Relief and answers

A week ago right NOW (6:21 a.m.), I was waiting in line at the porta-potties, getting ready for my second marathon, which ended disastrously.

So it was with trepidation that I went back to running on Thursday. I mean, I was going strong up until the day of the marathon and then I flopped. Maybe my medial running ligament (or worse than that, my give-a-damn) or some such had just given up the ghost.

Nope.

I have actually had my best running times in a long time over the past three days. I ran four miles on Thursday and Friday, and then six on Saturday. I resume with my regular schedule starting today, although for this week, I'm going to mix it up some -- run eight some mornings, just six the others, and hit 12 miles on Saturday.

So, relief.

My recovery from this marathon was much easier than from my first one. Not sure why, don't really care!

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I subscribe to two running magazines  on my Kindle Fire -- Runner's World and Running Times. Whenever they show up, I usually dive right into RW, and read RT whenever I get a chance. RT seems to be focused more toward serious runners, and while the articles are good and informative, they don't always seem to apply to me.

I didn't get around to reading this past month's issue until Tuesday over my lunch break.

OMG.

There, right there, was an article on keys to success in a marathon.

I had read a million articles like this both before I decided to start running marathons and since. But none covered everything in such awesome detail as this one.

And there, in black and white, was exactly why I failed:

1. I didn't carb-load enough. Runners who rest during the week before the marathon and carb-load actually gain weight. The taper is so difficult for me already that the prospect of gaining weight just freaks me out. So I tiptoe around it. I do a little more carbs than usual, but not the extent that I need to support my body during 26.2 miles.

2. I started out way too fast. Slow and steady would have been more productive than the spurts of speed combined with the OMGslow I was doing.

3. I usually giggle at the runners who have hydration belts. I just think it looks goofy, and I'm not sure that I could run with that distraction. But this article made a fairly good argument for them -- you don't get bottled up at water stations, you aren't tempted to slow down at water stations... Food for thought, I guess.

Anyway, those things coupled with the heat were a recipe for disaster. I should be happy that I finished as quickly as I did with those issues against me.

I feel better about my performance; at least I know what I can do differently next time.

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In the day or so after the marathon, I seriously thought about "giving up" on them. I had to ask myself if it was worth it -- the mood swings during the taper (and they were particularly bad this time), the nervousness leading up to the race, the stress and strain running it put on my body, and then the aftermath (OMG, the aftermath -- soreness, intestinal issues, chafing even though I did use BodyGlide...)

I thought about it a lot.

And my answer is, yes. It is completely and totally worth it. I'd run San Antonio again, even if it meant the same time.

I still don't see how I can fit a marathon in next year (and still run Houston in January 2014), but that doesn't mean I'm done with them.

Not at all.