I'm putting the warning up here at the top, this is going to be long.

The pre-port

NYCM was my first marathon, in 2010, and I finished in 4:56.  In 2012 I knew I would be able to PR, but my training was disrupted, and I wasn't able to prepare as well as I wanted.  After the 2012 NYCM was canceled because of Superstorm Sandy, I decided to refocus my efforts on a spring marathon.  I ran a disappointing 4:19 at R 'n' R USA, 10 minutes off my goal, and I wasn't sure I should go for a sub- 4 HR goal in my next marathon.  In the end I decided to start with that goal in mind, and if everything went perfectly, and it seemed like I was on track, I'd go for it.  I tried to improve my nutrition, my recovery, my sleep, and mostly failed, but my training went really well for the most part.  I hit 236 miles in August and September, way beating my previous monthly mileage PRs.  I averaged around 52 mpw during the training cycle and topped out around 60 mpw, which I hit twice.  I set PRs in the 5-mile and HM distance, and only missed a huge 10K PR because the course was shut down during the race.  I stayed uninjured during the training cycle, and as the race got closer and my teammates asked me what my goal time was, my answer went from 'maybe around 4:00?  If everything goes well?' to a confident 'sub-4 hours'.  I knew I had to leave the doubt behind; if I was going to make it I had to believe  in myself.  I knew it wasn't at all a sure thing-- asking for a 20-minute PR on a tough-ish course seemed a little foolish-- but I had to believe it was possible if I was going to get there.

The plan was Matt Fitzgerald's level 2 plan from "Brain Training for Runners".  It's a similar-to-Hudson/Canova-style plan (starts with short, hard efforts; repeats get longer and slower near the end of the plan, with long sections at HM pace and marathon pace but only in the last weeks) that I'd had success with in the past at the half-marathon distance.

Nutrition-wise, I more-or-less followed the plan from "The New Rules of Marathon and Half-Marathon Nutrition", with a 5-day fat load followed by a 3-day carb load.  Caffeine fast (uggggghhh), no alcohol the week before (except for a glass of red wine the night before).  Did it help?  Can't say for sure, but I did think, a number of times, 'I didn't go through all that fat-load no caffeine BS to not hit my goal!'

No sleep till / No sleep till Brooklyn

I went to bed around 10:30 on Saturday night, and didn't fall asleep until between 2:00 and 2:30.  I was just too keyed up.  Surprisingly I woke up refreshed and ready to go when my alarm went off at 4:30.  I dressed and walked over to my teammate S's place, where we caught a car service to the team bus which would take us to Staten Island.  I was wearing armwarmers but made a last-minute decision to leave them in my bag for after the race, since I knew if I wore them, I would toss them by mile 3, and I kind of wanted to keep them.    The bus ride was great, I got to chat the whole way there with a first-time marathoner.  She asked if I had any last minute advice but I knew it'd just be stuff she had heard 1,000 times, like don't start out too fast.  It was such a great atmosphere, everyone was happy and excited.  When we got to Staten Island security took my garbage-bag poncho (REALLY?) and between losing that and my armwarmers, I spent the next 3 hours being way too cold.  I had a sweatshirt and flannel pajama pants over my race gear, but it wasn't enough.  My teammate Y had found a place in one of the tents, and I joined her there.  We weren't too sheltered from the wind, since the tents were mostly open on all four sides, but it helped a bit.  She calmed my nerves a lot, when I asked her if I was going to be the only fool out there in a singlet and shorts given the weather (40s and windy, we ended up having a 15-mph head wind for much of the race), and gave me some of the food she brought, which I added to my breakfast of a bagel, a banana, and some beet-apple juice.  Used the port-a-potties a number of times, there were more than enough.  At 9:00 our corrals opened and we made our way over there.   We were in almost the same corral (I was placed in 31, she in 32) so I decided to line up in her corral so we could still keep each other company.

These vagabond shoes, are are longing to stray / Right through the very heart of it - New York, New York

Before I knew it, we were in sight of the start line.  I ditched my pajama pants and (reluctantly) my sweatshirt.  Another teammate, C, found Y and myself in the corral.  C was going for 3:50, Y for 3:53.  It was a gorgeous, perfect day to run and I found myself, only for the first time of many, just feeling joyous and grateful to be able to run this distance, in this city, with these people, in this weather, healthy, uninjured, with my family on the course.  I almost couldn't believe that two years of training, all building up to the next four hours, were going to be over so quickly.  The cannon, then Frank Sinatra over the speakers, and then we were off.  I stuck with C for the first mile up the Verrazano bridge, and Y for about the next mile after that.  I let them go ahead; I had to run my own race and couldn't spare any seconds to over-ambition.

First 5K split: 28:44/9:15 pace

Cause it's the B-the-R-the-O-the-O-K / L-Y-N is the place where I stay

I make it onto 4th avenue and make it a point to get my high-five early-- you can't run 4th avenue and not high-five a little kid.  Well, you probably could, but not me.  I was here to PR, but I wasn't going to let any of the joys of the day get away from me.  Great signs, great crowd support.  I know I'm a little behind and Brooklyn is pretty flat so time to make up a couple seconds here or there.  Stay relaxed, stay calm, stay stoic.  First gel at mile 6.

5K-10K split: 28:03/9:02 pace/9:09 avg

Brooklyn we go hard, we go hard!

On pace, and made up a little time.  I pass my where my teammates are set up, with their banners.  I raise my arms up and get a big cheer.  I pass the firehouse where the band is playing the theme from Rocky.  We continue down 4th avenue and turn onto Lafayette.  This is where I see my mom, my sister, my BFF and her mom cheering for me.  I lose a little time looking for them; the sidewalks are absolutely packed with spectators.  OK, I think to myself, no spectators to look for between here and mile 18- time to focus on me, how I'm feeling, how I'm doing.  To go hard, but to run within myself.

10K-15K split: 26:41/8:36 pace/9:08 avg

We'll keep pushin' till it's understood / And these badlands start treating us good

Next 5K is through the neighborhoods of Greenpoint and Williamsburg.  I remember running through these neighborhoods on one of the long training runs put on by the New York Flyers.  The first time, I had trouble in these miles.  The next one, no trouble.  This time, I almost feel like I'm flying.  A band is playing "YMCA"-- or maybe it's just a guy with a boombox.  Either way, the spectacle of the 1000 runners in front of me all doing the YMCA dance with their arms as they run is one of the highlights of the race-- definitely the funniest moment.  I took my second gel around mile 12.  I must have lost a little focus here, because I slowed down quite a bit.  Some of it was purposeful (since I realized the 8:36 miles in the last 5K weren't sustainable) but I did slow down more than intended.  I tell myself that this was just a long warmup for the half marathon that's about to begin.

15K-20K split: 30:03/9:40 pace/9:08 avg

Don't stop me now / I'm having such a good time / Having a ball

Up the Pulaski bridge that connects Brooklyn and Queens, I pass the halfway point right at 2:00.  I was intending to hit halfway closer to 1:59-- I think NY tends to be a course with a slight positive split if run perfectly-- but it all feels very effortless right now.  It's pretty flat between the Pulaski bridge and the Queensboro bridge, so time to make up some time where I can.  I see a sign for Sunnyside runners and yell out "SUNNYSIDE!".  Even though I don't live there any more, I feel I can claim a little piece of every neighborhood I've lived in.  The flat unfortunately doesn't last long and I'm running up the Queensboro Bridge.  This is the first place I really start passing people.  It just doesn't feel like much of a hill, though I do lose a little time for the bridges in this section.

20-25K split: 28:52/9:17 pace/9:11 avg

Got to keep it going / keep it going full steam

Down the Queensboro bridge to first avenue and I am encompassed by as loud a cheering crowd as you can imagine.  Cowbells, vuvuzelas, people yelling out everyone's name, people yelling out everyone's team.  It's flat again but it's not going to last.  I'm behind now and it's time to make up some time.  I remember the "last 10 miles" run my team did last week, I remember how fresh I felt.  I pretend I feel that fresh now.  I start to think that I only have 10-- only 9-- only 8 miles to go.  It starts to seem like only a short run is left.  I take gel #3 at mile 18.  I see L, my team's women's team captain, and she yells out "Stay Tough".  What a good cheer-- I can stay tough.

25K-30K split: 27:55/8:59 pace/9:09 avg

Concrete jungle where dreams are made, oh, there's nothing you can't do/

now you're in New York, New York / These streets will make you feel brand new

Into the Bronx, and singing this song to myself--not out loud, just in my head-- imagining the streets making me feel brand new, imagining each step energizing me more.  And then-- it's not me singing it to myself.  It's a band, or a boombox, I don't remember, but it is exactly what I need, and it's a little bit magical.  Joyful, grateful is how I'm feeling, even as I start to feel the first real hints of fatigue in my legs.  I remember running through the Bronx in my first marathon, in 2010, and I remember that this is where things got tough, and this is where I learned the lesson that things that don't chafe on the first 20 miles of a run may start chafing at mile 21.  No such problems this time.  Back into Manhattan-- keep it strong, I'm on pace (more or less), I just can't afford to lose any time.  Just an hour, now, of hard running-- somehow that seems much more achievable than 7 more miles.

30K-35K split: 28:43/9:15 pace/9:10 avg

Turn to, and put out all your strength of arm and heart and brain / And like the Mary Ellen Carter, rise again

Down through Harlem, such great crowd support as always and throughout the race.  I see L again, she gives me another great cheer-- 'just keep doing what you're doing'.  Yes, it sounds so simple-- just keep doing what I'm doing.  It helps a lot; reminds me that I'm not doing anything extraordinary these last few miles, just what I've been doing all day.  Up the long hill at mile 23 and even though I definitely notice it, it doesn't feel that bad-- it doesn't reduce me to tears like the first time.  I gain strength from that, and from seeing my mom and my sister cheering me on at the beginning of the hill.  Central Park and the finish are so close-- Again, I am struck by how soon the whole thing will be over, and it surprises me how sad that makes me.  Despite the hill I manage to keep on pace in this section, and even manage to make up a little time.

35-40K split: 27:45/8:56 pace/9:09 avg

From the Hudson River down to the Nile / I run the marathon till the very last mile

Central Park, and I've got home field advantage.  Yeah, it's hilly, but I used to eat these hills for breakfast.  When I was slower.  When I was weaker.  I am passing people left and right.  I am giving it all I've got.  I pass the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I pass the Obelisk and run down Cat Hill.  I am running out onto Central Park South and see Columbus Circle getting closer and closer.  Just keep it going, don't lose the plot.  My legs are tired but other than that I feel good, nothing is hurting.  Back into Central Park.  The beautiful fall colors are all around me, the sky is blue, the day is perfect.  Up the last hill and I'm passing the 400m to go sign, the 300m to go sign, the Hall of Fame of past NYC marathon legends hanging on banners all around me.  Smile for the camera, raise your arms, you know you've got this.

Last 2K: 11:58/8:45 pace/9:08 avg

Finish time: 3:58:44.

The Epilogue:

I can't properly say how thrilled I am with this time, and with the whole race.  I know I made some mistakes-- some too-slow miles in Brooklyn, for one-- but all in all I can't be anything but happy with my execution of this race and this whole training cycle.  It is such a milestone for me, and it's an achievement that I'll always treasure.  For some it may not seem like a big thing, but when I think of where I started-- when I think even of where I was three years ago-- I am just filled with happiness and such a sense of accomplishment.  I am so at peace, feeling like if this is the best I ever do in my running 'career', it is enough.

Thanks for reading

I will update with pictures once I get them!

What a finish! That could well be your best race you will ever have. Yes, your times will get faster, but will ever experience those feelings again? That was awesome!

Very cool!!  Great RR!  As I said in Damaris' RR, I think the 5 boroughs just holds a special charm unlike the other majors.  Ya, I'd love to run London.  Chicago? Sure!  Boston is beyond epic.  But NY is just charming.

I like that you feel so good about this one, it could be enough for the rest of your life.  That's pretty huge.

Congrats on a great NYCM!!!

Congrats and great consistent pacing!!

Meaghan, That was great! I was on your team last year, and remember you talking about this "plan". I think it was really nice to have so many friends and family there to cheer you on. Congratulations on a well executed race.

Way to go, Meaghan!   I was thinking about you on Sunday.  I know that you've trained long and hard for this, and I'm totally excited that all your hard work paid off!!   Congrats on completing such a long training journey!   And, HUGE CONGRATS on running a Pinksational race!!

Great execution, Meghan!  Congratulations on hitting your goal and going sub-4!  It sounds like you were really strong the entire race.  It's obvious how much your training has paid off.

No need for the "this is long" disclaimer.  Not long at all. 

What a great, even race!  Happy everything came together for you.  Congrats!