I decided a while ago that I needed some running goals. Something I could work towards, train for, reach. I always work harder physically when I have a goal in mind.
So I decided to run 12 half marathon (or longer distance) races in the 2014 calendar year. I chose this goal so that I would constantly be training for something year round and as an attempt to not lose the running bug. So far the decision has proven to be positive as I am so excited to start training and so excited to see what limits I can push myself to.
I immediately began signing up for races for 2014, or at least for the months that were available. I planned out the races I knew I wanted to participate in, even if the registration was not open yet and as a way to plan out my year. I have been periodically checking active.com and other sources for updated racing dates and times for next year so that I will know when to register and what will be needed for those races (registration costs, traveling, support, training, etc.)
While searching for my next open month (May 2014), I came across an interesting race. Mountains 2 Beach. They have both the half marathon distance and full marathon distance available. It has taken me a little while to decide on what to do.
On one hand I may not want to run a marathon two months after finishing LA. On the other, I probably will.
As I finished the last 5K of the LA Marathon last year I told myself with every running interval that I never had to run another marathon again if I didn't want to. Dopey was out of the question. I was pretty much ready to give up running completely. Then I crossed the finish line, tears in my eyes from realizing I had reached my time goal and I made the trek back to where my family was waiting. I kid you not, it was about half a mile from the finish line to the end of the gated area to then turn around and head back a mile to my family.
That was the worst feeling ever. To run a marathon and to continue to walk for over a mile before finally being able to sit.
My dad jokes that running 26 miles is easy that it's the 0.2 miles that will get you. I have always and will always disagree and say that it's the walk back to your car.
I wanted to cry. I wanted to yell. I wanted to sit on the curb and protest walking. I wanted someone to pick me up and carry me. I wanted to never, ever run a marathon again. And that is exactly what I told Patrick when I finally made it to them. "I am done. I don't ever want to do this again."
I think there's something called Runners Amnesia. It's best defined here.
"Runner’s Amnesia: a condition in which a runner’s memory is lost. In specified cases, the horrible mental and physical agony experienced from racing began to fade, and the endorphins from running seemed to morph those memories into fond, happy experiences in which the runner had very little to no recollection of the pain and negative experiences that occurred. In the most severe cases, this also resulted in the runner signing up for more, sometimes even harder events."
I relate it to child birth. Granted, I never physically had to give birth, but I did go through 9 hours of labor without any pain medication and with the nurse ever so kindly continuously upping my dose of pitocin as often as she could. It hurt, there's no question about it, but as soon as I could hear the cry of my daughter in the operating room nothing else existed. The pain was gone, the fear was gone, there was nothing to think about but that little girl. And I have been wanting another child for a while now.. Amnesia.
It only took about 5 days to decide that I wanted to keep running and that I most likely would run the LA Marathon again in 2014. And now here I am to let you know that I will officially be doing the full marathon for Mountains 2 Beach in May of 2014 as well. I woke up this morning and immediately signed up as spaces were limited.
Hopefully the amnesia will kick in as quickly as it did last year.
And hopefully I don't get burnt out. I know that it's a lot and I know that I am going to be exercising and running and training like a crazy person, but you have to be pretty crazy to run a marathon and half crazy for the 13.1 distance. I found my passion and I'm going to crazy it up for as long as I can!
Like I told my best friend the other day while we were out walking... I don't want to get to a point in my life where I can't run anymore and think "You know what I wish I would have done..." Instead I am going to run while I can and enter races while I can and enjoy the experiences.
Not everyone understands the need to pay to run. I don't pay to run, I pay for an experience and I have yet to regret these decisions. Each race is different and completely worth it and as long as I'm not putting it on my credit card and am paying my bills on time then I don't see the need to justify it. And I can tell you that I intend to continue to race until at least September of 2015, but it may be past then. Who knows at this point.
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