This is my favorite photo from our training runs...okay it's also one of our only photos from our training runs. I was really bad about not wanting to take pictures. Or have fun at all...they were hard! This is us about to cross the Sky Dance Bridge on our 20 miler.
I would like to take a moment to reflect on what my actual motivations were for running the marathon. What worked and what didn't? What I expected compared to what actually got me through the runs?
Is health a motivator for me?
In the end this was still not a motivator for me and quite honestly I did not feel any healthier after it was all done. I probably am but with an injury it didn't really feel that way.Is weight loss/looking good a motivator?
This motivator did actually get me through the training. I started seeing changes around the second month and I have to say that I liked them. I was not thinking about looking good on race day though. I was thinking about not looking like I was about to die...I looked that way anyway.
Raise Awareness for a Cause?
So, while at no point was this actually a motivator for me to run the marathon I did end up raising money for the Oklahoma City Memorial. Which was pretty rewarding and fun.
To Mark a Goal Off of Chris's List Together?
This was the reason that I ran the marathon when it really came down to it. When things got really hard I would think about the fact that this was the one thing that Chris wanted to accomplish this year and I would just keep going. At some point during our marathon training so one said you can't run a marathon for someone else. I don't think that is true if you know how much the other person wants it. I do agree that you need some other forms of motivation but you can do it for someone else.
To Make New Friends?
We made so many running friends. This was really the biggest reward of the whole experience. I am so glad that we joined the program that we did and met all the new friends that we have. I look forward to seeing them all out on the road or trail in the future.
The Sense of Accomplishment?
I thought this would be the one that got me through on race day but it wasn't. It did get me through a lot of the training runs. I wanted to accomplish each long run. When I finished that 20 mile training run it was awesome!