Congratulations 🙂 You = epic now! Good luck with your recovery
Great job, Evan!!!! Congrats on being a marathoner!
You are AMAZING!!!!
I did a 10K yesterday, and thought of you guys the whole time…in fact, I realized after about 4 miles that there’s no way I could ever do a marathon, since I always have to pee after I start running. I think it’s nerves and adrenaline, but I feel like I’d be stopping all the time during a really long run. 🙂
congrats evan!! that is an amazing time you should be so proud!!
I am so proud of you, Evan! I can’t hold my pee for a 90 minute movie, so I hear ya on the bathroom breaks.
Congrats Evan! Running a marathon is such a big accomplishment.
Congratulations! Welcome to the marathoners club! Isn’t it amazing what our bodies can do?! Great finish time!
you did so amazing, and we are SOOOOOOOO proud of you! we heart you and had such a great time meeting you/singing backstreet boys, Britney + t swift in the car. and thanks for keeping our failure to pick you up secret secret 🙂
Wow congratulations man 😀
Great job! I’m so impressed!
Congrats on the marathon finish! Enjoy the rest time :)!
Gahhh, congratulations Evan!!! Your time is awesome, especially considering the circumstances. Nice job, keep sporting that medal!
I’m sure it’s the best feeling… congrats!
Congrats on finishing the marathon! You are awesome!
Way to go! 🙂
Congratulations!! You should be so proud of yourself! 🙂
Congrats! The metal is beautiful
Congratulations! I am sure you are on cloud 9 🙂 I stumbled across your marathon bars post yesterday and just love your blog!
You deserve a HUGE HUGE HUGE congrats, Evan! You’re inspiring in all you overcame and you rocked that marathon. Don’t doubt it a second.
And agreed on the medal if you can hold the bathroom thing. I have trouble lasting 4 miles!
CONGRATS Evan!! wear that medal and revel in that awesome feeling all week!!
congrats on the marathon Evan! what an accomplishment!!
enjoy the medal 😉
Congrats Evan!! That’s a great time! It looks like a beautiful course and a nice medal too. 🙂
I’m still contemplating a second marathon too. Who knows!
Congrats, Evan! You should be very proud!
Congrats, Evan!!!!!!!
“I needed to finish for the shirt’s sake.”– lol and whatever it takes!
I love how you broke the race down into sections/and your thoughts. And yes, running YOUR race and doing what you needed to do…glad you realized that early on 🙂
CONGRATS!!
Congratulations, Evan!! Just finishing your first marathon is awesome. Sorry to hear about your bathroom stops slowing you down, but sometimes there’s just nothing you can do about those things. I’m sure that is an experience you will hold onto for a long time, and beware marathoning is addicting – just wait until the soreness wears off 😉
Wow, any marathon finish is amazing but damn you are speedy Evan!!! Congrats, I knew you would do awesome! 🙂 And didn’t I tell you it would be a blast?!?
CONGRATS! Finishing a marathon is a huge achievement. Several years ago, watching the Olympics, would you ever have imagined that you’d become a marathoner? 🙂
Congratulations! And happy birthday and recovery!
That is an incredible time! You should be very proud of yourself 🙂
I knew you could do it!! After all the crap you have been through training, you must feel so glad it is over with and so proud that you accomplished something that the majority of Americans have not experienced!
Congrats!
Sleep with that medal, lady! You need to OWN this (0:
Congratulations, Evan!! You did a great job and you should be so very proud. Relish the post-marathon afterglow; it’s a great feeling.
Oh, and for the record, I held it for an entire marathon, because I’m stubborn and did not want to stop. At times it was unpleasant, but not any more unpleasant than the other pain you feel while running 26.2 miles.
Great job!
Congratulations Evan! You should be so proud!
amazing job! You did awesome! congrats!
Congrats. Way to go & a really good time for your first one.
Omggg I had no idea you were even running a marathon. Did you train??????
Congratulations Evan. Now you can wear your shirt with pride! I am really proud of you because I know how much you’ve wanted to do this. Now you need to do the half in august w/ me!
Oh and will you be back in RI Thursday or Friday?
congrats on your first marathon! such a huge accomplishment! 🙂
congrats evan!!!! i hope you try and run another in the future without the shin problems!!!
Go you good thing!!
Once again. You the man.
Congratulations!!! You did awesome 🙂
Congratulations!!!!!
Great job Evan!! It was fun seeing you and singing happy birthday to you at the Blogger meet-up Saturday night. I continue to maintain that you are the funniest person on Twitter 🙂
congrats!!!! you did great 🙂
I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!! Congrats!! I would wear that medal no matter what – even in the shower/to bed. You are a marathoner! I’m so glad you’re also taking some time to let your legs heal. Congrats again!
Ahhh congrats Evan!!! I’m so proud of you! And it was so fun getting to hang out this weekend. You’re awesome!
Congratulations!! That’s so amazing! 😀
Congrats on running the full!
Congratulations on finishing and with a great time! I’m glad the race went well and that you enjoyed the rest of your weekend in DC!
Great job, Evan! It was nice to meet you at the blogger meet up-have a great birthday!
Congrats Evan! I am so happy for you. I remember when you thought injury would hold you back from this race. I am so glad it didn’t! I hope you’re proud of yourself. After your first marathon, they only get easier… kind of 😉
Great job! I have been reading your blog for a little while now. I love your recipes (especially the veggies roasted with maple syrup or honey!) and am so happy with your performance in the national marathon! You are an official marathoner…welcome to the club! Hope your legs aren’t feeling too sore!
Congratulations!!! That first marathon is a HUGE accomplishment and you did so well…especially considering all of the injuries you battled during training. I’m so impressed by your ability to bounce back and finish that marathon.
The course was definitely much tougher than advertised (flat??? ummm…no) and the second half was mentally tough. So you should definitely be proud! I hope you wear that medal all week!! 🙂
In other news, I can’t believe we both went all the way down there, ran the same race, and still haven’t met. I hope that changes soon!!
Yay! Congrats Evan! Very happy for you. My marathon (NYC 2010) was almost the exact same time. I think I was 15 seconds slower!
Way to go. In a few months you’ll probably start itching to do another one!
Great job Evan! You beat my time for my first AND second marathon 😛
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