My marathon quest began a little less then two years ago. I had been a smoker for about 10 years when one August day I just decided to quit smoking cold turkey. By October I still wasn’t smoking but I had gained about 15 pounds so I decided to take a run. I had never been a runner but it seemed like a good way to try and get into shape. I had no idea that running would soon become almost an obsession.

I think I may have been motivated by seeing the Twin Cities Marathon on television because even as I struggled through the 2 miles on my first run I was thinking that someday I would like to run a marathon which was odd because I was hurting so much just trying to run 2 miles. I continued running everyday but being as I was new to the sport I had no idea that you need to take rest days or that you have to build a base before you can dramatically increase your mileage. So by January I had developed pretty severe knee problems. When I was forced to stop running I missed it so I knew that I would continue running as soon as I was healthy.

Spring came and I was feeling better so I registered for the Twin Cities Marathon. I set out on a training regiment and followed it religiously. I was so excited for the marathon that I couldn’t stop talking about it to everyone I met including people here. Then about a month or two short of the marathon I developed a bad case of IT Band syndrome which brought my running to a halt. I tried everything I could think of including seeing a witch doctor (chiropractor) but I just wasn’t able to get healthy enough to run last year. It was hard telling people I couldn’t run because I had been talking about it for so long I always had people asking me how it had gone.

Once again early this spring I was feeling better and was anxious to start training again. This time I tried to be smarter by doing little things like stretching better and icing after runs. I also started running on trails and I decided to stop doing speed and hill work until after I had been healthy for an extended period of time. My training progressed real well and I once again signed up for the Twin Cities Marathon only this time I didn’t talk about it as much because I didn’t want to have to explain it to everyone if I got hurt again.

Everything was going real well until 3 weeks ago when I ran a 20 mile race too fast. They tell you to do your last 20 mile run at a pace about 2 minutes a mile slower then your marathon pace but I got excited and ran it at my marathon pace and my body still hadn’t healed by the day of the marathon. To make matters worse I caught a pretty bad cold 3 days before the marathon.

I showed up yesterday and the beginning of the race I felt excellent. My legs weren’t hurting and the cold medicine was working well. The first 4 miles were awesome. I couldn’t believe how many people were cheering us on and how fast the miles were going. I had been trying to pace myself for about 7:15 miles but I found myself running at a pace under 7:00 minutes a mile.

Around the time I got to Lake Calhoun both of my hips started hurting really bad (I had hurt them during the 20 mile run) but I kept going at a faster pace then I had planned on. The Uptown and the crowds around the lakes were really exciting to run through (although some people seemed to mistake the Marathon for a political rally.

Anyway by mile 8 or 9 my Sciatic Nerve started hurting so bad I basically forgot about my hip pain. This injury slowed me down to about my goal pace but I still crossed the half-way point at around 1 hour and 33 minutes which was on pace for my original goal of 3:10 before the cold and injuries. After the cold and the way my body felt I was basically just shooting to finish.

At some point after I crossed the 13 mile area I got some pretty severe blisters which combined with my hips, sciatic, butt, and back pain was making running pretty damn uncomfortable. I slowed down a bit but was still maintaining a pretty good time until I got to the East River Road area which is where the race crosses over from Minneapolis to St. Paul. It was around mile 19 or 20 (I think) but anyway there were two miles that seemed to be completely uphill and they kicked my ass. It was at this point that I had to take a few 30 second walking breaks because the pain combined with climbing the hills was becoming too much for me to handle

People say that the last 6.2 miles of a marathon are worse then the first 20 miles and they weren’t kidding. The last 6 miles were awful. My pace slowed down CONSIDERABLY as my legs started to feel like they were weighted down. My knees started hurting and I started doubting whether I would be able to finish. Even all the cheering of the people along Summit Avenue in St. Paul failed to push me on any faster. I was a hurting unit to say the least. Even as I approached the finish line I was still trying to decide if walking in was a viable option.

But I finished my first marathon and I’m proud of myself for having a goal and seeing it through.

My final time was 3:17:55 (499th place out of 7,408 finishers) which isn’t too bad considering it was my first marathon and I just took up running two years ago. I hadn’t followed my pre-race strategy which is why I ran the first half in around a 7 minute pace and the second half around an 8 mile pace but it’s hard when everyone’s cheering and bands are playing etc.

I slept like 11 hours last night (which is like two nights of sleep for me) and when I woke up I could hardly move. Every muscle in my legs hurt today. In fact this morning when I was sitting at the computer I put my legs up on the table that holds a little tv next to my computer like I always do and when it was time to get up I couldn’t get my legs to uncross and had to move them with my hands.

I am going to take a week or so off of running but I plan on running more marathons and I feel that with better strategy and better training I could move into some pretty elite company.


I know this was a long story but once I started typing I couldn’t stop myself.

I promised details in this thread:

http://www.prince.org/msg/100/117156

Those who pushed for details had no idea what they were in store for

lovemachine said:

Well done Dean u should feel justifiably proud - now LEARN from the mistakes, they'll make u stronger!

you made it! you ran, you did your best and that's what it's all about!

and that's not a bad place.it's like 7th place out of 100.

fantastic read!!!

very happy for you - sounds like a wild experience...

That's great Lovemachine! I'm happy for you.

Congrats, Dean! It's amazing what some motivation and drive can push people to do. Thanks for sharing the details with us!

3:17 is very good. my best marathon time is 3:30. congrats!

Heavenly said:

When I read this I started feeling real good about my place

Congrats! Very impressive. Now, I just have one question: did you poop your pants? Apparently that's allowed and even encouraged in a marathon (serves two benefits: you don't have to stop AND you create obstacles for other runners who are trying to catch you).

Hey, well done, that's great!

I've never run a marathon but used to run cross country a lot. It's a real buzz when u get into it, and kinda sadistic the things u'll put yourself through and still enjoy it.

Well done!

Where's the pics tho? Supa and I DEMAND sweaty shorts pix 4 all our pom pom shaking!
[Edited 10/6/04 13:17pm]

Nice story & congrats on your first marathon . After three years of nonactivity, I'm running my 2nd marathon in New Orleans in February.

bananacologne said:

Amy missed me as I ran by and then tripped as she tried to catch up

lovemachine said:

Dang!!! Oh well, 10 out of 10 4 trying Amy!!!

lovemachine said:

The sad thing is as I tried to run along side Dean on the other side of the street, he was running too fast for me to keep up..I couldn't keep up with him and he had just run 26 miles and I had been sitting still for an hour and a half..it's very sad.

RaspberryWoman said:

Well, we insist u run the 26 miles with him next time and take pix 4 all us gay boys