Finish line of Maui Marathon

Marathon Recap:

I have to honestly say that the marathon prep vs. the prep I did to be away from my family for 5 days was far bigger in my mind than running 26.2.  I like to run and now I have the confidence that I can run/walk/crawl for as long as I need to, anywhere at any time and so the thought of the marathon was not too daunting.  Leaving my family and being a whole ocean away was the crazy part.  I am a worst case scenario girl and so I had all these visions (as I always do) about earthquakes, disasters, etc that may keep me from getting back to my family.  That is an aspect of my personality I can not seem to change and I am damn proud of myself for forcing (literally forcing) myself to do things like Maui, that pitch me so far out of my comfort zone that I am free-falling.  If I didn't force myself, I would be a shut-in and my son would have that Flowers in the Attic pallor but hey "we'd be safe & sound right"?  Wrong!  There are no guarantees in life so I have chosen to LIVE, as freaking scary as that is on a daily basis.

So I packed and got on the plan and then walked out into the tropical Maui warmth and breeze and AHHHHHH it felt amazing!  The entire time I was away I had a dull ache for my family but I also pressured myself to relax and enjoy this time.  It would have been silly & insensitive (to my husband) to waste my alone time pining for them.  I missed them most when I thought about our daily or nightly routine going on without me, which really drove home my feelings that I am living a life of pure joy & bliss, if I am missing brushing my kids teeth & making him breakfast!

Ok, the race.  All was good.  I had inklings of wanting to do the early start at 4:30am, giving me an extra hr on the course but more so I was thinking it would be cooler for longer before the sun came up.  My partner didn't want to do that and so I would have needed to catch a cab, etc to the start and it was just too many more details to work out.  I drank water like a fish on the day before, my biggest fear was dehydration and being 'that guy' who collapsed because they weren't prepared.  Having endured Portland I was also terrified of the dreaded dead legs of miles 14-26 or so, where the back of my legs get so tight and feel like they are being suffocated by lactic acid to the point I can't run...not a pretty picture huh?  Overall I was pretty chill in prepping for the race, being without my family I had the time to just CHILL and do everything for me and that was awesome.  I slept well the night before, which never happens and on race morning felt good but had to choke down bread & egg, was not hungry but I know 5+ hours of running makes you ravenous.. so I tried.

I love all my gear and my running outfit, I changed nothing up from when I run at home.  Same clothes, carried the same items, everything...nothing NEW.  Although we ran in the dark for an hour or so I decided not to wear my fancy new headlamp because I had nowhere to put it once the light came out.  Good decision on my part since anything extra you're carrying well into 26.2 feels like 5 lbs!  The start was dark & fun and it was a small race (that did make me nervous, I dread being dead last, ego aside...last is last!)  They did a traditional Hawaiian prayer and conch shell blowing, and it made me cry.  I hit the porta potty line one minute before the race started and I did not like that type of stress, won't do that again.  My running friend also had a bad cough and I was worried about her most the race, we don't run together (she is faster than me by miles) but I did not see her all of the race & worried about her more than I should have (she was fine).

First few miles in the dark were awesome but already warm, I had a thin layer of sweat on my face the first hundred yards & my heart was beating fast anticipating the heat to come as the sun rose but I got myself to just chill out, 'it is what it is', I told myself.  Not sure why but I started getting mongo hot spots early on and that was a bummer.  Mile 8 I took off my shoe and put on second skin and a band aides but for a few miles those felt awkward and all I could think of was how hot & lumpy my feet felt.  The focus on my feet subsided finally and I relaxed.  The course looks deceivingly flat but it is in fact a steady slight uphill and I really felt that as we climbed a portion with a headwind.  UGH.  A lot of people walked but I jogged since walking just took longer!  Overall I was feeling good and having fun and looking at the gorgeous ocean view.  It got pretty hot and I was thankful for the 3 layers of sunscreen I had slathered on.  I did not enjoy that 3/4 of the course was along the highway, exhaust and gawking drivers.  I hit the bathrooms so often (too often) because I was drinking so much water due to the sun/heat.  Overall I was feeling groovy until about 17/18...then I had to really push myself forward.  More walking than running.  Legs felt ok, not the pain & tightness of Portland but they didn't feel rad either.  I think the final 3 miles was the worst, time and miles crawled by...I would run for a while and look at my watch and it said 2 minutes...time was going soooooo slow.  I knew I would finish but it seemed to take forever!

I was so happy to be finished!  My friend had done well despite her cough but she was tuckered the rest of the day.  I was perky, I owe that to being a slower runner, I don't tax my body as much and so after almost all half marathon & my two marathons I feel pretty good afterwards!  The next day & following I was super duper sore though (holding on to the wall to sit down kinda sore!) SOOOOO worth it though, man what a high!

Family did awesome while I was away, I did well being away, a great combo of relaxed and missing them.  Only thing I want to do next time is more time on the Maui beach & swimming!  Overall, a HUGE milestone for me to travel so far alone, do a marathon in a place where people usually go to do nothing, improve my performance and time tons over my first marathon (6:18 Portland & 5:26 Maui) and even though I should have trained more, ran more, stuck to a plan more, done loads more Fonda~I still felt pretty awesome and never once felt ike the walking dead...I am just very proud of myself more than anything, I feel so blessed to be a runner & be able to do what I love, for ME.  Although running is the one thing in my life that is all MINE, I could not do it without an awesome husband & lifetsyle & mental strength/determination to give myself that self-care & love that is so essential...so I can be a great wife, mom, friend, human being in return!