Leading up to the Yorkshire Marathon I was asked what my motivation for running it again was. This year, for me, it was seeing if I could do better! In my mind, I felt that I could complete a marathon within 4 hours but in previous years, my body had just not agreed!
Training had been limited over the summer, so I knew I had a lot of work to do in the last 8 weeks to even come close to being ready. I had managed to play catch up and had increased my distance, ensuring I spent time on the all-important strength training.
The week before hand, I had started to become obsessed with the weather app! Every time I looked-the forecast got worse. Thankfully, there were some knowledgeable and well-practiced ERC marathon runners giving last minute advice. A top tip I adopted literally a day beforehand was to not have a single goal in mind but an A, B and C plan. For me, that was A) finish within 4 hours, B) Finish around 4:10, and C) If all else fails, finish in one piece!
Despite the weather warnings, when race day came, I felt ready. I made sure I had a full set of dry clothes with me and dressed in a few layers knowing that it was likely I was going to get wet. I managed to have some nice chats with other fellow runners which inevitably was mostly in the toilet queue! The warmup started as did the wind, but at that point it was dry and as more people came to the start line, I was relieved to use the body heat of others to keep warm!
The countdown begun and we were off, it was great to have fellow ERC members cheering on at York Minster. There was lots of support through York city centre and then we headed out and I knew I needed to put some motivational music on and keep my head down. The other top tip I had received just before race day, was to keep an eye on my heart rate and stay within lactic acid threshold pace. I had quickly worked this out and knew I needed to be careful not to overdo it too soon. The first half of the run went smoothly and according to plan, then we got to Stamford Bridge. I knew this was where the work begun-the long slog up a slight incline to Dunnington to get to 19 miles. As the rain really set in and the wind was blowing, I got my head down and stayed focused, reaching Dunnington where my family were waiting in the rain to cheer me on.
As the final 10K was in sight, the weather really took a downturn. I heard someone saying, ‘it’s just four more miles!’ I knew at this point it was a mental challenge, four miles felt like still a long way to go. My tactic was to keep telling myself, ‘Don’t give up, just another couple of kilometres’ so that I get through another mile.
That last drag up towards the finish line was tough, but I knew if I could keep going, I’d be close to goal A. Finally, seeing the last 400m, the finish line was in sight. Soaking wet through and rather wind swept I crossed the line with my official time 4:01, swearing that it would be my last marathon.
A day later, feeling a sense of achievement, why did I run a marathon again? Well, it’s a huge overwhelming sense of accomplishment. Will I do it again? Probably!!!
Thanks to all the ERC members for support.
Georgina Robinson
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