Rome Marathon (my marathon debut)
A few weeks ago, I set three goals for my first marathon:
- Finish with a good feeling
- Complete it in under 3 hours
- Get close to 2 hours and 50 minutes
I managed to achieve goals number 1 and 2! I'm very happy with that, considering I've never run a marathon before. I didn't know what I was getting into. For me, this was a very instructive race, as I tested myself both physically and mentally.
Running 42.195 km is very demanding. If you're considering running a marathon, you should train a lot. Not necessarily hard, but you should run a lot of distance/kilometers.
I have taken a long time to prepare, but maybe I should have had even more time? Nevertheless, I had a decent foundation before starting my marathon training. This is because I've been running for over 15 years. Now it's time for a period of rest before I prepare for more races and goals in 2023.
If you're planning to run a marathon, I can really recommend going to Rome! The city is absolutely fantastic. The start and finish are at the iconic Colosseum. They entertained us with 9 fighter jets flying over the audience and releasing colors in the Italian flag as the starting gun went off. You run through well-known places such as the Vatican City. The course was easy and felt fast, a little cobblestone, but mostly asphalt.
Did this give me a taste for more? Yes, definitely!
Now I know a bit more about the distance. I started slowly and increased my pace throughout the race. Can I run faster? Yes, I probably can, but I need even more training. It was nerve-wracking to stand on the starting line knowing I was going to run 42 km as fast as I could. How would my body handle this strain?
I felt good all the way up to 37 km. Then it started to get tough, but I managed to keep up the pace until there were only 2 km left. Crossing the finish line was so good! Seeing that I actually reached my goal! I could hardly walk afterwards and all the blisters started to sting.
Thank you for the trip, RunAgain, it was great to be on a trip with you! I'm a proud ambassador!