Muffins + Marathons: Sunday I ran a Marathon

Yup. 13 days after the Boston Marathon, I ran another marathon. I wouldn't recommend it as a smart choice if you haven't run a lot of marathons. It was definitely hard but I went into the race planning to have a relaxed run with no ideas of time in my head. I probably started out too fast, especially considering it was insanely humid (about 99% humidity) and pretty warm when we started. Thank goodness the rain finally arrived around mile 12 so we could cool down a bit and the wind held off which was a huge relief coming up Classen for the last 6 miles, but it was still incredibly hard to run a marathon with such a short amount of rest, not to mention the humid and warm conditions! My legs were definitely not under me. It was an interesting experience and I definitely learned a lot about myself as a runner on Sunday. I know that my training and fitness level are higher than the time I ran today, but my legs were not recovered because I went up and down. There were stretches of miles where I felt great and hit my groove and fell into my pace. My body reverted to what it is capable of but then the fatigue would hit me and I would need to slow down. It was both encouraging and frustrating, but I wasn't looking for a fast time so I was happy with the day! My official time was 3:51:48 which was just a few seconds FASTER than my time from the Boston Marathon (3:52:06). Crazy! I know my training worked and I'm running well and I've really improved. It wasn't too long ago I struggled to break 4 hours, in fact, I checked my time from 2010, when I ran a PR of 3:51. I can't believe how far I've come and it shows me I shouldn't ever settle for goals that I think are possible. Anything's possible!

I was able to see lot of friends and I love the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon since it's my hometown marathon and I'm running through my city. It was great to share the day with my husband Will, brother Brian and all my fellow Landrunners and running friends including my training partners Brooke and Mary. It's a tough course and a lot of people had tough days, but the purpose behind the race always changes my outlook on any bad day or bad race. 17 years ago, 168 people were taken from us in an unthinkable act of violence and every year OKC turns out to remember those 168 by running through the streets of Oklahoma City. I can't help but feel uplifted as I'm running along and looking at the banners with names of those who passed away and I am reminded of how lucky I am for all that I have!

I wasn't able to take ANY photos today at the race (a total bummer) which is so out of character for me and a little bit sad. Will and I didn't get our traditional post-race photo which is especially sad since it was the first year we BOTH finished the full marathon. I did get a couple photos of our post-race food, but otherwise nothing. (Special thanks to our friend Biju for the great photos of me and Will finishing!)

Will ran 3:35 so despite the fact that his photo is last here, he was done quite awhile before I was.

After the race Will, Brian, Brooke and I stuffed our faces with burgers and fries from Irma's. After some Starbucks (always important when you wake up at 4am!) and some relaxing and socializing, I made a delicious dessert recipe I'd been meaning to try and thought post-marathon was an ideal time to try a hot fudge pudding cake. (It tastes even better than it sounds!) You would think we'd be full after all that but that evening we thought a pizza sounded amazing. The best thing about finishing a marathon is the guilt free eating that happens after. When you burn 2600+ calories you can eat WHATEVER you want! Overall, the day was great and I'm already looking forward to my next marathon, which thankfully is several months away!