Well, I had a good bit of pressure riding on my shoulders to run this world renown distance of 26.2 miles at the 3 hour mark. Experiencing slight tendinitis of my left knee during week two of November set me back on my training and the goal of a consistent 7 minute pace began to fade from my foresight. With only 27 days until marathon day, it held me back from running for just over two weeks, as I began icing it down and trying to gradually step away from the pain. As race day approached, I knew I would be able to complete the marathon with no problem, but the question was; what split times would I be hitting after my lack of training days? Was this due to over-training, under-stretching, insufficient nutrition intake, or just a wrong twist outside of running?
On race day, adrenaline kicked in and I was surrounded by a crowd of roughly 44,000 of my new closest friends. Who knew what pace would be bolting out of my legs as I cruised through the cold Vegas streets on the night of December 4th. You can train all you want, carb and rest up and fully prepare your mind and body for an event, but you never know what is possible when adrenaline steps in and a runner's high taps you on the shoulders during mile 11 as your favorite tunes are providing the perfect BPM through your headphones.
Being that this was my first full marathon ever, I was happy to reach the finish line either way. Who knew what time I would cross the finish in? I felt as though my body's endurance was capable of maintaining my projected pace. The determining factor was whether or not my knee was. Hold strong, little buddy. It's only a distance.
Never Stop Running, -Joe Willy