3 weeks later...

I completed my second marathon. Yes, I did what they tell you NOT to do or at least be careful about, as in your body is not entirely recovered and is more prone to injury. So being the good runner that I am, when I came back from Montreal and was offered the chance to run Scotiabank I said no way!!! then came the "well... I could do the half"... The plan was to change the distance to the half  but the race sold out before we could do it. Mmm... dilemma... start the race and decide when it's time to take the half marathon exit where I go or do the full, no questions asked.

Sylvie The Cautious decided for the first alternative then my other half, the crazy one, decide to do the full. I could do it IF I didn't put any expectations and/or pressure. So I very quietly decided to do the full. When exposed to the question, announcing it to people meant that I was subjecting myself to the two camps. The "OMG you're crazy, be careful" and the "YOU GO GIRL!!". There was also the quiet ones, the ones with the knowing smile thinking I'd bonk and injure myself. I decided what the hell it's my body and I am smart enough to stop IF and when it becomes too much. And I very nearly did... I have to say it was a tough race.

So without further ado, my second marathon race report.

Weeks leading to the race, I was able to do solid tempo and race pace runs. I was eating well, sleep was plentiful, I felt good. Then Friday night, I had a nightmare. I couldn't make it to the start line on time, I kept crying at every street corners we had to stop on our way to the start. I was soooo sad. Woke up feeling very unsettled. I was thinking that the race was beginning to mean too much to me. Then I did hot yoga and all was good in the world again.

Morning of race: My race kit is all ready but like always I fuss. And as always, appetite is NOT there so must force myself to eat my oatmeal with maple syrup and banana. Meet my running buddy at 7:15 and we make it to the meeting point at 8 am. Runners from the clinic are there, but not ready to take group pictures. We end up not being in them because we had to go back to the baggage check. We finally make it to our respective corrals. I'm in the purple but I decide to sneak to the front and tried to locate the 4:40 pace bunny, couldn't find him! Finally it's time to move. It took us 9 minutes to reach the start line.

As I'm running/walking I feel a hand on my shoulder and it's my friend Nada who is doing the half. We both wish each other a great race and I'm off. I finally locate the pace bunny. He forgot his sign at home. I spot one friend who had promised hugs so I make a beeline to get hug #1. I get very emotional at this point and we haven't even crossed the 1km mark yet! Crowds are large and noisy, we feel happy, we started our journey. This is MY neighborhood, my people, they're there to cheer us on, we feel like elites! I spot my coaches, say hello, I'm feeling positive that the race will go well.

We turn and get on the Lakeshore, not a pretty sight but well, this is downtown so we must use what's available. Crowds have thinned out a bit and we're not running on top of each other anymore, that's good. Pace is good, mood is too. All systems go. Weather is perfect: overcast, a bit chilly but windy. This would come back to bite us in the ass at the end. I see my friend again so hug #2 :)  We pass the 10k mark, 1/4 done. After a long while, we finally get to our first turn around. Pace is still good, following the pace bunny is great, working out well. It's cold and my frozen fingertips have problems screwing the bottle cap back on and it falls off. Dammm... I don't want to stop to pick it up so I continue. I'm running without water, just a bottle that I get refilled every once in a while.

We finally get to the half marathon and marathon separation. No turning back, I'm officially doing the marathon. We go to our right, say goodbye to a few people who followed us and start the second part of our journey. At one point, I again meet some of my running peeps there to cheer us on. Hug #3 is on its way. Ahhh... I love hugs and I miss them so much...

We finally enter a boring section of the race. Very uninspiring and I'm getting tired. At kilometre 26, I say goodbye to the 4:40 pace bunny and the group. I need to take more breaks. This is a race to have fun, not to kill myself. So I run 10 minutes, walk 10 minutes. I keep hoping to see a friend who had promised to be there to cheer us on then discover she made a sign for me. What a lift! I ran to her, we collide and she is as excited as I am to see her. I start again, feeling stronger!

From 28k to 32k I do a lot of walking in addition to running. I'm still able to do my 10 minutes of running so this is helping. Coming up Kingston Road, I see the Lululemon stop but there aren't many Lulus left there... too cold, too windy but it's ok, it's not always fun to stay for the back of the pack. But from that point on I'm on auto pilot. I run as much as I can then I walk for 10 minutes maximum. Crowd support is very strong in the Beach area. I get a lot of encouragement, some "looking good Princess", all make me smile and give me the wings that I'm missing. The wind is picking up on the return, oh the wind... awful. We finally leave Queen Street and turn left on Kingston Road and I get hug #5 from a race marshall. I catch up to a few runners from the clinic, one of them is struggling but has a fantastic pacer with her who kept chanting like a mantra left/right/left/right to give her the cadence. She's soldiering on and I totally admire her steely determination, I'm not sure I would have it in me. We keep passing each other, when I walk they pass me, when I run I pass them. At this point, I'm in the "to the traffic light, to the overpass, to the next traffic light" stage. I'm not hurting, I'm simply tired. After all, I have run my first marathon 3 weeks before, my mileage wasn't high and I'm not experienced! I'm still happy, I'm not worried. But I am getting fed up with my Garmin, it died at the 39k mark. Bloody hell!!!

At Broadview/Eastern I hear my name and I realize it's another race marshall on her bike, Lisa Hagglund, one of my half marathon coach. I go to her and get hug #6 :) I really got lucky at that race... 6 hugs!  we joke around that it feels like the Running Room on a Sunday morning! this gives me energy.

High Fives!!!

As I come up Eastern to the DVP overpass, I spot my marathon coach, Larry, who is there to take pics and to give us some much needed encouragement. I will forever be grateful for him to have been there AT THAT TIME, it was so uplifting. He tells me to keep up, my form is flawless, get to the top of the hill, use the descent to gather momentum, there will be a crowd wating for us. I wave goodbye and I'm off... I know I only have about 2.5kms left to go. We're there. Give my water bottle to the last water station and I take off. From that point on it's go, go, go. As I get to Jarvis, I overtake Eva then spot Amy who is waiting for us, she is shouting encouragements, she is running with us, she is giving me strength. Then I see the group, our very own cheerleading squad at Church. What a wonderful sight. I will never, ever forget this. Then I really take off. I have less than 1km to go. I hear my name, I hear Princess, I see a few familiar faces, at this point all I can think of is "don't do a face plank, don't trip". I give all I have left in the tank, which wasn't much... I cross the finish line feeling estatic, smiling like I had won first prize!

Official time: 4:56:50

Yes, truly a princess :)

What a great race. Although it was tough and I did question my sanity in doing it, I think I would have kicked myself a lot if I had decided to be uber cautious. Now I rest. I did a short recovery run yesterday and realized that although it was great to be out there, it was a bit much. So spinning on Thursday, yoga on Saturday and running will resume next week.