Happy Friday! If you celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you had a great day…we had a wonderful holiday with both of our families in our new home. It really was a blessing…and I can’t wait to eat the leftovers!
Somehow time continues to fly and it’s the last Friday of November, meaning it’s time to share my Runfessions, aka running confessions along with Marcia from Marcia’s Healthy Slice!
Since I am still riding the high of completing my very first marathon, I thought I’d share some “real talk” about some of the less savory moments of the race.
[bctt tweet=”If you saw my Philly Marathon recap, now it’s time to “get real” and share my running confessions aka runfessions! #runchat” username=”Janelle_RWNR”]
Runfessions – Marathon Edition
I am so proud to say that I completed the Philly Marathon and I am grateful that I made it through in one piece, especially with the wild winds we had to endure! But I did have some unexpected surprises, which I alluded to in my recap post. I thought I’d provide a few more details about the less glamorous things about the race, plus some typical Janelle rants with my runfessions, LOL!
I Nearly Had a Potty Emergency…Multiple Times
One of the most unpleasant parts of the race was having GI issues during a large portion of the course. I may have been 5 miles in when I felt my first “twinge”…but because of where I started in the corral, there never seemed to be an opportunity to use a port-a-potty. Lines galore.
During my training, I only had one long run where I needed to stop to use the potty. Why oh why would I have this issue at the worst possible time? I gotta blame the flatbreads from Saturday night’s dinner.
When I ran the Broad Street Run back in 2012, I really had to pee during the race…but this was WAY worse than having to pee. I would feel fine for a while, and then suddenly, the danger of a really bad accident would come with a vengeance…thankfully, the worst never came to blows (literally), but I had a couple of close calls…
I Don’t Like the Marathon Medal
Call me crazy, but I was disappointed when I saw the marathon medal. I don’t like the shape and I don’t really care for Independence Hall. I guess it’s better than another Liberty Bell, but the 2015 medal looked so much cooler!
Bret ran the Philly Marathon in 2012 and they had HUGE medals that year. I’m really not a bling chaser at all, but considering this may be the only marathon I ever run, it would have been nice to have a cooler medal. Just sayin’!
I Split My Pants
Yes, I actually split my pants. I didn’t realize until I was finished with my race that I had two holes in my tights where my thighs rub together….and they weren’t small either! I used Body Glide on that area that morning, something I normally don’t do when I’m wearing tights, but I guess they just couldn’t handle the friction over 26.2 miles! I’m glad that I didn’t pay too much for them because I’ll have to throw them out! I checked my pictures and thankfully the split wasn’t visible, lol.
My Post-Marathon Massage Stunk!
I had the day off on Thanksgiving Eve, so I scheduled a sports massage at a nearby spa in Chestnut Hill. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the right place to go. My massage therapist was really nice, but she hardly used any massage oil (who wants a dry massage?) and she was way too gentle on my legs. She told me that with a deep tissue massage the pain should be around a 7 out of 10, but I’ve had more pressure applied during a Swedish massage, which generally costs a lot less! Because I’m an idiot, I didn’t speak up, but I was so frustrated because my quads, hamstrings, calves, everything…were begging for attention.
I ended up paying $130 at the end of the day for a very expensive backrub and patdown. I guess my legs didn’t really need a massage after all.
The Philly Marathon Is Most Likely a One and Done
I mentioned this already in my recap, but I wanted to get into a little more detail. I think the Philly Marathon is a really good race, but they’re going through some growing pains right now. This was the first year that they split up the half and full so I think they need to make some adjustments to ensure a successful race weekend for all of the runners. Communication needs to be substantially improved. The crowds were way too thin for a race of this size. And I would have loved to see more entertainment on the course. They introduced a Rocky Challenge where you would run the half marathon and full marathon in the same weekend, but it wasn’t well publicized (not that I would be crazy enough to do it anyway!).
I like running in new places, so I would love to run a different marathon one day, but where? I have heard great things about the Marine Corps Marathon and the Chicago Marathon, plus NYC looks like an amazing experience. I’m in no hurry to get back in the saddle, but I do get concerned that I won’t always have the luxury to spend so much time marathon training. Philly was a great introduction to marathon madness, so who knows where I’ll end up next year!
What crazy things have you experienced running a marathon or other race?
I’m sorry that your massage didn’t go well 🙁 I actually had a deep tissue massage a few days after my marathon and it was pretty painful while i was getting it done, but then i felt better the next day. I think it’s always a hit or miss when it comes to massages!
Yeah I need to remember that just because the place is “fancy” it doesn’t mean that you’ll get better service…grrrr! But thankfully I did start feeling better in the following days.
Oh wow, I never even thought about rubbing holes in tights for a marathon — I could definitely see that happening to me! And I hate when something new crops up during a race.
That’s too bad about the medal, too. I’m not really a bling chaser either, but nice medal always makes me smile afterwards!
Yeah, I didn’t either LOL…thankfully I didn’t notice as it probably would’ve freaked me out!
The medal is “okay”, I’m just not in love with it…still. LOL.
Can I say how much I love your runfessions? LOL on not loving the medal! I actually have heard that about Chicago–the medal is very understated, which I actually like. To each his own, I guess.
You can always talk to me about the tummy issues. Man. I know all about that. And it’s completely unpredictable. Altho before a marathon, my nerves usually take care of things…
Haha, thank you!! You always have good runfessions that crack me up. I can understand a “simple” medal, I was just hoping for a round one for some strange reason!
Yeah, I think my pre-race dinner caused my tummy issues…but I held on for dear life thank goodness!
OMG those are ALL sucky things! I’ve never heard of tights wearing/tearing due to friction. That’s so wrong. Thank heavens the holes didn’t get too big. Yikes. I have a couple of marathon medals that disappointed me. If/when you ever get the urge for another go, I can vouch for all 3 of the races you mentioned. NYCM, Chi and MCM are all fantastic. And if you pick Chi you’ll get the bonus of the blogger pressbox at mile 13!
😀
I think I need to invest in some higher quality running pants HAHA.
Chicago would be amazing!! Argh, still don’t know what I would want to do next!
So glad your GI nightmare never became a reality – I think those close calls come with the territory. Bummer on the massage. I usually put up with more pressure than I should, but too little would be disappointing. Glad to hear your thoughts on Philly.
Yeah the GI thing would have been really, really bad…and then I would’ve noticed the holes in my pants LOL! Glad I held it in haha!
And that massage…lesson learned…speak up!
As someone who really does care about the bling, I understand how you feel being disappointed about a medal that was so much better the year prior. I actually like your medal, but have found that generally marathon medals aren’t quite as great as shorter distances. Maybe race directors think that runners intense enough to run a marathon don’t really care as much about the medal? False assumption race directors! I’ve done Chicago and NYC and would recommend them both. I haven’t done MCM, but have also heard great things!
Yes, these race organizers need to get with it and make the marathon medals a lot cooler, haha! Chicago, NYC…I can only imagine the amazing energy! Hard to decide!
Congrats again on your marathon…that is so cool and impressive!! That wind on Sunday was no freaking joke!!
OMG on your GI issues…that was probably really scary!!
Glad your holes werent noticable…wheew!
Oh girl….sorry to hear about your non massage….that totally sucks for sure!!!
I have heard great things about NY, Chicago and Richmond….I think either would be a good choice for a 2nd marathon. I have heard good things about MCM as well but the course got changed due to our train system and it was more hilly that usual because of that.
Thanks so much, Tamieka! The wind was crazy but thankfully it didn’t stop me completely! I’ve been hearing good things about Richmond but haven’t looked into it, so thanks. Yeah that was the most expensive non-massage I’ve ever had SMH!
My experience at Grandma’s Marathon (June 2015) was a similar stressful experience regarding GI issues. Thankfully, no accidents….but there were porta-pot stops every mile (for several miles) about midway through the course. I probably lost (gained?) a good 15-20 minutes of race time, thank you very much LOL
Darn GI issues! I really wanted to stop but I just didn’t want to deal with a line so I struggled onwards LOL.
I could write a book on the crazy things I saw at Chicago. All.the.bodily.fluids.and.functions. 😉 Thankfully, you had no potty emergency! That is a great race picture. Your smile says it all. And nope, I don’t see the split. LOL.
Oh boy…I can imagine!! And the smells too I’m sure lol! Thanks a lot, I’m glad I had such great photographers on the course!
The massage thing happened to me too in the past. I was soooo looking forward to a great massage and had hardly any pressure. I should have spoken up, but didn’t. I think the key is finding a massage therapist you go to regularly, so I feel your frustration, especially at that price.
I too wasn’t a big fan of the Paris marathon medal. I liked it well enough, but I didn’t find that quality all that great.
I will definitely speak up next time! I was thinking about starting to see a massage therapist more regularly, clearly that’s the way to go!
The medal is slowly growing on me…LOL. Of course it’s more about the experience!
It honestly is a bit of a bummer when you don’t care for the medal, especially when it comes to marathons. That means you just need more of them 😀 but seriously, it will grow on you. I hated the shirt for MCM, and I held on to it for a few years, and then finally rehomed it (yes, I realize that this is different from the medal)
Haha you’re right, I need more marathons in my life! Gosh, I hope I can do another one, but still don’t know what to do! Maybe it’ll grow on me in a few years? LOL I’m still not there yet haha!
Thanks for your honest review on the Philly Marathon. I haven’t mentioned this publicly yet, but I plan to do Philly next year. The lack of crowds is actually a plus for me since big crowds tend to annoy me. But I’ve heard the same thing that they need to do better with communication and promoting things.
I’m glad you liked my recap! I think Philly is a good race, but I was hoping for more crowd support, and being in the last corral didn’t help matters. I think they will keep making improvements over the next couple of years. I hope you enjoy it!
I’m disappointed with the medal too! After the liberty bell medal from 2015, I was looking forward to something spectacular…and this medal just isn’t great.
Glad you didn’t realize about the hole in your pants until after the race! You’d have been worrying about it if you’d noticed earlier!
Okay, I’m glad to know I’m not the only one not crazy about the medal LOL. That 2015 one…just gorgeous. If you ever check out the one from 2013 it was HUGE!
Your runfessions are so funny. I’m so glad you didn’t have an accident! Truth be told, you probably shouldn’t have a really firm massage so soon after your marathon because you’re still in recovery (so my massage therapist who is AWESOME says) and there’s a lot of muscle damage. But, that probably wasn’t the best place to go for that. I hope you find another better place. Have you been to Mellow Massage in East Falls? I used to go there all the time, and there were several people I really liked.
Thanks, Sonia! You know I really wanted to go to Mellow Massage but they weren’t available! I went there once years ago and loved them, so I’m thinking about heading back there – thanks for the tip!
I was debating how many days to wait before getting a massage too…lesson learned for sure!
I was looking for you on race day! Those winds were super crazy andI totally agree- I think I am done doing the Philly marathon for awhile–it’s the same course every year! Great job on finishing!
Sorry we didn’t get to meet up! I was so late getting to the start plus all the way in the back. Congrats to you! Yeah, Philly will definitely be a one and done for me!
These actually cracked me up. The GI issues are the WORST during marathons. I can’t believe your tights rubbed through! At least it didn’t bug you during the race. I’ve never had a good post-marathon massage, tbh. They’re never hard enough.
I quite like the medal, but I understand why you don’t!
LOL! Yeah I’m glad I didn’t notice the holes in my pants, I would have been mortified!
I should be glad that the medal isn’t the typical Liberty Bell for once haha!
I LOVE LOVE your honesty 🙂 Finishing a marathon (or whatever goal-distance race) is amazing! But there is always some stuff that just stinks, too!!! I can relate to EACH ONE of your points!!! Been there.
Haha…I had to “go there”…that’s why I love runfessions, lol!