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Chicago Marathon Race Re-Cap

Kathryn Wheeler
By Kathryn Wheeler
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AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you follow me on twitter or instagram (PeaceLoveOats) then you already know – I DID IT!

I RAN THE CHICAGO MARATHON!!!!!

It’s still sinking in, I can’t stop smiling! I can’t believe this all actually happened! I hope they post the race pictures soon So I can really believe it!

I tried to give you all a shortened version of the race recap… Haha as I was typing it kept getting a bit too detailed. Alright, get comfy because here goes the re-cap:

I slept surprisingly well and only woke up once, at 4, and then back up again at 5:20. I had half a banana with almond butter while I was getting all my stuff together (photo of partially eaten banana…), and I’m glad I had an hour because I took some time to just breath, say a prayer and relax.

photo 1 (12)

I headed out at 6:30, taking the L downtown. Girls On the Run had a space in a high school near the start so I headed down there to eat my pre-race fuel, stretch, and use the bathroom.

photo 1 (13)

Our corrals closed at 7:45 so I headed over and decided to use the porta potty one last time, haha nerves! The line took so long I almost didn’t make it into my corral, but luckily the people at the entrance were so KINDLY letting everyone in even if they were a minute late.

Waiting to begin I, again, was weirdly calm. I just don’t think it registered – I was standing there surrounded by thousands of people but I was so focused on making it through the marathon, thinking about each place I’d look for friends and family, how I needed to start slow and pace myself.

photo 5 (3)

Then we were off! The first few miles really flew by, winding through downtown. I was also surprised at how it wasn’t too crowded (the runners, not spectators – SO MANY spectators!), although I definitely still had to bob and weave to get around people.

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When we headed up LaSalle I expected that stretch to be awful since that’s the route my bus takes every day, but again it just flew! When I got up to Lincoln Park I was on the lookout for my family around mile 6 and I spotted them right away. Even Molly was there to cheer me on! Haha she looked very excited about all the people and the cheering.

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We were up to Addison and heading back south before I knew it. Around mile 8 my legs started to hurt, along where my IT bands are. I expected this since they’d done the same on all my recent long runs, but I just hoped it didn’t get any worse. At this point the course felt crowded with runners and I kept having to move around people. I saw the 4:25 pace group and freaked out. I was hoping for 4:15 so I started having a mini panic attack and picked up my pace! I had to keep reminding myself: run your own race, ignore them, you’re doing great!

I saw my family again at mile 9 and then we headed into Old Town where I saw Chelsey and Tina! I almost missed them but they saw me and yelled out!

We headed back into downtown and then made a right on Adams, passing the Willis Tower (most know it as the Sears Tower) and then out west! I hadn’t ever been that far and kept thinking “where in the world am I?!?!” I knew I wouldn’t see anyone for a while so I just tried to get lost in my head, singing along to songs. Each mile marker came and went and eventually we were heading back towards the city.

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Well… that’s what I thought was happening but looking at this map everything is making way more sense… Haha I was wondering where I was going! We also got to go through Chinatown which was SO COOL! It only lasted a couple blocks but it looked so pretty!

At this point I was getting hot (which everyone told me would happen but I didn’t believe since it was like 42 degrees) and really thirsty. From here on out the water stops could not come soon enough. I was drinking gatorade and water at many stops and then water only at ones right after taking a GU. I was taking a GU at every 4.5 miles and I based it on my garmin, not their mile markers, since I was technically running further than 26.2 with all the turns and weaving back and forth.

I saw Chelsey and Tina again at mile 20 (thanks for the candy corn ladies!) and I was supposed to see my family after that. I had taken off my long sleeve and gloves and was holding them, hoping to pass them off. However I couldn’t find them anywhere. At this point I got really frustrated but I kept telling myself: I REFUSE to hit the wall!

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I was slowing down a bit after 22 but I kept pushing, my legs were getting tighter and tighter but otherwise I felt pretty good. The sore legs was making it a LOT harder to bob and weave and I wanted to hit a few people! Don’t worry, I resisted. When we FINALLY turned around to head north I was really ready to be done but I kept on chugging. I tried to keep it under 10 min/miles but once we hit 2.2 miles left I picked it up. The last few miles weren’t as bad as I expected, I could barely move my legs but still, I felt way better than I expected. Once we hit the hill I knew I was almost there, I turned the corner and sprinted for the finish!

photo 2 (9)jh

(lol… no way to look pretty after finishing but I wanted to capture the moment! At least I took my visor off…)

After finishing I wanted to just fall over, unfortunately they make you walk like a mille to the family meet up area. It. Was. Ridiculous. Luckily I ran into Molly! We’d been following the same training plan for months and talking constantly, it was awesome that we got to celebrate with each other!

photo 5 (4)

photo courtesy of Molly!

The whole finish was kind of weird for me, it just didn’t’ sink in that I’d run a marathon! Haha I hurt like I’d run one but the whole thing went by so quickly that I couldn’t believe it was over! I spent four months training and BOOM! It was done! I was almost disappointed! Haha guess I’ll just have to sign up for another!

I never understood why people ran Chicago so many times, I always thought I’d want to run all different marathons. However, I totally get it now! And I’d love to run it again now that I better understand the course. It was such a cool race, with spectators lining the ENTIRE COURSE and getting to go through so many areas of Chicago! Plus it was pretty flat… Haha a few little “up-hills” but nothing that got me breathing too heavily! I would definitely run Chicago again!

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THANK YOU everyone for all your encouragement! I was BLOWN AWAY by all the comments on Friday’s post, as well as on instagram, facebook and twitter! I definitely thought of many of you during this race and it helped me keep moving!

 

Have you ever run a marathon? How did you feel?

 

Have you ever spectated a marathon or other race? (Thank you to my family and friends for running all over Chicago just to cheer me on!)

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114 COMMENTS

  4. Katie!!! This is all SOOOO exciting to read about!! Congratulations!! I know what you mean about training so long and having it be over in just a few short hours. That’s why I know I need to focus on the fact that I put in all the work I could and just go out and run it as best I can — which it sounds like you did!!
    It sounds like you had such a great time!! You should know that you are a real and true inspiration — going from “not a runner” to finishing a marathon strongly — you’re perfect for GOTR and for blogging, others will definitely be led to follow in your shoes.
    Enjoy a good rest today!! Take care of those legs, and bask in the victorious glow for as long as you can. 🙂

  8. Congratulations on such a great race, Katie! Believe it or not, I actually wasn’t able to spectate any of the race other than the first three or so minutes of the start, but I was tracking both you and Emily by text update, and every time my phone went off I got SO excited for both of you 🙂 I’m so impressed by your dedication to your training and your ability to run 26.2 miles. You’re totally inspirational, and I can’t wait to *hopefully* do the same thing you did next year!

    • Awww thanks for following me!!! And I bet you’ll do it next year, it’s amazing what you can do when you just follow the training plan!

  11. WOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOO so proud of you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! you are fabulous!!

    i’m still super bummed i didn’t see you. i wore my HP scarf just for you to make you smile during the race!

    hopefully next year ill be running beside you 🙂

    • I know, I wish I’d seen you too! I tried looking but there were soooo many volunteers all wearing those hats! You all looked alike! and you will MOST DEFINITELY be running it next year!

  19. CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! I’m so happy for you! What a great accomplishment!!
    Just a friendly reminder from an injured runner – take some time to rest now. You won’t want to, but force yourself to sit and relax and ease back into running!
    Congrats again!!!!! Or as I learned to say in Russian: Поздравляю с марафоном!

  20. Congrats! Looking at your results you ran a super strong race. Almost totally even splits! That’s amazing. Great job.

    And we need to get you out west a bit more so you know where you are next year 🙂

  21. Congratulations Katie! I stumbled on your blog 6 months ago when I was training for my first marathon. It has been exciting to read about the build up to the big race. Wahoo! You are a marathoner!

  25. AWESOME JOB! I am so impressed 🙂

    I will be running my first full marathon in the spring, in Oklahoma City. I am already looking forward to my second one, though, hopefully in Chicago 🙂

  27. Congrats!!! YOU ARE A MARATHONER!!! And OMG what a WONDERFUL MARATHON! Up until now I had a sotra rule never to do the same marathon twice. I am hooked on Chicago. Can’t wait until Feb. to sign up!!!

  37. Great job!! Sounds like you felt exactly how I felt when it was finished. I do understand now why people love Chicago’s marathon so much. Oh and yes it felt like forever until we got to the family meet up area.

  39. WAY TO GO!!!! You worked hard and it paid off!! Maybe someday I’ll run a marathon….sort of scares me though! I love the half marathon length…I’m not sure if i could handle doubling it…

    • You’d be surprised what you can do if you just follow the training plan! I didn’t even run my first half until this past March!

  40. Wow, Katie – what an amazing first marathon! You are seriously inspiring, and should be super proud!
    (Sad side note – of all the years growing up in chicago, I never knew anyone that ran the marathon there! I’d love to go to (probably not run, haha) the event one of these years!)

  41. i loved reading your recap! recaps are so much more fun when i know exactly what you’re talking about! SO SO SO glad i got to see you at the finish line and i can’t wait to be back in chicago to meet up when we’re not completely wiped from a measly 26.2 mile run 🙂

  48. You mentioned that you were taking in fuel based upon your watch and not the road mileage, since you actually run further than 26.2. Out of curiosity, how much further overall did you run due to zig-zagging and not running in a perfectly straight line?

      • Oh that’s not bad at all!! I thought it was going to be like, a 26.2 mile course and you’re running 29 or something. That would just be terrible. If that was the case, I’d probably just stop at my watches 26.2 and call it a day.

  57. Yay Yay Yay!! You ran a marathon Katie – congrats! It sounds like you had a great race too.
    I thought the course and crowd support were amazing! It makes sense why people would run Chicago more than once.
    Really, so awesome – you should be proud! 🙂

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