In less than 48 hours I will be "racing" a marathon. I have never raced one before. I have jogged 26.2 miles for fun back in college withe friends or my husband but never at any speed that would elicit a bonk or hitting the wall. After my season ended early in September I decided I needed a goal to keep me motivated and honest thru the early winter. After talking to my brother I decided that a marathon would be a great goal and a new experience for me. I will be racing an Ironman in less than a year as a pro triathlete I thought it would be a good idea to get the sense of 26.2 miles. Not only the racing aspect but training for that kind of mileage. Let me tell you 20 miles is LONG. And BORING. I don't know how distance people do it race after race but I am a short course athlete at heart. I LOVE the intensity and time that is involved in Olympic distance triathlons. BUT I need an new challenge. I need something to make me get out of bed in the morning and put fire in my step. Ironman and marathon did that for me. My brother signed up for the Memphis Marathon with me. He is pure runner no swimming or biking in his bones. I think wet he might weight more than me. But the best running partner. He never complains, never bonks, makes me laugh all the time, and well he is my brother. You can talk to your family about anything. And 2.5 hrs of running brings out every conversation imaginable. He is everything I am not. He is a night person, not intense, or competitive with others, passive in some ways, very techy, funny, and even more impressive he can totally disconnect on a treadmill. He can run for miles and miles with no TV or music. I on the other hand need movies and music non stop to keep me working out in the basement. This whole marathon experience has been awesome! It has been a reason for me to see him almost every week. Without training I barely get to see him now that we both have kids. Saturday I have a high goal for myself. But if I don't reach my goal I will still come away from this marathon with an amazing experience of spending time with my brother. And that will make it a success!
5 comments:
Good luck! Can't wait to hear how it goes.
i trained for a marathon a few years ago with my sister. it was one of the greatest experiences!!
i can't wait to hear how it goes!!
cat.
Good luck Jennifer! My husband and I trained together for our first marathon and we had a blast. Lots of highs and lows through training...just like the race. We ran the race together too - one of my fondest memories! Have a blast - can't wait to hear about it!
Hope you had a great day....you were blowing it away out there! I am one of Jen H's athletes, and I am the crazy girl on the bike saying hi! I am sure you were wondering who in the hell knew you from Memphis, but I saw you run by and instantly recognized you from pictures Jen posted. I laughed so hard thinking about how the blog world just comes to you- I didn't know anyone from out of town was running this marathon! Anyways, you looked great and I hope you had a great day. PS, a marathon at an IM is much easier than an open marathon....I know it doesn't make sense, but I promise it is true.
Hope you had a had a great race yesterday and are pleased with your FIRST marathon finish! Needless to say, I think your time was amazing, and your brother too! Glad I had the chance to run into the two of you pre-race. I'll be looking for your race report!
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