Dubai Marathon 2017!

My 10th marathon.

My 9th marathon just 5 days earlier (this was on a Friday, the other on the Sunday prior).

Eek!

Needless to say, didn't know what to expect or feel, it came up so quickly. Felt I was more anxious about the recovery in between than the actual race itself!

As previously mentioned, legs seemingly felt okay except for that R vastus lateralis (VL). I taped it up before the run and put on compression shorts, which I've never actually run in. Thankfully, it psychologically worked, lol.

Fun thing is my good buddies that ran the Mumbai marathon with me were there and their excitement was contagious and I just tried to be calm and relaxed and take the run in a steady and as comfortable way as I could:

Then of course my fab running group, always super supportive: 

This run was different as pretty much right when I started running, my legs didn't feel as fresh as daises as it normally does when you start a run all nice and tapered. I did feel that VL from the beginning and just... kept busy chatting and talking to Team SA (South Africa)... we stuck together for the first 13-14km, and this was a great distraction. I kept my mind off the VL and... it did kind of work itself out and got in a nice groove where I didn't feel that in particular, just overall post-marathon slight tiredness in both legs. Team SA was great in holding me back, but then I felt like I got in a groove and forged ahead a bit. Then I held on to a steady pace for probably 20km or so, peaked at my watch and it was within fairly consistent and felt like I could maintain that pace. It wasn't a hard race pace, it was a sustainable pace. I remember passing a few of my fellow DCS runners and as it seems every year, it's that last 10ish km, phew. It just got soo hot out and... my legs REALLY started to feel heavy. Like REALLY REALLY heavy. Fortunately, it wasn't anything niggly, just HEAVY and... tired. So tired.

So that lst 10km was T-O-U-G-H. I was using all my positive mantra's, repeating to myself positive words, and using landmarks and things to keep me going. Like at 33km I knew that Nada and Branje, Rada's parents, were going to be there. Then at 36km it was the DCS table. Gosh, I looked like arse when I saw them, but it was good mojo. Then it was just a countdown. I literally felt I was hardly putting one foot in front of the other and felt like I was working soo hard, but yet going sooo slow. I did peak at my watch, and it was nearing and nearing 6 min/km. At that point, I felt I had given myself a good enough 'lead' to definitely be under 4 hours, although had been hoping for under 3:50, but then you get to a point in the run when you just want it to be over with and didn't care how I finished, as long as I finished. Must.Keep.Going. Those last few km just dragggggged on, again, one foot in front of the other, SUCH such heavy legs! Phew, can't even explain. FINALLY, it seems to take ages, I crossed the finish like at 3:49:49 - I DID IT!!!! I was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooosooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo happy to be D-O-N-E!!!!!!

Everyone else seemed to have suffered from the heat and had slower times than usual, so I didn't feel that bad, and it is only now, a few days later that I am thinking what a pretty darn great accomplishment it was to do 2 marathons literally within a minute of each other, 3:48 at Mumbai and 3:49 at Dubai, within 5 days of each other. Where there is a will, there is a way!!!

Am definitely taking some time off now, a week to be exact, he he, of maybe some gentle swim or yoga, now have a bit of cold (no wonder, really put my body under a test!), and just am savoring the glory of doing what I did, and ... then back to grind again!!

Won't put up my horrid looking pics, just some decent looking ones, he he:

As my dad would say, "Success is the promise you keep to yourself:"