Congrats on the half. I’ve done the Philadelphia Marathon every year since 2011. It’s really one of the best races out there and it’s growing in popularity. Yesterday at the race start they said there were 37,000 runners. It’s a fast course with great scenery, and the weather is usually bearable. This year was some of the best weather I can remember. It was in the low 40’s at race start, so the shivering was kept to a minimum while I waited. I’ve unfortunately been injured since May, so I’ve barely run at all in that time. I decided yesterday that I would just run whatever I could and then walk the rest. It didn’t go that great. I only made it to around mile 4.25 until the pain got to be too much and I had to walk the remaining 22 miles. It was mentally exhausting, but at least my body felt pretty good afterward. I have no idea how I’m going to get through Dopey (it will be my 40th full marathon!) in January. I have ‘Perfect Dopey’ status which I have no intention of losing so I’m going to have to plow through it, but it’s definitely going to be a much different experience than in past years.
But I’ll reiterate: give your lungs time to heal properly, even when you feel better. Your body will tell you when it needs rest: best thing you can do is listen to it. Hang in there.
