Things That Are Awesome About Training for a Marathon

Yup, it’s going to be all marathon all the time over here until at least 10/11/10. (Also, if you’re new here, you might want to check out my top posts page.)

I’ve been complaining a lot lately about marathon training, so I thought I’d tell you why it’s awesome. Tomorrow, I’ll tell you, in handy list form!, why it sucks.

Massage. You pretty much have to get a massage at least once during training. Sure, it’s because your muscles have basically been through a ringer, but a massage is massage.

Camraderie. There’s no faster way to get to know someone than to run with them. After a few long runs with Ashley, I’m sure we know more about each other than we do about most of our other friends. I’ve made friends through Tumblr, other blogs, DailyMile, Twitter and at the Healthy Living Summit, because of a shared love craziness for running. I’ve also become closer with friends that have been running forever.

Sightseeing. In training for this marathon, I ran in Hawaii, Chicago and D.C. In Hawaii and Chicago, I saw things I might not otherwise see; in D.C., I saw a side of my former city that I only caught glimpses of when I lived there. I also saw parts of NYC I’d never seen before.

Talking about taboos. Within minutes of meeting each other, Emily and I talked about poop. Within minutes of finding out my mom’s cousin ran marathons, we were talking about bloody nipples (much to my mom’s chagrin.)

Looking badass. I can’t count the number of people who’ve said something along the lines of “I can’t believe you can do that!” after I ran some double-digit run. While sometimes I still can’t believe I can do it, it’s always fun to play off like it’s no big deal.

Food. Once you’ve run 20 miles, you can basically eat whatever you want. In fact, you sort of have to, and you get to call it refueling and feel even more badass. Bagels become your new best friends, even if you’d previously sworn them off.

Muscles. It takes strength to run long distances, so you get a little more toned all over, and your legs get totally jacked.

Accomplishment. After I’ve finished a long run, I feel like I can do anything!