My Marathon Story

Let's start with the day before the run. I went to the Health Expo with Kelly and Ian (my school friend and her bf) to pick up our race packets, and I was soooooo freakin nervous. I couldn't think about anything except the run. I was also mad at myself because I kept thinking bad thoughts in my head. I was thinking my shin would hurt...that I'd break down and not be able to go further...that my body would forget how to run...etc. I'm usually a pretty positive person, but I was terrified of this marathon. I felt unprepared. In the past month and a half, I ran three times (18 miler, 7 miler and 20 miler) and the 20 miler was two weeks ago!

Anyways, while at the expo, it was beginning to feel REAL. I would be attempting a marathon tomorrow. What was I thinking?  We stopped by this booth where they had these big frames/plaques that included a replica of your bib and medal, your picture, your name and finish time. We were mesmerized by these things. After about 10 minutes of going back and forth on whether we should get it, Ian finally said he was buying it. About two seconds later, I said I was getting it too. As I was paying for the order, the salesperson was asking me if this was my first marathon, blah blah, and I told him how nervous I was. He told me if I didn't finish, I could cancel the order. Now I was sold. LOL. Do you see the negative energy?

The Map of The Course

We ate dinner at Olive Garden that night then came home and watched the Spirit of the Marathon. A pretty cool/inspiring movie. Nancy prepared sandwiches and oranges for the run. I went to bed around 11pm. I actually woke up at 12:30am and felt ready to go. It seemed like I had slept longer. I woke up again at 2:30am and that's when my nerves hit me. I couldn't fall back asleep. I got up at 3:30am and was really excited. It was race morning!!! Tonight, I'd be able to say I completed a marathon! I ate some cereal, got a good luck kiss from Jeff and we were out the door by 4:15am. Jeff, Nancy and Harold didn't come to the start line, because they had a plan to drive all around Miami, meeting me in different places along the course. I rode in the car with my parents listening to the Wicked CD. Defying Gravity came on and it made me want to start!

We got to the Metrorail at Dadeland North and everyone was there!!!
Tania, Jaclyn, Lina & Elena were all running the half marathon.
Steve, Kelly, Ian and I were going to run the full marathon.
Everyone's parents were there and my Madrina and her kids also came along for support.
Everyone was pumped. It was fun.

Me, Ian & Kelly

All the runners: Elena, Steve, Lina, Kelly, Ian, Me, Tania & Jaclyn.
Waiting for the Metrorail

Some of my cheerleaders :)

Me with Tania & Jaclyn - I was so excited they'd be doing their first Half Marathon!

The MARATHON runners!

My parents: always there when I need them!

We got to the starting area and the excitement was running through my body. 21,000 runners - all waiting to accomplish a goal they've set for themselves. It's amazing to be surrounded by people like that.
I used the port-o-potties twice (I know, gross). While in line for it, we heard the national anthem. Once we came out, we said our final good lucks and I went to the start line with Jaclyn and Elena. I was super emotional and kept getting teary eyed. Five months of training and I was finally here.... with all the runners and all the crowds.

See the red nose? That means tears are coming. lol.

Elena, Me and Jaclyn getting ready to start!

My Padrino who always gave me motivational words and videos a few weeks leading up to the marathon.

My proud momma!

So pumped!!!

The gun went off and we waddled our way to the start line. Jaclyn took off right away and I never saw her again. lol.

Elena (my mom's work friend) stayed by my side till the split-off (12.8 miles). As soon as I started running, I could definitely tell I hadn't run in 2 weeks. My body felt tight. But it felt good to finally start! Luckily, my leg didn't hurt as soon as I started (this was usually the problem).

Mile 1: flew by. I was thanking God for not feeling any pain. This had been the biggest cause of my nerves and negative thoughts. I always knew if I felt good at mile 1, then I could run through the marathon...and I felt great!

Mile 2 &3: So beautiful. It was still a little dark and the cruise ships were all lit up. I love this part of the run. My shin kept giving me little tweaks of pain here and there but I just ignored it.

Mile 4: I remember thanking God for having Elena by my side. I was excited watching her do her first half, and I had been really nervous about being alone throughout this whole thing. We kept the same pace the entire first half (around 12:05) and I was always entertained knowing she was next to me.

Mile 5: The first time I got to see Jeff, Nancy and Harold. I sneaked in for a hug and kiss and asked for an orange. My sister's face was like, "Oh shit". She said she thought I wouldn't need any by now. lol! I asked her to have oranges and Aleve ready the next time I saw her.

They took a picture of the Kenyans in first place but they were running so fast it came out blurry! HAHAHA

Kelly & Ian at mile 5



Elena & I at mile 5



Mile 5

Mile 6: another mile. Don't remember anything significant. lol. I can say that I was very emotional the first half of the run. Once my leg pain completely went away, I realized...omg I am going to run a marathon. I thought of the 5 months of work that went into today. I kept thinking how bad I want this and how amazing I'm going to feel when I'm done.

Mile 7: The Publix Mile. They gave us Free GU (Energy Gel). It was some blackberry flavor. I pretty much took the whole mile to eat the thing! It really does give you a boost!
At every mile Elena would check her watch and tell us our pace. Sometimes we were so excited, we would completely forget to check.

Mile 8: another mile....

Mile 9: This part of the run is really pretty. The Venetian Causeway. Beautiful skyline and water on both sides. There are little hills though that were pretty annoying!

Mile 10: By this point I was excited to see my family at the cheer zone which was supposed to be at 10.5 but we didn't see them till mile 11.

Waiting for me to come to the cheer zone

Mile 11: What an amazing cheering section. They had the spectators close to each other so you almost had a tunnel of cheerleaders to go through. I took my headphones off and soaked it all in. My family was lined up and screaming for me and giving me high fives. My mom was taking a bunch of pictures. I just had a huge smile on my face. I felt great at this point.

My mom is always the loudest cheerleader



Family & Friends ready to cheer on all the runners!


Further into this mile, I got to see Jeff, Nancy & Harold again! This time they had a sandwich and Aleve ready for me. Perfect :) I really loved that they were driving all along the course to see me. I was always looking forward to it.




The massive amounts of people running next to me



Mile 11.5

Mile 12: We got to eat oranges!!!! omg they were so delicious! lol. Further into this mile, they started splitting up the runners. Half marathoners on the left. Marathoners on the right. I gave Elena a big hug, told her she was doing amazing and she wished me luck. Then we split. This was definitely one of the BEST parts of the run. I was used to running with a herd of people, and for the first time, all those people went to the left...and only a select few went to the right. The Half Marathoners were just staring at us and I know what they were thinking because I thought the same thing last year ("I can't believe those people have to run this whole thing, AGAIN). But I felt proud. It was an exhilarating moment and one of the more emotional  times in the marathon.
This lady came up to me and we started talking for a bit saying how crazy this was. It was her first marathon too. We wished each other luck but she was faster than me and I never saw her again.

Mile 13: It was weird to run alone for the first time. I looked at my time and realized I had beat my half marathon time from last year by one minute. lol. I was half way there. I still felt pretty good at this point. At the water stop, I drank a ton of water because I really hadn't had a lot up to this point, and  I knew I had to stay hydrated if I want to finish this thing. Then, there was a bridge. As soon as it started to incline, I walked. Then I was like...what am I doing?? After that, I sprinted to the top. Then, I almost threw up. lol. I was water logged. I spent the next mile just trying to feel better.

Mile 14-17: I can't separate these miles because they were all a blur. And not a good blur. These few miles were a struggle.
First, you could see all the marathoners running in the other direction. Since, I studied the map of the course, I knew they were between mile 21-22. I had sooooo much time to get there and it kinda discouraged me that they were so far ahead. I had to keep reminding myself that I didn't run this to see if I can achieve a certain speed. I ran this to see if I have the dedication and will power to complete the marathon...no matter how hard it gets.
Second, my insides were hurting. I stopped at 3 different port-o-potties. I tried to pee and it hurt!!I felt like I was getting a urinary tract infection (I know, too much info....but seriously, I had no clue how this could be happening).
Third, I was just tired. My legs were starting to feel weak.
I would usually stop once or twice (ok, sometimes three times) per mile for like 30 seconds. I mostly did it every time I saw the main mile markers, and then again at the water stations. At one point when I was walking, a whole crowd of spectators started cheering my name and rooting for me. The second I started running again, they went wild! It was awesome to get support like that from people who don't even know me!
The same runners were pretty much around me the entire time. Sometimes they'd get ahead, and then they'd walk and I would get ahead. It was like this till the end of the race.
At some point, there was this little Asian spectator on the side of the road giving out bananas. I took one thankfully! I ate half of it and then saw some guy behind me and asked him if he wanted the rest. He took it thankfully too!
I talked to this lady for a couple minutes. It was her first marathon and we were both pumping each other up. Her hips were really hurting. My legs just felt tired. We talked about our training. She said she had gone up to 21 miles. I told her I went to 20. We talked about our families. I told her that mine would be at 18, and my dad was waiting for me at 22 to run to the finish line with me. She said her daughter would be running the last mile with her. Every couple of minutes, we kept checking up on each other.
Another point I got emotional was when one of the wheelchair contestants was right beside me. He would stop every so often. I guess he was really tired. I kept realizing how blessed I am to be alive and healthy and have the ability to run a marathon. I promised myself I wouldn't walk again until he stopped. That got me through like half a mile.
The one exciting point was when I realized I wasn't in double digits any more. 9 more miles to go!

Mile 18: My support group again!!!!!!! Ashley & Ben were also there. I stopped to talk to them for like 5 minutes. I ate so many oranges. I would throw all the peels on the floor because that's what we did during the run. I think they thought I was crazy. lol. They were seriously the best oranges ever, though. I offered them to all my neighbor runners. lol. I was SO tired at this point. They left me with a sandwich to take on the road. ha! I had drank so much water and eaten so many oranges, that I just wasn't in the mood for a sandwich. I saw the guy that I offered my banana too. I offered him a sandwich now, but he didn't want it. No one around me wanted it either.



Making my way to see my supporters!



Mile 18: It's funny...I can throw my hands up in the air and smile...and it looks like I feel great...
even though at this point, I was truly exhausted.



Those oranges saved my butt!!


Later in this mile, we were in Coconut Grove. At this point, I literally thought, "Holy crap. I was at the beach this morning and I RAN TO THE FREAKIN' GROVE." I was impressed with myself!! Doing that in the car is a lot!!! But I did it on foot! WOW!
A little later, one of the couples that turned down my sandwich offer came up to me and said, "I could taste the sandwich on my lips, now. I wish I would have taken it!" hahaha. I told him that when I saw my family again, he could have whatever he wanted!
The guy I offered my banana and sandwich too came up to me and said, "You've given me a banana and offered a sandwich. You're a life saver!" Honestly, I was just being nice. Towards the end of the course there wasn't anything except water and gatorade...and I thought my neighbors could use some better stuff!

Mile 19: I'm pretty sure my brain wasn't in my body.

Mile 20: The infamous Mile 20. Everyone says the REAL marathon occurs in the last 6.2 miles. I was ready to take them on. Everything from this point on was unfamiliar territory since my longest run before this was 20. I liked the challenge. I was happy that I hadn't hit "the wall" yet.
Considering the wall hit me at mile 14 during my 20-miler, I felt pretty good. I mean, my legs felt like they were going to fall off and I had been running for four hours straight...but I didn't feel like dying - and that's a good thing :)
That feel-good feeling didn't last long.
Before I get to mile 21, I was EXHAUSTED. I stop to walk, and I look up and think, "Wow! That looks like Jeff." It was!! My cheerleaders surprised me! Grace had also joined the pack. I was really happy to see her!
Since they caught me walking, they got some pictures of me looking REALLY tired. I crack up every time I see them. I feel like he really captured me at my worst. When those thoughts would cross my head...why am I doing this? I'm tired. I could hardly put one foot in front of the other. I just wanna finish...etc...

You see me with my head down?? That's me saying...left foot...right foot...you can do this!

That's Jeff on the left. I'm just starting to realize it's him. LOL

Beyond tired.

Motivational speech by my fiance :)

Love.

I got to eat my life-saving oranges again. I wish I could begin to explain how good they tasted and how much better you felt after eating them!!! As the sandwich guy passed by, I offered it to him again, but he skipped out on it. His girlfriend came to get oranges though. I stayed another 3 or 4 minutes, reapplied deodorant, sprayed body splash and felt refreshed! Then I was off again.

After they left me, they got in the car and headed to their next stop in the course. They honked at me and caught more funny pictures. Someone then told me, "Wow. You're famous" lol.

I can't tell whether I'm scared, pissed or tired. LOL.

Mile 21: I never saw the mile marker for 21 so I was wondering why 20 was soooo long. I ended up asking someone if we had passed 21. She said we passed it awhile back. Thank goodness. lol
At this point, my main goal was to get to 22.5. My dad was waiting for me there and he was going to run the rest of it with me.
My legs were so tired and I needed motivation. My mom had written my name on my arm before the run and everyone on the streets would scream my name. It was so much fun and it actually helped a lot.

Mile 22: I turn the corner to the Key Biscayne Entrance, and I get to see my dad. I was so excited to have company to the end. We run on the Rickenbacker Causeway, just before the big bridge. He kept talking to me and kept my mind off this grueling run. It was seriously getting hard by this point. The sun was out and there no spots of shade. I was so hot and thirsty. My dad forgot to take his sweater off and it was annoying him having it tied around his waist. And since he had been waiting for me for over an hour, he had to pee. We ended up stopping at a restroom along the course. While he used the bathroom, I went to a sink and washed my face. I hardly sweat in these runs. Instead, I'm pretty dry with a layer of salt. When I wash my face, it literally tastes like salt water when I lick my lips.

Mile 23: We turn around to head away from Key Biscayne. Under the bridge there was finally water. It was sooo refreshing. This part of the run was probably the prettiest part of the entire course. I wish I hadn't been so tired, so I could actually enjoy it. My dad was mesmorized by the scenery. He reminded me of when we were young and we would bring the boat out to this side of town. We talked about a lot of things...mostly how proud he was of me...and how important this was...and how I'll never forget my first marathon. He kept reminding me that we were almost there and to keep pushing. It was so hot on that bridge. I was moaning and groaning. My dad kept stopping to take pictures of me...

At the end of the causeway, I see Katie and Luis and they took a picture of me and my dad.

My dad and I in the hot, hot sun. Leaving Key Biscayne.

Mile 24: As soon as I saw this number, I got really excited. Just 2.2 miles left. That's nothing!!!! We made our way down Brickell Ave and after a little, we see my support team again! lol. I grabbed an orange, my dad gave them his sweater and we kept moving. This mile was really pretty.

Heading to Brickell

Mile 25: I remember saying, "Wow! That came really fast". I actually looked at that mile marker and was a tad bit upset that it was all coming to an end. My dad told me to savor the moment and take it all in and that soon, I was going to be a MARATHON RUNNER. Although I was fatigued, I just kept moving. I remember seeing all the big buildings and it was all so exciting. I was about to finish!!! We passed by a band playing Soca music and my dad was screaming and pumping his fists. I, on the other hand, just gave a really big smile...anything else would require too much energy. LOL. The music was great though!!

At the end of mile 25, my dad tells me that we just gotta get over the bridge and we'd be at the end. I just screamed, "A Bridge?!?!?!!?!? Hell no!!!!". It was the same stupid bridge that almost made me throw up the first time. If I drived by it today, it would probably look like a little bump in the road, but on marathon day...it looked like Mt. Everest! It was tough to climb but as soon as we got over it, we turned the corner and I could see mile 26!!

Mile 26: We took a picture here, but it's nowhere to be found :(
My dad wanted to watch me cross the finish line, so he told me to wait there and let him be a minute or two ahead of him so he could get his camera and video ready. lol. So he went off and in the mean time, I put my iPod away, took off my sunglasses, and re-did my hair so it wasnt all in my face. The sandwich guy passed by me and said, "Come on! Let's finish!"

I could literally hear the crowds yelling. These last 0.2 miles were surreal. You turned the corner...and it was a straight shot to the finish line. I remember a spectator on the right yells, "Sandy!" When I look at her she said, "You are going to be a MARATHON RUNNER". Chills literally went down my spine. It really set in that this was it!

A little bit after that, I saw Jeff on my left hand side...he had just sprinted over to watch me finish!

I run a little further and there are spectators on either side screaming!

I hear the announcer say my name over the loudspeaker and I look to my right and see my cousins cheering me on and yelling my name. I start waving my hands up and down to get them to scream louder ;)

After that...I ran as fast as I could to the finish line!!!! I wanted my medal!

Apparently, my mom was on the right hand side, right after I saw my cousins. She was screaming my name and wanting me to come over and high-five her...but I completely missed it. In my head, I thought her and my dad would be there when I, literally, CROSSED the finish line....instead, they were before it. Boo :(



So that's it...I am a MARATHON RUNNER!!! After 5 hours and 51 minutes...I finished!!!

I always thought I would cry when I ran crossed the finish line, but there were no tears. I was literally filled with excitement. I went to get my medal and when he put it around my neck, I just kinda stood there and smiled. At this point, I was by myself and just trying to soak in every second. I perservered. I gave it my best....and I finished! It was a very proud moment for me.

Now it was time for celebration pictures:

My amazing medal

Thanks to my mom who backs me up 100% in everything I decide to do. She is an amazing cheer leader who captures every moment with pictures and always screams the loudest! If it weren't for you I would have never finished that 20 mile run and I would have REALLY doubted completing this marathon. I love you!

My dad....special thanks to him for running those last 4 miles with me. He kept my mind off the pain and helped me enjoy the moment! Also...if he had never ran a marathon...I probably wouldn't have done it either.



My fiance...who put up with me during the 5 months of training. I complained a lot, slept a lot, and asked for a lot of massages but he was always there to support me (even though he called me crazy way too many times)





My support group who followed me through out the course to encourage me and feed me! You guys were the best!!!!!!
Grace: Thank you for coming! I didn't expect to see you and it was a very nice surprise!
Jeff: Thanks for everything. I love you!!
Nancy: Thank you for preparing the sandwiches and oranges. I dont think oranges could ever taste that good again!!! You have always been an amazing cheerleader in my life and I love everything you do for me!
Harold: Thanks for coming out and cheering for me on YOUR birthday!!! And thank you for the amazing pics!! You have always been a great brother-in-law and I thank you for that!



My cousins and their friends...I hope they were inspired enough to do this one day!
They were the cutest things ever at the 11 mile cheer zone. Each of them gave me a high five and were screaming my name!

My Madrina: who never misses a big day in my life. Thank you :)

Katie & Luis: He ran a half marathon...and then the next day ran a full marathon. Now that's crazy! LOL.

Kelly...it took a little convincing but she finally gave in to running the marathon!!! We did a lot of training together and always kept each other on point. It was quite an experience and I'm so happy we got to do this together!

After it was all over, we went to Cheesecake Factory for Harold's Birthday and then I hung out at Nancy's house. I took a shower and laid in bed...but I was so excited, I couldn't sleep. I actually got up and started writing in this blog. Jeff was working and Nancy and Harold went to sleep early, so I spent the whole night just thinking of this day.

I felt on top of the world today. I remember my very first run years ago. It was 0.8 miles and I thought I was going to die. I remember when my dad was running a bunch of marathons and the thought immediately crossed my mind to do one. I remember in 2005 when I started training for a half marathon but gave up after my knees kept hurting after six miles. I remember my first 5k race in Key largo...I felt so amazing and wanted to go for more. I remember seeing Nancy, Harold and Steve complete their first half marathon. It was so inspiring and I wanted to do it myself.  I remember when I completed the ING Miami Half Marathon and questioned if I could do the full thing.

But more importantly, I remember when I said I was going to do the full marathon!!
I texted Steve asking him if he was going to run the ING Half Marathon this year (I wanted to do it...because Tania was doing it too)
Steve replies: Planning on running the full enchilada with Mr. Larramendi. Wish us luck.
My reply: Whaaaat? Harold never told me that!! I wanna do the full too!
Steve: Awesome! The more the better. Only 160 something days left.
Me: Have you started training?? I asked Harold a long time ago to do the full with me and he didn't seem motivated. lol.
Steve: To tell you the truth, he never actually told me, guess we have to convince him. I'm training, did 8 miles last Sunday.
Me: WTF??? lmao!!! Omg I can not do 8 miles right now. Going to look up a training program.
Steve: Most of the programs are around 16 weeks so you have more than enough time.
Me: Omg I just got nervous. Please don't back out. I definitely won't do this by myself.
Steve: You think I'm gonna let you get two spinning medals before I get one. I'm kind of obsessed with this so I'm pretty sure I'm running.


HAHAHHA!! That is so funny. All I needed was someone to say they were doing it too and I was in!! LOL


I have to say...I really think training for the marathon was much harder than completing the marathon. I had to commit 5 months of my life to running. I was supposed to run three times during the week and a long run every weekend. It was very rare if I got all my runs in. Life was busy...and I had to find time to run. And it's not just the run that takes time.
Before the run...you have to get ready, stretch, etc
You spend 2-4 hours running
After the run...you're tired and want to sleep all day...you've just wasted an entire day! lol
You have to eat at a certain time because that affects the run...you have to go to sleep at a certain time because you don't want to be tired on a long run...you can't party hardcore on the weekend or else you'll skip the important long run. After a run, you're sore for 2 days and all you want to do is sleep. It consumes your life and it became stressful at times. It really just takes pure determination. It's also hard on the body. I was injured twice. In the beginning, it was heel pain...and towards the end it was shin pain.
The marathon, though, was 5hrs and 51minutes of mental strength and endurance...not five months! After all the effort that goes into training...5+ hours doesn't seem like much. I don't see how anyone could give up unless they were in excrutiating pain.

I keep looking at the map of the course with amazement. I seriously ran 26.2 miles. I keep thinking of all the times I set the odometer in my car and drove for 26 miles. I was scared shitless. I didn't think it was humanly possible to run that distance. But what I've learned is this: No matter how many times you hear this...it's absolutely true....you can do anything you set your mind to. What I like about running a marathon is that ONLY YOU can determine the outcome. If you decide to do it...only you can pick up your feet and train for it. Only you can move or not move. No one can run for you. It was an incredible challenge I set for myself, and I accomplished it. No one can ever take that away from me.
I also learned that when things get hard...real hard...like 'I can't move off the floor' hard...it's not the end. You pick yourself right up, smile, put two thumbs up (smile for the picture) and fake it till you make it :)

So what's next?
I have no clue. After my run, I decided that I could be persuaded to run another one...but that's only if I were to continue my running...and I wasn't so busy with life.  I think my endorphins were talking here.
Right now, the day after...I am sooo sore that my body is telling me, "Are you crazy...please don't put me through this again".

We'll see what happens...as of right now my next goal is GRADUATION! :)