When I first started contemplating a marathon it was less than a year ago, so lets skip back 12 months and find out where it all started.
This time last year I had just started training for my first half marathon, the Blackmores Sydney half marathon being held in September 2012. At that point the furthest I had ever run was 14km in the City2Surf and even that was at a push. So I was very scared to be taking on a new challenge of over 20km and my training before the race had me doing up to 17km.
To be confident that i could make the distance, I made sure that I ran with the Nike Run Club 2 nights a week and fit in a longer run on the weekends, but I must admit I was slack with the weekend runs and didn’t always make the effort. But I kept running and gave it my all, quitting was never an option.
Needless to say I finished the half marathon and in just under 2 hours which was a great achievement for me. I was in tears as I went over the finish line and at the time I thought it was the biggest thing that would happen to me in running.
Little did I know how much effect the race would have on me and I’d say that the runners high had a lot to do with this. I instantly started thinking about what race I wanted to do next and a small, shy voice in my head said “marathon”. I ignored it for a little while, but after having chatted to my friend Todd about his first marathon I knew there was no turning back.
I chose to run the M7 Cities Marathon as its close to my hometown where I grew up and because its one of the smaller, not so popular races so there wouldn’t be lots of runners and lots of crowds. I’m not sure why I liked that idea but I think it’s because I want to be able to focus on my running and not dodging other runners.
So I registered, and I read a lot, and I asked questions, and I googled, and I did as much preparation work as I could. If I was really going to run this marathon then I needed to make sure I had a good training plan, a healthy diet and took care of myself. So learning from reading about other runners and probing my fellow run leaders for information really has helped me more than they know. Thank you guys and girls, you know who you are!!
I have spent months training and preparing for this run. I have travelled distances that I wouldn’t have even dreamt of a year ago and those small milestones have given me to motivation and the confidence to get to the start line tomorrow.
I have created this wonderfully healthy lifestyle and I feel fitter than I ever have done before. So what now? Now all I can do is wait for tomorrow, wait for the alarm to go off, wait to be dropped at the start line, and wait for the gun to go off. I’m so excited as I type this but I really must get to sleep.
A big thank you to everyone who has helped me and guided me to where I am today, I have the best friends and family that anyone could ever ask for. And I can’t wait to see so many of you at the finish line.
Wish me luck!! 🙂