Monday, February 16, 2009

Race report

I did it. I finished. Knowing I wasn't trained and only had a 14 mile base, my goal was really just to finish the race, and maybe do it in 4:30.
It was the perfect day for a race. The sun was out for part of it, and I threw my gloves at about mile 20. I think I mentioned the race was a one mile loop. I was little worried about that. Turns out, I loved it. Well, loved is a stretch, but I liked it. As long as I just took it mile by mile and didn't start thinking about all the laps I had left, I was fine. There was water at every mile because of the loop. I walked at this point every mile. I would drink and walk for about 20-30 seconds. (Every mile) I knew this would ultimately help me finish and recover faster. After about mile 16, I was waiting to hit the wall. With each mile, I kept thinking, "This is going to be the mile I crash" Well, I never really hit the wall. My legs hurt, and I was tired, but mentally, I was good to go.

It was a bit to cold for my little girls (7&3) to be standing out there, so the first time I saw them was at mile 11, and then at 16, and then they came out and stayed at mile 22. I stopped and chatted with them at mile 16 and 22. My hubby told me a funny story about the 3 year old. They were walking back into the lobby from being outside, and my 3 year old saw a lady from the back wearing the same Boston '08 Marathon jacket I have. She went running up to her, and quickly turned to face her and Roared really loud, she thought it was me, and she was trying to scare me. (That is something we all do to each other in our house) LOL- what a nut.

I crossed the finish line in 4:09. WOW, I was shocked at my time. I would have LOVED to have finished sooner and I am certain if I had trained for this race, I would have. I felt so good too. I went in to the room and showered and we packed up to leave. The family was starving (my stomach was hurting, which is normal for me) so we went to the Macaroni Grill for a late lunch. We went in and sat down, and I quickly started to feel horrible. I was sweating like crazy and couldn't see straight. I rested my head on my arm for a little while. I didn't feel nausea and I didn't feel those post race poopy cramps, I was just dizzy and sweaty. It got so bad, I thought I was going to pass out and I was just sitting there. My husband got nervous because when he would look at me and ask me a question, I would just stare at him and not say anything. I starting to breath really heavy at this point and so my DH went and told the waiter I was sick and we had to leave, which was so embarrassing for him. I couldn't walk straight or see straight and so I had to hold on to my husbands arm. I got into the car and my husband was ready to take me to the hospital. He was punching it in to the GPS when I told him to stop. I thought I was OK, and that all I needed was some French Fries and a Gatorade. He raced over to McDonald's and grabbed me FF and then across the street to get me some Lemon Lime Gatorade. It took about 10-15 min, but I started to feel normal again. I was scared, my DH was scared and my poor kids were scared. I am not certain what was wrong with me, but I am sure it had something to do with my electrolytes. What do you all think?


*I didn't have any blister and I only rubbed raw around my sports bra.... OUCH...

My hubby took this video of me at mile 22. None of the pictures they took turned out normal. They were fuzzy and out of focus.




32 comments:

Unknown said...

Way to go girl!!!! How awesome would that be to see on your garmin. I can only dream of such things :)

I bet your electrolytes were all messed up. If french fries and gatorade made you feel better that would make sense.

I was thinking of you yesterday and wondered how you did in the race!! Thanks for the update!

Denise said...

Scary!! I'm glad you weren't by yourself!

Congrats on the great time, too!

Kim said...

Congrats on a great race!
Sorry to hear about your lunch experience but glad you got to feeling better.

Anne said...

I'm glad you had a good race (other than the post race shock). I love that your not best marathon time is a good hour and 45 minutes better than my best. You're awesome!

Mel-2nd Chances said...

i have the same hat! scary stuff after the race, but glad you were able to feel better fairly quickly. Congrats on the marathon! Amazing!!

Missy said...

Seeee, I knew you would make it faster than you thought. Yep, not enough salt, washed it out with all that water every mile. It's always hard when it's cooler out like that - you just don't really 'want it' like you do when it's hot out.

Kelli said...

what a woman you are!, not trained totally but pulled it off. Good for you. Glad you werent too sick

RooBabs said...

I knew you would do great! I would love to have a finish time like that when I was fully trained, LOL.

I'll have to watch the vid at home, since it's blocked on my work computer. Love the story about your little girl. = )

Oh, and afterward, it definitely sounds like an electrolyte issue. Probably a bit of hyponatremia from all that water. Did you have any gatorade or gels or anything during the race besides water? That's crazy, though. I'm glad it turned out okay. What a scary experience!

Anonymous said...

You rocked the race!! The situation after sounds pretty scary. Since you felt much better after you ate I am sure it had to do with electrolytes and nutrition. Did you eat and drink enough before and during the race? Not having your usuall training and posting such a great time could have been a factor too.

Marci said...

LOL at that sigh!! That says it all at mile 22...
You DID great, I'm so glad that you had a good experience. There is something to be said about the predictability of a race like that.
Sorry you felt nauseous, but you did great especially with limited endurance training!! Great job!

Oz Runner said...

awesome job on the race....did you have to keep track of the miles/laps yourself? I think I'd probably forget what lap I was on....

Aron said...

great job on the race!!! wow you did amazing :)

sucks you felt so bad after :( sounds like electroyltes were just what you needed. glad you are ok!

Bethany said...

Wat to knock it out of the park! You are a very strong person...

I hope you are feeling back to normal today. That sounds like it was scary!

kristen said...

I dream of a marthon time like that. Good work!

Are you a heavy sweat-er? Maybe you should try salt tablets.

Marlene said...

Yikes, that sounds scary! I'm so glad you felt better once you got those electrolytes back up.

Congratulations on such a strong race! You kicked butt!

Stacey said...

Congrats! You did great! 4:09 and not even trained. You are amazing!!! Glad you felt better after the FF and gatorade.

Felice Devine said...

Wow, congratulations! That's terrific! Sorry about the afterward stuff. I guess you really needed some salt.

justme said...

yikes, sounds like a great run but not so good after. low blood sugar ???

Unknown said...

Way to go on the marathon, you did great. It sounds like you just needed some sodium and calories afterwards, that's scary though.

Courtney said...

That is scary...I love the uuhhhh...in the video!

joyRuN said...

Great job with the 4:09!

With the sweats, disorientation & dizzy, I've seen it happen when peeps' blood sugar drop way too low.

Fit Mommy said...

Great time on the marathon. And yes, I'd agree that your electrolytes were wonky.
Found your blog from Amanda's blog. I'm a runner and mom and I did st. george in 08.

Kristi said...

Oh man seeing this video makes me miss you so bad, I love the uuuhhh! Miss you guys soooo bad! Congratulations on finishing, and with an awesome time, especially for not being fully trained...

Diana said...

that is a scary story, glad all worked out well and nice job on the race!
McD's FF are always good for what ale's us!

Julie said...

Great job! Definitely sounds like an electrolyte issue, like everyone else has said. I'd try some electyrolyte tabs, if you dont use them already. I like the Succeed Tabs. It's hard to feel like I need to use them when it's cool out, but for anything over 10 or 12, they definitely help!

Deb said...

Hey congrats, that's awesome work by you! Whenever I've felt unprepared for a race I usually end up just bailing on it! Way to go running it anyway, that's a good time! I've never experienced anything like that after a race...glad it didn't last too long...scary!

Cox Clan said...

What an amazing women. You rock!! I can't believe you didn't hardley train but you finished. You inspire me. Can't wait for the end of March. Sammy keeps reminding me how excited she is. When I watched your little running video, Kylee was watching it too. When it finished she said," I love her." So cute. I love you too.

BOBBI McCORMICK said...

love the blog!

rolf said...

Great job on the race! Too bad the celebratory lunch had to be nixed.

Sonia said...

WOW I b-o-w to your GREATNESS!!!!

Unbelievable result!! You rock!! Sucks really badly about the aftermath though. Did you drink fluids and take gels throughout the marathon?? That might have smth to do with this. I've never felt that badly but that would worry me too!

Organic Meatbag said...

Way to go! Major kudos to you...I get gassed just running from the couch to the fridge...

Megan Adamson said...

WOW!!! I am so impressed. You are an amazing. I can't wait to do my next one.