Running A Marathon Is Awesome (And You Should Totally Try It!)

November 8, 2013

Last weekend was NYC marathon weekend.
On Sunday morning runners from all over the world gathered in New York to achieve one goal: Crossing the finish line after running 26.2 miles.
Now before you look the other way, mumbling “Not another post about marathons please”, bear with me for a couple of minutes, and let me just explain you why I believe you should try completing a marathon - at least once in your life.




Let's set things straight: Running a marathon is not easy. 26.2 miles will make your feet scream in pain; it will give you blisters the size of California; it will cause you chafe places you didn’t know could actually chafe (nipples anyone?); your quads and calves will scream for mercy; you will curse yourself for getting into such a thing; and at times you will hate every single person around you or far from you (especially whoever convinced you to do it in the first place).
Marathons are an awesome experience because they are intense.
Throughout the 3 to 4 (to 5, to 6, to 7, to 8?) hours it’ll take you to complete the marathon, there will be times when your legs will feel like they’re made of concrete, when every breath becomes more labored than the last, and when every step feels worse than the previous one.
You are going to ask yourself “Why. I. Am. Doing. This???”
Because you’re there, by yourself, and no one else but you can take you to the finish line.
Not at every single mile will be “dark” though; for the most part you’ll have a lot of fun.
Crowds cheering you up along the way; people screaming your Bib number “Go 16-754!” (yeah, besides your friends & family, nobody knows your name); a bystander high-fiving you; another one handing you a banana or an energy bar.
And then there are the fellow runners. It might seem odd but all these strangers running alongside you suddenly become like old friends. You don’t know anything about them but - just like you - they have to run those 26.2 miles so you might as well support each other.
A bunch of awesome things happen while you’re running.
Those things will make the marathon one of the best experiences of your life. And you’ll want to come back for more.
By the time you’ll cross the finish line, it will all be worth it.
Your body might be a mess, but all you can think about is “I made it, I made it, I made it!”
You’ve completed a marathon, you’re now a proud member of an elite club. You have pushed your body through thick and thin, and you’ve succeeded.
You might be lying on a stretcher with painful cramps while a stranger is trying to help you cope with it, but you’re on top of the world and that’s just - let me tell you - the best feeling ever!

21 comments:

  1. I'm kind of scared of running a marathon. A 10K yes, maybe a half. Not sure if I'm good enough for a whole marathon...

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  2. I have the most found respect for marathoners, but me? Nope I don't think I could do it...

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  3. i love to go for Marathon too.... but i don't think i am fit.

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  4. Darn you. Now you're making me regret not having run my full marathon for my 40th birthday.

    Maybe if I started training now, I could hope to be in shape in time for my 45th...

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    1. Marathon for your 45th birthday: It's on Sonia, like Donkey Kong!

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  5. I agree with you, Mike. Once in a lifetime everyone should run a marathon. I'm terrified to death to do one, but it's definitely on my to-do-list before I die.

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    1. Oh Olena, I'm 100% sure that you have really what it takes to run a marathon. You're quite the toughie!

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  7. One day.... One day I will. I'm training for a half marathon now.

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    1. Great job Kim! A half literally means you're halfway there.
      Trust me, when you'll be done with the half marathon you'll want to come back for more. The full marathon will happen sooner than you can imagine!

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  8. I love love running. I completely agree with you, the adrenaline rush, there's nothing like that ever.
    I've done a few, and can't wait for my next in April. I miss the rush, but not the blisters and the soreness.

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    1. OMG Ash, we should totally do a marathon together and talk non-stop about food while running. I bet we'll so caught up in our food digressions we won't even notice the 26.2 miles. :-)

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  9. I just finished my first half this past Saturday. I never thought I'd be able to do it but now that I'm done I can see the appeal to running the full. Maybe one day! I LOVED running the half!

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    1. You will run a full sooner than you'll know it. If you loved running the half, you'll L.O.V.E. running the full. I guarantee you that!

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  10. Thanks for the encouragement in this article! Also completed my first half this past weekend. YAY! And signed up again next month because it was so awesome. I too thought I couldn't do even a half, but with proper training (and a reason to run) I feel like everyone can do it. A year ago I hadn't yet run a 5k. Best wishes to everyone with their goal distances!
    xoxo

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    1. Congrats Steph on your first half! You're becoming quite the runner, and now that's in you you'll probably never stop.

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  11. Thanks! I did my second half last October, and my daughter, who got me into running again has convinced me it's time to do a marathon! Training starts today and I was just getting up when I found your blog. Thank you! You have made it much easier to leave my computer and get moving! Onward & upward!

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  12. It is a stupid question but do you really have to run in a marathon, or can you just walk? Or, you will be embarrassed because you are the only one walking? II heard about marathon but I have not seen it live.

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