The blog post that started it all
Marni Sumbal, MS, RD
February 3rd, 2007.
My very first blog post.
You would think my first blog post would be a post would be something along the lines of me introducing myself to the world or talking about something positive or happy in life. But sadly no.
Instead, I decided I needed a creative outlet to write about my very first DNF (Did Not Finish) race.
Since then, I have written close to 3000 blog posts. I've had over 2.5 million blog views.
I've written about triathlon, running, and bike races. Going back to school for my dietetic internship. Went in depth about my accomplishments, setbacks and failures. I've shared my travels, events, recipes, nutrition tips, fueling suggestions, motivation tips and pretty much anything and everything about my life.
And of course, plenty of animal pictures - especially of our furry children.
Even though blogging does take out a big chunk of my time each week, I'm not planning to stop blogging anytime soon. A a writer, it is the best outlet for the many thoughts that circulate in my head, it's a great way to educate others and I love being able to refer back to special times in my life that I have documented through my blog.
Although my first blog was written nearly 13 years ago (when I was 25 years old), I find it very ironic that I wrote about the only race that I started but didn't finish.
But you know what? That's life. It's not all rainbows, unicorns and sunshine.
It's normal to have bad days, failures and setbacks...it's all part of living. And you really can't value your great moments unless you have bad moments for comparison. And this is true for racing and pretty much anything in life.
We all have great days, good days and days that we don't want to remember. So while it is important to highlight the great days (because we often take them for granted), it's important to not let the bad days get the best of you. It's just part of being human.
I hope you enjoy a walk down memory lane with my very first blog post that started the Trimarni blog thirteen years ago ........
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Well, that's right-no finish time for the miami marathon.
I never thought it would happen to me....
For the first time ever, I got injured during a race.
Even worse, first time I have been injured since I started training for triathlons/marathons. What a Bummer! The marathon, all together, wasn't the best for me.
Started out really rough, standing for over 30 min before the start in the pouring rain, only to start the race with soaking wet shoes and the rain to finally stop. Next part of the the race, which went bad, was when I ran up the first huge causeway and my shins and calves starting killing me. Quads hurt, everything hurt really...well, except my heart. Heart rate was fine and I wasn't showing any signs of fatigue, besides in my legs. However, I ran through it, stopped in 3 port o potties, then at mile 11, I felt like I had just started running! I was a brand new woman.
I guess that is why I love endurance events. Nothing like a 11 mile warm-up!
From miles 11-19 I was just dropping pace (as you saw in my 10K splits) from over an 8:30 pace to almost 5 consecutive miles of sub 7:50 pace. And even better, I was seeing a sub 3:35 finish, when at first I didn't see anything less than 4 hours! However, at mile 19.5 my achilles just throbbed with pain. I was wondering what was going on...I've never been injured during a race before! I didn't know how I could run anymore, but still tried. It was like a poor ironman shuffle.
However at mile 20 had to walk. I knew the shuffle run wasn't normal Marni running style and I felt tired cause I was using muscles that weren't designed for running a marathon. I tried to run, stretch, whatever just to keep going and it wasn't until mile 22 that I couldn't make it anymore. 4 more miles of walking in pain or just stop.
Although it was at mile 22 that I debated about stopping, it was at mile 20 then I started the self talk about my reasons for going or reasons for stopping.
The tears were being held back by my pride that I still have many more races. However, when you hear a person in the crowd yelling "you can do it, just 4 more miles" all I could do was tilt my head down to the ground and keep walking.
Why why why I asked, but sometimes there isn't always a "Because".
It just happened and it is overwith. What a bummer and it just sucks! No other words around it, but I'm thankful there is no tear or sprain, just some tendonitis or inflammation.
But to be so passionate about running and see people running right by me, it was sad for me cause I just love that feeling of running.
The energy, the endorphins, the feeling of moving forward and being so easy. This was not the way I would have choosen the outcome to be for that race, especially after my horrible first half of the race.
I even debated about stopping at the half and just finishing without a medal, but my Marni spirit took over and I just wanted to keep running.
It took a lot for me to stop and I am glad that I did. The foot is getting better and I am anxious to move on and look forward to my upcoming race season.
This just shows me that I even more appreciate what I do, ever morning, of every day. waking up, excited to train, not worrying about anything hurting me or feeling weak and just loving every minute of my life, regardless if I'm swimming, biking or running.
I'm ready to train hard and work even harder for the upcoming season. I am very thankful that I have a strong heart and a positive mentality when it comes to racing and training.
