All the reasons why you should run a marathon

My 1st Marathon. Cotton shirt, WalMart shorts, and no Hat.

I'm currently trying to convince my best friend Maggie Schwartz Wolff (isn't that an amazing last name?!) to run her first marathon. I'm so proud of Maggie...after years of telling me I was crazy to run, she finally signed up for a Half Marathon this past May and she trained and ran on her own. I couldn't believe it! Was this the same person who would call me crazy for running all these years? Apparently, the running bug with catch most everyone eventually. Even though running is an amazing workout , I don't think that is the key reason we love it so much. It is because it is so approachable, so easy to start. No real "gear" needed. Just a pair of shoes. No bikes, no "tri-shorts", no rackets. Just you, the road, and your shoes.

There is nothing like the last 100 meters

Maggie sent me this link to a woman's blog about the 10 Things to NOT tell First-time Marathoners. Although I think the list is pretty good, I'm not sure if focusing on what NOT to tell people is the right approach. For me, there is this whole list of things that you discover during your first marathon that will change your life. Here are my Top 10 Reasons why Maggie SHOULD run a Marathon (or any of you out there for that matter):

1. There is literally nothing in life that I have experienced like the feeling of the final 100 meters of your 1st marathon. Nothing, ever will compare. The sense of true, YOU accomplishment. Nobody else involved but your mind and your body. People often try to tell me that when you get married or have a child it will be better. I'm sure it is, if not better. Yet, neither of those moments are yours alone. Running your own marathon is truly yours.
2. You prove to yourself that you can do something that 95% of Americans wouldn't ever consider and 98% have never done. You are in an elite group....forever.
3. Gatorade never tastes as good as during and after a marathon. I'm not a huge fan normally, but at mile 23 of a marathon the sign of Gatorade makes you almost giddy. Different context can change anything.
4. You will meet the most amazing people. I still remember my 1st marathon. At mile 24 I almost collapsed (I was severely under trained) and these two women held me up and told me to keep running. I didn't get their names and I never saw them again. But, I will always remember them. They didn't care that I was sweaty and salty and overall nasty. They were there to help me with no ask in return.
5. Life is short and there are always excuses why not to. When are you going to stop coming with excuses why you can't and start focusing on why you can? I kept thinking during my 1st marathon that if Oprah and P. Diddy (he is just "Diddy" these days?) can, I can. And, it's true.
6. Even the most unextraordinary athlete is extraordinary on marathon day. The spectators treat you like royalty, kids give you high fives, and at the end of the day people say for weeks "I can't believe you ran a marathon- I could never do that." Exactly, you did it and most people are too scared to try.
7. You prove to yourself that pain is only temporary. Before you run a marathon, I didn't truly understand the idea of being in severe pain while running. When you hit the "Wall" in a marathon, it is debilitating and shocking. I'm not going to sugar-coat it. It is bad. But, the thing you will notice is that the body will bounce back. It will rebound, if you let it. And in a few miles you will feel better. After a marathon it is recalibrate you to what truly is painful.
8. Even though it hurts, you'll forget it. I've been told similar to childbirth, you forget the pain. The joy of accomplishment overshadows the pain. It also teaches you to forget the pain so you can do it again. Better yet, the 2nd time probably won't hurt so bad.
9. Sometimes dumping water on yourself just feels good. When else in life can you run around, get water handed to you only to dump it directly on your head? It is liberating!
10. No matter if you run it once or 50 times, once a marathoner, always a marathoner. You will have that title forever. I love the idea that when I'm 80, I can tell people I used to run marathons.

Amazing Feelings

When you are done, you can eat whatever you want. Really.

The more you run, the better you'll get at the photos