The Quest To Becoming A Marathoner

 It has been a LONG while since I've been on for an update. Jazz is out with friends tonight at a bachelor party, so here I am enjoying some time to myself to recollect over the past few months...

Well a few big things happened over this time. For one, I turned the big 3-0, and secondly, I ran my first ever marathon... both within a day of the other! A year ago, if someone told me that I would run a marathon, I would say no way on earth. Slowly but surely, however, my attitudes about this race distance changed. A large part in this shift in attitude was due to my training partners' zeal for this event. In the fall of last year I was completing every workout with Kristen as she trained for the California International Marathon, including a 20+ mile run. After this long run, a spark ignited. I HAD to run the 26.2, just to tell those people who, immediately when they find out that I'm a runner, ask the ever-popular question, "so do you run marathons?" I wanted to answer "yes" to that question in the worst way. For my sports nutrition clients, I wanted to be able to experience training and fueling for this distance so I could better relate to them. I wanted to be able to fully invest myself into a structured training program for just three months.

When I found out that one of my "bucket list" cities to visit, Asheville, NC, was hosting their largest local marathon a day after my 30th birthday, I knew that I was destined to run this race. After a tad bit of convincing, my husband pulled the trigger and signed up as well. Little did Jazz know that just three weeks prior to the race, his 2019 marathon dreams were dashed by a pick-up basketball game and his second lifetime Achilles tendon tear (this time the right foot...you know, just to even things out). Jazz has truly handled this injury like a champ and, after some needed grieving, he became my number one marathon supporter.

Training for this race began in December. Coach Evan Blackburn, Kristen's college coach at ORU, created a workout plan to follow, which took much of the stress out of race preparation. The three months leading up to the race required a lot of planning and early morning workouts prior to work, support from my training partners (thank you, Kristen, Kristi, Cat, and Jazz), and listening to my body when additional recovery was warranted. There were many good confidence building workouts through the training cycle, a few bad ones, and a few small injuries that crept into the mix to overcome (word of advice: don't run on uneven sidewalks in the dark). Thankfully my body was ready to go the week prior to leading to North Carolina with the help of a nice taper and some quality physio-therapy from Kyle. Asheville was right around the corner and I couldn't have been more excited.

Ashley in Asheville at the Marathon Expo

The trip to Asheville was everything I could have asked for and more. My only regret is that Jazz couldn't fully enjoy the experience with me, as his mobility was limited from his recent Achilles surgery. Despite this, we were fortunate to see and experience so much while we were there. Jazz even crutched up a mountain to see Catawba Falls. We wished we could have gone on more hikes, but we did drive some of the Blue Ridge Parkway and I was able to go on a rafting trip with my mom and youngest sis on the day of my birthday with the French Broad Adventures company (https://www.frenchbroadrafting.com). The French Broad River was really high the time we were there, so we hit some major rapids. Unfortunately, due to Jazz still being in the cast, he was unable to raft, but he did take some great pics, and we will definitely be back when he is fully healed if he has any say.

Jazz and I at Catawba Falls

Rafting trip through French Broad Adventures

One of my many training runs along the French Broad River

Not to be outdone by the natural beauty, the Asheville foodie scene and craft brewery scene was one for the books. A major highlight of this trip was the Eating Asheville walking food tour (https://eatingasheville.com). We opted for the "High Roller" food tour, where we toured a total of seven farm-to-table local restaurants, including Tupalo Honey, Strada, and Asheville Chocolate to name a few. Each restaurant provided a mini version of their signature dish and most served a signature cocktail as well. Strada, by the way, was my choice for my pre-race marathon meal to carbo-load with mouth-watering Italian food.

Eating Asheville Food Tour sampler at Table, home of Asheville's first James Beard nominated chef, Jacob Sessoms

Pre-race dinner at Strada

Craft beer sampler at Bhramari

The food tour began at Battery Park Book Exchange and Champagne Bar

Marathon morning was chilly. Normally I'm one to tough it out with minimal clothing during brisk temps, being from Iowa and all, but at 32 degrees my torso and toes were quite numb at the start, and I decided to wear a long-sleeve breathable base-layer to add some extra warmth. At the starting line, I had one of those "small world" moments when I lined up next to a guy from Tulsa all the way in North Carolina. Being a smaller race, my mom, sister, Brittney, and hubby all were there to wish me luck at the starting line, so that really helped calm my nerves knowing that they would be out there cheering me on where they were able. The first 10K of the course consisted of winding up and down paved tree-lined roads, which gradually opened to pass the lovely gardens of the Biltmore House. Soon after, we headed over to the "Wild, Wild West" side of the course, transitioning to dirt carriage roads running along the French Broad River through vintage farmhouses, vineyards, past the lagoon and equestrian center, and finishing along the Antler Hill Village, where the race began. Thankfully, the final segments of the course were very spectator-friendly, where I needed the push the most from my family and others lining the course.

Ready to run my first ever marathon!

As for how my body felt during my first marathon, the answer is not too shabby. I told myself that I needed to stay aware of my surroundings and "be present" during the race. For me, being present meant taking time to enjoy the scenery, smiling at the crowd, while still executing my race plan. Often times, I get so focused during the race at my pace, my position, and how I'm feeling, that I forget to savor some of the special moments of the race. This attitude of being in a constant state of awareness made me enjoy this race to the max. The scenery was so breathtaking. With a 1,000 feet elevation change throughout the course, this was definitely was not a PR course, but I knew that going into the race. Knowing that I would be running on challenging terrain actually took off a lot of pressure for having to run a certain time, even though I did have a goal of breaking 3:00 and breaking the course record of 3:09.

My pace was conservative from the beginning, averaging around 6:30 per mile through the first half. During the second half, run on the off-road section of the course for the vast majority, I actually had a few faster-paced miles, dropping a few in the 6:15-6:25 range. At this point, it was just me and the lead cyclist for the rest of the race. Mentally, I began having some negative thoughts at mile 18 when I realized that I still had 8 miles left, but I told myself to just take the race mile-by-mile, and overcame the self-doubt by slowly chipping away at the distance. Physically, the last 3 miles were where I "hit the wall." This being said, I did not completely fall apart, my legs just felt like sludge, and I think I averaged just around 7:00 per mile for the last three miles, well off of my previous pace. I could have cared less at this point, however. All I needed was to get to that finish line. Somehow, I lead for the entire 26.2 miles, crossing the line as not only the overall female finisher, but the overall finisher, period. My time was 2:52:32, a new course record by 17 minutes. https://ashevillemarathon.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/marathonoverall.htm

Asheville Marathon podium

Post-race, I could barely move, sitting on the toilet and walking down stairs were next to torture, but I would not change this experience for the world. After the marathon, I could now enjoy the rest of my birthday weekend touring the Biltmore House, riding the LaZoom comedy tour bus, driving down the Blue Ridge Parkway, and watching some more beautiful mountain sunsets. Crossing the finish line, if someone were to ask me if I would be willing to run another, there would have been a lot of hesitation. Now that I have had a few months to let this experience settle in, I can say with one hundred percent certainty that God-willing, there will be more. Hopefully, the next one I can train and race with my husband once again.

A trip to Asheville is incomplete without a tour of the Biltmore House