Our Walking Forum game leader, Frogee, walked her first marathon in November 2007. How did she do it? Read her story and my thoughts on what can be learned from her experience.
Frogee: I registered for the 2006 Silicon Valley Marathon. But because of a change in a surgery date, I had to cancel [my participation]. I was able to roll my registration over to the 2007 marathon. I had surgery on August 11, 2006 and, on August 13, 2006, I took my first training walk while in the hospital. I passed out on that first walk. Slowly, I built myself up to walking any time that I had free time to spare. I began taking Wendy Bumgardner's e-mail training course for a full marathon around early July 2007.
Take-Home Advice: Frogee trained the right way. She spent time building up her regular walking schedule, then went into full training gear 18 to 20 weeks before the marathon. Always give yourself enough time to train fully -- especially for your first marathon.
Marathon Training Mistakes
The Night Before and the Morning of the Marathon
Frogee: The day before the marathon, I spent time getting things together that I might need. I picked up my marathon packet, which consisted of my bib (race number), timing chip, and a T-shirt. That night, I went to bed at a decent time and laid in bed for 2 hours trying to fall asleep. I guess I was a little bit excited.The day finally arrived. I started my morning at 4:00 a.m. with a large glass of water and a breakfast that consisted of an English muffin and a banana. I put on sunscreen and slathered my feet with Vaseline. My husband suggested that he drop me off and then pick me up later. The walkers had a 6 am start. The marathon volunteers were just setting up the starting line [when I arrived]. Everyone lined up. We had a 30-second count down, and we were off.
Take-Home Advice: Frogee's marathon breakfast sounds ideal to me. You want to opt for bland food that has plenty of carbs, but is easy to digest.
Marathon Race Day Tips
You need good foot preparation to help prevent blisters for as long as possible. Every mile you spend on blistered feet means more aches and pains from the change in your stride that occurs as a result.
Blisters and Chafing on the Marathon
On the Course
Frogee: I started out at a moderate pace, as I remembered to save some energy for the finish. I met a woman named Karen while walking, and we walked together for the first 3 miles. Shortly after, Karen and I separated, and I put on my headphones and listened to my walking music.I kept track of my timing. After walking for an hour, I switched to the sports drink. I also took a banana from the aid station for later. There were some volunteers along the way to cheer people on. I appreciated it. At 7:20 a.m., I was at mile 4 and the first runner passed me. He was running a 4-minute mile, a pace much faster than I would ever want to move.
Take-Home Advice: Pacing is very important to make it through the marathon. There is always a temptation to head out fast -- especially if there is a cutoff point somewhere on the route. Many people like to pace with a friend or group, but I find that I do best when I go alone at my own pace.Marathon Pacing
Frogee: At mile 5, I made my first port-a-potty stop. A marathon runner told me that he was going to stop drinking water because bathroom stops slow him down. I encouraged him to continue to drink and not get dehydrated. I got rid of my throw-away pants and was quickly on my way.
I was shooting for a 20-minute mile, and I calculated my pace [at mile 8] to be a little faster. At mile 9, I calculated my timing and I was 24 minutes ahead of schedule. When I hit the Los Gatos Creek Trail, there were many runners hiding off into the bushes to relieve themselves. A runner who passed me by had a cheek hanging out. I laughed and told him, "Your cheek is showing." He fixed it and gave me a thumbs up.
At the mile 10, the heel of my left foot began to feel a little warm and a toe on my left foot started to hurt a bit. At mile 11, I called my husband to tell him I was doing fine. At the half marathon mark, I pulled over to the side and sat down to change my socks and re-slather my feet with Vaseline. My legs felt a little weird when I stopped, and my hands would not work too great, but I was able to get my shoes off and I looked at my heal. There was no blister, and nothing noticeable on my toe, so I got up and walked on.
At this point I was now headed back in the direction I started from. Just after the halfway point was a bit of a hill climb. Normally this hill would have been an easy walk. But by this point, my feet began to hurt on the uphill, the downhill, and anything else that was not flat. I began to tell myself to just make it to the top of this hill. I did, and on I went to mile 15 when my husband called to check on me. I was getting sore, but still doing fine.
Next Page: Frogee Finishes Her First Marathon
