I so badly want to tell you all about this marathon, but it’s 9 days post-race and I am still processing. The mental fatigue is real. I have really struggled to put pen to paper and that is why I decided to just give you this brief update and save the full rundown for another time. So for now I will leave you with this:

This race marked a 10 year anniversary and celebration of how far I’ve come since becoming permanently disabled. I have healed in so many ways mentally, emotionally, and physically over these past 10 years. I didn’t realize it when I signed up for this race, but it has served as a symbol of that healing. Completing this marathon marked a tangible victory representing a thousand little intangible victories that have happened over the past decade. I am truly grateful to all of the family and friends who have supported me through everything. All the difficult moments where I didn’t know if I could stand, literally and figuratively. I would not be here today without them. Drawing from my faith in Jesus Christ and the support from so many others, I was able to complete this second round of marathon training and ultimately, the epic 26.2 mile race at the end.

Now my only real goal for this second marathon was to beat my first marathon time, which was 6 hours and 59 minutes. I had trained for and run a half marathon at the end of May, so I took that into account when deciding where to jump into a marathon training plan. My official marathon training then began in June and I trained for an additional four and a half months. In that time I ran and walked 306.2 miles for a total time of 76 hours, 17 minutes, and 7 seconds. As for the race itself? I finished my last 26.2 miles in 6 hours, 20 minutes, and 4.8 seconds. And if you are having a difficult time wrapping your head around all that? Now you know why I’m still processing 9 days later. It was so much work and I doubted myself from start to finish, but I stuck with it and I completed my goal. No, I crushed my goal. Obliterated it. I am proud of myself for completing this monumental challenge and I may do it again someday, but for now I’m going to hunker down and rest. An aggravating part of me is really itching for the next big goal but I’m giving myself the time I know I need in order to decompress and recharge.

Thank you for following along with me on this marathon running journey. It has been truly unforgettable. Good night and God bless.