Notes
New York Marathon 2019 (splits posted based off my watch- between all the dodging around people in the first few miles of the race I ended up running an extra 0.2.)
This has probably been the most different training block from all my marathons which is not necessarily good or bad it is just due to the transition to grad school and a lot of solo training. Going into the race I was nervous that the lack of quality and quantity in my training would show and that I would bomb the race and be pretty sad about it. But I guess my 4 previous marathon experiences carried me through.
The morning of the race: got up at 4, ate at 4:30, left my hotel at 5:15. Took a 30 min subway ride to Staten Island, 30 min ferry ride, and 30 min bus ride to the start village. So had already been up for 5 hours before the race went off at 9:40. Felt pretty relaxed actually since I had no idea what was going to happen unlike Champaign where I felt stressed about breaking 3, I just waited around eating and drinking water and talked to a nice lady who gave me insight on the course. One thing I wish I would have done better was getting to the front of the corral when they allowed us to start moving to the start line. I have no idea how someone would run a fast first mile since it was uphill and there were thousands of people on the bridge, but I started in the middle of my corral. Something to change for next time.
Got to the second mile and flew down the bridge, 6:16 second mile. And I thought what wow haven't run this fast in a while and felt I could be in trouble. I think the second mile really gave me some momentum because I wanted to slow down but kept hitting miles in the 6:40s and 6:50s. I was wondering how long this would last and realizing this was going to be a pretty poorly paced race. But I was loving feeling fast and strong.
Ran the first half in 1:29:49 and thought wait am I on pace to PR? But then I was like uh my training doesn't really support a PR...but then I got to the 14th mile...
I took a step and I felt a weird twinge in my left outside of my knee. Not a marathon heavy legs tightness feeling but like actual pain. Not shooting pain but definite discomfort. Like any other run you would have stopped and checked it out and probably ended your run...but I was 12 miles away from the finish line. So then honestly the race became about finishing as safely as possible. Of course the accumulation of hills and a fast first half also slowed me down too. Basically, my first half and second half look like two different races. Every few miles I'd feel my knee again so that definitely distracted me.
The last 5 or 7 miles of the race were a really big mental game to get to the finish, I focused on the spectators and made checkpoints to get to. I wanted to walk so badly and see if my knee was really hurt but I knew if I walked I would ruin any chance of a decent time and it would be impossible to get going again. First my goal was to beat my Boston time (3:09:27) but as the race went on I changed it to beating my Chicago time (3:13:49) and trying to not irritate my knee. Felt like I crawled in the last 3 miles, literally felt like my quads and calves were ripping off my legs. I have noticed that in hilly marathons I've realized how much pain I would feel before the race is over. At mile 24 my watch flashed the low battery sign and I almost laughed out loud thinking that if my watch died I would surely die too.
All things considered, 3:12:45 is a pretty decent time for how I paced the race (not great), my knee, a challenging course, and my build up (pretty meh). I know I can do better (I want to get under 3:00:00 again) and would love to return to New York with better training. The best part of the race was the crowd support. The energy from the spectators is the best I've ever seen, better than Boston and Chicago by far. Felt like I was running through a party for a lot of the course.There were live bands like every other block and occasionally there was confetti being shot off and absolutely packed sidewalks. The race started with a cannon going off and Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York" playing as we shuffled up to the start line. I could not help but smile and absolutely fall in love with the atmosphere. An unforgettable experience for sure I LOVE NEW YORK. Would definitely like to return with better training and hill training.
A whole other best part of the weekend was having my mom there. We bopped around New York and got a fancy steak dinner the night before per usual and there is nothing better than seeing your mom at mile 23.5 arms outstretched cheering wildly. I love her excitement and support.
I am not sure what my next marathon will be but am confident that my next grad school marathon will have better training. I'm thinking somewhere in the midwest so it isn't as much of a time commitment. But I think now that I've gotten myself through this block and race with grad school going on, I can use this as motivation and confidence for my next marathon training block and race. Body is really sore, so ready for a break for as long as I need.
Thank you to everyone who texted or called me, it really got me ready to race and in a better mindset. It is one of my many favorite parts of running these marathons.