Positive Results by Sabrina

How do you run a surprise Ultra Marathon? I still don’t know. 

Focus on your friends. Focus on supporting the people that you love because they’ve always been there for you. 

I set out with a goal of 15 miles publicly, 5 laps seemed doable. I imagined that if I was feeling good, I could do 6 laps, or I’d rest and then do little laps at the end with Michelle to help her achieve her 50K.

But a funny thing happened when I finally sat down to rest my ankle after 20 miles. Dorothy nicely suggested that I keep going and cross 26.2 off of my list. “You have so much time left. You can walk two more laps!” Who does that? I’ve made fun of so many people in the past for their accidental long runs. I don’t do that. I need time to prepare. I need to make sure my food is right and my hydration. I need time to stress and overthink everything. She suggested that I complete a marathon’s distance, with minimal preparation and training, when I was prepared to do 20, MAX. How do you do that?!?!

Well apparently, you just keep moving.

The Dirty Dozen Challenge from Brazen Racing, is completely different from any other race I’ve participated in to date. Where most races test how fast you can complete a set number of miles, this race challenges you to complete as many miles as possible in a set number of hours. Challengers had the option of choosing 3, 6 or 12 hour options, for which they could circle the trail loops and knock out their miles. The large loop is 3.37 miles and for the last hour of your challenge window you have the option of completing smaller loops of 0.42 miles. There were two beautiful, well stocked aid stations to keep us fueled and properly hydrated. There are bathrooms near both aid stations. Throughout the day they served warm pancakes, quesadillas and BBQ in addition to the regular trail race snacks. There really is no better place to push your muscles to the limits.

When I started talking to my other supportive friends, they agreed with Dorothy. I had plenty of time left in our 12 hour window to get the miles done, so why not go for it? My run/walk partners Michelle and Kari were still moving so I just moved with them. I didn’t tell my partner that I had changed my goal when I sent him my next text so he wouldn’t be stressed over what I was doing to my body. He was hours away in a class and didn’t need to be worrying about me *wink*. I DID tell RunRocketPT that I had changed my goal. She cautioned me not to overdo it but confirmed that she had time in her schedule to treat me this week IF I needed it. THAT, my friends, is an amazing friend, PT and Coach!! I hadn’t confessed to Dr. Irina that the main reason I had stopped to rest after 20 miles was that my ankle was hurting. During the only really narrow, downhill, sketchy spot of the loop, on my third loop, Mr. Barky had come up behind us with an aggressive desire to pass. At this point in the race, we had passed plenty of people, nicely saying “on your left” or “we’re going to pass on the left.” Unfortunately, I did not hear Mr. Barky until he yelled “left, left, left!” Startled, I tried to step further to the right to give him space and I twisted my ankle. A friend pointed out that he was wearing very large headphones which are usually frowned upon in races. I want to give him the benefit of the doubt that he didn’t realize how loud and aggressive he sounded. I also want to imagine that he didn’t realize how small the section was and that waiting for me to safely navigate the ruts wouldn’t have cost him the goal that he was chasing…I want to imagine…

I have been working on my fueling and hydration consistently since the last half marathon where I let dehydration get the best of me. I pay close attention to how I’m feeling and have been working to over hydrate prior to weekend long runs so I wasn’t too afraid of my body being dehydrated. I have also been working on consistently keeping strength training and mobility in my weekly routine. As with most busy Mothers, I do not always have time for a full, ‘trackable’ workout but I am focused on consistency. Sometimes it looks like doing five squats when I carry my baby from one room to the other, a few more while I’m washing dishes and a few more when I put the laundry in the dryer. When I get on the floor to play with the baby, I take a little concentrated time to focus on my stretches, ankle and calf work and notice any parts of my body that need a little more attention. It all adds up. I also consciously try to train on different surfaces. This is how I was able to bounce back from that rolled ankle. We know that trail running engages your body differently than street running. You’re working the muscles differently and strengthening your entire body differently. Consistently training and focusing on my whole body also means that as I finish editing this blog, three days after the race, I have none of the muscle fatigue that I always imagined I would have after a big race or big mileage. Even the next day I was more mobile and felt better recovered than I did after my very first half marathon.

Prior to this week, I teased that I haven’t officially started training for my Full Marathon yet. I’m doing base training to keep my body moving and learn to listen to it better. I’m training for life. I want to enjoy a long, healthy, active life with my family for a very long time. Between races, I work hard to maintain a general level of fitness and I can see now that it’s working. I have heard that at any given time, you can double your achievable distance but I never believed it. When I was being talked into my first half marathon, my boss told me, “If you can run a 10K, you can run a Half Marathon.” I didn’t believe her so I trained with doubt. 

From the Half Marathon to the full Marathon, I’ve had so much fear and trepidation. I didn’t even want to start training until I was done nursing my baby so that I could fully focus on my fueling without risking her nutrition but a friend issued a challenge and offer that I could not refuse, so here we are. And apparently, I CAN move for 27 miles when I have access to food and hydration and yummy trail treats and no time to overthink and stress.

I know that my secret weapon was to stay focused on my friends and their goals. The other secret motivator was the support to other runners around me. I was renewed by listening to the love shared between runners. I was spurred on by listening to a friend coaching another amazing woman, a curvy, ultra marathon runner who was struggling with a difficult loop. Hearing what she had personally achieved reminded me of the importance of visibility of all body types in these events. Hearing the pride in her achievement of her first 100K, fueled my legs to keep moving. Knowing that others can achieve great things but still feel so much pressure to perform, receive too much pressure from those around them to do ‘better’ instead of just celebrating their achievements was a slap in the face. It’s a regular story on the trails and roads. I know so many people who carry this burden and it reminds me of why I work so hard to keep putting myself out there as an athlete and a coach.

We are all here to live our own lives. If your goal is to run a certain race, in a certain amount of time, then let’s go. But if your goal is to run a certain race and just have fun, then let’s go! It is not anyone else’s job to tell you how you should run your race. Just like it’s not anyone else’s job to tell you how to live your life. Internet trolls waste their time breaking strangers down everyday and there may be little we can do about it. I want to believe we have a lot more control over the support we give to and receive from the people in our circles. It has taken many years, lots of therapy, learning and practicing for me to get to the place where I can hold my head up with pride as a Curvy, Mother of Color in athletic spaces. In as much as I’ve always looked around to find women that look like me, I will continue to show up and hope to be the person that someone else is looking for, that looks like them.