I did it!! I crossed the finish line at the L.A. Marathon!
All my Team Nutribullet buddies met at the Kettle One room at Dodger Stadium around 4a. What a blessing...ample chairs, water, coffee...and BATHROOMS!!! Woot! I made use of the latter 4 times.
The start was energetic, but not chaotik! After a hipster country version of our National Anthem...we were off! Kind off. More off a hobble over discarded sweats, hoodies, gels and bananas (so many bananas!).
My biggest fear was to get wrapped up in the day, take off too fast and burn out early. So, I stuck w my nutribitches April, Cinda, Courtney, Nancy and Alexis and power walked the early hills. Best advice I received this season was from my teammate Nancy: if you are struggling to keep pace just match the stride of someone in front of you...so I matched Nancy and Alexis stride for stride.
When we hit the Disney Concert Hall hill at mile 4 I was high as a kite!! Those drums!!! I became super emotional as in my mind I had completed leg 1...and I had NOT gone out too fast! I needed a good cry so I started my initial intervals of running 1 minute, walking 4 minutes...plus running the downhills. There were a LOT of downhills during this stretch...and I felt like I was gliding down through amazing Angeleno Heights where I ran to the side to greet a Persian cat on a harness and then ran into the cheering mobs from the Alzheimer's Association! I wept and thanked them as they were such a resource when my dad was sick...and I have definitely felt my dad w me during every run this season!
I was still high and smiling and weird happy sobbing as we went around Echo Park Lake and up the high past Brite Spot Dinner and into SUPER familiar territory! Silver Lake was my home base back in 2007 when I ran with Team in Training! As we turned the corner the streets were lined with screaming spectators! Such a boost! Mile 7 and I was still crying...and in shock at how effortless this was! WHY ISN'T EVERYONE RUNNING THIS??? Marathons are GREAT! Easy!
Then I hear "MARY! MARY!!" and saw my old TNT teammates Stephanie and Gail...and NANCY!!! Yay! I screamed "I'm running the L.A. Marathon!! I'm running the L.A. Marathon!!" Nancy hopped on the course and ran with me for a while! At Mile 8 in front of Millie's we ran into Julia!! She is the MOST upbeat and optimistic spectator you can have! She said she would see me again at Mile 13.
I continued on into Thai Town where I used to live with my ex. I was worried that I would be super sad during this stretch....but I wasn't. I WAS RUNNING THE L.A. MARATHON!!
Things were getting a little harder but I was not too hot, my feet (especially toes) did not hurt and I was not feeling tired or depleted. I was sticking with the 16 mile pacer which made me feel good as that would bring me in just under my projected finish of 6:59:59.
Ran through my old 'hood passing Rock n Roll Ralphs, my old gym Crunch. Saw my Nutribullet teammates led by Sergio in front of Guitar Center!! What a boost! Saw Julia again at Mile 13 which was our old stomping grounds when we first moved to Los Angeles from Boston back in 1997!
Now it was official...every step I took would be a step longer than I Had run all season! AND I felt oodles better than I had after the half marathon. I GOT THIS!!!!
Now that we were in the 2nd 10 miles so I upped my run interval to two minutes w three minutes of walking. Not many hills to run down during this stretch. I continued w my Bloks, added Altima to the water bottle I had picked up and doused my head, neck...and unfortunately my feet...at every water station. I still felt ok...but could feel a lot of friction on the balls of my feet. Not pain...yet...but it felt like I was slowly rubbing all the skin away.
Sunset to Doheny was hard. Why were the miles so much longer here??? It didn't look like a hill...but was it? I was struggling to keep up with the 16 mile guy who now in front of me.
As we turned down San Vicente April and Cinda blew past! It was great and see them and I tried to turn it on during that looooooong downhill...but my tender paw pads were too much. But its only mile 15?? I didn't plan to "dig deep" until Mile 20!!! I stuck w my intervals and gritted through.
WeHo should have been fun...but I forced a smile. I wanted to pull over and take my shoes and socks off and just look. Was there any skin left?? Blisters??? UGH! I felt like I had marbles in my shoes.
Doheny was looooong...and I ignored my feet. Ran into Julia again at Mile 16 which was symbolic as she had dropped out of the sweltering 2015 marathon at this point! "One of us is going to finish this God damned marathon!" she said. The french theme at Mile 16 was cute...but my feet. I was soooooo sick of Bloks and the gross drink I had to keep electrolytes up. BLECH! I kept drinking and eating...things were bleak enough without a blood sugar crash. And WHERE WERE THE PORT-POTTIES!!!!! ARRRRGH!!!! At least the fear of crapping myself kept my mind off of my feet for a bit. Goal was to get to Rodeo. Running down Rodeo is fun!! Get to Rodeo!!!
Made it to Rodeo...as I had slowed there were more shoppers (many smoking) to dodge...and still no bathroom. Turned onto Wilshire and saw a Rabbi w a microphone cheering on the runners (and limpers...of which there were now many!!). I asked if I could use his loo and he said YES!!! I scooted into the Synagogue and rejoiced in indoor plumbing, hot water and TP!!! Woo hoo!!! Decided to peak at my feet. Ugh. Socks were sopping wet...feet were blistered and swollen. Put those bitches back in the socks and left. I thanked the Rabbi and he said, "You have been mitzvah'd!!! Go out and do good!!!"
I immediately ran into Sophia who was in a LOT of pain...poor thing...and then Alexis and Nancy!!!!! We were NOT happy campers...lol. And off we went beginning our dark, hot and loooooong trek down Santa Monica in Century City. It was hot. I tried to think of "What I Could Do Right Now"...and I came up with nothing. With each step I felt that I was doing irreversible damage to my feet. Both feet. I need at least one. Was there a way to drop? What if I did? How would I get home?? UGH!!!!! Alexis made it VERY CLEAR that we were NOT giving up. Ugh. We tried to run a bit...but the stinging pins and needles turned to firely stabbing in what I now know were my metatarsals. To add insult to injury they started breaking down the course...no more mile markers and telling us to get out of the way of the sweepers. Was there not going to be any more water?? A volunteer turned over an entire table of water in front of us.
Halfway down Santa Monica we ran into Courtney!!! Her attitude was unbelievable and she was the same Courtney I had seen at Mile 2 when we parted!! Today was HER day!!!!
Down Santa Monica...up Sepulveda...left on Wilshire...we have run this soooooo many times in practice, but I couldn't go on. I literally could not fathom running alllllllll the way down San Vicente feeling like this. I had made it 20 miles...that was enough!! That was impressive in its own right. I saw Julia and my friend Juliette at Mile 21! Julia came bounding over full of enthusiasm and I rasped "IT IS NOT GOING TO WORK THIS TIME!!!" Having run MANY marathons herself, she got it, handed me a popsicle and let me carry on. I late found out she had texted my friend Marty. "Mary is in a dark place."
FUCKING SAN VICENTE SHOOT OF DEATH AND MISERY. OMG. I literally had noting. NOTHING. I didn't care. There was nothing to dig deep for. I planned on REFUSING a medal if I did make it as this was A STUPID THING AND NOTHING TO CELEBRATE. Why was this so hard?? My feet!!!! I am dying. I hope I am dying. I wanted to lay down on the grass in the median until a City worker collected my body and delivered me home. I actually turned to the curb 10 or so times but agreed to carry on until the next block. One more block. One more block.
As I was looking for a shady place to die I spotted Coach Nicole and Derrick! I told them I was planning to drop. "NOOOOO!!! They said in unison!!! You are 4 miles from the finish!!!" Nicole assured me I was NOT doing irreversible damage to my feet...and that Coaches Kelly and Craig were up ahead.
Coach Kelly said THE MOST MAGICAL THING IN THE WORLD TO ME (I am tearing up thinking about it)..."The end of this hill is right over there...and they it is all downhill." Hill??? I have no idea I was on a hill???? I just thought it was this hard today. That changed everything. It was not that my muscles had atrophied,,,WE WERE RUNNING UPHILL!!! I had something to live for...a downhill!!!! I was able to start running again...and it felt SOOOOO much better than walking.
Still had a long way to go...but I didn't have time to think as I ran into EVERYONE!!! Virginia from TNT...Kiley from TNT ran with me for a bit! My besties Nelia, Tracie and Cassandra FINALLY caught up to me and brought a cat we had rescued out to see me in his carrier!!!! Ran into Coach Jimmy who would NOT let me stop running!!! Then made it to Team Chan...who are the fast kids who organized my Tuesday morning run group and have actually led me to believe that I will be a better and faster runner if I stick with this!!! Then saw my friend Marty jogging along to catch up to me who jogged with me until we met up w Julia AGAIN!!! We were at Mile 25 and that AMAAAAAZING white apartment building was there symbolizing that we were at OCEAN BLVD!!!
I bid my friends adieu as I wanted to feel ALL the feelings. I couldn't comprehend how I went from Mile 20 to this. How was I smiling. I still felt as if I would have to have both feet amputated upon arriving at the finish line...BUT I WAS SMILING!!!!!!
They were literally disassembling the finish as I ran through...but I did it. I finished the L.A.-fucking-marathon in 7:48. OUCH!!!!
What to say??? When I first heard of Team Nutribullet and training for the L.A. Marathon my only thought was NOOOOOOO!!! I am so glad I took the leap and showed up to practices and training runs...one at a time even when I was so unsure.
I will definitely run again next year. And I will be faster. I am so proud of myself and all of my teammates!!! So much hustle...so much heart. #NUTRIBITCH4EVA
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