My Marathon experience

London Marathon, Sunday 17th April.

Everything had gone according to plan, a really good 16 weeks or so of training, a half marathon a month since Christmas and a great 20 miler early March – my team even beat those pesky reds the day before!!!!  I’d had barely any niggles all the way through, was carb loaded to the gills and freshly massaged, I hadn’t even had a glass of wine all week!  Having done London 3 times before (in 4.30, 4.21 & 4.11)  I went with only one mission – to break 4 hours.  I’d even been told about the good for age qualifying time and only dared dream briefly about that, the main thing was finishing in 3 something, 3 anything, just as long as it started with a 3!  On the train on the way down, I read an article about mantras and thought maybe this could help me drown out that voice in my head that tells me it’s ok to walk for a little while.  I made myself a mantra and even woke up reciting it over & over in my mind. It sounds silly though when I think of it now!

I met up with Gareth at the blue start and we managed to bump into Mark as well.  It was a cloudy start which was good but already it felt quite warm.  The first couple of miles were inevitably slow with lots of stop/starting going on while we all jostled for position.  I had a timing band on for 3.50 and was lagging behind that by mile 3 but by 5 had caught up nicely.  Unfortunately, that was also about the time the sun started to shine.  I generally tend to just get a lucozade every 4/5 miles or so and just run past the water stations but after I managed to spot Elspeth on Tower Bridge before the half way mark, I realised I was desperately thirsty, grabbed some water and couldn’t walk in a straight enough line to drink it properly.  I drank the whole bottle in one go and then got the biggest stitch for my trouble.  Once that wore off the right side, it re-appeared in my left side.  I tried Trevor’s tactic, but it didn’t work.  Just after halfway, after seeing Andrew Lemoncello over the other side, at 22 miles – just behind him was the guy with the ponytail who won at Crewe last week so he must’ve done a great time. Anyhow, into Docklands, the crowds were noisy, so noisy in fact I couldn’t hear my mantra anymore.  By mile 17 I was in pieces, total meltdown and realising that there was no way I could make my target now, I burst into tears.  But then I couldn’t breathe, stitch came back, where’s a taxi when you really need one???!  After a quick nose blow on my vest and lots of ‘come on Wilmslow, you can do it’ I pulled my metaphorical socks up and staggered on through the heat.

By mile 22 it’s quite uplifting to see the other runners who are just hitting halfway so I knew it really wasn’t that much further.  I managed to get into a bit of a rhythm and plod on but felt as though I’d left my heart, strength and all my resolve in Docklands somewhere.  By mile 24 I could sense the finish and see the river.  I actually clocked a good mile here, 8.45 minutes or so, close to the speed I’d been doing in miles 3 to 10. Strangely enough, this was the mile that I re-discovered my mantra and actually said it out loud, I knew my fellow runners would understand and the crowd was so noisy, I doubt they’d have heard me anyway!  I slowed again towards the end of mile 25 and the final insult was being overtaken by a chicken in the last couple of hundred yards!  I finally finished in 4.14.36 – 3 minutes down on last year, I was devastated and in pieces.  I sobbed the minute I crossed the line and didn’t  stop.  I sat down on a kerb, luckily outside the 1^st Aid tent, luckily because I couldn’t get up again.  I was helped inside where they said both sides IT bands had gone into spasm, it was agony, especially as she pummelled and rubbed them back to some kind of normal. I left with 2 ice packs stuffed down my leggings on both hips!  I managed to find my daughter quickly enough and promptly burst into tears again, what a mess.  I was so incredibly disappointed, I’d put so much pressure on myself, I was so sure I could do it and it seemed like all those weeks of training had gone to waste as I couldn’t  even beat last year’s time.  I managed to sob my way back to the hotel, that takes some doing when you’re so de-hydrated but I did well!! 

I then spent the afternoon answering texts & calls from all my loved ones and so many of my friends at the club so thank you to all of you who lifted me yesterday and I’m sorry for being such a girl!!  You all really helped, honestly you did.  I love the faith we all have in each other, seems like I just need to have a little more in myself.

After a hot bath, a big juicy steak & 2 or 3 Becks, I was feeling slightly better. Writing this has been rather cathartic and I have filled up a couple of times but hopefully that’s me done now.  By tomorrow, I’m hoping I’ll have regained control of myself, onwards & upwards, dusted myself off and all those kind of things!!  Now, when I say never again, this time I mean it OK?!  Having said that, I still need to break that 4 hours, I’m nothing if not tenacious!!

Have I given Patrick a run for his money???!  Thanks for listening, this is cheaper than therapy!!

Thanks again to all of you for your lovely messages and well done to all the others who ran so well.  I’m looking forward to running (for pleasure!) again soon.

 Sharon.