I’ve been pretty bummed out the last couple of months due to health reasons.
Incredibly, the throat infection I contracted two days after completing the full marathon has stayed with me until today. It’s progressively got worse, then better, then worse again, over and over. I’ve been to the doctor three times and taken two courses of antibiotics and I still wake up every morning with a sore throat and phlegm.
During this season, not only have I completely lost my passion for running, but I’ve even lost my passion for exercise in general. My joints still flare up with residual pain regularly and my fitness level has just plunged all the way to rock bottom – I don’t remember feeling this weak and unfit for two years.
This is what the marathon did to me. It was honestly the worst fitness decision I’ve made in my life – to run it without training. It placed my body in a state of complete disequilibrium and although I’m very sure that I will get back to 100% again, it’s an unexpectedly long process, made worse by illness.
This is definitely a setback to my fitness goals which was supposed to be accomplished by 31 December. I accomplished half of them but it’s clear that the rest will have to be shelved until next year because I’m not even starting from ground zero right now – I’m starting in the negative region to get my body back to a balanced equilibrium again.
Now I’m not claiming that this happens to everyone who runs the marathon without training. I’ve read through a lot of experiences and I don’t think what happened to me is a common thing at all. But it was definitely the one, big trigger event which caused everything else to break down one by one.
So I’d recommend anyone who asked me about the full marathon not to do it unless they were able to properly follow the standard training schedules provided. It’s really not worth the trade off.
And I’m not ever running that distance again. Whilst the rest of my running friends target ultra-marathons next year, I think I’m going to be satisfied setting my limit at 21km (half marathon).
Now, the question is whether I can survive the Commando Challenge with my super fit sister in exactly…10 days time.
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