Today marks running 26.2 forty times. Worked my way up to it from a 4 month training block on my own. First one completed in January 2024.
I’ve learned so much from this distance.
Mostly about myself- for instance that I am much tougher than I thought.
Next that whatever I have been suppressing will inevitably come up during periods of exhaustion and I am usually able to gracefully let go of resentments or lost causes. Doing so seems to make my body and spirit feel physically lighter.
I’ve learned that my body has come to expect this about every week or every other week and if I skip, my mind gets quite cluttered.
I’ve learned that I can do it without water or food. That I can do it 6 days in a row. That 26 miles can extend to 40 if I have the patience- and hopefully more than that soon, since I did do 40 on one occasion.
From running in general I’ve deduced that it is the best way to get lean. I’ve never looked more toned than when I am in the running flow. I’ve seen horrible, exhausted, and sore days turn into the best running times and lifted energy. Some days I did it because I had someone in mind that I wanted to impress. Some days to prove how independent I could be. Others because it just felt good to run. Some to test how many days I could go in a row. Now I do it to get clean- mentally and spiritually. I haven’t quite found an experience that feels as purifying as 26.2.
And lastly I’ve learned which foods my body runs on best and I stick closely to it or else expect to have a bad time.
Now that I have 40 my goal is 50 and then 75 and then 100 of these. I want to expand into 100 miler- territory so it’s definitely time to start looking into what that will require.
MG33 Platinum 