Rock 'n' Roll

Well, I did it! As of this morning I've officially checked another item off the list:

#5. Complete another marathon with a PR time - check!

This morning was the Saint Louis Rock 'n' Roll Marathon that I've been training for these past few months. I can't believe how quickly it came, but I'm extremely grateful that it's over. The last marathons I completed were in 2007 and 2008 in Kansas City and St. Louis. My times were 4:18:59 and 4:10:10, respectively. Although I've been competing in half-marathons since, it's been an uphill battle to start adding distance again. Over the past three years I've battled with shin splints and exertional compartment syndrome (where my left leg likes to fall asleep around mile 5). Unfortunately, the leg falling asleep thing hasn't gone away (pretty sure I'd need surgery to fix it for good) and I've developed a new left foot issue that causes me severe discomfort around mile 8 on. Is this what getting old feels like? :-) So training for this marathon has been every bit as much of a mental battle as a physical one.

The good news is that while I may have lost the mental battle once or twice during my training, I didn't let it beat me today. I started out with the 3:40 pace team...a little aggressive, yes. But considering I can easily knock out six miles at an 8:00-ish pace, I thought a little group support could help me to tough it out the rest of the way and average 8:23/minute miles. Unfortunately, I was wrong. The group support got me through about mile 9, but when the rolling hills started increasing in elevation, my foot and leg issues came to the forefront and I dropped back from the pack. "Oh well", I said. I've always been one to run my own race anyway, so that became my mantra the rest of the way.

While I didn't quite hit a 3:40 or even 3:50 finish time, I knew I'd be extremely disappointed with myself if I didn't at least break the 4 hour mark. Thank goodness I had enough in me to bust out a time just 30 seconds better. (Phew!) Here are my stats:

I guess I can't be too disappointed with finishing in the top 25% overall or top 15% of my division and gender. Still...maybe someday I'll score a time fast enough to qualify for Boston. (A potential Operation 40 Before 40, perhaps.)

I also can't complain at all about the event itself. The music along the route was great, it was well-supported, the route itself was awesome (in my opinion way better than the Go! St. Louis Marathon route), and the weather was perfect. In case you're curious about the details, here's a snapshot and link to my Garmin Connect details for today's event:

A big THANK YOU to my awesome mom who came down to support me and take pictures during the race. She's always been great at supporting my brothers and me, and it meant a lot to have her there today.

According to my Garmin, I burned almost 3000 calories running today. (And - ahem, ran 26.4 miles, not 26.2 miles...can someone please confirm the accuracy of the route?! Kidding. Kind of...) Anyway, now to implement the rest and recovery plan. My recovery nap earlier was very satisfying and so was the recovery blizzard from Dairy Queen. (Mmm...medium cookie dough blizzard - happiness in a cup.) Now if the four blisters on my toes will heal, then hopefully I'll be walking normally again by Wednesday. Hopefully.

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