The new issue of "Marathon News" landed in our front hallway with a thud yesterday.
As soon as I had it in my hot little hands, I ran inside, ripped it open and perused it to see if there were any pictures of me in this year's race. While the issue was bereft of MarathonMum pictures, it did contain the ballot to enter next year's London Marathon.
Now, had the magazine arrived Monday I wouldn't have even entertained the thought of doing the race next year. Monday marked the fourth straight day I decided I'd go out for a run (even dressing for the activity on Friday and Monday), only to talk myself out of the endeavor, using one lame reason or another. But on Tuesday, I told myself Nicholas and I would go for only 20 minutes-- 10 minutes up the Thames and 10 minutes back. But I was enjoying the beautiful morning, jamming with my tunes, and running with such a nice rhythm that I actually went for 37 minutes. It was a great run.
I weighed the pros and cons of doing it next year.
For: I've got experience now and know what to expect
-I can learn from the mistakes I made in 2005
-Enjoying the experience of feeling like an Olympian for the day
-I can try to beat my time, which I was quite disappointed with
Cons: I've got experience now and know what to expect
-Three months on, my body STILL isn't fully recovered (back and hip still hurt)
-My personal trainer (Nicholas) will be that much older and heavier, making weekday training much more difficult
-No one ever asks you HOW MANY marathons you've done, only IF you've done it
I told Tim at dinner last night that the magazine/ballot arrived.
"I hope you threw it away," he said.
"So should I take that to mean you think I shouldn't do it?" I asked.
He pointed out that I was still suffering from this year's marathon, and also how much I wasn't around on the weekends, given the long Sunday runs I had to do. "You also got a little bit obsessed," he added. [Me? Obsessed?? Is that possible??? Does that finally explain why I've kept the name MarathonMum for my blog? {Actually, the reason I've kept the name is so that I can shamelessly continue to mention that I did the marathon}]
Now, when my mother reads this entry later today, I am quite sure that I will be able to hear her yelling, "NO! NO! NO!" from the other side of the Atlantic. There are probably lots of other people who know me and love me who also think doing the marathon again is pure folly.
I still haven't made up my mind about what I'm going to do, but I'm leaning against sending in the ballot. It would be nice to just support the other runners and enjoy the day next year. On the other hand, there's still that little voice inside my head who is saying, "Come on! Do it again!!"
Watch this space.
3 comments:
One of the guys that work with me ran teh FLM last year. He opted the cheer people on this year and take the rest. On watching everyone go by all he wanted to do was get back out there and do it all again.
It might be best to give your body that rest. There is nothing stopping you from putting in a couple of 1/2 marathons. I know now we have done a marathon...phew whats a half. But they are not to be snuffed at. I actually really enjoyed the 2 i did and i think thats what i will opt for. 1/2 marathon 1st. Give the body a rest and then see if another marathon is on the cards.
There is no rush....best of luck with your decision.
Somewhere between 37 minutes and 26.2 miles there's a time/distance that challenges you/makes you happy. So have fun fully exploring the middle ground.
(And beside the 1/2-marathons, there're other obsession outlets, i.e., triathlons and team relay runs.)
Wasn't it a lottery? Maybe it's out of your hands. Anyways, I too wish you luck and encourage you to take your time.
p.s. http://sportsmedicine.upmc.com/
MySportRunningRecovery.htm says it takes six weeks, minimum, to recover from a marathon. So there's another vote for a leisurely mulling it over.
My .02 from Track Town, U.S.A.
You know what I am thinking....
and we seem to think the same a lot.
Decisions, decisions, decisions
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